The Corner Bar's forest green trim is still there. So is the polished mahogany bar. But after nearly 50 years as the same family-run tavern on the corner of Main and Bay streets, the Sag Harbor institution reopened Friday under new ownership as simply The Corner, with a menu of $44 lobster rolls, mahi mahi tacos and a strawberry basil habanero margarita.
New owners John and Kelly Piccinnini closed on the purchase of 1 Main Street for $4.4 million in February, partnering on the real estate deal with Manhattan-based Hildreth Real Estate Advisors while keeping sole ownership of the restaurant business themselves, according to Hamptons Real Estate Showcase. As Newsday reports, John Piccinnini said taking over the eatery is truly an honor and that he intends to handle it seriously, while also planning to keep it a local, affordable place where everyone can go.
Kelly Piccinnini described The Corner as a gastropub with a coastal flair, the outlet notes, and the couple also own The Clam Bar and Sett Coffee. Kelly grew up in the East End food service industry through her family's long-running roadside eatery, The Clam Bar on the Napeague stretch, which her stepfather Richard Ehrlich established in 1981 and her mother Betsy Flinn later operated before the Piccinninis took over in 2023, per Hamptons Real Estate Showcase.
A Nearly 50-Year Run Comes to a Close
Sag Harbor's Corner Bar served the village for almost 50 years before closing in February, per the same account. The original spot was co-founded in February 1978 by the late Jim Smyth alongside business partner Dan Locastro, according to Southforker. Smyth ran the restaurant until his death in 2017, and the pub remained under the Smyth family's oversight — placed in a trust for Margaret Smyth — until the February closing, Newsday reports.
Jim Smyth passed away in June 2017 at age 66, after which a portrait of him inscribed with “his true wealth was in his generous heart” hung on the tavern's wall until closing, as documented by Newsday. He had operated the tavern for nearly 40 years as a kind of town living room. Rhodi Winchell, sister of former trust beneficiary Margaret Smyth, worked as a server at The Corner Bar on its inaugural night in 1978 and remained employed at the pub all the way through its final closing this year — a rare thread of continuity across the venue's entire run.
The original Corner Bar held its final last-call farewell party on February 8, where former Sag Harbor Village Police Chief Tom Fabiano addressed the crowd and musician Nancy Atlas, a former six-year waitress at the pub, performed atop the bar, according to The East Hampton Star. The send-off underscored how central the tavern had been to daily life in the village for generations.
Staffing Turnover Preceded the Handover
The transition wasn't without friction. In November 2025, before taking control, the incoming owners notified long-time managers and bartenders that prior management would not be retained, which prompted local debate over staffing continuity before the new owners opened interviews to former employees, the East Hampton Star reported.
Physically, the new owners have tried to bridge old and new. The Corner has kept its existing forest green trim and accents along with a refurbished and polished mahogany bar, and added new leather banquette seating. The updated decor also includes retro sports pennants and nautical sailing flags added throughout the dining space to honor Sag Harbor's maritime history, according to Patch.
What's on the Menu at 1 Main Street
The Corner officially reopened for dinner and bar service Friday, expanding its offerings to include a center-cut pork chop with roasted asparagus, warm charcuterie pretzels, house potato chips with French onion dip, and the strawberry basil habanero margarita, per the East Hampton Star. Lunch service is set to follow during the restaurant's second week of operation.
Newsday's rundown of the new menu includes crispy chicken wings for $20, a hot lobster roll for $44, a chicken sandwich for $21, and a French dip for $28. There's also a crunchy kale salad and grilled corn salad for $12, New England clam soup for $12, French onion soup for $15, Bavarian pretzels for $18, mussels in garlic butter with chorizo and corn for $28, roasted scallops, shrimp cocktail for $20, and mahi mahi tacos, alongside a signature burger and fish and chips. On the drinks side, the bar is pouring a dirty martini with blue-cheese-stuffed olives for $20, a smoked blood orange gimlet made with mezcal for $17, local wines, and signature cocktails, with taps highlighting Kidd Squid, Springs Brewery and Montauk Brewing Company.
Part of a Wider Shift on Main Street
The reopening of 1 Main Street lands amid broader commercial real estate realignment along Sag Harbor's Main Street corridor this year. The East Hampton Star notes the nearby launch of sandwich shop Cruust at 2 Main Street came after developer Jeremy Morton surrendered that building to a lender, a saga Hoodline previously covered in Hamptons builder's debt troubles. High commercial rents and financing pressures have shifted several prominent downtown corners in the village.
For now, The Corner is open for dinner and bar service at 1 Main St. in Sag Harbor, with reservations and information available at cornerbarsagharbor.com or by calling 631-769-3535.
