The Sloppy Tuna's Messy Breakup
The breakup of the Sloppy Tuna ownership group has continued a sloppy downward spiral that began when the partners in the limited liability company, 148 South Emerson Associates, launched countersuits against each other early last year.
On one side of the lawsuits filed in New York State Supreme Court is Michael J. Meyer; on the other is Drew Doscher.
On Tuesday night Mr. Doscher, announced on the Sloppy Tuna Facebook page that the oceanfront bar and nightclub "as you and we know it will unfortunately not be opening at the same location in Montauk this summer -- due to some sudden and unforeseen chaos and back room (sic.) politics." He promised that the Sloppy Tuna would "definitely be popping up somewhere soon." By yesterday, nearly 1,000 people had shared the news or weighed in with comments, many lamenting the loss of what they described as one of Long Island's last great beach clubs, but some saying they would be glad to see it go.
According to court documents, Mr. Meyer and Mr. Doscher formed 148 South Emerson Associates in 2011 with two other partners, who Mr. Meyer and Mr. Doscher bought out in 2012. Mr. Meyer's suit, filed in January of 2015 in the courtroom of New York State Supreme Court Justice Jerry Garguilo, claims that in the summer of 2013, Mr. Doscher began excluding his partner from "almost all decisions and matters" related to the popular though controversial beachfront bar. This included, in 2013, Mr. Doscher's firing of the accountant who had worked for the partners since the business's inception. In addition, Mr. Meyer's complaint accused Mr. Doscher of excluding him from the proceeds of the trademarks that Mr. Doscher allegedly created.
According to Mr. Doscher's complaint, also filed in Justice Garguilo's courtroom, Mr. Doscher negotiated the purchase of the bar, then called Nick's, before the 2011 season.
From the beginning, Mr. Doscher's complaint states, the Town of East Hampton's code enforcement officers frequently cited the bar for various violations of town code.
These violations, along with frequent arrests in and around the establishment on various charges ranging from assault to drug possession, apparently spurred two of the partners, Michael Meagher and Stephen Smith, to ask to be bought out. Mr. Doscher's complaint cites the bad publicity the bar received, despite its popularity, as being key in the partners' withdrawal from the operation.
The bar continued to be cited for violations through the 2015 season. Twelve open noise complaint summonses, issued to a manager, Robert Anderson, last year, remain open. On Monday, East Hampton Town Justice Steven Tekulsky issued a bench warrant for Mr. Anderson, citing the fact that he has missed several scheduled appearances in court to deal with the open code violations.
On March 16, Justice Garguilo issued a temporary restraining order, which, if enacted, would place the nightclub under the control of a temporary receiver, Charles C. Russo, an attorney. Both sides have until April 6 to show cause as to why Justice Garguilo's order should not be acted upon.
In his Facebook post announcing the development, Mr. Doscher wrote that "the Riverhead Supreme Court exercised the most extreme, extraordinary, and drastic relief possible against a very successful business that provides hundreds of jobs. That ruling concerns all business owners in the state of New York." He claimed "just happened to be the judge's ex law partner and good buddy" and the judge had "granted him over $800,000.00 in fees -- without any evidence of fraud or other such wrongdoing, other than the false claim that documents were not handed over in time, which was complete horseshit."
Mr. Doscher credited himself for having taken "a small shack with a stripper pole on the beach in Montauk and made it into a great bar and day/nightclub. It became a household brand name. Despite the various opinions of how Montauk has changed and the placing of blame on the bars, this one business went from nothing to an infamous powerhouse with over 100 employees and worldwide fame." He also spoke of his charitable donations in the community, including being the largest single donor to the Montauk Chamber of Commerce's annual Fourth of July fireworks display.
Besides issuing a bench warrant on Monday for Mr. Anderson, Justice Tekulsky sentenced four people who had pleaded guilty in a case involving another controversial Montauk hot spot, Ruschmeyer's on Second House Road.
The four had been accused of misdemeanors for illegally placing debris on the beach at Navy Road after a late-night staff party at the end of last summer.
Tyler Aposhian, Fiona Bourke, Johnathan Crowley, and Dylen Power were called in alphabetical order, with each pleading guilty to a reduced charge of unlawful assembly, a simple violation, meaning they will not have a criminal conviction attached to their names.
They were fined $1,500 each.