Star Confectionery, popular Riverhead restaurant, to close in August, owner says

A downtown Riverhead institution helmed by one family across three generations and more than 100 years will close its doors for the last time next month.

Star Confectionery, known for its lunch counter where diners order egg creams and ice cream sundaes, will serve its devotees for the last time on Aug. 27, according to owner Anthony Meras.

To preserve his physical health and spend more time with his family and friends, Meras, 58, said he sold the building in May. The fate of the building is unclear, he said.

Felix De Los Santos, the Southampton-based developer to whom Meras said he sold the building, did not return phone messages or emails on Thursday.

"I have, obviously, mixed emotions," Meras said in a phone interview on Tuesday evening. "But I know in my heart, pardon the pun, it’s the right move to be more with my kids. ... People are sad, and it makes me sad."

Although she wouldn’t consider herself a regular at the storied eatery, Linda Rothbaum said she ordered a milkshake made from homemade ice cream during every visit to fully enjoy the nostalgic experience.

"You kind of have to," Rothbaum, 66, of Riverhead, said. "You’re at an old-time luncheonette. Calories don’t count. And it was an institution. You could tell people had been going there forever."

The downtown staple served countless employees of the nearby courthouses and law firms, including lawyer Amanda Star.

"They’re very friendly," Star, 48, of East Hampton, said as she strolled down Main Street. "They always make us feel it’s a home, family place."

Making doctor happy

While locals are expressing their sorrows, Meras says one person is "thrilled" that he is closing up shop: "my cardiologist."

After his first heart attack in 2018, then his second and third in 2021, Meras stepped away from chocolatier duties and started working only six days a week. But he kept on manning the kitchen for breakfast and lunch before toiling over his homemade ice cream and other staples for hours after the lunch rush. After his fourth heart attack in 2023, he accepted that the stress at the helm of his close quarters kitchen was taking a toll.

"When the store gets very busy, and it’s a small cooking area, my chest hurts. I still have a block left in my heart. ... It mimics a heart attack, but I know enough that it’s not."

Meras’ grandfather took over Star Confectionery more than 100 years ago. His welcoming nature to kids popping in to sip milkshakes and listen to the jukebox earned the store its moniker of "Papa Nick’s." When Meras’ father, Anthony Sr., took over, the cash-only business that closed after lunchtime retained its old-fashioned appeal. Even as Meras introduced smoothies, Greek and Caesar salads and even turkey and veggie burgers, he ensured his old-school customers could rely on their cheeseburger, fries and a shake.

"I have people that come in and sit in the same seats every day or every third day and have the same tuna fish sandwich or a homemade chicken salad," Meras said. "That’s what’s tough. That I’ll definitely miss."

Several locals passing the eatery on Thursday afternoon — which is "closed for a mid-summer break" through Tuesday, according to a handwritten sign on the shop's window that had a smile face and noted the time away is "golf related" — said there was no other nearby luncheonette or diner that can fill the void in the community and their daily lives.

Family legacy

For more than 15 years, Dan Bogan stopped at Star Confectionery for breakfast on his way to work. He said the staff knows his go-to order — scrambled eggs, home fries and bacon. On occasion, he visits a second time for lunch.

"Everything I’ve gotten here has always been delicious," Bogan, 56, of Riverhead, said. "There’s a ton of people I know that come here all the time. You walk in, you see all the regulars, you know everybody ... It’s sad that it’s going to be going away."

Meras said he explored many career paths before tragedy struck in 1996, when his older brother, Nick, who was "the brains of the outfit" in downtown Riverhead, died in a car crash. He was 34.

Meras said his father "needed that restaurant" to go on, and he refused to abandon the man who only stopped working a couple years before he died in 2021 at age 90.

"My dad needed that restaurant for life," Meras said. "Riverhead was phenomenal to us. I’m still not right, losing [my brother], my folks were devastated as parents would be. How the town treated my family and showed love and support, that’s what’s making [leaving] difficult for me. It’s not an easy decision, at all."

While Star Confectionery may be going away, Meras teased the shop and his family’s legacy may pop up elsewhere.

"I’m still going to keep my chocolate machine, and I’m still going to keep my ice cream machine," he said. "I’ll still be around doing something."