Half a mile past the turnoff for Canoe Place Road, behind a marina and a seafood shop, a winding alley dead-ends at a wooden archway mounted with one of the strangest mascots on Long Island: a fish vertebrae crowned with a bull’s skull. It is absurd, deliberate, and impossible to forget. The creature announces everything you need to know about what awaits on the other side — a restaurant that refuses to choose between land and sea, between polished and relaxed, between serious culinary ambition and the barefoot ease of a Hamptons afternoon. This is Cowfish, perched on the southern basin of the Shinnecock Canal, and since 2012, it has been quietly redefining what waterfront dining means on Long Island’s East End.
The Origin Story: Rooted Hospitality and a Beautiful Ruin
Cowfish exists because David and Rachel Hersh know how to see potential where others see problems. The couple founded Rooted Hospitality Group in 2009, driven by years of Caribbean travel — St. Martin, Dominica, Puerto Rico, Aruba, Costa Rica — and an unshakable belief that great food, good drinks, and warm hospitality could work year-round on Long Island, not just during the summer crush (Rooted Hospitality Group, 2025). Their first venture, RUMBA, opened in Hampton Bays in 2010 and proved the model. Two years later, they encountered a waterfront property on the Shinnecock Canal that was, by all accounts, spectacular in location and dismal in execution. The business occupying it was underperforming. The Hershes acquired the space, injected their vision, and Cowfish was born (Social Life Magazine, 2025).
David Hersh, a graduate of the University of Central Florida’s Rosen College of Hospitality Management, brought a chef-owner’s sensibility that distinguished Cowfish from the typical Hamptons waterfront bar. The name itself borrows from Southern restaurant tradition, where “cowfish” establishments serve both surf and turf — a playful nod that feels invisible if you’re from below the Mason-Dixon line and delightfully odd if you’re not (Southforker, 2024). What followed was a growth story that now spans multiple locations: RHUM in Patchogue (2016), Flora in Westhampton Beach (2020), Fauna in the former Starr Boggs space (2022), AVO TACO locations stretching from New Hyde Park to New Orleans, and most recently, RUMBA’s expansion to Metairie, Louisiana in 2025 (Rooted Hospitality Group, 2025). But Cowfish remains the jewel of the canal — the restaurant that proved a hospitality group built on Long Island could carry national ambitions.
The Location: Where Two Bays Meet
Understanding Cowfish means understanding Hampton Bays itself, a hamlet that sits at the western threshold of what people call “the Hamptons” with a history that predates the brand by centuries. The area was originally called Good Ground — eleven smaller communities that merged in 1922 and adopted the more marketable Hampton Bays name. This is the more working-class Hamptons, where year-round residents outnumber summer renters, where the fishing industry still holds cultural weight, and where commercial boats work out of the Shinnecock Commercial Fishing Dock hauling striped bass, bluefish, and fluke into port (Social Life Magazine, 2025).
Cowfish sits directly on the Shinnecock Canal, the waterway that connects Peconic Bay to the north with Shinnecock Bay to the south, creating a shortcut between Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean. During summer months, boats pass constantly. The restaurant maintains complimentary transient dock space for diners who arrive by hull rather than wheel — call ahead and a slip will be waiting. This transforms a meal into something closer to a maritime event. You anchor, tie up, walk into the dining room, eat overlooking your own boat, and cruise home at sunset. The two-level building maximizes every sightline. Downstairs offers the main dining room with walls of windows facing the water. Upstairs, the bright secondary bar and outdoor patio deliver what may be the finest sunset perch on the East End, given that the canal runs roughly east-west and places the setting sun directly over the water during the long days of July and August.
The Food: New American with a Southern Backbone
Cowfish operates under the culinary direction of Steven Tross, who oversees the Rooted Hospitality Group’s kitchen portfolio and brings a philosophy of inventive riffs on classic land-and-sea dishes (Southforker, 2024). The menu is built around Certified Angus Beef steaks, fresh local seafood, rotisserie meats, and a full sushi program — a range that sounds impossible to execute well but consistently surprises skeptics.
The signature steaks arrive with optional additions like foie gras butter and bordelaise sauce. The rotisserie chicken — half a free-range bird rubbed in peppery spice, roasted until the skin crackles, and shingled over a hash of seasonal vegetables with chicken demi-glace — has earned its own devoted following. The NOLA Shrimp Rumba, a Worcestershire-glazed creation with jasmine rice and cornbread, appears on both the Cowfish and RUMBA menus because loyal diners simply will not allow it to be retired (Social Life Magazine, 2025). The clam chowder is a perennial winner of the Hampton Bays Clam Chowder Contest and draws visitors from well beyond the East End (Dan’s Papers, 2013). Start with the skillet cornbread — golden, crumbly, laced with a whisper of jalapeño, and topped with a melting dome of honey butter served in a personal cast-iron — and you begin to understand why Tripadvisor ranks Cowfish number two out of fifty-three restaurants in Hampton Bays, with a Travelers’ Choice Award recognizing it among the top ten percent of dining establishments worldwide (Tripadvisor, 2025).
Weekend brunch brings its own following. The bananas foster French toast and the croque madame have earned the kind of reverent word-of-mouth that drives ninety-minute drives from the city on a Saturday morning. Google reviews average 4.5 stars across more than 2,100 ratings, and Yelp carries over 1,000 reviews — numbers that speak to consistency across more than a decade of service.
The Atmosphere and Experience
A wooden archway leads into a softly lit dining room dressed in rustic blues, whites, and browns. One wall of windows frames the canal. An adjacent wall rotates works from local artists, turning the room into something between a gallery and a boathouse. The small but well-stocked bar anchors the ground floor. Upstairs, the atmosphere shifts — brighter, airier, with an outdoor patio designed for summer cocktails served in Mason jars and live music on Friday evenings through the restaurant’s popular Friday Night Music Series (Cowfish Restaurant, 2026).
The dress code reflects Hampton Bays itself: neat but not fussy. Regulars recommend smart casual — shorts, sundresses, button-downs — and advise against swimwear or cutoffs. The vibe manages a rare balancing act: sophisticated enough for an anniversary dinner, accessible enough for families with young children. A dedicated kids’ play area and a “Little Fish” menu ensure that parents can enjoy a proper meal without logistical anxiety.
For winter, Cowfish recently launched its Waterfront Igloo Dining Experience — private heated domes perched on the second-floor south patio, each seating up to eight guests with full menu access and panoramic views of the canal and bay (I Love NY, 2025). The igloos are available at multiple seatings throughout the day, with a Bluetooth speaker in each dome so guests can set their own ambiance. It has quickly become one of the most talked-about winter dining experiences on the East End, offering proof that Cowfish is not just a summer destination.
Community and Philanthropy
Rooted Hospitality Group’s commitment to community runs deeper than marketing language. The Hershes have organized charitable events supporting Jamaica relief after Hurricane Melissa, partnered with Smile Farms in Moriches — an independent group home creating employment for people with disabilities — and collaborated with Dress for Success, the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, the New York Marine Rescue Center, and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County (Fire Island News, 2025; Rooted Hospitality Group, 2025). The group has been recognized as a Newsday Top Workplace multiple years running, a distinction voted on by its own employees. David and Rachel have personally delivered Christmas gifts to children in Honduras through CRC WE CARE WE SHARE INC, and Cowfish itself hosts community-oriented events like the ArtSEA Create + Sip series in partnership with CCE, blending environmental education with waterfront social gatherings.
Cowfish also serves as a celebrated wedding and private event venue. Couples have praised the staff’s meticulous attention to detail, with event coordinator Marinna receiving repeated recognition in reviews for patient, compassionate planning across outdoor ceremonies, cocktail hours, and waterfront receptions. The venue accommodates intimate gatherings and larger celebrations alike, with full catering capabilities and a setting that requires no additional decoration.
Weekly Specials and Events
Cowfish runs a thoughtful calendar of recurring offerings that reward regular visitors. Wine Down Wednesday features fifty percent off a bottle of wine with the purchase of two entrées. Thursday nights bring a 14-ounce Prime Rib dinner with loaded baked potato after 4 PM. The Friday Night Music Series runs 6 to 9 PM with rotating local musicians. Weekday Happy Hour at the bar from 3 to 6 PM includes discounted appetizers, well pours, rum punch, signature margaritas, select wines, and beer. Coming up on February 26, 2026, Cowfish hosts its Long Island Wine Showcase, an evening celebrating selections from six award-winning Long Island vineyards paired with passed bites crafted by the executive chef team (Cowfish Restaurant, 2026).
Reservations are recommended, particularly during summer months, and can be made through Resy or directly at CowfishRestaurant.com. Walk-ins are always welcome.
Contact & Practical Information
Address: 258 East Montauk Highway, Hampton Bays, NY 11946
Phone: (631) 594-3868
Website: cowfishrestaurant.com
Reservations: Resy or CowfishRestaurant.com
Online Ordering: Toast
Instagram: @cowfishhamptonbays (17K+ followers)
Parent Company: Rooted Hospitality Group
Hours: Monday–Thursday: 12:00 PM – 9:00 PM Friday: 12:00 PM – 11:00 PM Saturday: 11:00 AM – 11:00 PM Sunday: 11:00 AM – 9:00 PM Weekend Brunch: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM Happy Hour (Bar Only): Monday–Friday, 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Boat Access: Complimentary transient docking available — call ahead
Private Events & Weddings: CaterMyEvent@CowfishRestaurant.com
Gift Cards: Available at all Rooted Hospitality Group locations and online
Peter — a graduate of Long Island University and The New School in Philosophy, and the owner of The Heritage Diner in Mount Sinai — writes on Long Island’s restaurant culture, craftsmanship, and the places that shape community life on the North Shore and East End.
