By Carol Britton Meyer

Nantasket Flatts owners Richard and Tracy Vaughan are hoping to reopen the restaurant in time for the Memorial Day weekend following its closure in January 2023.

The select board granted the necessary license approvals during a Zoom meeting Thursday afternoon held expressly for that purpose.

After being closed for more than a year, Nantasket Flatts is set to reopen for this coming season.

The board granted unanimous approval on a 4-0 vote for the all-alcoholic, entertainment, common victualer, and automatic amusement licenses for pool tables. The patio will also be open. Board member Jerry Taverna was not present at the meeting.

“You’re approved, and we wish you the best of luck!” Chair Greg Grey told the Vaughans.

Richard Vaughan thanked the board for convening a meeting outside of its regular schedule “to make this happen [so we don’t miss the upcoming] holiday weekend. We hope to see you all here.”

Tracy Vaughan told The Hull Times in a telephone conversation following the meeting that the restaurant will be reopening “with a slightly different concept” from before.

“There will be a no frills, casual, coming-off-the-beach type of menu, offering New England coastal community fare,” she said.

The menu will feature different kinds of hotdogs – including Coney Island and Chicago-style – and patio burgers (smashburgers) in addition to some of Nantasket Flatts’ signature items. Chicken, fried pickles, fried clams, lobster, peel-and-eat shrimp, and a raw bar will also be offered.

“We’re excited,” Tracy Vaughan said. “We’re looking forward to a great summer back in Hull.”

A Facebook post announced the “difficult decision” to close Nantasket Flatts permanently in early 2023, with the hope that another restaurant would soon take its place, although that did not ultimately happen.

In December 2023, the select board declined to approve the request by Nantasket Flatts for renewal of the restaurant’s all-alcoholic, common victualer, entertainment, and automatic amusement licenses pending a hearing that would be scheduled with the owners because the business had been closed for a year and the property was on the market.

Following the discussion, the board held another hearing in January 2024 and voted in favor of continuing it until this spring to allow time for the Vaughans to continue their efforts to find a new restaurant to occupy that space. In the meantime, they were asked to keep the board updated monthly on progress.

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