WACHAPREAGUE, VA - After over a decade serving locals and travelers on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, the Island House Restaurant will close at the end of the year.
Former Navy SEAL turned restaurateur Blake Johnson bought the property at auction 15 years ago.
"Each window is like a Willie Crockett painting," Johnson said of the views that struck him when he first saw the restaurant.
Johnson recently announced the difficult decision in a message posted to social media.
"I had already made the announcement to my staff, which was hard enough," he said. "But, then to go public with that pos ... it was a very difficult post to make."
That post now has over 500 comments, sharing memories made at the restaurant, well wishes and hopes for the future.
Local charter boat captain Meriwether Payne started her business soon after Island House opened under its current ownership.
"When I get off the water after a long day, there's no place I'd rather go than right here," she said.
Payne characterized the current era of Island House as one led by Johnson's goodwill and generosity.
In addition to the daily dining, Island House hosted an annual Oyster Roast fundraiser for the Navy SEAL Foundation. The 2025 Roast raised $150,000.
Long-time customers like CW Savage have seen their children grow up visiting the restaurant and call Island House an extension of home, with its staff like a second family - there in good times and bad.
"We lost a relative a few years ago," Savage said. "We called Blake and said, you know, we need to put something together last minute ... you can't say enough about somebody that will go out of their way and make that happen."
Many staff members have been there nearly as long as Johnson. Head Chef Mark Franko started as a busboy at just 19 years old.
"One day I was pulling mats off the line for the chef at the time," Franko recalled. "He said, 'You ever thought about cooking?' I said, well, not really, but I'll give it a shot, and since then, I've been on the line up until 2020, and then I took over as the head chef."
Franko said he is not sure what comes next for him or the other staff members, but that he is confident they will all go on to do great things.
Many patrons shared hopes that a new owner would continue to operate a restaurant on the property. Johnson hopes it continues to reflect the best of what the Eastern Shore has to offer.
"It's not commercialized, it's very peaceful and it's a different way of life," Johnson said. I really respect that, and I would hope that whoever may continue would recognize that as well."
The last day of dining service is December 30, before former and current staff will ring in 2026 with a celebration on New Year's Eve.