About Us

60 Years of Fine Dining at Fire Islands Only Ocean Front Restaurant, read our history, take a gander at our photo galleries. See where we began to where we are now, come experience the Casino Cafe, Davis Park, Fire Island, New York, USA.

1945	2006

Local Bio's
Walter Desel – Artist
Walter Desel was born on July 31, 1920, raised in Brooklyn, and Jamaica, Queens, New York City, and was graduated from Notre Dame (1938 – 1942) with a degree in economics. He initially went to New York City to work in the financial sector, during which time he held his first exhibition, after work, at the Washington Square Sidewalk Art Show in 1950.

Walter served in the US Marine Corps in the Pacific during World War II and in Korea, reaching the rank of major. After the Marines, Walt Desel traveled all over the world as a cruise director aboard passenger ships visiting over 130 countries from Russia to Africa, South America to the South Pacific, Easter Island to Tristan da Cunha, etc. until he retired in 1962 to pursue his dream of painting – from June to September at his home on Whalebone Walk at Davis Park on Fire Island, New York 11772, and from October to may at his home on Peacon Lane – which he prefers to refer to by its former name, Grunt Bone Alley – in Old Town, Key West, Florida, 33040.

He is self-trained and paints in a variety of styles, usually using vibrant colors, ranging from abstract works to realistic still life, landscapes and figure subjects. Of special note are his US flag paintings, painted every year since 1976 and his most original diptychs pained on driftwood.

In Key West his bold and highly decorative work can be seen at the P.S. Gallery, 316 ½ Simonton Street, The Woodenhead Gallery, 907 Caroline Street; The Red Doors Gallery, 807 Caroline Street and Flaming Maggie’s Book Store, 830 Fleming Street.

Note above text from the back of a painting of Old Casino, which was lost in a Winter Storm in 1995