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    THE PERFECT SHEBEEN TO HANG YOUR SHILLELAGH green logo
STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID McBRIDE
I am often asked by readers of the AMERICAN PUBLIC HOUSE REVIEW what made me want to do this?  And I don’t mean to say people wonder why I like pubs so much.  That’s pretty self evident.  But they do often wonder if there was one place or one experience that led me to love great taverns so passionately that I would spend much of my free time looking for more and more of them.

Well, as is usually the case with obsessions, there wasn’t just one place or one event that addicted me to great pubs.  When I was only a boy my parents would take me to a local Irish pub for dinner and I loved sitting there listening to the stories and hearing the great Celtic bands playing.  So, my love of a great bar even pre-dates my ability to legally drink in one.  But in my adult years, there were two or three places that truly put me on the path that led to my involvement with this on-line journal of the pub community.


                                Photograph by Chris Poh
sign at Molly"s Pub and restaurant in New York City as seen in American Public House Review
ALONG WITH THEIR IDEALS, DEVOTION TO FAMILY, AND DEDICATION TO HARD WORK, IRISH IMMIGRANTS BROUGHT THE PARADIGM FOR THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HOUSE WITH THEM AS WELL.


One of those moments dates back to a Saint Patrick’s Day, the “High Holy Day” as my grandfather used to call it, only about a year or so after I graduated from college.  Good friends had a great idea to head into New York City for the day.  I assumed we were going to see the city’s famous parade, but I soon learned the plan was much more intricate.  Instead we would avoid the madness of midtown on a parade day and find the best Irish pubs downtown where we wouldn’t be swarmed with parade spectators and participants.
 
I soon began to question the merits of our plan.  Couldn’t we just find a suitable pub outside of Manhattan to drink the day away and avoid the cost and headaches of mass transit?  The general response I received was a tender, “you’re so young!”   Didn’t I know that Manhattan has the best Irish pubs around?  Well, I would soon find that out for myself.

After a morning of barhopping we landed at a place on Third Avenue and 22nd Street called MOLLY'S.  From the outside it may seem rather unassuming, but have a look at its exterior and you immediately will get a sense of authenticity.  This is obviously not a corporate-style, spanking new, sanitized attempt at Irish serving dry corned beef and light beer with green food coloring.  It is obvious this place has been here for a while and has served many a thirsty traveler.  There is saw dust on the floor, a wood fireplace burning in the back, and the enticing smell of Shepherd’s Pie coming from the kitchen.
                                                               Photograph by Chris Poh
The sawdusted floor at Molly's Pub in NYC as seen in American Public House Review
THE SAWDUSTED FLOOR


Molly’s Shebeen, which is an Irish word which roughly translates to something we would call a Speakeasy, first operated as a tavern before the turn of the last century, with only Prohibition stopping the flow of good libations.  It is a remarkably atmospheric place that simply defines the best of what makes an Irish pub.  There is good beer, great storytelling, and simple yet tasty comfort food.  All in all, it was the perfect place for a budding pub-fanatic to spend his first fully-legal Saint Patrick’s Day, and his first journey to Manhattan’s taverns.  After hours of drinking and laughing, I was sad to leave.  I may have been nearly legless on my way out, after all I was 22 and it was Saint Patrick’s Day, but I remember looking back and saying to my friend “I’ll never forget that place”.  And I never did.


Molly's Pub and Restaurant in NYC a seen in American Public House Review
MOLLY'S PUB AND RESTAURANT IN NEW YORK CITY
Photograph by Chris Poh  
The bar at Molly's Pub and Restaurant in New York CVity as seen in American Public House Review
AN AUTHENTIC BAR
Photograph by Chris Poh  
Fireplace at Molly's Pub in NYC as seen in American Public House Review
A REAL FIREPLACE WARMS THE ATMOSPHERE AND THE BONES


 

shebeen sign at Molly's Pub in NYC as seen in American Public House ReviewA SHEBEEN ROUGHLY TRANSLATES TO WHAT WE WOULD CALL A SPEAKEASY
Years and years went by, and I never made it back to Molly’s.  But a few weeks ago, on another of our “research trips” for the Review into Manhattan, it was suggested we go to MOLLY'S SHEBEEN. I immediately jumped at the idea of going back to the place where I have such fond memories.  For the next few days leading up to the trip I was full of excitement.  But had the place changed?  Was it still as wonderful and authentic as I remember it?  At the moment we stepped through the door all of my questions were answered.  It is still as fun and as perfect an Irish pub as you will ever find on this side of the pond.

window at Molly's Pub in NYC as seen in American Public House Review
MOLLY'S SHEBEEN
 MOLLY'S PUB AND RESTAURANT

287 THIRD AVENUE
NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10010

(212) 889-3361

www.mollysshebeen.com

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