Comments on: LIC blues: McReilly’s Bar on Vernon Blvd forced to vacate

By: Noreen and Padraic

Noreen and Padraic — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:55:38 +0000

Comment 138 is NOT from Noreen and Padraic

By: Noreen and Padraic

Noreen and Padraic — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:54:35 +0000

Comment 138 is NOT from Noreen and Padraic

By: does it matter

does it matter — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:23:26 +0000

this sucks

By: Noreen and Padraic

Noreen and Padraic — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 18:53:01 +0000

Noreen and myself are very appreciative of the many positive comments on your website. For the negative ones we apologize - we never pretended to be perfect.
Labor Day weekend ‘08 will indeed be a sad one for Noreen and myself. On Friday night, August 29th, after 20 years McReillys closes its doors forever. The boys in the kitchen were like sons to me ; the girls on the floor like daughters. It’s a lot more than just closing doors: we feel like we are losing our family…
It will also be very hard to say goodbye to our many loyal customers. I think they were as happy to see us as we were to see them. We very much appreciate their patronage and support. We think they’re going to miss us; we know we are going to miss them.
A special word of thanks to my original partner Vinny McCabe. He was the “Mc” in McReillys and the original orchestrater of the place back in 1988. My dream of owning a pub could never have happened without him. My desire and hope to continue it without Noreen, who took it over in 1992, would also never been realized.
Finally I cannot forget to mention Breege. She was the original day bartender on opening day in 1988. And she still is today: an unbelievably unique and remarkable track record for this type of buisness. Her no-nonsense modus operandi coupled with her kind, sensitive and gentle way gained her the admiration and respect of one and all. It’s more than a wee bit sad: the Irish eyes of Noreen, Breege, Dympna, Sonia, Charlene, Brenda and Jessica won’t be smiling on Vernon Blvd anymore…
LIC has been a part of my life for 35 years now. I started there as the local UPS driver in 1973, UPS had only one problem with me as a worker: I spent too much time “talking to the people!” The people endeared themselves to me and I, in turn, think endeared myself to them. I am very proud and happy to be a part of your community for such a long time.
Again, on behalf of Noreen and myself thank you for your support, your buisness and the many treasured memories that will stay with us for our lifetimes…
Sincerely,
Noreen and Padraic

By: Noreen and Padraic

Noreen and Padraic — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 17:07:10 +0000

tht sucks

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 01:06:55 +0000

135, McReilly’s chicken pot pie is awesome.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:52:11 +0000

Such a shame!

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 22:29:56 +0000

Yes, Kips Bay; that does ring a bell. My brain must’ve mixed those two up. It’s amazing how the mind can retain things that are cute, but of no real value, like the topography of a sleep away camp I went to as a kid and the opening & closing themes of Gilligan’s Island, yet almost completely losing things which I was so adept in, like Shakespere’s plays, Morse Code and Military small arms weaponry (although with some practice, I could probably regain my expert weapons status). Although I was never really great with French, I could at one time read, write and speak it to some decent degree. It’s virtually all gone too. Hey, at least I can remember what Dawn & Ginger looked like.

The human brain never ceases to amaze me.

Anyway, in keeping with the thread, has anyone ever had McReilly’s chicken pot pie?

Charlie.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 21:57:40 +0000

Charlie - It suddenly dawned on me. You are thinking of Kips Bay - It runs from 23rd St to 34th St. and sort of tangles up with Murray Hill and Gramercy. The VA Hospital and the Astor Levy public swimming pool are in Kips Bay. Again not far enough south to be part of Stuy Town.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:37:49 +0000

Wow, thanks #132. Another myth busted; a myth in my mind, that is. You can learn something new everyday!

Here’s a maybe not so well known nickname. The stretch of First Avenue starting with the VA hospital @ 23rd Street and continuing northward to where the last hospital is (I am unsure of which one that is), is aka “Bedpan Alley”.

Boy, did we wander off the subject, but threads do that at times.

Charlie.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 18:51:00 +0000

Charlie - I forgot to mention that “Turtle Bay” extends from 42nd St to 53rd St running from Lexinton Ave to the East River. It was named for an actual bay that emptied into the East River which is now the site of the UN bldng. It was never anywhere near Stuy Town.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 18:08:27 +0000

Maybe those people who run Plaxall could find some space for McReilly’s. That would be a good deed.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 14:14:25 +0000

Hi charlie - The name “Clinton” never really took hold. It will always and forever be “Hells Kitchen”. There are no turtles in “Turtle Bay, but it is still “Turtle Bay!
BTW - Hells Kitchen is rapidly gentrifying. The neighborhood actually began its climb to respectability quite some time ago. One of its most notable residents was “Lenny Briscoe” - known in real life as the late great Jerry Orbach.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:01:29 +0000

Really? What’s Hell’s Kitchen like these days? Does anyone know? Whenever I think of neighborhood names and nicknames, it sometimes of reminds me of an old George Carlin routine, where he used to say Morningside Heights, or White Harlem, depending on who asked as to where he was from. Anyway, if my memory serves me correctly, the actual Turtle Bay itself was on the East Side by the river, in the area that is now the VA Medical Center and Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village, wasn’t it? Wasn’t there also a Herbie Mann (jazz flutist) albumn by that name?

What’s with the slashes? Is that another technical glitch?

Charlie.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 06:06:36 +0000

Yep, # 124. They’re an established profitable business, with a proven track record within the community, the Dept. of Health, and with the State Liquor Authority. There would have to be a major skeleton found in their closet, for them not to get approval. That, I believe, is extremely unlikely.

Charlie.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 05:37:12 +0000

#89 nothing on Vernon is worth 5 million

Maybe there was cash under the table there. Who is the new owner of the building?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 05:30:41 +0000

McReilly’s is a good tenant

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 05:25:15 +0000

A real shame - it’s a great place for drinks and food. I’m hoping it can take over one of the other bars on Vernon that doesn’t have any business.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 04:32:12 +0000

So Charlie do you think a new liquor lic. for McReilly’s would have community support?

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 02:18:51 +0000

I wonder why they still call it “Hell’s Kitchen”? I think the neighborhood is actually called Clinton. Organized crime and the Westies are gone from the area, so why keep a dangerous sounding nickname, such as that? I’m sure the area is nowhere near as dangerous as it once was. Wouldn’t that be disadvantageous to attracting potential residents? It’s not the same as with older New Yorkers still referring to Avenue of the Americas, as Sixth Avenue. There’s no negative connotations there.

I remember a bar, from when I was growing up in Brooklyn (where I had my first draft beer at 15), that everyone called the “Bucket of Blood”, because of the murders and hits which took place, in and around the establishment. Do you think it would attract many patrons today (if the bar were to still be in operation), if everyone still referred to it by it’s nickname?

Charlie.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 22:29:57 +0000

#112, which families are you referencing? I’m willing to do some begging for McReilly’s if it would help.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 21:28:10 +0000

Midtown runs from Murray Hill to 57th St. Think about all those hirises that are residential plus all the side streets that have midrise, hirise and brownstones that are all residential. These days midtown goes river to river within that radius. Yes - there are neighborhood divisions like “Hells Kitchen”, “Murray Hill” etc. but they are all considered to be part of midtown Manhattan as opposed to downtown and uptown.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 20:28:10 +0000

Oh, one other thing; I (and I’m sure there are others) consider everything east of Lexington Ave. to be the “East Side”, along with everything west of 8th Ave., to be the “West Side”, and neither to be a part of “Midtown”.

I guess it’s that perspective thing again.

Charlie.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 20:21:02 +0000

Really? Now that I think more about it, you’re right, although I wouldn’t consider it to be very dense (persons per square whatever). When I think Midtown, I usually think of 34th to 57th between Lexington and 8th. I guess it’s all in one’s perspective. I always visualize it as a sea of huge buildings, and businesses. Did you happen to live in Midtown, at some point in your life? I’ve only worked or shopped there, in my life. It’s probably because of that, along with the tremendous amount of tress in the forest, getting in the way, that my mental image of Midtown, is the way it is.

Charlie.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:56:42 +0000

Charlie - Are you joking with me? Midtown has a very dense residential population. And yes there are CB’s serving every area of Manhattan. SLA rules apply to all boroughs equally. CB’s in Manhattan operate in the same way as CB’s in other boroughs.