One of the things that makes the Atlantic City region’s restaurant world unique is the incredible longevity of so many restaurants. Some examples: The Knife & Fork Inn is 113 years old, Dock’s Oyster House has been around for 128 years, Tony’s Baltimore Grill opened its doors 98 years ago and Angelo’s Fairmount Tavern recently celebrated its 98th anniversary. Relative youngsters on the scene include the 79-year-old White House Subs, and Margate Dairy Bar, a part of Margate’s summer seasons for 73 years. Many of these establishments are often cited on tourist guides to the Atlantic City area as “places to go.”
For some reason, the Irish Pub, one of the oldest and most beloved restaurants in Atlantic City, doesn’t often appear on “places to go” lists. It should be. Its history is as unique as the property itself.
The Irish Pub, at 164 St. James Place, was originally part of the six-story Elwood Hotel, which opened in 1903. During Prohibition, it operated pretty openly – ala The Knife & Fork and Babette’s – as a speakeasy. In that the Elwood’s owners made no attempt to hide the illegal activity, the hotel was one of the Atlantic City speakeasies that was raided in 1920.
That raid was said to net the Federal Government some $100,000 in bootleg liquor that came from the Elwood, and 19 other establishments of various sizes. As the story goes, the Elwood’s customers were so loyal and so angry that the flow of booze was interrupted, some patrons followed the Feds out the door during the raid and beat them up.
The hotel hung on during some very difficult years in Atlantic City and managed to last until 1967, when it became Feely’s Hotel. Not a lot is known about Feely’s except that it continued to operate in a manner similar to the Elwood.
In 1972, however, there was a major change. That was a year and a time period that was not very good for Atlantic City economically and otherwise. Legalized gambling was not yet on the horizon, the city’s infrastructure was deteriorating rapidly; the old hotels were crumbling – the grand Traymore Hotel was imploded on April 27, 1972 – and tourism was way down. To put it simply – the city was a mess in 1972.
This did not stop an enterprising and visionary couple, Cathy and Richard Burke, who evidently saw something, in terms of potential, in Feely’s. It was in that year that they purchased bar space within Feely’s, and made a deal to operate the property’s hotel portion. In 1978, the year in which gaming was legalized in the city, they bought the entire property.
The hotel, which retains some of its original features, continues to operate successfully. The Irish Pub, as its many customers know, is open for business 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In terms of value, it’s one of the most reasonably priced menus anywhere. A fish and chips platter is $15, while a Jersey crab cakes entrée is a mere $14. That’s hard to beat.
Though food critic reviews of the Irish Pub may be hard to find, this iconic restaurant has almost 30,000 followers on Facebook, and many are in love with the place. They show it by way of comments like, “it’s the best bar in the world,” and “love that place, always!” These followers and regular customers note that the Irish Pub is one of the places to visit during the holiday season, as the Burkes go out of their way with extraordinary Christmas decorations.
I have fond memories of the Irish Pub during the time I was a columnist for Atlantic City Magazine and regularly performed in casino hotels.
Non-casino restaurants and bars that were open 24/7, other than Tony’s Baltimore Grill, were tough to find. On a rare night off, circa 1988, I went to hear trumpeter Jack Sheldon – a favorite of Merv Griffin, who had just purchased Resorts International – as Sheldon held forth in Resorts International’s Rendezvous Lounge.
His drummer, Jake Hanna, of Woody Herman and Maynard Ferguson big band fame, was one of my absolute favorites.
I cornered Jake during a break and after his last set and peppered him with drummer-type questions ranging from the size of his bass drum to how many rivets he put in his famous Chinese cymbal. When the last set was over, Jake suggested, in his heavy, Boston accent, that we continue our conversation over a couple of “Black and Tans” at The Irish Pub.
The night ended for me after about a half-dozen Black and Tans and hilarious stories from the legendary Jake Hanna, like how he got fired from his job drumming in Merv Griffin’s television orchestra because he cracked wise with Shirley Bassey. Filled with beer, fish and chips, and happy with all the answers to the questions I always wanted to ask Jake Hanna, I looked at my watch. It was 7 a.m.
That experience could not have happened just anywhere. It happened at The Irish Pub.
Bruce Klauber is the author of four books, an award-winning music journalist, concert and record producer and publicist, producer of the Warner Brothers and Hudson Music “Jazz Legends” film series, and performs both as a drummer and vocalist.
