McGinn’s Public House (Bar and Grill)

 

Staten Island encompasses many different ethnicities. People of Irish descent account for about 13.9% of the populations, second only to Italians according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey. As such, there are various places on Staten Island that allow for the research and observance of the Irish culture. The two places visited for the purposes of this project were: McGinn’s and an Irish Cultural Center.

McGinn’s is a bar and grill. This restaurant, however, can also be seen as a sort of pub (the other part of its name is, in fact, Public House). Originating from Roman taverns, pubs eventually diffused into the Anglo-Saxon culture and are still popular in this part of the world today (and elsewhere) as places for “having a beer” and going out to eat.

McGinn’s may have its roots in the Irish tradition, but it is very much adapted to an
American culture. For example, this restaurant actually advertised and sold American brand beers, possibly due to assimilation into the culture. Additionally, the flat screen televisions inside the restaurant broadcasted American news channels and football. Do not be misled by the latter program, however. European football is a very popular sport in the UK and Ireland. However, the football that was playing on the screen was American football. The food too was largely items that could be found in any average American bar and grill, e.g. sliders (small burgers), BBQ ribs, steak fries.

As much as the American culture had pervaded into McGinn’s, there were some indicators of ethnic background, though not as many as expected. The only immediate identifier was some Patrick’s Day Décor that was apparently perennial as well as a sign on the door that said, “Irish Police Men Only”. This sign, however, is interesting when the history of pubs is further analyzed, because a sundry amount of laws were passed that dealt with restaurants such as this. For example, one law made it difficult for people to own a pub if not deemed “respectable” enough. As such, these were often left to ex-servicemen or ex-policemen. As for the food, there were, of course, traditional Irish dishes. These included things such as: Shepherd’s Pie, fish and chips, and corned beef with cabbage. However, the menu also included certain food items that were adapted to suit the Irish culture and food availability, such as the Irish Nachos. Instead of tortilla chips, this dish is made up of potato chips covered with
pulled pork, which are food items associated with and abundant in Ireland. There were other elements that preserved the identity other than food and signs, however. The games represented in the actual pub reflected ones present in many Irish pubs. For example, there was a dartboard and a cricket scoreboard (as in, the popular European game, cricket).  These games are collectively found more often in Irish pubs than American bars.

With all of these adaptations and preservations, who are McGinn’s usual customers? One would assume Irish, and this is probably correct to an extent. The clientele is
presumably local residents, which include a large population of Italian Americans. Even the bar owner, who was very helpful in answering our questions and polite, was questionably Irish (meaning he could have had a bit of Italian mixed in as well). Even so, McGinn’s can be seen of as a little piece of Ireland in Staten Island, since its very nature is representative of the Irish culture.