Our Irish Baseball Pub Is Gone
Tuesday, June 2: Finally: I answered the first 13 Comments. I've been corresponding with two Bay Area pals about favorite locals. Best. GV.
(The following was written Friday afternoon. It may seem trivial, given the virus, the malfeasance of Trump, and growing protests around the country, to write about a baseball-centric pub, but this also happened on Friday, leading to this response from me and others. Be safe. GV.)
The world will never be the same.
We say that a lot these days, about death and loss of work and the blurring of the future; now something else has been wrenched away.
Foley's went down Friday, officially. It was a grand contradiction – Irish? Baseball Pub? – and for thousands upon thousands of regulars it was home.
We all rubbed elbows, when business was good – baseball umpires and out-of-towners and business types and guys at the bar who seemed to have a lot of free time in mid-day and, when a big game was on, clusters of loyal fans who claimed it as their place.
It could have been a funky little pub off in the Irish countryside, particularly when Proprietor Shaun Clancy and his father John Clancy were in attendance, with their lush accents. No matter what time of day it was, John Clancy was always eating an Irish breakfast.
Foley's was Shaun's baby. He learned baseball in the States while his dad worked at Toots Shor's, the Foley's of its day, particularly when DiMaggio or Sinatra was in the place.
At Foley's, it was more about Joe McEwing, a Mets supersub, taking a kid named David Wright out for a late supper on his first time in the majors, and now there is a David Wright sandwich on the menu.
Baseball was on the walls, and on the ceilings – all manner of memorabilia, thousands of autographed balls. Our group of old Hofstra jocks (and me, scribe-for-life) has been meeting there for a decade; the first time Brant Alyea, who played five years in the majors, joined us, he had to sign a ball for Shaun.
The place faces the Empire State Building on 33rd St, just west of Fifth. There are Irish road signs out front in case you are lost. The bar is on the right of a narrow corridor down the middle, and on the left is a men's room with three enormous enamel urinals taken from either the old Waldorf or the old Astoria when the two hotels merged uptown. Now I am wondering: who gets the urinals when the landlord goes back to Square 1?
Shaun named the place for Red Foley, the leprechaun of a sports wizard who graced the New York Daily News when it was America's most powerful newspaper. Red knew everything. His column was called Ask Red.
https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/red-foley-remembered-work-decency-character-article-1.350837
Mostly you heard Irish accents from the manager and the bartenders and the waitresses, but the staff also had a New York mix including Kathy-the-Waitress who I think hailed from Brooklyn.
Every time we Hofstra guys gathered, Curtis-the-Point-Guard would order shepherd's pie and Kathy-the-Waitress would squawk, "You can't order that! It's not healthy for you!"
Shaun Clancy made everybody feel welcome. He would stand with us and whisper inside stuff he had heard. Our star baseball players like Jerry Rosenthal the shortstop and Dennis D'Oca the lefty, both from Brooklyn, glowed when Shaun dropped inside stuff on us.
Like regulars in any pub, we brought guests. One time our Hofstra contemporary, Francis Ford Coppola, joined us, and listened to our opinions and our questions about his movies, just one of the guys, more than half a century later.
One time we entertained a few hotshots from Wagner who had ruined an undefeated season for Stanley and Ted and Curtis and Stephen Dunn, the zone-busting guard, now a Pulitzer Prize poet.
In recent years, we saw less of Shaun because he had (a) a place in Florida and (b) a lady friend, Kristie Ackert, baseball writer with the Daily News. They seem so compatible that they must have been introduced by the great matchmaker in the sky.
When the virus hit in late winter, Shaun shut it down and took off to Florida -- paying his staff for the duration. This week he took a look at the books and realized the bleak future for drinking, eating and rooting in close proximity in high-rent midtown.
Here is Shaun, Friday, on Twitter, grief all over him:
https://twitter.com/FoleysNY/status/1266403932156370945?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E12664
I am now in mourning. I cannot imagine the next time I will take a train or subway into the belly of the beast, and mingle in a clean, well-lighted place like Foley's.
Plus, this is my second heartbreak. For more than a decade, I was a regular in L'Angolo on Houston St. in the Village, an Italian soccer cafe. Con Ed construction and smoking restrictions and landlord gouging killed L'Angolo in 2008 but somehow I was granted another home place for the past decade.
The way I see it, Shaun Clancy ran a place as memorable as Shor's was when his dad was working. Nothing lasts forever.
Thank you, Shaun, for a great time.
But don't take my word for it. Pete Caldera, the singing writer, or writing singer, is a true Foley's regular. Here is his ode from USA Today:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2020/05/29/foleys-nyc-new-york-baseball-bar-closing-down-16-years/5288724002/
More about Foley's:
https://www.foleysny.com/clancys-corner
https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-foleys-sports-bar-closing-20200529-hhufvqh2pbaubdj4lfzqirzrhi-story.html
https://theathletic.com/1774595/2020/04/27/how-foleys-new-yorks-baseball-bar-is-surviving-a-world-with-no-baseball-or-bars/
Lot of points, lot of base hits, plus 15 Oscars for our Hofstra contemporary, Francis Ford Coppola, in town in 2018. Shaun Clancy, standing, made everybody feel welcome.
Marty Appel
Each generation has its Jack Dempsey's, its Toot Shor's, its Runyan's, it's Mickey Mantle's -- and this one had this wonderful mecca on 33rd. Hope we haven't heard the last from Shaun!
Mike from NW Queens
Thanks GV.
Thanks Shaun.
Over the last few years, my group and I made this our dinner spot after a hoops doubleheader at MSG. I had been there, them not prior. I remember their eyes wide open looks when we walked in. 8 to 10 of us.....after ordering appetizers or meals..........8 to 10 empty seats as they worked their way around the memorablia, including the model of the Musial Book enclosed there.
Always a nice way to wrap up our day in the city.
Be well Shaun, I am glad we met (thanks to you know who) and look forward to seeing you again.
Altenir Silva
Dear George,
What sad news. This pub was our encounter moment when we were in NY. Indeed, this place was perfect for who loves NY, baseball, and a tasty Foley's Burger.
I know that we will not be there again, but I am thankful for the opportunity that we had when we met there. And now these moments will be forever in our minds.
Thank you to show for us this incredible pub that smelled baseball passion.
Thanks George
Best/Altenir
Thanks so much for this personal piece from the heart. You have captured the fabric and soul of its people and the community of joy it created. I will take that with me.
Alexander (Sandy) Solon
Sad for Shaun & all of New York. Foley's was a classic restaurant & bar that served not just the community, but all of its patrons who visited the city. Baseball memorabilia atmosphere, good food, drink, pleasant & friendly service brought together by your personality that brought people together.will be missed.
Thank you Shaun. Hopefully we'll meet again. Wishing you only the best.
Stay safe & be well,
Curt-the-Point Guard
(This is from Curt Block, who made a few buzzer-beaters in his time as point guard, had a long career in TV, and now lives in Philadelphia. A true New Yorker -- he inherited Cal Ramsey's number, if not his ability, at Commerce High -- Curt "commuted" to Foley's often enough to be a regular....beyond his role as Captain Curt of the Hofstra Old Guys. From Curt:)
"My visits to Foley's were always anticipated days, except for the travel. One option was Amtrak but the $$$ usually ruled that out for me. I chose to local Septa train from Philly to Trenton, then transferred to NJ Transit from the Jersey capital to Manhattan. When everything was in perfect working order which was rare, it was 2 1/2 hours each way. Not the fun part of the day. The only thing that made it worthwhile was the reunion with some of my oldest friends and the welcome feeling of Foley's, its owner -- and the pie." -- Curt Block
This is sad. I get it. Sorry George. Thanks as always...
Dennis D'Oca
So very sad. COVD-19 has taken another part of me away. I will so miss walking into Foley's to meet the Hofstra guys, at our regular "jock table". Shaking hands, hugging each other and looking forward to discussing our athletic days way back when. I always left with that thought "The older we get the better we were". Shaun would join us and give updated tidbits about the baseball season. He is a great person and will be missed. Also, so very sad for New York and the younger generation who won't get to see the wonderment of Foley's.
One of my favorite times in NYC was meeting you at Foley's. Shaun has become a pal and I can't believe this is happening. Devastating!
you do this kind of story about as well as can be done.
restaurant obituaries and other places you've loved and enjoyed.
really heart felt remembrances of 'things' and people you've known or come across in your travels/work.
saw all the burger photos but nuthin' about desserts.
always the first thing i look at when i scan the menu.
i've mentioned le josselin--my favourite crepe place in paris--and as great as the crepes are, they have a fabulous dessert which i think about every day i'm not in paris.
HARUKO HASUMI link
I'm really shocked to hear Foley's is out of business. I had had llunch at the pub in All-Star week, 2013. It was great experience.
Alan Rubin link
Sad to see Foleys close. I was only there once with my son Josh for the launch event for George's book "Eight World Cups". It had the feel as if I had been a regular.
It is always sad when "old friends' disappear. McSorleys Old Ale House in the East Village is one of the few, possibly only, authentic "Irish" type saloon left in NYC. Too many from the Village are gone, along with many "folk" venues.
Some others such as the White Horse Tavern on Hudson and 11th Streets are still in operation. It is the second oldest continuously run bar in NYC.
It was the longshoremen bar where Dylan Thomas notoriously drank himself to death. My buddy and I religiously went there one night a week after evening graduate school at NYU in the Bronx, now Bronx Community College.
We would get there by between 9:30-10 pm for a beer and hamburger, which are still considered excellent today.
They are currently doing take out and local deliveries, but Pittsfield is in the wrong zip code.
One night Harvey and I helped close the Tavern at 3 am after spending a delightful evening singing traditional Irish folk songs with the younger Clancy Brothers, their wives and some friends.
Although some of the best things in life are free, others come the the small cost of a few refreshing beers, on tap of course.
Andy Tansey
After a hike - really a long walk - in the Daughters of the American Revolution State Forest almost a year ago, although GPS kept pulling us back east to 91 to 95 or the Wilbur Cross/Merritt, we decided to take the scenic route, ultimately via 22. Using the same GPS for Mexican food - not nearly memorable enough to mention - on the east side of Pittsfield, I picked up a large sandwich - grinder, hoagie, hero, sub, submarine - where you from? - at Angelina's on West Housatonic Street, in P'field. Next door was a place for ordinary provisions playing the Cricket World Cup. I was grateful to have learned the rudiments of the rules shortly before stopping in there and chatting with the proprietor. What does this have to do with Foley's? I could stretch and say that I THINK I was there when I saw the US lose one of its critical qualifiers in its quest to fail to qualify for the World Cup with the virtually NFL-appointed head coach who replaced Klinsman, but I am not sure I remember correctly. From there to German soccer, subject of the prior article. Jere Longman's essay on Friday about sports without fans present connects to another recent time when civil unrest, the other big news story tonight, interfered with normal sports gatherings.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/20/sports/coronavirus-sports-fans.html?smid=em-share
Back to NYC, the story of Foley's is sad to me more because of the people who'd go there than because of the place. (My walk from Penn to the office near Grand Central and back rarely had me on 33rd Street.) Great picture of the Hofstra boys! Touching. My Queens HS track boys still gather like that every year, though not at Foley's.
While the world always changes - so it goes - it has changed too rapidly these past three months. Real monsters are in charge, and strength in numbers is too hard to achieve for peaceful folks. Hoping that we'll be able to gather again soon at places like Foley's, McSorley's, Mets Ballyard and all my favorite Jazz clubs.
My compliments to George, as always, connecting the personal with the world stage.
All right. Finally replying to the first 13 comments. Thanks so much.
Marty: Shaun talks about this being only one inning. Hard to imagine a pub arising in NYC, stricken so many ways right now.
Mike: so many constituencies thought it was their place. The gift of Shaun and his staff.
Altenir: I can still see Neo, maybe 2 years old, staring around as if to say, "What....?"
Randy: Yes, there really was a karma to the place.
Sandy: glad you signed on toward the end.
Curt: You were a true regular,,,when Kathy could anticipate your order.
Michael: Maybe you can persuade Shaun to move Foley's to our home borough. But I think Donovan's has Bell Blvd. sewed up.
Dennis: You were that good. You led the nation in ERA in 1960.
Tom: You introduced me to Mai Lee, with Qui, my Vietnamese soul brother, in St. Louis. And the soccer pub where you helped sell 150 Musial books -- I think more than I did at Foley's with the regular Cardinal fans flocking for Shaun more than me or Musial.
Bruce: when you return to Josselin, do you tell the waiter, "The usual?? You have earned it.
Haruko: Did Shaun know you were there? He should have gotten you to sign a ball, as a Met fan from Japan who once saw a Nolan Ryan no-hitter, straight off the flight from Tokyo!
Alan: great memories of White Horse Tavern. I used to visit the Lion's Head with Vic Ziegel and others....but it was their place, not mine.
Andy: Was the Guv in your class? My huge and loyal Jamaica HS class used to meet at Dante's, the big pizza hangout we would frequent after basketball games, but then it stopped being Dante's....and we moved on. Everything dies, baby, that's a fact....GV
i reckon i have, but raymond usually greets me when he sees me, then offers me a brandy when i'm done and chats for a bit.
however, during my visits to ishigakijima--7500 miles from here in the okinawan chain and 210 miles due east of taiwan--when i walked into my okonomiyaki restaurant, the owner's son would see me, greet me and start preparing my meal.
one other time when i was living in osaka, i went to my favourite okonomiyaki restaurant in nara after not being there for four years.
the cook saw me, nodded and started making my dinner without saying a word.
when i thanked him as i left, he said it was his last night.
again, 6600 miles from here and i walk in and presto.
happens in my patisserie of choice on rue grenelle in paris aussi.
Bruce, it's nice to be recognized. From late 50s to 1968, I frequented the Stewart Grill, a basic diner near the old Newsday office across from Roosevelt Field. Then I changed jobs and did not visit my old (and memorable) office for 5 years, until 1973 when I was in the area and stopped in. John and George were still behind the counter and they nodded and said, "Hi, George," as if I'd been there the day before on a coffee run for the Sports dept. I should have said, "The usual," but I'm not that quick. GV
No, Andy Cuomo was a year or two ahead of me at Molloy, and I don't believe he ran track, though he could've as a frosh when almost everybody did . . . .
it is nice and the casualness of it makes it more so.
my first job was at the hamilton spectator as a copy boy in the newsroom in late summer 1968.
many olde tymers had started in the twenties. most hadn't been to university.
newsroom was full of relatively recent scottish/english ex pats.
my boss was from glasgow and been in canada for a couple of years.
he said he went back and dropped into his local pub.
owners said they hadn't seen him for a while.
'i moved to canada,'.
'ah' was the response.
a number of the brits would moon for the old country, quit and go back.
almost all of 'em returned.
they'd get back, enjoy it for a while and then start to remember why they'd decided to leave.
many were rehired on their return, but lost their seniority for holiday time and started at a lower salary.
we used to call it 'the thousand dollar cure'....
which was a lot more money over half a century go.
Eh, the burgers weren't kosher. Still, would have relished the opportunity to share a pint. Sorry to have missed my chance.