Man to Open Bar Honoring Little-Understood 'Feminine' Side of Irish Pubs

Soon, the New York bar scene will soon be getting a bar that celebrates “the more feminine side of the Irish pub," whatever that means.

Soon, the New York bar scene will soon be getting a bar that celebrates “the more feminine side of the Irish pub.” We're not quite sure what that means, but bar owner Danny McDonald has been mulling it over for years. The bar, Grace, is set to open later this month. Named after Grace O'Malley, a 16th century Irish chieftain and pirate, the pub will feature a cocktail menu designed by an all-female crew of mixologists, reports Robert Simonson at The New York Times.

Each mixologist will contribute one drink to the bar's opening menu. According to Simonson, the all-star team includes Meaghan Dorman of the bar Raines Law Room; Jane Danger of the NoMad; Jane Elkins, formerly of Booker & Dax; Franky Marshall of the Dead Rabbit and the Tippler; Ivy Mix of Clover Club; Eryn Reece of Death & Co. and Mayahuel; Lucinda Sterling of Middle Branch; and Pamela Wiznitzer of The Dead Rabbit. The mixologists won't be on the staff, which will include men and women, but they'll guest bartend and help train the staff.

Gender aside, the mixologists on board seem to be excited to work together. “It seemed like a great way to have a group of women working together on a menu,” Lynnette Marrero told The Times. Marrero is one of the Grace menu mixologists and, along with Ivy Mix, runs Speed Rack, a cocktail competition run by women, for women. Still, we have to ask, what exactly is the "feminine side" of Irish pubs?

A casual survey of New York City Irish pub owners by The Atlantic Wire found that some bartenders are also pretty confused by the concept of "the feminine side of Irish pubs." "Jesus, I don't know," replied one waitress. Another bartender said it sounded like a ploy to draw in women, and he couldn't "imagine anything more ridiculous" than trying to pander to one half of the population. "There's no such thing as a profile as far as who you want," he said. "We just hopefully appeal to all people." He added that asking about the "feminine" side of a pub is like asking "'What's the feminine side of a grocery store?'" We don't have an answer to that, either.