Historical Photo: Texas Historical Commission [Historic Property, Photograph THC_14-0729], photograph, Date Unknown; University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, crediting Texas Historical Commission is a link to a website on the World Wide Web.
Then
The M & M Restaurant & Bar
Dark wood and glowing lamps create an inviting atmosphere inside The M&M Restaurant & Bar, maintaining the building's place as a local institution in three centuries. Built for $500 in 1844, the restaurant has served generations of diners and even withstood the deadly hurricane of 1900. Changing hands and identities across the years, The M&M served as a saloon at the turn of the century, a grocer through Prohibition, and a boarding house during community productions of Oliver!.
Today, chefs put together a menu that focuses on fresh seafood and juicy cuts of seared meats complemented by a rousing selection of libations. Families gather around tables topped with white linens or booths lined with green and brown fabrics, and summer months coax guests out onto the spacious patio.
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Now
A Fractured History of Prohibition Red’s
The year was 1910. Red O’Marrow arrived alone and tired from Ireland, seeking her fortune. Red had high hopes for this promised land: she had heard from reliable sources back home in Kildare County that Galveston was the Wall Street of the Gulf.
Red found the perfect spot to start her business in no time. Being a religious woman, the fact that it was on Church Street sealed the deal.
Red’s place was an immediate hit. Red brought a new dish from Ireland, the French Fry, and dubbed it Irish Nachos; with this stroke of inspiration, her success was in the bag. She went to the Mosquito Fleet every day for the freshest crab, and her Crab Cake Sandwich was famous all the way to St. Louis. Locals lovingly called Red’s fare “New American Soul Food,” as there was a touch of bacon and lots of love in all of it. Red’s new home also had plenty of room upstairs for her lady boarders, who were soon helping in the pub and catching the fancy of the locals.
Things were going swell until Prohibition came calling. Red and her ladies had to use their wits and charm to keep the doors open during these dark days, making bathtub gin and serving it in a hidden room known to a few lucky souls as Red’s Speakeasy. Finally the country came to its senses and made alcohol legal again.
Red lived a charmed life, and when she passed, the ladies gave her an old fashioned wake in the bar and all of Galveston turned out for it. The hooch flowed freely while tall tales were told of Red’s glory days. Her admirers celebrated decades of contribution to the community (referring – mostly – to her donations to churches and charities).
We have the great honor of re-opening Red’s fabled pub, newly christened Prohibition Red’s in her honor, and featuring some of Red’s original recipes. The next time you are in Galveston, stop by for a cold craft beer or some piping hot Irish Nachos, and tip your paddy cap to Red O’Marrow!