By Jessica Easthope
Get it by the piece, by the sandwich, or by the pound – no matter how you slice it, McMahon’s says it’s the best corned beef in Brooklyn. And this year Catholics can opt out of their Lenten obligation and savor every bite.
“Anybody can walk in your door, you have to make sure they come back and we’re very lucky because tomorrow we have a lot of nationalities coming in for St. Patrick’s Day, not just Irish, every body,” said Mike McMahon, owner of McMahon’s Public House in Park Slope.
Mike says they usually get a crowd of 3,000 on St. Patrick’s Day. Between people eating in and taking out, he ordered twelve hundred pounds of corned beef. The way it’s made stays a secret.
“They’re preparing this delicious corned beef for like 3 or 4 days now and it’s not just boiling corned beef, they put a lot of seasoning into it which I can’t say,” he said.
This year, St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Friday, but Bishop Robert Brennan said not to worry. His dispensation acknowledges St. Patrick, who brought Catholicism to Ireland. So anyone who raises a toast to him, can do so with corned beef and Celtic culture. All he asks for is a work of charity in return.
“We were raised to say our rosary every night and not forget where we came from Ireland and we were told just do the right thing, we never ate meat on Friday during Lent, right now the Bishop says okay I think we have to take his word for it,” said Mike.
So as the gravy simmers, there’s calm before the storm at McMahon’s. Céad míle fáilte, one hundred thousand welcomes and twelve hundred pounds of corned beef.