BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) – It opened on May 7, 1964, and one of Mary Mahoney's first guests wrote in the guestbook, “The only way this place goes is up.”
Bob Mahoney, Mary Mahoney's son, said the door to this location opened because another door closed.
“My mother had a bit of a chill at the Tivoli Hotel, but she spent 11 years there and learned quite a bit about: She didn't serve food. She just served alcohol. But ownership… The people changed and they kicked her out,'' Bob Mahoney said. “My mom thought getting kicked out of the lounge was the worst thing that ever happened to her. But in the end, it ended up getting her into my homeless old house. So she went from cursing him to praying for him.”
Since then, Mary Mahoney's has continued to bring smiles to the faces of all its customers.
Familiar faces include Jimmy Buffett, Usher, Denzel Washington, and more.
His mother once served President Ronald Reagan on the front lawn of the White House.
“My mother passed away in '85. That was 39 years ago,” Mahoney explained. “I'm telling everyone, my mom has kept this place running and she's paid for it. All I have to do is not mess it up. .”
At a place like Mary Mahoney's, everyone is family, including the employees.
“We have employees who have been here for over 40 years. What I can teach them is how to wait tables, but what I can't teach them is how to smile. That’s the smile you need to bring,” Mahaney said.
If there's one thing Bob Mahoney wants people to know about Mary Mahoney, it's that their main goal is for people to leave satisfied.
“When you make someone happy, they don't remember what they ate. All they know is that they left happy,” Mahoney said. “And like I say, that's what I do. I tell a lot of jokes to keep people smiling. So once people smile, that's what you do. It turns out that the best medicine for someone is a smile.”
Mahoney said she never had any new or old customers when it came to her mother. She has her new friends and old friends, and that's what keeps Mary Mahoney's girlfriend high.
Mary Mahoney's was just named one of the 50 most beautiful restaurants in America by Open Table.
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