Gallagher's Steakhouse is a steakhouse

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

at 228 West 52nd Street in the

Theater District A theater district (also spelled theatre district) is a common name for a neighborhood containing a city's theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, New York City. It was founded in November 1927 by

Helen Gallagher Helen Gallagher (July 19, 1926 – November 24, 2024) was an American actress, dancer, and singer. She received three Daytime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, a Donaldson Award, and a Drama Desk Award. Gallagher's work on the New York stages spa ...

, a former

Ziegfeld girl The term "Ziegfeld Girl" (or "Ziegfeld Follies Girl") is used broadly to describe the "singers, showgirls, comediennes, nddancers" who appeared in Florenz Ziegfeld Jr.'s theatrical Broadway revue spectaculars known as the ''Ziegfeld Follies'' ...

, and wife of Edward Gallagher (1873–1929), and Jack Solomon, a colorful gambler with a large loyal following from the sporting element. These were the days of

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

and Gallagher's was one of the first

speakeasy A speakeasy, also called a beer flat or blind pig or blind tiger, was an illicit establishment that sold alcoholic beverages. The term may also refer to a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. In the United State ...

gathering places for gamblers, sports figures, and stars of

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

. There is now a location in the

New York-New York Hotel & Casino New York-New York Hotel and Casino is a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by MGM Resorts International, and is designed to evoke New York City in its archite ...

in Las Vegas. The restaurant is next door to the Alvin (now Neil Simon) Theatre, which opened a few days afterward.

History

In 1933, President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

fulfilled his campaign promise to end Prohibition. With liquor now legal, Gallagher and Solomon brought a new style of steakhouse to Broadway. The establishment was basic and had the informal atmosphere of a speakeasy mixed with an American country inn. The walls were covered with photos of the stars of Broadway, Hollywood, business, politics, and athletes past and present. Even the stars of

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred horse racetrack in Elmont, New York, just east of New York City limits best known for hosting the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United Stat ...

and

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack within ...

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

are honored. When Helen died, Jack Solomon married Irene Hayes, who was also a former Ziegfeld girl and one of the top florists in

. After a number of years as the sole owner of Gallaghers, Hayes decided to sell and chose Jerome Brody, the restaurateur responsible for the

Rainbow Room The Rainbow Room is a private event space on the 65th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza at Rockefeller Center in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Run by Tishman Speyer, it is among the highest venues in New York City. The Rainbow Room was design ...

and the Four Seasons.

Contemporary times

In 2008, the menu at Gallaghers was changed by the new management. Most important among the changes was the removal and exclusion of

Porterhouse steak The T-bone and porterhouse are steaks of beef cut from the short loin (called the sirloin in Commonwealth countries and Ireland). Both steaks include a T-shaped lumbar vertebra with sections of abdominal internal oblique muscle on each sid ...

, which once 'graced' the frozen windows of the meat locker that greets customers as they enter the restaurant. This caused some of Gallagher's old customers to complain about the removal of the Porterhouse, which some believe originated in New York. Gallaghers Steakhouse was featured in the 2002 movie

Monday Night Mayhem ''Monday Night Mayhem'' is a 2002 television film about the origin of ABC's television series ''Monday Night Football''. It debuted on the American cable TV network TNT on January 14, 2002. It was based on the 1988 nonfiction book of the same t ...

. The Trophy Room is a space for business meetings, private dining or events. Located on the second floor it features a bar, real wood-paneled walls and an extensive photo collection. The Trophy Room accommodates 110 seated, 200 reception style, 100 theater style, and the entire restaurant 400 seated. In January 2013, Gallaghers was purchased by Long Island restaurateur

Dean Poll Dean J. Poll (born April 18, 1957) is an American restaurateur based in New York and the founder of the Poll Group, former operator of Manhattan's Central Park#Restaurants, Loeb Central Park Boathouse and owner of Gallagher's Steakhouse. Backg ...

, who also owns Central Park's Loeb Boathouse. Gallagher's closed for renovations in July 2013. Gallaghers Steakhouse re-opened in early February 2014 with a new menu, which includes the porterhouse, and renovated interior. Staff at Gallagher's are represented by

UNITE HERE UNITE HERE is a labor union in the United States and Canada with roughly 300,000 active members. The union's members work predominantly in the hotel, food service, laundry, warehouse, and casino gaming industries. The union was formed in 2004 b ...

Local 100.

Franchise locations

* Gallaghers Steakhouse, New York City * Gallagher's Steak House, Las Vegas * Gallagher's Steak House, Atlantic City's Resorts International Hotel & Casino

References

External links

Official Site: Gallagher's Steakhouse, NYC
{{Restaurants in Manhattan 1927 establishments in New York City Broadway theatre Drinking establishments in Manhattan Midtown Manhattan Restaurants established in 1927 Restaurants in Manhattan Speakeasies Steakhouses in New York City

History

Contemporary times

Franchise locations

See also

References

External links