Ryan’s Daughter

When first opened in 1979, Ryan’s Daughter announced herself as a “New Pub on an Old Spot”. There had been a bar at 350 East 85th Street since the Prohibition Era. During that time, it operated not so much as a speakeasy or gin-joint, but a local club. Official licensing came in the late 1930’s, as the “Old Stream.” This German-owned watering hole catered to the residents of Yorkville until the mid-1970’s. Then, in 1974, the Irish moved in. The “Old Stream” became the “Minstrel Boy,” founded by an Irish-born, retired NYPD officer. The handle changed, but the regulars still sat in their same stools and kept up their old traditions. The tight-knit, community bar, continued on much the same as it had been. Then, in 1979, Ryan’s Daughter was born. The new owners gave her a major facelift as well as a second bar on the upper floor. She turned a few heads, as the 1980’s brought new faces to old places on the Upper East Side. The crowd came in and rubbed shoulders with the old-timers. Ryan’s Daughter charmed many of them with her friendliness to all. And so they stayed on, becoming familiar faces themselves. They had found a home here next to those whose barstools had become a birthright.