WOODSIDE — They stand across a narrow, one-way street from one another as two pillars of the community, one feeding stomachs and the other feeding the soul.
Donovan’s Pub, modeled after a traditional Irish pub, opened on the corner of Roosevelt Avenue and 58th Street in 1966. It’s across the street from St. Sebastian Church, which has stood at its current location since 1955.
Over the past 60 years, the church — on the former site of the Loew’s Woodside Theater — and the pub have watched the Woodside community change around them while they have both remained mainstays of the neighborhood.
While Woodside “was always very commercial,” with Roosevelt Avenue boasting a variety of stores under the elevated No. 7 train line, there has been significant growth in recent years, said Dan Connor, the co-owner of Donovan’s Pub.
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“What you’re really seeing over the past decade or so is high-rises coming in, just building after building being built,” said Connor, who bought the restaurant with his brother-in-law James Jacobson from the original owner Joe Donovan in 2013. “And it’s just bringing more and more people to the neighborhood.”
St. Sebastian Church is “the heart of this community,” said Connor, a lifelong parishioner. He noted that Donovan’s Pub is the go-to place for many churchgoers for parties for baptisms, communion, confirmations, and even weddings.
“We just go great together, and everything that happens in this community happens between these buildings, whether you’re getting married, or having a baptism, or saying goodbye to someone you love,” Connor said. “It all happens in that building across the street, and then people come here and remember and celebrate as well.”
Father Patrick West, pastor of St. Sebastian Church, said Donovan’s Pub is “an institution in Woodside, adding that the two are connected by community spirit.
“Everyone from the neighborhood comes to worship, even from outside the neighborhood. People who have moved from here are always coming back,” Father West said. “Donovan’s is an important part of their growing up in family life.”
Donovan’s Pub is famous for its hamburgers, but the restaurant also prides itself on its corned beef and cabbage, which is a Thursday night tradition. Father West said his favorite dish is the bacon cheeseburger, nicknamed “Woodside” on the menu. He said when he wants a healthier option, he turns to the chicken breast with asparagus.
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Connor also touted the restaurant’s expertly poured Guinness. Bartender Christine D’Alonzo said the key to a perfect Guinness is to let the foam settle for nearly two minutes before serving.
“If you’re sitting at the bar having a drink, having dinner, we pour a proper Guinness like nobody else in New York,” Connor said.
In another nod to tradition, Donovan’s Pub has not changed the main dining room, though it has expanded its dining areas over the years. It’s modeled after a cozy Irish pub that one would find in Dublin.
“The one thing we promised the community,” Connor said, “is that if they still supported us, we would bring back a little more life, but we wouldn’t change the charm.”