Mickey John's on Skillman Avenue

On the Skillman strip near Sunnyside Gardens, Mickey John's is the quintessential Irish-American neighborhood dive bar. A recent visit found the place particularly sad, with the counter full of drunken old-timers sipping light beer, staring at the television. At one point three of four of them loudly sang a chorus or two of the theme to the "Green Acres" television show, which prompted the bartender to lean over and place a piece of masking tape over of the guy's mouth! A previous visit was much the same with a very chatty woman playing the jukebox and tossing out questions of music trivia. Decided to leave when Sammy Davis Jr.'s "Candy Man" was blasted at full volume.

There is back patio area which is nice for the summer, and for smokers, but being February, it is now closed for the winter. Inside the place was full of discarded stuff: unused kitchen appliances, a broken jukebox, etc. etc. Maybe the owner needs space to store junk. Bad lighting, dirty shelves, and the most atrocious looking mural of Irish caricatures on the wall constitute the decor. The bar stocks the usual domestic beer and standard liquor. No one drinking Guinness. The bartender was nice enough (although she seemed to be conducting a conversation aimed at no one in particular) and other times we have been in, the Irish bar staff was capable, pleasant, and always bought the fourth drink. Mickey John's is probably not the worst pub in the neighborhood, but best to wait until spring when the back patio is open. One sad, lonely, and drunken star.