As a part of Snack Shop series, Annie Arriaga investigates the latest and greatest viral snack shops in New York City to see if the hype is real, if the snacks are yummy, and if the spot is underrated, overrated, or perfectly rated.
Between Guinness and Paul Mescal both trending simultaneously, suddenly Irish things everywhere. And also, it’s recently come to my attention that there’s an Irish soda bread scone shop in the East Village, Mary O’s, that sells out every weekend. But to be clear:, the woman behind the operation, Mary O’ Halloran, has been selling the fresh Irish scones since well before the average New Yorker knew how to properly pronounce “Mescal.”
Before virality, Mary owned an Irish pub by the same name, which shut down during the pandemic. During lockdown, Mary started to bake and sell Irish soda bread to support her family, and according to Eater, her business sold over a million dollars in buttery biscuits. Fast forward to today: Mary’s old bar reopened, and she has her own special storefront dedicated solely to Irish soda bread that consistently sells out. I am a fan of all things Ireland, soda bread included, so I made a visit to see it for myself.
Photo by Anna Arriaga
The Snacks
One thing I loved straight off the bat about Mary O’s is the fact that they only have one thing you can eat on their menu: soda bread. One thing I disliked straight off the bat: the long, winding line down the block in the 20 degree morning weather. They opened at 7 a.m., and we arrived at 10. As expected, there was a sizable crowd outside the little storefront, but I was ready to ride out the storm. Half an hour in, we made it inside and were surrounded by nostalgic porcelain teacup decorations and the delicious, velvety aroma of baking bread. Eventually, we made it up to the front and ordered, just to make another line of hungry customers waiting for their name to be called.
Photo by Anna Arriaga
Soda Bread. What you get: One scone, cut in the middle, slathered with Irish Kerrygold butter, and topped with chunky blackberry jam for $6. Crunchy and crackly on the outside, moist, dense and warm on the inside. After an hour of waiting and watching the bakery sell out in real-time (we got the second to last scones), holding the steamy bread in my hands, my nose red from the cold, I had lofty expectations. The first bite: salty sweet perfection. I sat in silence for a few minutes after the first bite—pure happiness.
Final Rating
Maybe it was the fact they sold out right after we ordered, or my hunger, or the scent wafting out of Mary O’s oven (or all of the above combined), but I’d wait in a line for an hour again for these babies. I declare Mary O’s Irish soda bread to be perfectly rated, and well worth the visit.
If you’re reading this and you have a suggestion for a Snack Shop in the city that I must visit and (honestly) rate, leave a comment here or on our Snack Shop TikTok video. I love suggestions!
