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NBC News
15-03-2025
- Business
- NBC News
From pandemic struggles to St. Patrick's Day crowds, Mary O's soda bread rises to viral fame
Nestled in a modest storefront in New York City's East Village, Mary O's Irish Soda Bread Shop blends into the other red-brick businesses on the block. But one thing sets it apart: Customers routinely line up, sometimes for hours, to get their hands on her freshly baked goods before they sell out. The shop's menu is simple, featuring Irish soda bread loaves and scones served with salty butter and fresh raspberry jam. The recipes, passed down through generations of Mary O'Halloran's family, are at the core of her operations. But the secret to her success is precision. Only O'Halloran herself handles the batter, a non-negotiable standard she insists maintains the quality of her baked goods. 'I've had people come and say, 'Why don't you have somebody come in and help you?' It's not going to work,' she said. 'The scone does not come out the same.' O'Halloran said the demand for her soda bread scones surges every March for St. Patrick's Day, but her journey to success hasn't been easy. Five years ago, O'Halloran was facing the closure of her East Village pub due to the financial strain of the Covid-19 pandemic. Her husband, a longshoreman working in Alaska, was unable to return home due to travel restrictions, leaving her to manage the business alone. It was her loyal pub customers who encouraged her to start selling her scones, a treat they had grown to love. What began as a small-scale venture soon caught the attention of Brandon Stanton, the creator of the viral 'Humans of New York' social media account with more than 12 million followers. After interviewing O'Halloran, Stanton offered to help spread the word about her scones. Reluctant at first, O'Halloran eventually agreed, leading to a spike in sales. 'So I wrote a story on this, and we ended up that night selling a million dollars' worth of scones,' Stanton told NBC News. 'It is one of the greatest stories in the world.' The overwhelming response turned O'Halloran's small baking operation into a community effort. Regular customers and neighbors pitched in by packing orders, printing labels and decorating boxes with handwritten notes and custom drawings from one of her daughters. Despite the surge in demand, O'Halloran remained committed to quality, handling every batch of batter herself. 'Mary is where she is because that scone tastes so dang good,' Stanton said. 'She would have got there without me.' It took more than a year to fulfill the backlog of orders, but the hard work paid off. The revenue not only saved her pub, but allowed her to open Mary O's Irish Soda Bread Shop in November 2024. Customers from around the world flock to her store to sample the viral scones and meet the woman behind the treats. 'I live in Los Angeles, but they told me, you know, next time you're in town, there's a place we have to go, and it's the best scone you've ever had. It's the best soda bread,' out-of-towner David Murphy said. For O'Halloran, the hard work has been worth it. 'I love it, so it's easy,' she said. 'Of course I'm tired, but I love what I get from it with people. So it's easy.'
Buzz Feed
14-03-2025
- Business
- Buzz Feed
This Viral Bakery Only Serves Two Items (That Often Sell Out In Under An Hour) — And They're Worth Every Minute Spent Waiting
Whether online or IRL, there's one bakery people can't seem to stop talking about right now — Mary O's Irish Soda Bread Shop in New York City. @chewyorkcity This Thursday don't miss out on some insane scones 🫐🍓 and if you want to keep seeing my videos follow @ Chewyorkcity on IG! #nycfood #nycbakery #scones #irishsodabread #eastvillage ♬ This Will Be - audios4you @chewyorkcity / TikTok / Via Mary O'Halloran opened the shop in November 2024, and it's been the talk of the town ever since, attracting crowds to its small storefront in the East Village. The shop is only open Thursday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and with its limited hours, there's no doubt you'll see lines forming out of the store at all times of the day. It turns out O'Halloran started baking Irish soda bread scones — based on her mom's recipe from County Mayo, Ireland — back in 2021, after COVID restrictions forced her to close her bar, Mary O's Irish Pub. To keep busy amid the shutdown of her pub, she started baking her scones and sold them to former pub customers. By early 2022, O'Halloran had sold over $1 million worth of scones, allowing her to use those funds to partially reopen her bar. Now, she sells her scones at her brick-and-mortar Soda Bread Shop. Crumbly and tangy, Irish soda bread is a quick bread leavened by baking soda instead of yeast, hence the name. The first published soda bread recipe dates back as early as 1836, but it wasn't until the famines of the late 1840s that soda bread took off as a staple in Ireland thanks to its simple and accessible ingredients, including the previously mentioned baking soda, flour, salt, and buttermilk. Over time, though, recipes have expanded to include butter, eggs, and sugar for sweeter and more decadent results. Since I had seen so much about Mary O's soda bread scones online, I was determined to try one for myself. I arrived at 10 a.m. on Saturday morning, and sure enough, the line was already out the door. There were about twenty people in front of me, but the line seemed to be moving somewhat quickly. The inside of the shop smelled amazing and buttery, like something heavenly was in the oven. After waiting in line for about 20 minutes, I was able to order. The shop only has two baked goods on its menu: Irish soda bread scones priced at $6 each and a $30 Irish soda bread loaf. The shop also sells a handful of Irish groceries including Barry's Tea, Odlums Self Raising Flour, McDonnells Curry Sauce, Chef Brown Sauce, and more. Since every scone is cut in half and served with Irish butter and homemade blackberry jam, I ended up waiting another 10 minutes before the scones were actually in my hands. One thing to note is the shop is pretty small so there aren't many places to sit. There is a small counter near the front of the shop and a two-person bench outside, but they were both occupied, so I enjoyed my scones on a building stoop close by. Here's my review: Every part of this scone impressed me. The scone itself was crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The homemade jam was tart, and the consistency was perfectly thick, with noticeable pieces of blackberry throughout. The butter was so silky and flavorful that I probably could've eaten it by itself, but alongside the scone and jam, it was one of the best scones I've ever had. Jen Adams The tastiest part was the middle, where the butter and jam melted into the scone, which made it extra moist and tender. Jen Adams I don't know what kind of magic Mary O is putting into these scones, but it's working, and I will be back to purchase more. Was this scone worth the over 30 minutes of waiting? Definitely. As a scone-lover, I'll say Mary O's Irish Soda Bread Shop is a must-try. I'll admit that $6 for one scone isn't cheap, but these are so worth it. My one complaint is the lack of seating, but it wasn't too big of a deal because there were a decent amount of places to sit on the street. Sudden hankering for some soda bread (but nowhere near NYC)? Download the free Tasty app to save our very best soda bread scone recipe to your phone — then make a batch for St. Patrick's Day. 🍀
