Every neighborhood in Buffalo needs a place like P. Moran’s. It’s the quintessential neighborhood pub. Unfortunately, finding a place like P. Moran’s is few and far between. Why? Because there are very few people like Prish Moran… period.

For years, Prish has done her best to fire up the West Side, bringing tremendous life to the corner of Grant Street and Lafayette Avenue via Sweet_ness 7 Café. Eventually Prish’s ambitions pulled her over to Parkside Avenue, which she soon found out was a bit more quirky than Grant Street. On Parkside, Prish soon realized that she was competing with Hertel Avenue for customers, while her front doorstep was essentially a high speed thoroughfare for people racing to get to the Scajaquada Expressway.

After experimenting with a variation of her original Grant Street café formula for her Parkside location, Prish decided to go back to the drawing board. Fortunately, Prish’s drawing boards are a lot different than most people’s drawing boards, and before anyone could blink an eye, she managed to accomplish a virtual overnight transformation, turning 301 Parkside Avenue into a candlelit European influenced pub that looks like it’s been there for at least a century. Fortunately she had some good bones to work with, which remained from her café-crêperie that was open for six years (man, how time flies).

When I first walked into P. Moran’s I was taken aback. I was dumbfounded to see the meticulous work that Prish had put into the relatively small space. It was quaint. It was welcoming. It was dripping with an old-world aesthetic that is hard to come by. It was like walking into The Prancing Pony (Hobbit trilogy), or The Slaughtered Lamb (Werewolf of London), or The Green Man (The Wicker Man – the original, thank you). There’s something very authentic and pure about this new Parkside creation that has suddenly and thankfully been given the Prish Moran magical makeover. I love the low lighting, the old window panes hung over the actual windows, the wood accents, the ornamental figurines, the pass-thru window, the booths, the bathroom, and the toasted sunflower seeds on the bar. The European cosiness drew me right in, and kept me planted at the bar, talking to a dear friend who lives around the corner.

More than anything, it was the laughter and the warm welcome that ‘Miss Prishy’ lavishes upon everyone that walks in. Talk about a proud mama. I’m talking about her being a proud mama in regards to her kids, her establishments, and to Buffalo. Rarely does someone walk in that doesn’t get the Prish treatment – an arm wrap around the neck, a bump of the shoulders, a two-handed hand lock, or the warmest vocal welcome that anyone could wish for. There’s something about Prish that lights up the room, creating instant bonds between anyone in her presence.

Guests to P. Moran’s will find an evolving, playful roll out of pub fare, with craft beers, wines from sustainable vineyards and daily specials. Prish is pushing, pulling and tweaking the menu until she finds just the right balance that she feels suits the customers and the space.

Now it’s time to take a breather, and visit a place that will immediately calm your nerves, warm your soul, and give you a refresher in the finer things in Buffalo – good food and drink, with good friends, in a setting that allows for life to unfold around you.

P. Moran’s | 301 Parkside Avenue | Buffalo, New York | (716) 834-1954 | Facebook

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