With football season upon us, we select
Beef O’Brady’s:
A Sporting Spirit Family-Friendly Eatery
for Game-Viewing.
Beef O’Brady's
111 Colony Crossing Way
Madison, Mississippi
Beef O’Brady’s normally describes itself as “a family-sports pub.”
Admittedly, combining “family” and “pub” still seems an oxymoron to many Mississippians, but Beef O’Brady’s pulls this off.
The Madison eatery is one of about 300 in a Florida-based chain that insists, “Every neighborhood should have one.”
That’s because entering Beef O’Brady’s feels like entering a smoke-free mix of family room, game room, and subdued sports-bar.
Don’t worry about over-drinkers or chain smokers—both are nonexistent. The bar seems as much for decoration, serving only wine and beer. “We don’t have a late-night crowd,” boasts Dupont: “I purposely made the restaurant flow so that the attention is not on the bar.”
Instead, the focus is on a plentiful offering of food and big-screen TVs (small screens also are at each booth); of electronic games, a la Chucky Cheese’s; and of Irish green, soothing walls to bless parents after a long day’s work.
“It’s good friends, good times, good food,” insists Dupont, 43, who spent 18 years in the business world before pursuing his dream of owning a restaurant.
The cuisine is standard stuff: a range of salads, specialty burgers, ribs, chicken and seafood offerings, good sandwiches and burgers. “The food, we can’t mess up,” he says.
It’s the clean, fun, sports atmosphere that draws people. And you can count on seeing Mark. “I’m here,” he says. “I’m building relationships with my loyal customers.”
His wife, Susan, and their three children—Abbie, 12, Samantha, 11, and David, 2, also are regulars, even working on Sundays. “The girls will go to church and then get here just as things start to get full. They do whatever needs to be done—bus tables, wipe down the bar, clean silverware.”
After the rush, the Dupont family breaks to eat Sunday meal at another nearby restaurant.
The Sporting Spirit loves Beef’s for one other reason—DuPont’s restaurant supports youth sports, calling it a “way of life.”
Says Beef’s literature: “Youth sports programs have been a meaningful part of Beef O’Brady’s since the first Beef’s opened in 1985. Beef O’Brady’s understands the value of neighborhood kids playing sports. The camaraderie of friendly competition combined with healthful exercise are part of the American scene.”
This makes Madison’s Beef O’Brady’s a Sporting Spirit 2008 Family-Friendly Eatery for Game-Viewing. Take in a football game with your children at Beef’s. Relax with your spouse while the children play an arcade game.
And don’t forget, says Mark, to bring your youth sports team’s photo to put permanently on their wall. After all, it’s your pub, too! SS