Philly’s Favorite Irishman Offers Some St. Patrick’s Day Advice
Mononymous bar owner Fergie has some things on his mind.
Fergus “Fergie” Carey, the owner of Fergie’s Pub, says he’ll be hiding on St. Patrick’s Day in Philadelphia / Photograph by Stevie Chris
In 1994, a young man from Ireland known as Fergie staked his claim on an Irish pub on Sansom Street in Center City. Thirty years later, Fergie’s Pub might be the most crowded place ever on St. Patrick’s Day in Philadelphia.
My real name is … Fergus Anthony Joseph Carey. My parents said, “Let’s pick an ugly name like Fergus, to give him a challenge in life.”
I grew up in … Dublin. There were seven of us in a three-bedroom house — plus my grandmother and foster babies. It was very… peaceful.
I came to America … in 1987. I was 24 and had to do fucking something with my life. Plus, the Irish economy. My pen pal’s family lived in Philadelphia and had work for me. I arrived on Saturday night by bus, and Sunday morning I was working at the Cherry Hill Mall food court at El Taco Grande.
Before I opened Fergie’s Pub 30 years ago, I was … bartending at McGlinchey’s, which is actually more smoky now than it was then, because it’s the only place to smoke.
These days, I live in … Fishtown. I had been in Bella Vista for years. But I met a girl who lives in Fishtown five years ago. And we moved in together officially three years ago. Well, technically, I moved in with her.
To get around town … I ride Indego.
My latest project is … The Jim at 8th and Morris. If we were cool, we woulda called it a speakeasy. I’m being facetious, of course. It used to be JC Chinese for years.
Fergus ‘Fergie’ Carey, the owner of Fergie’s Pub in Philadelphia, in the early days of the bar (photo courtesy Fergus Carey/Fergie’s Pub)
My kids are always telling me … “Stop embarrassing us.” They are 19 and 16.
The percentage of Philly bars that properly pour a Guinness is … 30.
When I’m not having a beer at one of my own bars, you will usually find me having one at … Fishtown Tavern. It’s simple. It’s well run. And they are good, nice people.
My secret to success with Fergie’s Pub is … something I don’t have a clue about. It’s certainly not because I’m fucking brilliant.
My next big project … is taking 30 or 40 people to Ireland in September. The first-ever Fergie’s Pub Tour of Ireland. And possibly the last!
The biggest change in the bar industry has been … alcoholic everything. There’s alcoholic seltzer. Alcoholic kombucha. Bars used to be for people who drank beer and whiskey.
One industry trend I’m tired of is … sober bars.
People who say Center City is dead … are totally wrong. We’re back at it.
You might be surprised to know that I … body-doubled for Barry Keoghan in Saltburn.
My secret junk-food obsession is … Popeyes.
One TV show I cannot watch is … Bar Rescue. Let’s go home after a stressful day at work to watch a stressful show about bars.
A Philly restaurant I really miss is … Stephen Starr’s Blue Angel, which closed in 2003. The perfect French place. Parc isn’t a good substitute. It’s just too big and busy for me.
On my days off, I like to … brunch at Lloyd and hear live music at Dawson Street Pub or the Twisted Tail, which has a great blues jam.
The last meal I cooked was … a beautiful rib eye from Martin’s at Reading Terminal. I asked my phone, “How do you cook a rib eye in a frying pan?” But I rarely cook. I eat out all the time.
On St. Patrick’s Day in Philadelphia, I will be … hiding.
People who call it “St. Patty’s Day” … should know that they are fucking wrong. There’s a special place in hell for them. Nobody in Ireland would ever say “Patty.” This is an example of how you say I haven’t a fucking clue without actually saying I haven’t a fucking clue. It’s Paddy’s Day or St. Patrick’s Day. That’s it.
I refuse to have a TV at Fergie’s Pub because … if you have a TV, then you gotta turn it on, and Jeopardy is on, and you can’t hear the bloody answers, even. Or you have a couple at a table on a date and the TV is behind her, and so he’s looking at sports instead of her.
When I turned 60 last year, I celebrated by … spending six weeks in Ireland.
The most famous person who’s come to Fergie’s Pub was … Shane MacGowan from the Pogues. He fell asleep at the bar.
I am deathly afraid of … what Victor Fiorillo might write about me.
One spirit I cannot drink is … fernet. What a fucking joke. Somebody like Anthony Bourdain must have said something good about it once. It’s so bad that it’s ridiculous.
My tombstone should read … “He gave it a shot.”
Published as “One of Us: Fergie” in the March 2024 issue of Philadelphia magazine.
