Today we’d like to introduce you to John Farino.
John, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started as a barback for a big nightclub in NYC called 230-Fifth to help pay my way through school and I fell in love with the hospitality/events industry. I was 20 years old and the General Manager/Director of Events really liked my work ethifc and took me under his wing. He taught me everything he could. I was bartending and planning events before I knew it. I fell away from events for a couple of years because I was making so much money bartending and having so much fun doing it that I lost track of why I stayed in this industry in the first place. I found my calling again and moved to South Florida where took over as General Manager at McSorley’s.
We have a beautiful rooftop venue that can accommodate many types of events so I have put my main focus on getting those events going at this location. I have been very successful in doing so, thus far. Still, always more that needs to be done.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
My mentor actually went to start his own place and brought me with him. I was the Event Coordinator there and was doing a stellar job. I was being given a lot of credit for the beautiful venue we opened and for the events that we were hosting. Although I always refuted full credit and gave him all of his due praise, he did not like all of the attention I was attracting and slowly pushed me away. It was extremely unfortunate and heart breaking for me. I not only let like I lost a friend and my mentor, more importantly, I felt that I had lost this business. I felt I couldn’t do it without him. He was always there to answer my questions. Always there to yell at me or laugh at me when I made that stupid mistake. I never even had a thought of running an establishment without him by my side.
I am here now though. Growing still. He still deserves a lot of credit.
Please tell us about McSorley’s Beach Pub & Rooftop Lounge.
McSorley’s is a versatile venue overlooking Ft. Lauderdale Beach. We cater to all types of events here and show all of the major sporting events as well. Our downstairs pub is a great place for beach goers and tourists to drag the sand in and take a break from the sun while enjoying an ice cold beverage.
Our upstairs Lounge & Rooftop is a bit fancier with state of the art audio and visual equipment that really creates a powerful mood thorough the space. We do weddings, sporting events, birthday parties, bar mitzvahs, reunions, cocktail receptions, slide show presentations, etc. We can really do it all.
I am the General Manager there so I really am in charge of it all. My main focus the past year in a half has been booking the parties and hosting events and living the rooftop up to its full potential. It’s been absolute success so far but there is always more work to be done.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Nothing. It’s strange. I’ve made more mistakes then the average boy growing up. If I can go back and make some changes, I could surely save myself some grief at the very least.
If I did that though, would I be here where I am today? Would I have my beautiful 3-week-old son to stare at when I get home in the middle of the night? Would I be with his mother, my fiancé, who is the most loyal person I have ever known in my entire life? Maybe. Maybe not.
Life is about those mistakes. Those lessons that you learn get you where you’re going.
It’s been a tough 30 years. It really has. But I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Contact Info:
- Address: 837 North Ft. Lauderdale Beach Blvd.,
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33304 - Website: Mcsorleysftl.com
- Phone: 954-565-4446
- Email: info@mcsorleysftl.com or John@mcsorleysftl.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mcsorleysftl/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/McSorleysFTL/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/McSorleysFTL
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/mcsorleys-beach-pub-fort-lauderdale
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