Brehon Law Society Honors Supreme Court Justice Clynes

Top o’ the week- Longtime Upper East Side resident, Manhattan Acting Supreme Court Justice Jim Clynes, received the Judicial Honoree award at the Brehon Law Society of New York’s Annual St. Patrick’s Day Dinner held on March 11, 2024 at Connolly’s Pub & Restaurant on East 47th St. to a sellout crowd of 300 guests, including judicial colleagues and members of the legal community

The Brehon Society is a Bar Association made up of Irish American lawyers. The Society is inspired by ancient Celtic Law to defend, protect, and extend Human Rights. The old Brehon laws and customs governed every aspect of Irish society with an emphasis on restitution and compensation, a concept that resonates with restorative justice. Brehon Laws applied equally to all members of society regardless of rank or status. This commitment to fairness and equality is a testament to the progressive nature of ancient Irish society. Judge Clynes, in his remarks stated, “. . . The Brehon Law Society is a beacon of Irish-American excellence, promoting respect, justice, equality, community and Irish culture in the legal profession just like the Brehon Laws.. . . “ Judge Clynes’ roots in Ireland are deep. His great grandfather Patrick Clynes was born on St. Patrick’s Day in 1850 in County Mayo, later immigrating to the United States in 1874.

Judge Clynes is a former member of Community Board 8 where he served for 15 years and was the Chair for 3 years before being elected to the Bench in 2017.

Tome time–The internet’s pretty much instant gratification. Want to know something? Google it. Want to order something–food, tickets, clothing, equipment–there’s an app for that. What those devices don’t/can’t/won’t do is give you pleasure of holding a hardcover or paperback book in your hands for an immediate all-in-one read. And sometimes that takes true grit. Like Barbra Streisand’s 900-plus pages of “My Name is Barbra,” Adam Nagourney’s 500-plus pages of “The Times,” and Tricia Romano’s 500-plus pages of “The Freaks Came Out to Write...The Descriptive History of the Village Voice,” the Radical Paper That Changed American Culture.” Those three, many-page books particularly resonated with me because I was around during those years and appreciate the depth, clarity and accuracy of the times. Each is well-written and tells the tales of late 20th century life –mostly either in NY or from a NY prospective and when print was the means of communication, which brings the books full circle for me. And keeps nostalgia in my hands.

New restaurant on the block–When the Parlor Steakhouse at 3rd Ave and 90th St closed several years ago, it was a big loss to the neighborhood. And the empty space was something of an eyesore. In January of this year, Our Town’s Nicholas Liu wrote that a restaurant named Catch ‘n Chop would soon be coming to the location. Since I live in the neighborhood, I’m witness to workers putting up the canopy and prettying up the location. What I’m trying to figure out is what kind of restaurant will it be. What seems obvious is that it will be fish and meat, but will it be casual, fast casual, high-end? When I saw the name, it reminded me of Hillside, the diner, that occupied the space at 85th and 3rd which was demolished by a fire. The new restaurant that would be occupying the space was to be called Munchies. Munchies owner also owned the upscale French Jacques Brasserie which is located several doors away from Munchies. Before Munchies opened, I wrote about what kind of restaurant it would be. From the name, it sounded like maybe a food court. Something casual. Instead, Munchies turned out to be a very classy, upscale tapas bar/restaurant. It was fine dining. Munchies has since closed. Hate to say told ya so. In its place is Giacomo’s, a terrific sit-down pizzeria. My guess is that it will survive the test of time. And “Giacomo’s” told me so..