JUNE 2020 | COBB LIFE 45
wanted to do instead of trying to rush the process.”
The restaurateur said those who visited the former
Shillings will notice a marked difference — the space has
been opened up significantly, the upstairs bar has been
replaced and the building has received new plumbing,
electrical, counter tops and other features — but there will
be touches of the building’s past sprinkled throughout the
new restaurant.
“It’s much brighter and cleaner and fresher in the
restaurant. … It doesn’t look the same. The restaurant has
been completely revitalized. It’s a total overhaul,” he said,
adding that the restaurant will be a high-quality but
affordable dining option. “But we’ve kept a large portion of
the antique bar that (Reardon) had that’s probably, gosh, it’s
probably over 100 years old.”
Wood that was taken out of floors or ceilings in
portions of the building has also been re-purposed for
other parts of the renovations, and the building’s original
red oak hardwood floors have been restored, maintaining
its history but also making it warm, McCray and his
contractors said.
“We brought back a lot of exposed brick on the inside.
Back in the ’70s and ’80s, people ... plastered and covered
up a lot of that beautiful brick and we just decided to go
back in and tear that off,” McCray said.
For Gordon Brans, a 30-year Marietta resident and the
contractor remodeling the building, the Mac’s job has come
full circle.
“(My wife and I) used to come here for brunch when
our kids were babies. They’re all in their 20s now. And I
actually had a surprise birthday party upstairs for my wife
about 10 years ago,” he said. “And we used to come up here
and have dinner and drinks at the bar.”
Brans said revitalization of the restaurant needed to
happen, calling the newly renovated Mac’s “the only really
authentic bar,” in the area. Pointing to the floors, portions
of shelving, windows and other features dating back to the
early 1900s, when the building housed Schillings Hardware
Store, Brans said keeping the history is both important and
fascinating for customers.
“The Square needs a bar like this,” he said.
Former Marietta Councilman Philip Goldstein, whose
family owns the Mac’s building, said the restaurant will be a
fresh and likely welcome addition to the Square.
“They’ve done a phenomenal job with the remodeling
of the building,” he said. “It’s a lot more open and … they
made it where it’s much more accessible ... and the look is
just a great look.”
Goldstein said the new restaurant “certainly has the
potential” to become the next Square staple, but only time
will tell.
That, said McCray, is what he and his wife, Kelly,
are hoping for. He said the most exciting part of opening
the restaurant will be joining the Marietta restaurant
community.
“(We want) to have something to offer and try to help
freshen Marietta Square up a little bit, give people within
the community and outside the community reasons to
come to the Square more,” he said.