Jody’s Club Forest: Celebrating 25 Years of Chamber Membership
By Danielle Wiseman, The Staten Island Chamber of Commerce
Jody’s Club Forest, an Irish pub-turned-restaurant located along the Forest Avenue Business Improvement District (BID), is a staple of West Brighton. A family-run, legacy business, Jody’s Club Forest has proudly stood on Forest Avenue for nearly fifty years.
Jody’s Club Forest was founded in 1976 by Jody and Mary Haggerty, a West Brighton-based husband-and-wife duo that dreamt of opening their own bar. Mary’s father, a first-generation Irish immigrant, had already owned two bars in Manhattan. Since Jody and Mary were only 27 at the time, Mary’s father financially supported the opening of Jody’s Club Forest, and the business quickly became a local fan favorite.
“Jody’s opened in the late 1970s, which was a great time for nightlife. We were incredibly popular amongst the younger crowd on Staten Island, the twenty-somethings who wanted to have a fun night out,” reminisces Terence Haggerty, son of Jody and Mary Haggerty and owner of Jody’s Club Forest. “In 1985, we had a massive fire that burned Jody’s to the ground. In retrospect, it may have been a blessing in disguise because the original building was old and falling apart, and we were able to create a more stable structure to house the new Jody’s.”
In the early 1990s, Jody’s Club Forest began offering sit-down dinners on Friday and Saturday nights in addition to the standard drinks and bar-style food, serving around ten tables per night. For the next twenty years, Jody’s continued to operate out of 372 Forest Avenue, providing a home away from home to Staten Islanders in search of hearty food, beer on tap, and good company.
The youngest of five children, Terence grew up with Jody’s Club Forest. As a child, he and his siblings always had a hand in the family business, each contributing in their own way by bartending, waiting tables, cleaning equipment, and whatever else their parents needed on a given day. However while the remaining Haggerty siblings moved on to other ventures as they outgrew Jody’s, Terence remained, citing that he always knew he wanted to take over the restaurant when the time was right.
Jody Haggerty passed away in April 2016, shortly after he and Terence completed the expansion of Jody’s Club Forest into 378 Forest Avenue, adding another 25 tables to the restaurant. The beloved and legendary restaurant owner left a distinct mark on the West Brighton community, and he left Jody’s Club Forest to Terence, who was honored to build upon his father’s legacy.
“We were all involved in Jody’s growing up, but I was the only one who really wanted to do this day in and day out,” emphasizes Terence. “Owning a business is a big undertaking; it’s every day and there are virtually no breaks, but I love that I’m following in my father’s footsteps. He was the most dedicated guy I knew, and I think he’d be proud of how far we’ve come, especially getting through the pandemic.”
Jody’s Club Forest is so much more than a local establishment; it is a second home to those on Staten Island who had the privilege of knowing Jody Haggerty and becoming a part of his extended family. In addition to being the home of one of the very first NCAA Tournament pools, Jody’s was also the site of the St. Patrick’s Parade political breakfast, which was held annually until 2023, when the breakfast was cancelled in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ groups who were barred from marching in the parade. Jody’s is a hub for Staten Islanders, many of whom met their best friends or spouses at the bar.
“My older brother was born just six weeks after Jody’s opened, but we only lived twelve houses away, so it wasn’t a problem for my parents,” jokes Terence. “We’ve since moved, but I still live in West Brighton. I even met my wife at Jody’s when I was bartending one night, so I really don’t know where we would be without Jody’s. It’s so special owning a business on Forest Avenue, and I’m lucky to have the support from the community that we have here in West Brighton.”
This year, Jody’s Club Forest is celebrating 25 years as members of the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce. Jody Haggerty joined the Staten Island Chamber in 1999, some years after Jody’s transitioned to restaurant-style. Jody believed that he wouldn’t truly be a staple of the Staten Island community until he became involved with the Chamber, which helped build his network beyond Forest Avenue.
“My father was proud to be a part of the community, and the Chamber embodies community in every way,” says Terence. “There is no community without the Chamber of Commerce, and we’re excited to celebrate a quarter of a century as members.”
