Mooies makes it happen
Watering hole raises the bar
Maura Curley
You won’t find any frou frou drinks with cute umbrellas or a view of sand or surf. But Mooie’s, a local watering hole for over fifty years, still reflects the authentic St. John. Located in the heart of Cruz Bay, near the ferry dock, it has held its own, while everything has changed around it.
The secret is Mooie’s proprietor Theodora Moorehead, an affable woman who carries on the tradition of her father, Theovald Moorehead, who opened the establishment back in 1956.
Theodora says her father, a native of St. John, was serving in the military when he read an article in the Saturday Evening Post, which indicated the entire island was going to be given over to the National Park. She says he decided to return home and lobby to help citizens keep St. John. He later was elected a senator and Mooie’s became the place islanders of every ilk gathered to discuss people and politics.
Today, both locals and visitors still gravitate to Mooie’s, where Theodora always imparts a smile, and wisdom, worthy of the best bartender.
Though she was born in St. John, Theodora went to high school and college in New York, where she majored in English and political science, worked as an administrative law representative and performed in theater off Broadway.
In the 1990’s she took over the bar after her father and long time Mooie’s bartender Sturdge died. She says she just made things a a little more female friendly.
Today Theordora plays maracas, performs in a local band, and continues to host a court of public opinion, which rivals anything else on the island.
Maura Curley is publisher of virginvoices.com
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