Family-oriented pub and grill opens in Idaho Falls

IDAHO FALLS – A new family-oriented eating establishment recently popped up on the north end of Idaho Falls.

Mac ‘n Kelly’s Pub & Grill opened quietly several months ago at 1560 Lindsay Boulevard next to the Snake River RV Park, but it began offering food just last week.

“Construction has been ongoing … and we just got our license to sell food last week,” Scot “Mac” McGuire, one of the business partners, tells EastIdahoNews.com. “With COVID and the amount of construction going on in Idaho Falls … contractors are booked out months, so just trying to get enough contractors lined out was a daunting task.”

McGuire and his partner Dave Kelly says business has been steady since the onset.

The menu, which is still being developed, includes the 3-way Grind burger, which comes with a one-third pound of meat made with chuck roast and brisket. There’s also a half-pound bison burger. All the meat is fresh and locally-produced. Other items include Idaho Nachos and McGuire’s specialty item — beer-boiled, charbroiled bratwurst.

“It’s something I’ve been cooking for years. Every time we ever barbecued, everybody was always asking me if I was cooking brats, so that’s carried over here,” says McGuire.

Slot car racing, a miniature version of drag racing using model cars, is one of the business’s attractions that’s also a carryover from McGuire’s classic car dealership that closed in August after a year of operation. Competitions are held on the business’s miniature drag strip twice a week.

“It’s basically everything that happens out at Sage Raceway west of town on a smaller scale,” says McGuire.

“It’s quite exciting as a spectator sport,” Kelly adds. “When people are racing, (customers) are hooping and hollering and it’s kind of an event.”

See how it works in the video player above.

The business also includes arcade games, dart boards, pool and foosball tables, along with a stage and dancing area.

Mac ‘n Kelly’s Pub & Grill was inspired, in part, by the duo’s previous business and is an evolution of that idea.

“Classic cars were always my thing. I owned Mac’s Classics, Hotrods & Customs along with Dave. Having a restaurant and being a foodie is Dave’s thing. As we shifted gears, it made sense for us to move towards something we wanted to do and something that was familiar to us,” McGuire says.

The 11,000-square-foot building has been around since the mid-1960s and one of the first tenants to occupy the space was the Skyway Rock and Roll Bar. Sometime in the 1980s, it became The Rocking Horse, a country and western dance bar. The Las Pulgas Mexican night club occupied the building for several years before Karen’s Club took it over for a short time.

It had been vacant for about two years when McGuire and Kelly acquired it.

McGuire says some big-name bands have performed at this location over the years, including Iron Butterfly, Blue Oyster Cult, The Ramone’s, Motley Crue and Warrant. He and Kelly are planning to eventually have karaoke and dance nights with DJs and live bands performing here again in the future.

Adding beer and wine to the menu is the number one priority, McGuire says. A grand opening is tentatively planned for St. Patrick’s Day weekend and they’re hoping to launch a breakfast menu around Easter.

“We’re going to open a breakfast service in the spring (for all the people staying at the Snake River RV Park). We’ll also be offering a picnic basket with food hot and ready to go for anyone on their way to Yellowstone,” Kelly says.

Customers will also be able to rent out the building for business or private events.

The current hours are 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Visit the Facebook page to learn more or call (208) 524-3568.