Draft:The Den

File:Den Logo.jpg

Manny's Den / The Den

Location	New Brunswick, New Jersey & Somerset, New Jersey United States
Coordinates	Coming soon
Owner	Manny Mack, Richard "Dick" Mack, Peter Mack (3 generations)
Type	bar, nightclub, restaurant
Open	1944 - 2016 (72 years)
Fate	Now A Restaurant
Website	Sophie's Bistro

Dick Mack, Leah Mack & Manny Mack

Peter Mack & Dick Mack - 1990s

Manny's Den - 111 Albany St., New Brunswick (1st location)

The Den - 12-18 Hiram St., New Brunswick (2nd Location)

The Den was a popular bar & nightclub which operated for 72 years (1944 to 2016), through 3 generations and 3 different locations, moving from New Brunswick to Somerset, New Jersey. It was pivotal in advocating for LGBTQ rights in New Jersey, after winning a court case brought forth by the State Of New Jersey's Alcohol Beverage Control. This was two years before the Stonewall riots in New York City.

History

In 1944, Manny Mack (Emanuel Makanoff) and a partner opened a bar and package goods store located at 111 Albany Street in New Brunswick, New Jersey. It was incorporated as One Eleven Wines & Liquors and catered to the local residents, town businesspeople and students of nearby Rutgers University. In the 1950's Manny bought out his partner, renamed it Manny's Den and then he and his wife Leah added a restaurant. Their son Richard "Dick" Mack worked there when he was young, but he later took a more active role in the business after serving in the military and attending law school at Seton Hall.

In September 1956, the nearby Rutgers Cocktail Lounge (gay bar) was shut down by the Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC), which had been created by the State Of New Jersey to regulate the sale of alcohol after the end of prohibition. Over time, they had broadened their guidelines as to what constituted an appropriate venue for the sale of alcohol and they had deemed gay bars to be a serious social problem. According to them, this bar was in violation of their guidelines because they were allowing gay people to congregate in large numbers, and they considered two men dancing together as lewd and indecent behavior. The ABC suspended their liquor license.

At the same time, Manny's restaurant was receiving accolades for their food and a reputation for being a great place like you might find in Greenwich Village, New York City. It didn't take long, before many of the displaced Rutgers Cocktail Lounge customers started venturing into Manny's Den. The Mack's enjoyed these new customers as they were friendly, pleasant and enjoyed having a good time in their business later in the day after the kitchen had closed.

Over time, the ABC continued their crackdown on gay bars, and visits from the ABC became more frequent. Along with normal inspections, undercover agents would come in and sit down to "observe" the patrons and then go back to their offices to report their findings. All over New Jersey, more and more suspected bars were being targeted and they either suspended or revoked their liquor licenses entirely.

One night in May 1965, ABC agents walked into Manny's Den and they confronted the owner, pointed out that they were obviously allowing apparent homosexuals to gather in their establishment. They further asserted that they saw men drinking fruity drinks with their pinkies extended, while singing love songs to each other. With that, their liquor license was suspended for 60 days. Dick Mack knew this was wrong and with his legal education, he wanted to do something about it. Patrons continued to support the business and within a month, he made the decision to fight the charges. He sought the help of local gay rights advocate David Morris and attorney Theodore Sager Meth, and after a series of court battles, they joined forces with Murphy's Tavern in Newark. Val's Bar in Atlantic City was later added to the case, so the court could hear all three cases together. The case was presented to the New Jersey State Supreme Court on September 11th & 12th in 1967.

The Den Nightclub - 700 Hamilton St, Somerset (3rd Location)

The case was known as One Eleven Wines & Liquors, Inc. v. Div. Alcoholic Bev. Cont. The attorney argued that homosexuals are people just like anyone else and as long as they aren't doing anything that is truly lewd or lascivious, why shouldn't they be able to gather? After testimony from various parties, on Nov 6th, 1967, the judge ruled that the ABC overstepped its authority, and the patrons were not actually doing anything illegal. Their liquor license was then reinstated. This landmark ruling was a civil rights breakthrough and changed the law, allowing gay people to congregate in bars. After the ruling, other similar cases throughout the country followed the same course, causing sweeping changes across the land. Many have said that it was likely this case that empowered people in New York City to stand up for their rights as well. When police attempted to raid the popular Stonewall Inn in 1969, it resulted in the Stonewall Riots.

Hiram Street location

In 1980, The Den was forced to relocate as part of a redevelopment project in New Brunswick, designed to clean up Albany Street (Route 27) and make way for the new corporate headquarters of Johnson & Johnson. Dick wanted to move the business to buildings he owned on the corner of George St and Church St, but the city denied approvals as they didn't want a gay bar on George St. He found another location at 12-18 Hiram Street in New Brunswick, but that only lasted 8 years. In 1988, they were advised that they needed to move a second time as the Hiram Market area was next to be targeted for redevelopment. The buildings were all going to be demolished to make way for a new townhouse community called Hiram Square. Now, frustrated with the city of New Brunswick, Richard Mack and his son Peter Mack set out to find another location outside of the redevelopment zone of downtown New Brunswick.

Sophie's Bistro - 700 Hamilton St, Somerset

Hamilton Street location

The Mack's found a new location at 700 Hamilton Street in Somerset, just a mile away. With the help of Dean Maltz Architects in New York City, they converted the existing bowling alley into a brand-new bar, martini lounge and nightclub. This gave them far more space with ample parking and allowed them to offer many more things, including dance parties, country western line dancing, drag shows, cabaret shows and more. With little advertising, word of mouth spread the news of its reopening, and the business flourished again. In 2002, the entrance was moved, a new main bar opened in the back of the building and the lounge was converted into a bistro offering excellent French cuisine. 

Final Design Prior To Closing

• 
  Entrance
• 
  Main Bar
• 
  Dancefloor
• 
  Lounge

Steve Kelso

During the 1990's, Steve Kelso (one of the their bartenders) went on to become a highly popular male model with Colt Studios and later he developed his own Eagle Studios. His calendars were in high demand and the club frequently featured him in their local advertisements. He also toured numerous bars and nightclubs around the country to raise money for HIV/AIDS research, which was very limited at the time.

During the late 2000's, Steve Kelso became the manager and Peter Mack ran the restaurant.

Closure

The Den remained popular for many years, but with the development of the internet and the rising number of dating apps, the need go out to bars to meet people declined. After Richard Mack passed away in 2013, the Den closed its doors in 2016. However, Sophie's Bistro remains open to this day. It continues to be run by his son Peter Mack (Manny's grandson) and it continues to be a very gay friendly business.

New Brunswick LGBT Culture

The New Brunswick area was long known to be a very gay friendly place. Early Rutgers had Queens College for boys and Douglas College for girls, with LGBT student organizations on campus. There was a very large mix of restaurants, bars and nightclubs in town, which catered to a wide variety of people's interests. Some offered college games, live music, dancing, karaoke, etc. The ones most frequently patronized by LGBT clientele in the 1990's included The Den, Todd's / Escape, Melody Bar, Roxy and J August. Hyacinth Foundation, an advocacy organization for AIDS awareness held its annual AIDS Walk for several years and both neighboring towns Highland Park and Somerset were both very welcoming.

State Of New Jersey's Apology

In 2021, New Jersey's Attorney General Gurbir Grewal issued a formal public apology for the "systematic targeting" of LGBTQ establishments and issued a directive to the state's Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control to eliminate 126 actions it took against these businesses from 1933 to 1967, including One Eleven Wines & Liquors.

“For too many years, New Jersey failed to live up to its professed values of diversity, inclusion, and respect as it relates to our LGBTQ+ community,” Democratic Governor Phil Murphy said in a statement. “While we cannot undo the injustices of the past, today’s action by Attorney General Grewal demonstrates our commitment to recognizing the harms that have been suffered."

Read the NJ Governor's directive and a list of all of the businesses that were harassed and affected by the ABC's overreach by clicking here

Additional Notes

• Numerous stories have been published about the history of The Den and the Mack family.
• In 2025, it was announced that a documentary will be done on the history of Manny's Den and its legendary court case. Further information will be provided once it is available.
• A tribute group for The Den Bar & Nightclub can be found on Facebook at I Partied At The Den (Bar & Nightclub) | Facebook