McGinty’s Public House in downtown Silver Spring will embark on a new chapter under fresh ownership this weekend with a celebratory New Owners Party scheduled for Saturday evening.
The festivities will commence at 6 p.m. on Saturday, featuring a champagne toast, appetizers, and a live musical performance by the Hathway Brothers.
The Greater Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 7 p.m. to officially mark the transition.
McGinty’s co-founders Greg Whelan and Brian Dolphin opened the Irish pub at Ellsworth Place in 2006 and handed over ownership of the business to general manager Debbie Lea and her family in January of this year.
“We are extremely proud of what we created and strongly believe that McGinty’s has been and continues to be an important bedrock in the Silver Spring community,” Whelan and Dolphin wrote on Instagram in January. “So, we are thrilled to announce that our General Manager, Debbie Lea, along with her family, Denis, Conor, Nieve, and Kade, will be taking over the reins. Debbie has been managing McGinty’s since we opened and her passion for the business has been unwavering. Debbie and her family will bring the energy and drive that will see McGinty’s thrive for another 18 years and beyond. We wish them the best of Irish luck and much success!”
Whelan and his wife Emma own Whelan’s Beer & Wine in Potomac Village, which opened last year. Previously, they owned Astro Lab Brewing in downtown Silver Spring, which closed in 2023 and was replaced by Third Hill Brewing.
Photo: McGinty’s Public House / Facebook