Mory’s: the end of an era?
Mory’s will not reopen immediately after winter break and may shut its doors for good, said Christopher Getman ’64, the newly appointed president of Mory’s Board of Governors.
The iconic eating club has also laid off all staff — management included — save for controller Robin Soltesz, Getman said. Mory’s, which was founded in 1849, will be closed for at least two to three weeks, Getman said, though the closure could extend to the end of the academic semester or beyond. Asked whether the club will ever reopen, Getman said he is “optimistic.”
Mory’s decision to close follows...
It is unfortunate this has to be the end for Mory's.Unless a competent hands on club manager is hired, someone with knowledge of Mory's and Yale I doubt the situation will ever change. I for one will not make any attempt to donate a sizeable sum until I see a major change in management. The club does not need another lazy front man to milk the coffers like the previous manager. This situation was obvious to anyone with half a brain.
I found their request for donations highly offensive! I paid $275 for my ANNUAL membership, only to have them shut down halfway through the year. We members found out about the shutdown in the media--no letter, no email, nothing from Mory's itself. I'm sad to see it go (it filled a real need , a local place to bring guests to Yale, full of Yale ambiance). But, it was clearly mis-managed.
With all due respect, I don't think Mr. Getman is attacking the problem from the right angle. I don't think the current students' aversion to "elitist institutions" is the root cause of the club's demise. After all, it's a golden age for secret societies. It's true that Mory's has not done a good job marketing itself to the undergraduates, but its biggest failing was actively alienating those students who were fond of the place. Somehow, the staff (some were much worse than others) forgot that Mory's was a restaurant and that it was their job to serve ALL patrons of the establishment, regardless of their age or wealth. Instead, they treated undergraduates like a bunch of fourth-graders: ordering us about, randomly enforcing - or inventing - archaic club rules, citing non-existent Connecticut laws, and frowning on those who came to share a cup without ordering a subpar, $30 dinner. The shabby treatment of undergraduates was especially apparent when we visited the establishment with older alums - the service was impeccable, no random rules were brought up to limit our ability to purchase drinks, the cups were far better, etc. Things got particularly bad after Wayne left and the obnoxious lady on a power trip took over. I was so offended by her that I vowed never to return until she was gone. I also made sure to share my grievances with anyone who cared to ask. I know of at least four other instances where a group of students were so incensed by their experience that they refused to come back. One of them vowed that she would do everything in her power to prevent any organization (in which she had any influence) from holding an official meeting at Mory's. I hate to see Mory's go under, but without changing its attitude towards Yale's undergraduates, the club will not survive the 21st century, even if it is brought back to life.
Stop being so dramatic. Mory's will be fine. All 14,000 members received letters asking for donations, and if everyone on that mailing list gives even $50 they will be well out of debt. The management knows what needs to change and will do so immediately.
Furthermore, an open $40 membership is not elitist. It'll reopen next fall at the latest and stay open, likely with better food, a bar, higher dinner/cup prices and no membership... as it should be. Sorry, haters.
Like some twisted self important coffee house, when the owners family gets there ,you give up your seat and sit at the curb.Or some horrific Realtor,then they don't ask but pull the chair out from under ya.
Which reminds me, it sounds like this place was worked over from the inside.
4'th graders ? Not only being left out of the clique, but intentionally ridiculed and belittled by rotten ass red haired Miss Alscheler i/e ,maybe they don't want you to hear them plotting and scheming some poor student loan girls demise
"Elitist"? How do crappy food and crappy service lead to a perception that Mory's is elitist? Pretentious, maybe.