Before it became the institution it is known as today, The Monster (Greenwich Village, NYC) started out as a restaurant in Cherry Grove on Fire Island. The Monster was named after a carved wooden sea serpent from the Coney Island carousel. At the height of its popularity, The Monster was even considered Studio 54’s rival with celebrities like Andy Warhol, Bette Midler, and Alan Cumming frequenting the club.

Joe and his beloved bar have been a haven for gays and lesbians who have been overlooked & underserved by a bar scene dictated by failure: fly by night trends, body consciousness, design mania, or substance-abuse. The “Monster” patron, Joe pointed out is “every man”. We have a diverse variety and we have regulars that only come on weekends because they’re out of the city and also, straight couples who say, “hey that place looks interesting let’s go there”. 

The son of Italian immigrants was a born bred native New Yorker, and his roots show. He was born at Saint Vincents hospital in 1935, baptized at Saint Anthony’s Church on Houston Street, and lived with his family in Little Italy on Bayard Street. He attended PS 23 and PS 130 in Seward Park High before entering the Navy as a radio operator at the age of 18. He left the service and its homophobia in 1957. With the help from the G.I. Bill, Scialo attended beauty school while working selling lunches by cart at the Empire State Building & making Gyros at a takeout restaurant near City Hall. He stayed in the salon business for about 10 years until the late 60s, when he decided he needed a major life change. That’s when he got into the restaurant business. 

Joe Scialo opened the original Monster named after a mythological Griffin Sea Serpent as a Fire Island bar in 1969 and followed up with a restaurant in a KEY WEST annex in 1975.

As the 70’s arrived, so did disco. The Monster created their own signature party with “Green Lips,” but the dancing didn’t take place only at night. The restaurant and bar was also famous for their afternoon “Tea Dance.” At 4pm, you’d leave the beach in your bathing suit and walk onto a crowded dance floor pulsating the latest disco beats. There, you’d dance to the hottest hits on a sand covered floor until your cares drifted away.

In 1982 he learned there was a nightclub near Sheridan Square that was up for rent. “At the time it was a dump, but boy what a spot. It had a spiral staircase…something I’d only seen in movies”. The site had an illustrious story history. In 1929 the building was home to a legendary Spanish restaurant called El Chico, owned by Benny Collada which served tapas & drinks on the main floor and featured flamenco dancers downstairs. Jose Greco danced there Ingrid Bergman, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Roy Orbison dined there. Spanish themed murals painted by the owners remain intact on The Monster’s wall to this day. In the 1960s, the space became EL AVRAM which featured Mediterranean food and belly dancers before switching to kosher and Israeli cuisine. Joe sold the flagship Monster location in Fire Island in 1984. It wasn’t until 1985 that he was able to expand the Sheridan Square building by buying the corner space that was formally a bookstore. That’s when he tore down the wall and widened the bar, creating the space that remains today. The Manhattan Monster was originally an eatery however: was short-lived. People wanted to dance. “They would jam the room during Sunday brunch with music blasting and they would dance”, he said. It was obvious what they wanted.

Scialo was consistently contributing his money, time and energy to HIV/AIDS charities and epidemic. He was one of the rare individuals who allowed any of his staff stricken with AIDS to work with dignity to the very end. He even personally went to Mexico to purchase over-the-counter drugs in hopes of saving his friends. The Village may continue to undergo even more cultural shifts, as its population changes, and the gay community relocate its resources, gentrifying other neighborhoods. We are looking forward to staying put greeting tourists, tuning up the piano, hosting benefits, and serving spirits for another 50 years.