M’s Pub, the Old Market restaurant that closed down last year due to a natural gas pipe fire, reopened its doors this last Wednesday night, and with it walked in many of M’s most loyal customers. Originally opened in 1972 by Mary Vogel, M’s Pub has been a staple of the Old Market ever since, and has grown a huge following in the Omaha area for things like its baked dishes and lahvosh. After last year’s fire in January, the restaurant was rebuilt to be as close as possible to the original design, with help from the original architects of the building. In a statement with the current owner of M’s, Ann Mellen, she talked about how they were trying to keep M’s as close as they could to the original property.

When asked what she thought of the new building, a waitress at M’s, who requested to stay anonymous, said that “The new building is almost surreal. They did a really nice job [making it look like the old restaurant.]” She says that,”[There are] a lot of returning [people], maybe 85 to 90% of people are returning to M’s Pub since the fire.” She says it’s been very busy since they’ve been open and that she doesn’t expect it to slow down for a while, and she’s not wrong with that assumption. M’s was completely booked on its opening night and is as busy as you’d expect after an almost two year hiatus.

Whatever the case, M’s pub continues to be a favorite for Omahans or for people in the Old Market in general. If you haven’t tried M’s yet, I’d suggest you get on the waiting list soon; it might take a while for spots to open up.