No Name Pub

We live at the very edge of Big Pine Key, just before a bridge connects it with No Name Key. (Isn't that a great name for an island?) Anyway, about a stone's throw from our house is the No Name Pub. A place deeply rooted in Keys history and a great place we ride our bikes to and get pizza. Read on...

In 1931, the pub started as a general store and bait and tackle shop.

In 1936, the owners added a small room on to the main structure which became an eatery. Thus the pub was born.

Early customers included people from all walks of life, including the local fishermen and world travelers who arrived from the mainland via ferry.

The late 1930s brought an interesting twist to No Name Pub history. In an effort to increase business, the upstairs storage room was converted into a brothel. Unfortunately, the venture failed after several years as the fisherman were reported to be better looking than the ladies.

The 1940s saw the end of the brothel and the burgeoning Keys tourism base began to increasingly discover the quirky, out-of-the-way place. The ladies would do their shopping in the general store as the men would browse the bait and tackle shop, then kick back and have a beer and sandwich.

During the 1950s the general store and bait and tackle shop closed and the pub became, well, just a pub. "No Name" was added to the already "Pub" and the landmark was born. The honky tonk atmosphere of beer drinking, pool shooting and great food became known from Miami to Key West and the place would get so smokey and crowded the customers would spill out into the backyard where dice, craps and card games would eventually break out. The old timers say the place never got raided because the sheriff ran the dice games.

There are a few stories that explain why every inch of wall and ceiling in teh place is covered with dollar bills.

One is that everyone who knows anything about commercial fishing knows its like any other job that relies on Mother Nature for abundance. Seems its either really good or really bad. So in times of abundance, the fishermen would tack a few dollars on the wall with their names written on them, so that when they were flat broke down the road, they could come in and be able to buy a beer or two.

The other is that the 1970s and 80s was the rowdy time in the Keys, when Jimmy Buffett's "Why don't we get drunk and screw" played on the juke box and the biggest source of revenue for many Keys residents was running drugs from the Caribbean. There was a lot of illegal money passing through the island chain and everyone loved to spend it. They had so much money they started hanging it on the walls.

Who knows, maybe one led to the other and both are true. Either way, local lore says the owners have estimated the amount of money on the walls at around $15,000.

Outside, our miniature deer can be seen munching on the foliage. (See the Key Deer photo on this site.)

The pub's slogan is "A nice place if you can find it," and if you can, well then, you can find us too!