Mo's Seafood & Chowder

Story submitted by Oregon Coast Bank

You’re a Stranger Here But Once

For almost 80 years, Mo’s restaurants have been virtually synonymous with the Oregon coast. The story begins in 1940, when Mohava (Mo) Niemi and her dad bought the Bay Haven Inn on Newport’s bayfront. In 1946 they sold the tavern and Mo joined her friend Freddie Kent to start a café called “Freddie & Mo’s.” A few years later when Freddie became ill, Mo purchased her friend’s interest in the café and shortened the name to the now familiar “Mo’s.”
 
Call her crusty and colorful, but Mo had a big heart and a warm hospitable personality. The “little joint on the waterfront” soon became popular with the local fishermen, generations of visitors, even the rich and famous including Governor Tom McCall, Senator Robert Kennedy, Senator Mark Hatfield, Paul Harvey, Henry Fonda, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, to name just a few.
 
Because the line of people waiting for tables typically spilled out the front door, Mo’s Annex was added in 1968, right across the street. In 1972 Mo’s West at Devil’s Punchbowl in Otter Rock opened. By the late 70’s and early 80’s, Mo’s had expanded to Lincoln City overlooking Siletz Bay, Florence on the Siuslaw River, and to Cannon Beach overlooking the ocean.
 
Although she didn’t receive her first paycheck until the age of 12, Cindy McEntee began working at her grandmother’s restaurant at a much earlier age. Within months after Cindy’s high school graduation, Mo hired a business education company to teach her granddaughter restaurant management. That arrangement lasted just a short time until Mo decided that she should be the one to teach Cindy the ropes. Dylan McEntee and Gabrielle McEntee are tasked with nurturing the legacy of the family business today, but Cindy still has a strong presence. 
 
A big part of Mo’s family atmosphere is the company’s family of employees. With benefits including a retirement plan, major medical insurance and HSAs, Mo’s employees tend to be long term; some have been with the company for more than 30 years.
 
While classics like fish & chips and oyster shooters remain best sellers, Mo’s continues to innovate adding new popular items like fish tacos, seafood cioppino, and seafood alfredo. It is, however, Mo’s clam chowder that has made the restaurant famous. Mo’s Chowder Factory produces thousands of gallons of the delectable concoction a year, some for the restaurants, some which is shipped as fresh chowder base that can be purchased online or through its charitable fundraiser program. The company also offers its own cans of troll-caught albacore tuna.
 
When asked the secret of Mo’s success, Cindy, Gabrielle and Dylan mention three of the family’s business philosophies. “Our customers know what to expect. We take very good care of them, keep our prices affordable for families, and give back to the community.”
 
If you’ve never experienced Mo’s, we urge you to – the restaurant’s success is for good reason. But what will impress you most is the hospitality, for in Mo’s own words, “You’re a stranger here but once.”