Hal and Mal's

Stepping into Hal & Mal’s is like slipping on a cool pair of old shoes that’re still comfy, still stylish and still perfectly capable of skipping out on a dance floor at a moment’s notice.

In addition to a breezily Gulf Coast-centric menu and a busy bar that keeps the spirits in action, Hal & Mal’s is a colorful, funky glimpse at the Capital City’s lunch-time, after-hours and weekend life. Get lost in the photos, posters, and memorabilia that crowd the walls, and you’ll know what I mean.

The History of Hal & Mal’s

Founded by and named for brothers Hal and Malcolm White, the restaurant, bar, and music venue has been a reliable hub for tasty eats, arty fun, social cheer, and lively music since it opened in the old GM&O freight depot building in 1986.

Hal & Mal’s operations started moving to the next generation around the restaurant’s 25th birthday — a transition sped up by Hal White’s passing in 2013.

New Faces, Same Commitment

In 2022, Damien Cavicchi and Mary Sanders Ferriss Cavicchi (who also own Campbell's Bakery) took the reins of the Jackson staple with continued involvement and dedication from Malcolm.

“Hal & Mal’s has been much more than a business for all these years,” says Malcolm. “This is our family legacy and this transition isn’t one we have taken lightly. We believe the treasure that is Hal & Mal’s is in good hands with Damien and Mary Sanders.”

Good Eats

On the food end, keep an eye out for the Redfish Pearl or the Vancleave Po-boy, McGuire says. “If you see either one of those on the specials board, you’ll want to come eat that day.”

The Redfish Pearl is grilled redfish with sautéed shrimp and crabmeat in a white wine butter sauce, and the Vancleave is a sautéed shrimp and crabmeat po-boy with cheddar cheese. Hal & Mal’s staple strengths include seafood gumbo and red beans and rice — “We could sell out of those every day,” McGuire says — as well as the po-boy lineup.

He declares a personal love for the hand-patted burgers. I declare mine for the catfish po-boy, crisp-fried to perfection and heightened with a snap of sweet pickle. It’s such a consistent favorite that I won’t order it anywhere else.

Hal & Mal’s experimented with a lot of different things over the years. Its brewpub was “10 years too early, and we got out four years too soon” to catch the craft brewing craze, Malcolm White says.

Hal & Mal’s still does occasional big music shows, but now tends to offer more local and regional live music, with such a steady lineup folks can pretty much catch a groove any night of the week. They see a lot of tourists in search of local flavor, but the regulars keep them going.

“We’ve been in this business a long time. Places come and places go. Our success has been a long-term success, of sticking to the plan and doing what we do,” Malcolm White says.

Sherry Lucas contributed to this post.

Join Hal & Mal's Monday through Saturday from 4-6:30 pm for amazing deals on drinks and bites.

Sip on a $6 Rum Old Fashioned or Champagne Cocktail, and enjoy an $8 Happy Hour Handshake or PBR & Jameson Shot. Plus, we've got $3 Domestic Bottles including Miller Lite, Coors Lite, PBR, and Coors Banquet.