Who's Pop Torello?

I've often wondered about this plaque, which it outside 227 Smith Street in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn. It's quite old, having been placed there in 1956, when the area was still largely Italian, with some Irish and Scandinavian thrown in. Given that it was put up there by "The Boys," I assumed there was some sort of Mob connection, and Pop was a local don. But, on reflection, that makes no sense. Why would such men advertise their presence?

Turns out Torello—real name Nick—was a humble bartender, who ran a bar and restaurant on Smith Street near Butler. There was a bar here called the Golden Eagle Bar and Grill in the 1940s, so that's probably where he worked. Torello also seemed to have owned the building, as he made some sort of renovations to it in 1951. The bar was the target of a robbery in 1946.

In the 1880s, there was a bowling alley at this address, called Golden Eagle Alleys. I've heard that remnants of the alleys remain in the basement. In 1885, a 14-year-old boy was struck by a bowling ball in the ankle. He fractured his ankle, got blood poisoning and died. No charges were filed.