date: 3/29/05
location: st. paul
grade: b

an irish pub. name probably gives it away. the folks also own some other irish pubs about the twin cities. they do it well, it look irish pub-like. the decor, etc.

odd location, kinda. though across from the centre of xcel energy, it's also attached to a hotel. but it's not really what you think of as a hotel restaurant. we did decide to come here in part because it is unofficial irish things month, and in part to give at least one place that's missing the hockey crowd because of the lockout some business. it was busier than i thought it would be.

though it was oddly crowded in the area, and hard to park nearby. we think there was some sort of event at roy wilkins, which could explain the fact it wasn't dead in there. (we had checked the web site and there was nothing doing at the centre then... who knows.) anyway, they will be opening a new parking/outdoor eating facility that looks kinda swank in the not too distant future, but too late for us to park. a nice place to hang outdoors it looks like.

i got there first, asked to be seated in nonsmoking. it turned out to be a surprise when someone lit up nearby. apparently the host heard it as smoking. so we moved when we found out.

service was uneven... a few things were forgotten, but with prompting they were delivered with apologies. so that was good, and service is generally good-natured, which seems kind rare these days. the manager stopped by tables to see if things were ok, which is always a nice touch.

oh, yeah... food. i got a cup of the soup of the day, a cheddar, chicken, and veg. rich, nice, though it seemed a tad underseasoned. someone else got a plate of chips (fries with that, that is). they were ok, not standouts. the squishy ones were tastier than the crispy ones (ironic?).

i then got another app for dinner, the mushrooms in a cream sauce with cheese on top. it came with lots of toast. in fact, one of the few times i ended up with extra toast. which is nice, seems generous. though i will say the whole meal veered towards the creamy for me... i wasn't thinking ahead. anyway, it could've been a bit more seasoned also. maybe my taste buds are out of whack today?

the lamb stew was rich, came with some lovely mashed potatoes in the middle. someone else ordered pork medallions when the pork on the app menu wasn't available (but it's apparently better than the medallions... which weren't bad... but...). bread pudding was ordered as a dessert, and it came with a lovely bushmill's cream sauce, ice cream, and whipped cream. quite lovely and rich. it did not seem underseasoned. just thought i'd bring that up.