Fifi’s Favorite Pubs
Pub Crawl: More than Blarney at These Irish Bars in OC
Since I have you thinking about so much extravagant dining during November and December, it seemed sensible to give you some balance by way of a few pubs to consider.
You can really play your casual card at any one of these unpretentious pubs and have down-home relaxation at bargain basement prices. Enjoy.
Harp Inn
130 E. 17th St.
Costa Mesa
(949) 646-8855
Harp Inn is one of the most common pub names throughout Britain, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. It therefore stands to reason that some of my readers must recognize what the pub stands for, even if they’ve never been inside. One really should look at this mainstay of OC pubs with its darkish, inviting demeanor and no-nonsense approach.
The menu here is comprised of about a dozen appetizers and 10 entr & #233;es, of which half are sandwiches. They base their concept on the true Euro-pub thinking that pubs are friendly hometown places where one orders comforting foods that go nowhere near the realm of fancy dining. With a beer and some conversation with other locals, the idea of downright relaxation is the subliminal message.
Celtic music and Irish food are at home here. Order Irish tacos filled with corned beef or the Irish nachos that are really sliced potatoes topped with corned beef and cheese. The fried fish sandwich is good and the half-pound hamburger is classic. But, better yet is the shepherd’s pie, a deep dish of meat and vegetables with browned mashed potatoes on top. Irish sausage and mashed potatoes (bangers and mash) harks of Ireland, while a New York strip steak is there to satisfy the non-Gaelic palates. Sandwiches and entr & #233;es are $5.95 to $11.95.
I love the music here, too. Every second Sunday of the month, there’s live Irish music in the afternoon and on various nights of the week additional groups entertain. It’s a totally non-pretentious, happy place where it’s easy to repack your mental suitcases from too heavy a dose of worldly stress.
Malarky’s
3011 Newport Blvd.
Newport Beach
(949) 675-2340
This pub dates back to 1977. Like the friendliest of pubs we’ve found in our travels abroad, this is a place where customers all seem to know each other and they are serious about eating good, straightforward food, starting with breakfast early in the morning (they open at 7:30 a.m.). This is not a dark room; it’s imbued with lots of light since the whole front wall is windows. It’s good for watching the passersby on Newport Boulevard.
The owners are Bill and Helen Hamilton, who sold the Cannery two years ago after more than two decades of protecting that landmark, and it stands to reason that two such friendly people would want a pub that oozed comfort and neighborliness,and that feeling of ambiance is why there are lots of families sitting at the tables.
There’s a big, square bar with seating on all sides for about 40. Lots of wood is used on floors, tables, wainscoting and bar. There are tables in a dining room, which is really an extension of the bar space, and total seating is about 85; so, as you can tell, this is not a wimpy place. The food is so good and downright cheap. I know you don’t expect to pay Ritz prices at a pub, but really, this is truly value-oriented.
Breakfast items cover all the combo egg plates you can think of, plus French toast, pancakes, a breakfast burrito and omelets (with a choice of 12 fillings). Prices for this range from only $2.50 to $6.50 (the latter for three eggs and choice of two pork chops or chicken fried steak). Oh my gosh, I forgot that there’s brunch on Saturday and Sunday, with the added possibility of eggs Benedict, huevos rancheros, or half portions of each of those in a combination plate for $6.25 on Saturday or Sunday.
Lunch may be more your thing. In that case, there are 15 sandwiches to choose from, all with fries, onion rings, green salad or fruit at $4.75 to $7. And, we have to address the totally separate entr & #233;es that are special on certain evenings: Tuesday, prime rib; Wednesday, a hefty roast beef sandwich; Thursday, barbecue rib dinner. These run $5.95 to $9.95. There’s Irish stew every day of the week, as well as chili and chowder, top sirloin steak, teriyaki chicken and fish and chips, with the amazingly low prices of $4.75 to $9. Do you get the idea that I think there’s a lot of very decent food here for very little money?
Molly Bloom’s
2391 S. El Camino Real
San Clemente
(949) 218-0120
The look of this pub is Irish for sure. I’m almost getting a brogue just saying that. The owners say it was named Molly Bloom’s in hopes of capturing Molly’s joyous Irish spirit, her love of a hearty brew and, yes, to embrace her bawdy side as well. The staff will tell you that her presence is sensed in the beer they serve, in the authentic Irish food and music and in their hospitality.
Before I knew about this place, I got a note from one of my readers who’d discovered it and undoubtedly agreed with the above assessment. Just in case the story of Molly Bloom escapes you, it’s a story by James Joyce that recounts the Dublin escapades, and ultimately the deep thoughts, of the rather madcap, concert-singing wife of a very intellectual advertising guy, Leopold Bloom.
I think quiet San Clemente needed this boost of energy. I joke that it’s never actually me saying the wild and amusing things that I’m accused of and I blame my penchant for not passing up a good straight line in life on the naughty little leprechaun that lives inside me. I’ve found my leprechaun is very happy when we are at Molly Bloom’s. Groups like Fiddlin’ Around and the Dublin City Ramblers often can be found playing here.
Appetizers are not perfumed with the brogue of Ireland. They serve nachos, chicken wings, spinach and artichoke dip, some salads and a soup of the day in that realm. The entr & #233;es turn more Gaelic. Those include Cornish pasty (meat or vegetarian) pie, prime rib, Irish stew, pepper steak, Galway salmon, shepherd’s pie, corned beef and cabbage, filet mignon, fish and chips, bangers and mash. And they’ll serve you an Irish-style breakfast anytime.
Sandwiches include a burger, Reuben, curry or barbecue chicken and a sirloin steak sandwich on a sourdough roll. Prices on sandwiches are $7.95 to $10.95. Dinner entr & #233;es are $9.95 to $18.95.
Patsy’s Irish Pub
28971 Golden Lantern
Laguna Niguel
(949) 249-2604
25571 Los Alisos
Mission Viejo
(949) 587-0253
The original Patsy’s in Laguna Niguel opened 20 years ago; the one in Mission Viejo is six years old. Both are very popular with locals, who no doubt recognize Irish hospitality when they meet it. These sister pubs are reminiscent of the darkish, woodsy interiors that prevail in small village pubs in Europe. There’s a true sense of intimacy along with good camaraderie here.
Doors open at 10 a.m. daily; the kitchen opens at 11:30 a.m. The pubs stay open late for those of us who are inbound from somewhere else and want an after-dinner drink or even a last cup of coffee. Listen, I admit to doing a lot of this stuff.
There’s a whole section of Irish specialties on the menu that have Celtic surnames, proving that they try hard to keep some of the real Irish spirit going. But they do take a little detour in putting corned beef atop pasta and pouring on a three-cheese sauce, serving roasted chicken breast with spinach and feta cheese and putting jumbo shrimp on linguine with Alfredo sauce,all tasty. These entr & #233;es are $8.25 to $16.95. A dozen sandwiches run $5.95 to $6.95. On football Sunday mornings, they serve breakfast.
Owners Don and Patsy Wagoner have done a nice job, and it’s nice to visit them.
Silky Sullivan’s
Irish Pub
10201 Slater Ave.
Fountain Valley
(714) 963-2718
This is an Irish pub that breaks culinary ranks with Ireland. It opened in 1984 in the former Fountain Valley Post Office. The owners, Dan Madden, Bill Madden and Rob Robertson, labored more than a year to remodel the building into the popular Irish hangout it has become. They certainly created a place with a friendly atmosphere. It’s dedicated to the great thoroughbred, “Silky Sullivan” (1955-1977),the greatest come-from-behind stretch runner in horse racing history,and to all the competitors in sports, as in life who have come from behind to finish in the winner’s circle against heavy odds.
There are 14 televisions in the bar area, because the patron base is wide enough to have a variety of sports interests. They don’t mind getting international with the menu here. For instance, there’s French onion soup, Mexican nachos and quesadilla, stuffed jalape & #324;os, American buffalo wings, shrimp and Cajun-style lamb chops.
Sometimes we go to pubs to eat appetizers and sandwiches and have a drink or two and the sandwich category here offers more than two-dozen selections. There are a few Cajun-inspired entr & #233;es, and you have to love the Irish tacos comprised of flour tortillas filled with corned beef and cabbage. Fish tacos, New Zealand lamb chops, prime rib and even teriyaki chicken are on board. They have a comprehensive late night menu, served until 1 a.m. Sandwich prices are $5.50 to $9.95; dinner entr & #233;es are $7.95 to $19.95.
They have a substantial free appetizer of the day at happy hour and it’s worth stopping by to get acquainted.
The Olde Ship
British Pub
709 North Harbor Blvd.
Fullerton
(714) 871-7447
1120 W. 17th St.
Santa Ana
(714) 550-6700
British owned and operated, this restaurant has two convenient locations and provides me with a fairly frequent fix for friendliness and classic casual English pub food. Owner Doug Collier opened the Fullerton pub in 1993 and the Santa Ana one later and has been forging a sense of camaraderie with his customers ever since.
We’ve been to so many pubs like this in England, where the unassuming wooden floors and booths and the most convivial bars have the essence of happy diners imbued in them. The Olde Ship just rings so true, all the more because the two restaurants have scale models of Britain’s great sailing ships referencing the major sea battles in which the Empire was engaged.
I love the stories on each recipe printed along with each dish’s description. You’ll have a delightful read about the famous battles and people who fought them on behalf of the British Empire. There’s a British breakfast (bacon, sausage, eggs and accompaniments), a Ploughman’s Lunch (hunks of British cheeses, served with fresh crusty bread and British pickles) and a Mariner’s Meal (a British banger, fried egg and English chips).
Whole filets of fresh cod accompany crunchy chips, corned beef is nicely flavored and juicy and has a grand wedge of cabbage on the side. I’m quite fond of the steak and kidney pie. There’s meatloaf, pork pie, lamb shank with mashed potatoes, roast beef with Yorkshire pudding and even Scottish pastie turnovers with savory ingredients tucked beneath flaky pastry. There are sandwiches and salads, too. For dessert, it will be Sticky Toffee Pudding for me. Sandwiches and such are $3.95 to $7.95; dinner entr & #233;es are $10.95 to $12.95.
