6 days 8 hours and counting until we leave for Ireland...I am ready for my Murphy's now!

please help with last minute tips...

looking for nice lunch stop on way to cong from shannon on first day...
has anyone been to Moran's Oyster Cottage?

Westport ...
dining-Quay Cottage, JJ O'Malley's, other ?
Pub w/music and dining-Matt Malloys, other?

Letterkenney...
dining? pubs?

Doolin...
dining/pubs- McDermotts or McGann's?

Dingle...
favorite pub w/music/dining-small bridge, mccarthy's, murphy's,other?
dining-Half Door,Doyle's, Chart House, other?

Kenmare...
pub w/music/dining- Crowley's, Foley's, Davitt's, other?
dining-Packie's, Mulcahy's, Horseshoe, other?

I will be keeping a journal, so you will get a full report when I return.
slainte!

In Dingle Out Of The Blue was excellant for fish.Floeys Pub and Grille in Kenmare was also very gook.enjoy. jack

Sorry but I cannot recommend Doyle's Restaurant in Dingle and I know there are those who are big fans of it. We ordered fish which was quite expensive. DH ordered a fish that was the last piece available for the evening. He did not get the fish he asked for but someone at the next table got it. DH ended up with the much cheaper Turbot and called this mistake to the attention of the waiter. Then the owner/manager appears and DH asked that the bill be adjusted due to the error. They laughed and steadfastly refused to amend the bill. Never again will we dine at Doyle's.

Hi Chip,
My only experience on your list is Kenmare. We liked O'Donnahbain's for casual pints and had a just okay dinner there as well. We popped our heads into Crowley's once but I don't recall much about it.

We only went to Foley's for music. Pat Kelleher was there on a Saturday night and we really enjoyed it. If it's packed you can stand out in the entry way with a drink while you wait for a table to free up.

For dining, well, we LOVED Lime Tree. It was a fantastic dining experience...great food and great service. We also ate one night at Prego's where we enjoyed a couple of pizzas.

Have a great trip!
oopsy

We had dinner at Moran's last fall - loved it!!! Have fun...........

bookmarking for Susan who lands 1/2 hour after Chip and his family.

Hi Chip:

Be sceptical of those who tell you there is trad on at their pub. It could be anything from trad to Country western to Pink Floyd. I'm not sure what you are looking for music wise. Trad sessions are one thing and then there are the ballad singers.

In Westport, try the pub next door to Matt Molloy's, The Porter House. It's hard to get close enough to see or hear the musicians at Matt's unless you stake out your seat way in advance. I heard Kevin and Oclan at the Porter House. At the time, they were Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Very good. There is also a pub that is across the street to the left of the Wyatt Hotel (as you look at it) that has trad sessions.

Doolin: McDermotts is probably the closest thing to a local but both are good and do drop in to Gus O'Connor's. I had amazing seafood chowder there and it really is a landmark. The music can be good too. The Lazy Lobster (or something like that) and CuiLinan's are supposed to be quite good.

I heard a nice session at Ned Natterjacks in Castlegregory on the other side of Dingle. It was a combination of trad and ballads.

The Lansdown Arms in Kenmare sometimes has some good trad. Probably the most reliable for that. Another place advertised traditional Irish music and dance and when we arrived it was C&W with a woman singing and auto bass and rhythm as accompaniment. I didn't go in to see if shee was pushing the buttons or if she had someone there. Even the locals were laughing that they tried to pawn this off as trad. Foley's serves better than bar food type food. I'm not a foodie, so I'm probably the wrong person to ask on food. I could eat in a pub every night.

Bill

Chip,

Moran's is good but pricey. It is also off the main road a couple of miles. I like Paddy Burke's in Clarinbridge. Great pub and restaurant. It is also on the main road so no need to go hunting for it.

Letterkenny restaurants: the Yellow Pepper, the Lemon Tree, Silver Tassie Hotel (pub & restaurant).

Doolin: Cullinan's!

Dingle: Skip Doyle's as it is an expensive snooty place. I like Lord Baker's, Novecento, the Global Village and for lunch the Apple Tree. Murphy's Pub was a hoot the last time I was there.

Kenmare: the Lime Tree (expensive but great), Lansdowne Arms (good pub food), Foley's, Jam (lunch only), Mickey Ned's, An Leath Phingan (check on that one as I heard it is for sale). Maybe when you get back you will let us know if it has closed?

In Westport these are places i would go to. We usually go to see friends there a few weekends a year driving from Dublin.

The Porterhouse is a great pub if Matts is too crowded for you.

The Towers for Pub linch if you are out by Westport Quay..I like a drink in the beer garden on a nice day. Also in this area is the Creel...soups out of this world and fantastic food from a large menu...only open in the day. see review on Georgina Campbell http://www.ireland-guide.com/establi...rant.3906.html

There are two excellent Italians places. One at the top of the village called Il Vulcano..the owner is a nutter in a funny way but the food is great and they have limoncello!

The second is Torinos In a laneway across the road from the porterhouse. Its across from a cafe and Westport Estates office.

Both are not bank breakers in terms of pricing.

The lomon peel I have not been to but have excellent reviews from friends who have eaten here http://www.ireland-guide.com/establi..._the.3900.html.

Enjoy!

thank you so much for the great tips

just reading brings back great memories from our last trip, can't wait to return...5 days 12 hours and counting!

bill: I concer about CW music...I remember john denver-take me home country roads being the most popular song in pubs last visit, very funny

side note: I think it is funny how audiences listening to trad are so different in Ireland...here everyone claps along, in Ireland my experience was a tap of the foot was OK but was told that clapping during session there would be rude? true? atleast I never saw people clapping during a session in Ireland.
anyway at murphy's in dingle practically became a celebrity for knowing clapping part to whiskey in a jar or was it wild rover... anyway, it got us a seat up front with a great group from wales and scotland..

I play in an "Irish" pub band with a mix of ballads, trad, drinking songs, and rebel tunes(quite not politically correct nowadays in Ireland)...so I can go for it all...if it's good, but not CW

last time stopped in all of the doolin pubs for a pint...ended up at Gus O'Connors...cause it was closest to our B&B, this time we will be staying closer to other side at Cullinan's, sadly it is the one night they do not serve diner, so will end up at McGann's or McDermotts...

anyway, usually like to eat at pub with music so we get a table close to the music...seemed to work out well last trip, don't mind enjoying a couple of nicer meals now and then

dingle -we enjoyed o'flaherty's for trad and murhphy's for fun sing-a-long, met some great people there and closed the place!
loved dinner at half door...but since was 3 years ago not sure if changed, thought we might try something different, we are actually staying at doyle's-thanks for the headsup

SiobhanP- thanks for great westport info, we are staying at the olde railway hotel-how far is the Quay (walk?taxi?bus?)

kenmare-last trip popped into several pubs, ended up both nights at landsdown arms great band, still enjoy the CD, got a couple of new tunes off it too!
We went to lime tree, it was good but half door in dingle the night before was much better, atleast that trip.
did stop at Mickey Neds for appetizer-great, may try for dinner since suggested

Irish Eyes...so happy to hear that you did enjoy Silver Tassie since we are staying there (only place I wasn't so sure about)...do you know if pub has music?
sounds like murphy's tends to get the wild bunch
morans-do you know if it truly is all seafood, we have a couple of landlovers in our group that need meat.

back to packing...slainte!

Hey Chip!

5 days for us too. See you on the roundabouts!

Pt

The olde Railway is in the town centre along the river the Tower and creel would be a 5 -10 minute taxi or a very long walk about 30 minutes.

In Westport try La Bella Vita http://www.adlib.ie/detailcn.asp?ID=2039

but book ahead as it's hard to get a table.

Excellent food.

I think you're the expert here, actually. In dingle DO go to Out of the Blue - if they can't get fresh just caught fish, they don't even open. Small Bridge on a Thursday if you can - to hear Eoin Duignan! Have a great time!!

thank you ...

as luck would have it we will be in Dingle on a Thursday.

I went to his sight and it sounds wonderful! we will definately give it a go.

forgot...

2 days and 10 hours until we are IN Ireland!

slainte!

My 2 cents worth...

I agree about going to Out Of The Blue in Dingle. I was there last year and it was one of (if not the best) meal I had my entire time in Ireland! We also ate at the Dingle Hotel Bar, we hadn't planned on going there but since we didn't have a reservation the first night for Out Of The Blue (highly recommend making a reservation!) we just walked down the street and the Dingle Hotel looked pretty good. We sat at a table in the bar area and the food was very good.

Also, completely enjoyed a fun-filled night at the Porter House pub in Westport, that we never even made it next door to Matt Malloys! Highley recommend the Porter House.

Have a great trip...Slainte!

chip, Have a pint for all of us and let us know how your trip was. Most of all have fun!

Have a great trip Chip!

Hi Chip,
Oh my goodness you're almost there!

In Kenmare we ate in every restaurant and we loved one called the Lansdowne Arms the best. There's a pub and a restaurant and the pub had great food.

Westport - for music our favorites are Matt Malloys or Porterhouse. For a simple, quiet pint I liked McCarthy's pub or Moran's (inside a little grocery.) There was a great place to eat down by the water - one of the pubs.