Restaurants you might always see, but never go into, which turned out to be great

GO_Bear

Welcome to the restaurants you might always see , but never go into , which turn out to be great thread.

Born and Breed Galway man , Moved to Dublin two weeks ago and have to book a place to eat for the Grads, where is good. I am thinking Mac Swigginses or perhaps the Park House. However I wanna see if people think there are more options !

civis_liberalis

Lol. That is all.

dolphin city

so youv'e been here all your life except for the last two weeks. and you have already forgotten where to go to eat in Galway? hilarious :D:D

GO_Bear

No if you care to read the name of the thread which is " Restaurants you might always see , but never go into , which turn out to be great thread "

So I know places to eat I am just wondering if people know any other hidden gems or nice places, as I have only eaten in the more well known places in galway !

biko

Abalon/Cava but if you're going with a big group then McSwiggans, or maybe the new McNamara's is something to head for. Or Mustard.
Also check out the "Reviews" thread.


Title amended.

Xiney

McSwiggans is terrible.

GO_Bear

Xiney wrote: »

McSwiggans is terrible.

Thats not a very helpful comment now is it ? :P

Xiney

Well, I don't know what to suggest if you like McSwiggans.

GO_Bear

Xiney wrote: »

Well, I don't know what to suggest if you like McSwiggans.

I like all food, just cause I had a few steaks in MacSwiggans and liked it does not mean I am exclusively a fan of terrible food

Try me you might be surprised :P

swe_fi

Wierdly named thread, only reason I am responding

Come on, McSwiggans is not WOW but it's not bad either. I think that is a bit unfair. I think most people would come out of there relatively satisfied, most people are not gourmet diners. It is just oldskool.

You could try Tamarind, it is Asian sort of food but nice & fresh and think they do traditional foods as well.

What to recommend depends completely on how many people, what time of day, what sort of crowd, and what weekday. A lot of places don't allow large groups.

Mc Swiggans isn't great for the price charged tbh.

Can't beat Tulsi :cool:

biko

Xiney wrote: »

McSwiggans is terrible.

I would prefer it if you could be more precise when putting a business down, since that type of comments aren't allowed by charter.
Have eaten there myself several times and like it.

GO_Bear

rarnes1 wrote: »

Can't beat Tulsi :cool:

swe_fi wrote: »

You could try Tamarind, it is Asian sort of food but nice & fresh and think they do traditional foods as well.

What to recommend depends completely on how many people, what time of day, what sort of crowd, and what weekday. A lot of places don't allow large groups.

Cheers guys , I will look into them ,

Aye it will only be for around 4-6 people on a Thursday afternoon. So hopefully one of the good places can accommodate !

I have my own to add , The Twelve Pins in Barna , (I know its a bit out) , does fantastic food.
(awaiting whine that the pins is not what it used to be! I agree but the food is atleast good now :P)

Sponge Bob

McSwiggins do two things well.

1. Restaurant upstairs doing traditional sitdown meal tack very well, beef lamb pork chicken etc, great for bringing yer oul dear and granny to. Good portions and plenty of space.

2. Finger food for groups downstairs, great spread of finger food with spare ribs and lots of different whatnots.

If I want foreign tack or vegetarian tack I don't go near the place. It ain't a vegan sushi bar or anything

And I never had a bad experience there knowing that. €3 a pint with soakage on hand appeals muchly to Sponge Bob and keeps him outta the greasy spoon after the pub.

GO_Bear

biko can you rename my thread;

"The Great MacSwiggans Debate"

xD

While the food isn't bad in McSwiggans there are a lot of things I don't like about it

- Pay sperately for your veg (wtf??)
- Those stupidly annoying sizzling dishes that stink out the whole place an interupt every conversation in the place
- While quaint and rustic, the old floors that shift under your weight are a bit unsettling after a few drinks, especially the bit where you come down 2-3 steps on to the floor where there is a dresser full of glasses. the whole thing shakes everytime someone walks down those few steps. I kept expecting to have my meal distrubed by crashing glass
- Lastly, for the price, there is nothing "wow" about the food. Paying those prices, I'd expect a lot more

The above are why I havent been back there for 2+ years

Sponge Bob

The 12 in Barna also has two different food experiences, the bar food downstairs which is OK ( sometimes great) and the restaurant upstairs ( "West" ) which is very good in the evenings and does a great 'a la carte' 3 course €25 meal. They will even open West at 5 or so if you have a group booking ...at least 12.

But it is very different and not as central as McSwiggins so we are comparing apples and hand grenades to a certain degree.

Mrs OBumble

OP, you might like to give us an idea of what you consider to be great.

Personally, I'd put Supermacs into the "Restaurants you might always see, but never go into, which turned out to be great", category. At least it was while they were doing cod-and-chips. (Yes, I know some would consider it a bit of a stretch of the word "restaurant" - but others wouldn't!)

inisboffin

JustMary wrote: »

Personally, I'd put Supermacs into the "Restaurants you might always see, but never go into, which turned out to be great", category. At least it was while they were doing cod-and-chips. (Yes, I know some would consider it a bit of a stretch of the word "restaurant" - but others wouldn't!)

Oh they are dead to me since they axed the codburger!

Mc Swiggans was grand for a multigenerational soup and lunch type thing, not gone at all on evening or mains, and thought the pricing was odd too.

Kings Head have great pizza that I had once! Don't eat in there hardly at all tho.

Lockstep

McSwiggans is graaaand. Never had any problems there.

Tulsi is class. Amazing Indian nyoms.
One of the best Chinese resteraunts ever is the Royal Villa on top of the Aquarium in Salthill. Amazing food and a spectacular view.
McDonaghs of course, best chipper in town.

rivalius13

How many of these places do lunch? Gotta bring the 'rents somewhere after my graduation in November and want to go for something good.

Xiney

biko wrote: »

I would prefer it if you could be more precise when putting a business down, since that type of comments aren't allowed by charter.
Have eaten there myself several times and like it.

Fine, but I doubt you'll find my review an improvement:


I find McSwiggans to be tasteless slop doled out to a horde of masses who've had the place talked up to them for so long they don't even realise that it tastes like sh!t.

They don't season the food properly, they overcook things, meals and chips arrive cold, service is woeful and arrogant, and on top of that you're paying too much for all of the above.

GO_Bear

kickoutthejams wrote: »

One of the best Chinese resteraunts ever is the Royal Villa on top of the Aquarium in Salthill.

Now that is interesting , I passed by it every weekend on the way to work ! ,

Would it be a sitdowny kinda place for people in suits.




Yes , my words arn't so great, but I have the flu

Das Kitty

Xiney wrote: »

Fine, but I doubt you'll find my review an improvement:


I find McSwiggans to be tasteless slop doled out to a horde of masses who've had the place talked up to them for so long they don't even realise that it tastes like sh!t.

They don't season the food properly, they overcook things, meals and chips arrive cold, service is woeful and arrogant, and on top of that you're paying too much for all of the above.

+1

I can never understand why people think so much of it. Asked for a rare steak there once and it came out like a board. Sent it back and the one I got was medium at best.

As for the party / finger food, I was there for a 70th birthday earlier in the year and there was food to come. The first sandwiches arrived at 11.30pm. The guest of honour and her mates had all gone home and they were eaten by randomers just passing through. The warm stuff never came as "fryer is broke".

If I was organising it I would have said FU, go up to Supermacs and get something. It was all paid for in advance.

Lockstep

GO_Bear wrote: »

Now that is interesting , I passed by it every weekend on the way to work ! ,

Would it be a sitdowny kinda place for people in suits.




Yes , my words arn't so great, but I have the flu

Nah. It's a classy joint but I've turned up in my leather jacket and jeans and got on grand.

Really recommend it.

brianthebard

GO_Bear wrote: »

I like all food, just cause I had a few steaks in MacSwiggans and liked it does not mean I am exclusively a fan of terrible food

Try me you might be surprised :P

Why do you even need a thread if you already know you like MacSwiggens (which was the only resturant you mentioned I think)?

GO_Bear

brianthebard wrote: »

Why do you even need a thread if you already know you like MacSwiggens (which was the only resturant you mentioned I think)?

Because I would like to try someplace else , and I was hoping for suggestions but I found the mentioning of the MacSwigg word brought on a cosmic battle between Good and Evil

dolphin city

GO_Bear wrote: »

Cheers guys , I will look into them ,

Aye it will only be for around 4-6 people on a Thursday afternoon. So hopefully one of the good places can accommodate !

I have my own to add , The Twelve Pins in Barna , (I know its a bit out) , does fantastic food.
(awaiting whine that the pins is not what it used to be! I agree but the food is atleast good now :P)

agree with you on that but only for the downstairs pub grub area. The upstairs is like eating a meal in a cold cave with no atmosphere.

39steps

Hi there,
Highly recommend all of the following:

- White Gables in Moycullen
- Donnellys in Barna

In town:

- Oscars on Dominic Street
- Malt House (off High Street and/or Middle Street)
- Vina Mara on Middle Street

All of these are ideal for a multi-generational group that will attend a conferring graduation meal.

Best wishes,
39steps

GO_Bear

39steps wrote: »

Hi there,
Highly recommend all of the following:

- White Gables in Moycullen
- Donnellys in Barna

In town:

- Oscars on Dominic Street
- Malt House (off High Street and/or Middle Street)
- Vina Mara on Middle Street

All of these are ideal for a multi-generational group that will attend a conferring graduation meal.

Best wishes,
39steps

Awesome cheers ,

I am from Barna , so I agree with the Donnelys and White Gables ( very very nice food )

As for the three in town I can honestly say I have never eaten there haha , I have always walked by them tho :P

I will look into them thank you for the suggestions !

The time is nearly upon me so I should really books soon :E

dolphin city

go to Oscars. Its the best of all of them.

encyclopedia

dolphin city wrote: »

go to Oscars. Its the best of all of them.

I'd Second/Third that, lovely food there. Vina Mara is nice too and it may be better suited for a crowd as Oscars is quite small.

swe_fi

Hey I forgot to say try Kirbys also (upstairs/beside in Busker Brownes). Consistently good when I went there 2 weeks in a row. Good value, really good food.

This would for me at least really qualify as a place you'd pass but really liked actually, 3 years since I ate there before last time...Free drink after your meal also.

Agree with the above as well Vina Mara and Oscars is also nice. Oscars would be more of a "impress a date" kind of place, Vina Mara is more "posh henparty"

GO_Bear

swe_fi wrote: »

Hey I forgot to say try Kirbys also (upstairs/beside in Busker Brownes). Consistently good when I went there 2 weeks in a row. Good value, really good food.

This would for me at least really qualify as a place you'd pass but really liked actually, 3 years since I ate there before last time...Free drink after your meal also.

Agree with the above as well Vina Mara and Oscars is also nice. Oscars would be more of a "impress a date" kind of place, Vina Mara is more "posh henparty"

+1
All great ideas guys cheers,

I thin I have narrowed it down to Oscars, Kirbys or the Chinese in Salthill ( but it is a bit out )

most likely something in town and skeff adjacent ;p

magentas

Park House have lovely food and pretty formal restaurant if that's what you're looking for but dear god it is expensive!
2min walk to skeff then

I'll second Tamarind at Spanish Arch beautiful food and fairly reasonable
I like the interior too it's a bit more interesting than most places

eagle10

Oscars in dominick street.

tuckmill

Went into Maxwells today and although the interior has been changed the food is still fantastic - Wild mushroom starter and Steak Sandwich for main,and i am still stuffed Very polite/friendly service, no hanging around.

Seaneh

Ignore everything people have already said and go to Bar8 on the Docks.
Head and shoulders above everywhere else in town and only a 5 minute walk from the skeff.

Neyite

The Artisan above neachtains is a gem of a place.

i brought my family there for an earlybird meal once and have been back a few times since.

the food was fantastic, and beautifully presented, service was warm and friendly, and very helpful, but not in your face. pricing as far as i can remember, was in line with most other restaurants.

but it has been about a year since i was there.

Seaneh

Neyite wrote: »

The Artisan a

Would be my second choice.

brianthebard

Seaneh wrote: »

Ignore everything people have already said and go to Bar8 on the Docks.
Head and shoulders above everywhere else in town and only a 5 minute walk from the skeff.

have to disagree its ok bar food that's more expensive than say cava which does way better similiar dishes.

PomBear

Recommend these:
Da Tang Noodle House (across the road from Charlie Byrnes)
Padraigeens(sp?) in Furbo

tootired

I love the Noodle House but I think it may be a bit casual for a grad dinner.

?Cee?view

Xiney wrote: »

I find McSwiggans to be tasteless slop doled out to a horde of masses who've had the place talked up to them for so long they don't even realise that it tastes like sh!t.

They don't season the food properly, they overcook things, meals and chips arrive cold, service is woeful and arrogant, and on top of that you're paying too much for all of the above.

I haven't eaten there in about 10 years. Interesting to see that it hasn't changed!

?Cee?view

GO_Bear wrote: »

Awesome cheers ,

I am from Barna , so I agree with the Donnelys and White Gables ( very very nice food )

As for the three in town I can honestly say I have never eaten there haha , I have always walked by them tho :P

I will look into them thank you for the suggestions !

The time is nearly upon me so I should really books soon :E

Can't believe you're from Barna and you're even asking this question! The only place for you to consider is O'Gradys. That's it.

GO_Bear

Haha , I am well aware of O Gradys, I used to work with the head chef long ago . as a waiter.

But was looking for suggestions in town , and not too far from the skeffington arms where unfortunately the graduation classes seem to congregate

?Cee?view

GO_Bear wrote: »

Haha , I am well aware of O Gradys, I used to work with the head chef long ago . as a waiter.

But was looking for suggestions in town , and not too far from the skeffington arms where unfortunately the graduation classes seem to congregate

Fair enough, but being a lazy fecker I always think of the trip home afterwards. My tack would be to eat in O'Gradys, drink in Donnellys, drink in the 12 and then crawl home to recover for a few days

GO_Bear

churchview wrote: »

Fair enough, but being a lazy fecker I always think of the trip home afterwards. My tack would be to eat in O'Gradys, drink in Donnellys, drink in the 12 and then crawl home to recover for a few days

Haha hopefully one of my class mates will sweep me off the floor and take me home after I have drank myself into a rug like state in the corner !


Sounds like a solid plan but I would be the only one from my class celebrating in Barna haha xD , and my fathers entertainment wears thin after the first hour