Ages back, Peter wrote about his wish for better quality pub food in Ireland. Finding the right pub to eat in of an evening can be tricky sometimes, as there’s quite a checklist that you need to go through. Is the food decent? Is it reasonably priced? Is the service quick or will we end up getting plastered while we’re waiting? Will we get seats for everyone? Will the music be bearable? Will we bothered by pesky drunks?
One of the places that Peter mentioned as a good option for pub food was the well-known literary pub Davy Byrne’s, on Duke Street in Dublin city centre. With that in mind I went to try it out last week with a group of about seven people. It was surprisingly busy for a Wednesday, and we ended up squeezing into a small table near the door. We were able to spread out a bit after a while however, and a few of us ordered food while others stuck to pints.
The menu has a number of basic dishes for around the €12 mark – Irish stew, fish and chips, pasta, goat’s cheese salad. I had the fish and chips, which were really good – very nice quality plaice in a lovely light batter. Others had tiger prawns, oysters, soup and apple tart, and all reports were good.
It’s not the best meal you can get for the price in Dublin, but it’s perfectly good quality, and on those wet evenings where you just have to be in a pub, it’s a great spot. Also, they’re currently running daily special offers for €10 with a free tea or coffee.
Where’s your favourite place for pub grub?