On Friday, I met two friends at one of Ottawa's oldest irish pubs, Patty's Pub (opened 1974).
Standing alone in a little building on Bank street, between the Rideau River and the canal. This pub oozes charm. The seating areas are broken up by walls and high-backed wooden pews and are quite cozy. There's even a snug. The lights are dim, and the old-country decor surrounds you from the broad, worn floorboards to the fireplace, to the timber-framed ceiling and the airy skylight. There was a hum of conversation that masked the low, inoffensive background music.
I was very excited to see the long line of taps at the bar. I counted 25, though Guiness appeared twice. Selections ranged from the very local Beau's Lugtread, and several other provincial choices, to the usual Irish and Belgian offerings, and the slightly less common Kronenbourg 1664. I enjoyed pints of Beau's and 1664, the latter in a beautiful glass that a younger (or drunker) me might very well have tried to add to my home collection.
I was first to get there, and quite hungry. One of those facts will be a shock to some of you, and I'll let the rest of you guess which one. The bruschetta was very nice, and it was a test of will to make sure some remained for the last of my friends to arrive.
Our waitress was very nice, and seemed knowledgable about the food. She managed to get my friend Tenacious V's veggie wrap made as a sandwich instead, which was nice. Lil' Ball o'Hate (LBoH) is a fan of boxtys, and loved the lamb-filled offering here. I had a philly cheesesteak which I frankly struggle to describe. There aren't very many fun ways to say 'bland', unfortunately (if you have suggestions, please add them in the comments!). Eventually, we found a little room each to split a desert. A well-presented chocolate cake-thing, which we all loved. Not too rich, not too sweet.
Having not yet visted Ireland, I can't comment on the Irish authenticity of Patty's Pub. But what I can tell you is this: each of my several visits has flown by in comfort and good conversation. I'm always surprised by how late it is when I leave. Is this what they mean by "the craic"?
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
The Royal Oak, Sandy Hill
Our first stop (OK, your first stop; I've done about 200 pubs so far) is the Royal Oak in Sandy Hill. This place has been a pub as long as I've been in Ottawa, though it wasn't always part of the Royal Oak chain. It's in an old house across the street from Ottawa U, and so has more charm and character than most chain-owned pubs.
I met up with some friends here on a Wednesday night. We ate, we drank, and we embarrassed a room full of students at pub trivia. I mean, we beat them. Nothing embarrassing happened otherwise. Anyway, the trivia at the Oak is live entertainment, and the weekly Wednesday game is the only weekday entertainment. They have bands on the weekends, but no games, darts or billiards for mid-week patrons.
But nobody goes to a pub for trivia, right? At least nobody cool, and especially not with back-episodes of Jeopardy available on the internet.
The Royal Oak chain is known for having a pretty good selection of beers on tap, and the Sandy Hill location doesn't let the side down, with 18 beers on tap. (I didn't ask about bottles; no self-respecting pub-crawler drinks from a bottle when there's a decent draught selection). The Oak's bar boasts not one but two (2!) hand-pumped kegs! So obviously I had to choose one of them, either the Fuller's London Pride or the Fuller's Extra Special Bitter. I went with the ESB. Three times. Yummy.
Any real pub serves food. By definition, I think. Pub crawlers don't usually take time to eat, unless they are actually crawling. But we ate, and whenever I can I will comment on the food at the pubs into which I stumble. I used to think that the Oak's food has deteriorated a bit as the chain has grown, but of the three dishes we tried (fish and chips, quesadilla and club sammich), everyone pronounced it 'good'. Nothing spectacular, though. Which is really the final comment about the whole pub. The prices are a little above average, and the service is not. I suppose I can't really complain about my $8 beer, since my drunken friend the Li'l Ball o' Hate paid for everyone's tab.
I met up with some friends here on a Wednesday night. We ate, we drank, and we embarrassed a room full of students at pub trivia. I mean, we beat them. Nothing embarrassing happened otherwise. Anyway, the trivia at the Oak is live entertainment, and the weekly Wednesday game is the only weekday entertainment. They have bands on the weekends, but no games, darts or billiards for mid-week patrons.
But nobody goes to a pub for trivia, right? At least nobody cool, and especially not with back-episodes of Jeopardy available on the internet.
The Royal Oak chain is known for having a pretty good selection of beers on tap, and the Sandy Hill location doesn't let the side down, with 18 beers on tap. (I didn't ask about bottles; no self-respecting pub-crawler drinks from a bottle when there's a decent draught selection). The Oak's bar boasts not one but two (2!) hand-pumped kegs! So obviously I had to choose one of them, either the Fuller's London Pride or the Fuller's Extra Special Bitter. I went with the ESB. Three times. Yummy.
Any real pub serves food. By definition, I think. Pub crawlers don't usually take time to eat, unless they are actually crawling. But we ate, and whenever I can I will comment on the food at the pubs into which I stumble. I used to think that the Oak's food has deteriorated a bit as the chain has grown, but of the three dishes we tried (fish and chips, quesadilla and club sammich), everyone pronounced it 'good'. Nothing spectacular, though. Which is really the final comment about the whole pub. The prices are a little above average, and the service is not. I suppose I can't really complain about my $8 beer, since my drunken friend the Li'l Ball o' Hate paid for everyone's tab.
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