No matter where we travel I seem to be able to find a great pub where the craic flows as easily as the pints, the food is incredible and no one is shocked if you bring your kids along.  While I’ve not had the opportunity to sample every pub in the US, these six keep me coming back.

The Irish Pub in America

Me with Master Chef Kevin Dundon

Raglan Road may just be my favorite Irish Pub.  Located on Pleasure Island in Downtown Disney (no park fees to play here!) you’ll find delicious dishes created by Master Chef Kevin Dundon.  The bar itself was constructed in Ireland, taken apart, and reconstructed in Orlando, which gives it an authentic feeling- even if it is double the size of any Irish pub I’ve visited in Ireland.

Even if you don’t think you like Irish food, you’ll want to put your prejudices aside.  Master Chef Kevin Dundon has a way of recreating traditional Irish meals with beautiful presentation and unusual ingredients.  His contemporary Irish dishes are incredible, using traditional staples- like bangers- in a whole new way.  The kids will love the presentation of their meals, with fish and chips served in a paper cone or fries served in a small cookpot.  Try not to eat too much as the desserts are to die for!

You’ll also find lively Irish music and Irish dancing 6 nights a week.

Be sure to try:

If you’re visiting for lunch you can’t go wrong with the Sliced Banger Stone Bread, a freshly baked flat bread liberally covered with sharp Dubliner cheese, Guinness infused pork sausage, caramelized onions and cherry tomatoes.

The Dalkey Duo, Dalkey battered cocktail sausages with a Dalkey mustard dipping sauce, is available on both the kids menu and as an appetizer.  Either way, it’s a winner!

The presentation of the Shepherd’s Pie is almost as incredible as it’s taste.

Save room for dessert!  The choice is difficult between the Bread & Butter Pudding- with sauces that are so delicious you’ll want to drink any extra from the containers- and the Bailey’s Crème Brulee Tart, so creamy and rich that 3 people can easily share it.

My First Irish Pub

Kieran’s Irish Pub in Minneapolis was where I fell in love with traditional Irish music and craic.  Friends and I would arrive early to eat and get a good table for the live music later in the evening.  Now when I visit we usually don’t get to hear music- unless we visit on Sundays when a traditional session happens at noon.

Be sure to try:

The Pecan Crusted Halibut is incredible.  If you’re not keen on the accompaniments request a side of champ- mashed potatoes, scallions, milk and butter.

The Pub Pot Roast is comfort food, through and through, with beef so tender it practically melts in your mouth.

And save room for the Car Bomb Lava Cake.  Guinness + Jameson’s + Baileys = heavenly.

Best Pub to Feel Like You’re in Ireland

Black Rose Pub

During our relocation to Boston the Black Rose Pub near Faneuil Hall became our “go to” when we wanted a lively, family friendly, evening out.  Every other voice you hear is laced with a soothing Irish brogue and the live music is some of the best I’ve heard.  This is the closest I’ve been to feeling like I was in Ireland in an American pub.

Be sure to try:

The Guinness Beef Stew is absolute perfection served with Irish Brown Bread.

Bangers and Mash with Magner’s Gravy is a perfect blend of spices and sweetness.

End your meal with the Black and White Bread Pudding, it’s delectable!

Top 10 Irish Pub

McGurks Irish Pub

McGurk’s in St. Louis has an unbelievable outdoor garden which is very popular in the summer.  Inside you’ll find dining rooms and bars strung together, almost haphazardly, creating an intricate maze.  Live music, much of the talent comes straight from Ireland, plays nightly.  Don’t worry if you’re not close to the stage- microphones and speakers throughout the building don’t let you miss a beat.

Be sure to try:

The Bacon Wrapped Shrimp are incredible.  Huge and steak-like, served with an amazing Horseradish Cream Sauce.

The Paddy Melt is beyond your basic pub burger and the Grilled Three Cheese Melt is delightful.

Save room for dessert and then try to decide between the Whiskey Bread Pudding and the Flourless Chocolate Torte.  Or do what we did and get both!

One of America’s Best Bars

Food at Royal Mile

Des Moines may seem like an auspicious place to find one of the best bars in America, but the Royal Mile has been named just that by Esquire Magazine and Draft Magazine.  The sole British Pub on my list you won’t find live music here, but the food is some of the best I’ve had anywhere.  With a dining area upstairs this is a great place for the family.

Be sure to try:

The Fish and Chips are the best I’ve had outside of Doolin, Ireland.  Consistently perfect.

The Scotch Egg is a thick layer of pork sausage around a hard boiled egg, breaded and deep fried.  Spread on a bit of Coleman’s spicy mustard for a bit of bite and this may become your newest crave food.

The Steak and Guinness Pie is enough for two but you’ll eat it yourself- it’s that good!  A beautiful mixture of sirloin tips, peas and potatoes simmered in Guinness and baked in a pastry shell.  Amazing.

Friendliest Pub

We stumbled upon Kilkenny’s Irish Pub in Tulsa just last weekend and instantly felt like we had been visiting for years!  The staff was so warm and the other customers so friendly that this may become a stop on our annual Iowa to Texas route.  Another pub that was created in Ireland and brought to the US, you’ll get a taste of the “public house” you will find in many an Irish town.

Save room for:

Traditional Irish Breakfast- served all day!  If you haven’t tried black pudding here’s your chance!  Yum!

The Cottage Pie, the Kilkenny’s version of a Shepherd’s Pie.

Brown Bread Pudding, with whiskey soaked raisins, is a delicious twist on traditional bread pudding.  And the Sticky Toffee Pudding, a piece of cream soaked pound cake pan fried in homemade caramel sauce…  Incredible!

Do you have a favorite pub?  Tell me about it- I’m always looking for great pubs!

Photos by JLHalsted

Heavenly Ice Cream in Seaside, Florida. Couldn't have picked a more fitting name.

Those who know me are aware of my love complete and utter obsession for ice cream. And not just during summer. So, when temperatures did this stuff last week during my stay in Seagrove/Seaside, Florida, I set out on a mission to find an ice cream store. Preferably a gelato shop. Or both.

At the time, it seemed like a great idea to take a short stroll around Seaside and admire all the adorable pastel colored homes and quaint streets. After about ten minutes of walking around, though, my smile started to fade and my desire to photograph waned considerably. It was H-O-T. I needed ice cream, and I needed it STAT.

Lo and behold, a blue awning became visible though the humid haze. I wiped my sweaty brow and tried to make out the name — did it say Heavenly ICE CREAM?! Oh, my. It’s remarkable how fast I can move when dessert is involved.

Once inside, I fought the urge to throw myself on the display counter’s cool glass. The air conditioning was cranked on full blast, and it was deliciously cold inside. Look at all of those flavors! And was that gelato I spied? Yes, yes it was. Read More »

Sometimes diner food just sounds good.  Like after you leave a club. Or a graduation.  OK, I’ve never had a time when diner food didn’t sound good.  And after a night of driving in terrible storms, followed by too little sleep and a long law school graduation I’ll admit that I may have started to drool when I searched Yelp for a place to eat on our way out of Little Rock and the Starlite Diner appeared on my screen.

Nostalgia, But Nicer

Starlite Diner Exterior

Let’s be honest, one of the attractions of diner food is the grease.  And while it is great on your food, it’s not so nice layered over everything else.  From the gleaming aluminum exterior to the bright interior, the Starlite Diner has the aura of a much loved business.  It was spotless.  With only eight booths and half a dozen counter seats inside I imagine it can feel a bit packed during busy times, but on the Saturday afternoon we visited only half the booths were full.  Our waitress told us that it would get quite busy as the evening approached and continue until closing time. Read More »

View of kitchen from Chef's Table at Salt

At the most basic level, a meal out provides you with food that someone else shopped for and cooked. Of course, basic restaurant meals don’t get talked about or written about on travel blogs. What does get talked about – and remembered for a lifetime – is the rare dining experience that is an entertaining experience from beginning to end, like that which you’ll enjoy at Salt’s chef table in Amelia Island, Florida.

Read More »