2008 Woodie Awards
Grille highlights family heritage
Pub combines good food and welcoming atmosphere while presenting Irish culture
Galen Sanford, Staff Writer
Issue date: 10/17/06
Last Updated: 12/26/07
I've been to O'Doherty's Irish Grille three times. Shannon, the assistant manager and one of the owners' brothers, already knows my name. The majority of customers who enter the bar are greeted by name - it feels like "Cheers" minus the drama. The first time I ate there Shannon discussed poker with my friend and me for almost ten minutes. O'Doherty's definitely focuses on the customer. Shannon is always prompt to take orders and I've never waited more than a minute for beer or six minutes for food.
The food is perfect pub fare. I've had the shepherd's pie ($10), the Butte pastie ($8), the Irish stew ($3) and a grilled chicken sandwich ($7). Everything has been fast, good and hearty. The stew is great on a cold day and the pastie will fill you up better than your typical $8 entrée. My friends enjoyed their food too, especially the traditional fish and chips ($7) and the Shamus Burger ($8) - a burger with bacon on sourdough.
Shannon recommended their Hooligan & Hannigan Corned Beef Sandwich ($8) which the menu describes as their "humble attempt to re-create this city's most revered Corned Beef Sandwich." As you can see, the prices are reasonable. With a meal, a beer and a 20 percent tip, dinner will cost you under $15.
O'Doherty's features a solid selection of beer, including imports like a Newcastle Brown Ale from England and, of course, a Guinness Stout from Ireland. There's local beers too, such as an Oktoberfest from Montana and a Heifenweisen from Seattle. There's 14 beers on tap, bottled beer and a full bar. A pint of beer from tap will run you $3.50 for microbrews and $4 for imports.
The bar is a horseshoe at the front of the pub, situated beneath picture windows with a view of the trees in Riverfront Park. Inside the pub the walls are brick and dark wood, modeled after East Coast pubs Tim, Shannon's brother, visited.
The booths are dark and close, but the ceiling is high, so the light from the windows reaches every corner. There's four TV's, but they aren't central, like at a Sports bar.
The walls are covered in newspaper clippings, photos, Irish song lyrics like "Irish Eyes are Smiling," a map of family names in Ireland and dollar bills. The tradition at O'Doherty's is, if you stand on the bar and sing, you can nail your dollar to the wall and become an honorary member of the O'Doherty family. In the 14 years since O'Doherty's opened, thousands of dollars have been nailed to the walls. That's a big family.
But really, O'Doherty's feels like a family and that's the big draw. It's a place of laughter and conversation, good beer and good food. It won't cost you much to eat at O'Doherty's, so you'll have money left over to join the family. The owners, Shannon and his crew get five stars for excellent service, hearty food, good prices and a stay-and-chat-a-while atmosphere. They are the epitome of a pub.
The food is perfect pub fare. I've had the shepherd's pie ($10), the Butte pastie ($8), the Irish stew ($3) and a grilled chicken sandwich ($7). Everything has been fast, good and hearty. The stew is great on a cold day and the pastie will fill you up better than your typical $8 entrée. My friends enjoyed their food too, especially the traditional fish and chips ($7) and the Shamus Burger ($8) - a burger with bacon on sourdough.
Shannon recommended their Hooligan & Hannigan Corned Beef Sandwich ($8) which the menu describes as their "humble attempt to re-create this city's most revered Corned Beef Sandwich." As you can see, the prices are reasonable. With a meal, a beer and a 20 percent tip, dinner will cost you under $15.
O'Doherty's features a solid selection of beer, including imports like a Newcastle Brown Ale from England and, of course, a Guinness Stout from Ireland. There's local beers too, such as an Oktoberfest from Montana and a Heifenweisen from Seattle. There's 14 beers on tap, bottled beer and a full bar. A pint of beer from tap will run you $3.50 for microbrews and $4 for imports.
The bar is a horseshoe at the front of the pub, situated beneath picture windows with a view of the trees in Riverfront Park. Inside the pub the walls are brick and dark wood, modeled after East Coast pubs Tim, Shannon's brother, visited.
The booths are dark and close, but the ceiling is high, so the light from the windows reaches every corner. There's four TV's, but they aren't central, like at a Sports bar.
The walls are covered in newspaper clippings, photos, Irish song lyrics like "Irish Eyes are Smiling," a map of family names in Ireland and dollar bills. The tradition at O'Doherty's is, if you stand on the bar and sing, you can nail your dollar to the wall and become an honorary member of the O'Doherty family. In the 14 years since O'Doherty's opened, thousands of dollars have been nailed to the walls. That's a big family.
But really, O'Doherty's feels like a family and that's the big draw. It's a place of laughter and conversation, good beer and good food. It won't cost you much to eat at O'Doherty's, so you'll have money left over to join the family. The owners, Shannon and his crew get five stars for excellent service, hearty food, good prices and a stay-and-chat-a-while atmosphere. They are the epitome of a pub.
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Cuba Gooding Jr.
posted 5/21/08 @ 10:47 AM PST
This is my favorite place for a Bite and a Beer in the whole world!
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