McGinty's Public House, Irish Pub on Ellsworth Drive in Silver Spring

[Heather]

I've walked by this place a half-dozen times now and finally looked it up. According to their website, McGinty's:

This unique venture is Irish owned and managed and aims to bring a little Irish hospitality and friendliness into City Place Mall in the heart of Downtown Silver Spring.

Has anyone been there?

ETA: They are featuring a U2 cover band in November. I can't decide whether that's amusing or appalling.

[JPW]

I've walked by this place a half-dozen times now and finally looked it up. According to their website, McGinty's:Has anyone been there?

ETA: They are featuring a U2 cover band in November. I can't decide whether that's amusing or appalling.

Haven't actually consumed anything there, but have walked through it. The downstairs area consists basically of just a few tables and a smallish bar. The upstairs is reminiscent of an airplane hangar. Looked to have a fairly decent tap selection.

[Heather]

There's a patio, and they advertise dancing upstairs including an 80's night.

The menu looks pretty standard...I was unable to tell from the website if it's part of a chain. If it's not we'll probably give it a try.

[silentbob]

My friends and I have been coming here every Monday night during the past several weeks for the pub quiz. I've tried a few items from the menu:

- Grilled Irish pork sausage with potato salad and gravy - the sausage has decent taste and mediocre texture, the gravy is too salty and watery.

- Caesar salad - passable, slightly underdressed, and needs a few more anchovies.

- Fried oyster with pickled vegetable relish - probably the dish I liked most, though it's pretty hard to screw up fried oysters.

Others have tried the boxty and thought the pancake itself was okay but hated the sauce.

There are still a couple of items (corned beef, Irish smoked salmon) that I plan to try. I'll pass on the fish and chips now that Eamonn's is open.

[Heather]

There are still a couple of items (corned beef, Irish smoked salmon) that I plan to try. I'll pass on the fish and chips now that Eamonn's is open.

I'l try it, because while Eamonn's is surely fabulous, it's not a mile away from my house like this place is. And I will forgive many culinary missteps for a decent tap selection.

[xcanuck]

We walk by McGinty's almost every day (we go to the Gold's Gym in the same building). I've only eaten there once (more than enough for me) and my wife's eaten there a few times. She had the boxty and after having chowed down on more than our fair share in Ireland, she was really really down on McGinty's version. Nothing was memorable....we were eating no so much for actual enjoyment, but more to soak up the Guinness.

As far as the atmosphere goes, even Ri Ra in Bethesda and Fado in DC come across as more traditional Irish pubs. JPW's assessment of the upstairs feeling like an airport hangar is dead on. The only time upstairs was worthwhile was during the World Cup. The patio is a nice place to hang out in the evening after a movie and people watch.

I was holding out so much hope for this place (I don't think it's part of a chain) but I have to admit it disappointed me. Nanny O'Briens in DC is still my favorite Irish pub.

[Heather]

Well that's disappointing to hear about the food, and I'm not a big fan of the faux "main street" pedestrian mall concept that downtown SS has become.

[mr food]

I thought the food over priced on my one and only visit

[JPW]

Well that's disappointing to hear about the food, and I'm not a big fan of the faux "main street" pedestrian mall concept that downtown SS has become.

Yeah, but it's better than what was there before.

[Heather]

Yeah, but it's better than what was there before.

True. Although it's been so long that I don't remember what was there before.

We'll give it a go - maybe the night 2U is playing.

[dfmcpete]

Checked out the pub trivia last night--moderately fun. I would encourage others to go, but I don't want too much competition

The menu seems kind of ambitious for the appearance of the place; I'd rather have cheaper pub grub. I can't say I even plan to try the food there, but the beer specials are good--$3 drafts upstairs mon thru thurs 4-close, various happy hour specials mon-fri. Last night we had enough beers to make the pub trivia math questions hard, and the tab was <$30.

[silentbob]

Over the last couple months of pub quiz, I've been alternating between the caesar salad and the chili. The chili is actually pretty good, and provides somewhat more kick than expected (though on a scale from 1 to 10, my spicyness tolerance is about a 5 or 6).

This week, I gave the lobster bisque a shot. Mostly bland and harmless, though the one jumbo shrimp is decently grilled. I also had a bite of my friend's pesto pizza. Just say no to flabby crust.

[Heather]

We finally got around to giving McGinty's a try, and it was not great. Scott had the bangers & mash - whipped potatoes with thin brown gravy, baked beans, and underflavored sausages. Not something to rush back for. My medium rare burger came out at the requested temperature although I was disappointed at how thin the patty was. They have at least a dozen beers on the tap list, and, as this is Montgomery County, a boring and overpriced wine list.

The kid's menu features the same mass produced crap as every other kids menu in town: hamburger, hot dog, chicken tenders, and boxed macaroni & cheese. The asparagus we got the kids was incredibly bitter, and they hated the macaroni & the hot dog. I would up cutting my burger in half and letting them finish it.

It's disappointing as this is one of few non-chain options in downtown Silver Spring. We'll probably give it one more chance, just because, but it won't be in our regular rotation.

[xcanuck]

It's disappointing as this is one of few non-chain options in downtown Silver Spring. We'll probably give it one more chance, just because, but it won't be in our regular rotation.

That's one more chance than it deserves. Ick.

[Heather]

That's one more chance than it deserves. Ick.

But my burger was OK, and for some reason the burger options in downtown SS are almost nonexistant, so I am willing to give them another chance.

The menu is much too ambitious. If they stuck to bar food they'd be much better.

[ol_ironstomach]

The trad music seisiun occupies an open corner of the roomy upstairs area, and as I understand it is primarily composed of players from the Annapolis area. They sounded pretty good to me, if a bit tame in their interpretations. Also, because it's such a large space and the ambient chatter level is high, they're mostly inaudible...I'm not sure that anybody else was listening to them, really. The musicians didn't seem to mind.

It's a bit of a trick to catch a server. All of the floor staff are identically uniformed, so my first attempt only reeled in a busboy. There didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the circulation pattern; we must have ordered from three or four servers who dropped by our little table. You won't find any surprises on the beer list; they're all common megabrews, with more English than Irish influence, so I settled for a Smithwicks draft.

However, it's easy to find, it's roomy, and it makes a reasonable base of operations for future TMB outings...even for those of us who aren't from the local TMB

[JPW]

I agree with pretty much everything Dave said. The service plan remains a mystery to me after having watched it pretty closely for a couple of hours last night. We were only about 20 feet from the stage and could barely hear any music. Nice for us as we were conversing, but I'm willing to bet that noone else in the entire bar could actually hear the music.

[soapy]

I enjoyed their bangars and mash. The sausage appears to be made in house.

[Barbara]

Went there tonight, because my brother thought RTC was too expensive for his family of four. (He does have a kid in college and one getting ready to go there.) I went with very low expectations, thinking that if it was acceptable I would be way ahead. We were put at a table on the second floor--which, for some reason, had all the large parties grouped in the back. That meant that in an otherwise empty room, we were placed right next to a group with little kids, including a crying baby. However, we had no problem conversing with one another. Dame Edna found his hamburger "perfectly acceptable," while my braised short ribs on creamed spinach and "smashed" potatoes (which were a little under-done) were also perfectly "acceptable." I could only eat about half of it and brought the rest home for lunch tomorrow, which I am looking forward to consuming. It lacked the je ne sais quoi that Tom Power would have put on a dish like that, it was also considerably cheaper than what he would have charged. My nephew ordered the rainbow trout and proclaimed it "quite good." It certainly looked good--may have been the dish of the night. My niece, who apparently orders the Caesar Salad where ever she goes, got that with some grilled chicken.

We also ordered the hummus for the table and that was quite a revelation: wedges of very hot pita bread, with a large ramekin of hummus topped with Kalamari olives. Surprisingly nice, along with the bread basket containing some rather interesting bread. I thought it might be an American take on Irish Brown Bread. Could be wrong.

Wine was $7 a glass and I was very happy with my Riesling, although I suspect Mark Slater would turn his nose up at it. A pint of Guinness Stout was $5.25. Service was amateurish, but also perfectly acceptable in this atmosphere. Yes, we had to deal with the auctioning off of plates, but we all got what we ordered. Bonus points! While this place isn't one of the gems of a Mom-and-Pop inexpensive delight, there was evidence of some careful thought to the food.

Dinner for the six of us--6 mains, 1 appetizer, 3 glasses of wine, and 2 beers, plus tax and tip--came to just about $150. This was less than Dame Edna and I spent on Christmas at Corduroy for the two of us but, then again, I dream about Tom Power's food and I don't think I will go out of my way for this place. YMMV.

[Tweaked]

So, if you are in downtown Silver Spring and you want a sports bar to watch sports and you don't care about food, then by all means give McGinty's a shot.  Otherwise don't bother.

Now, if you happen to be at McGinty's on a Saturday night and a society of rugby referees happens to be holding a dinner in the private room upstairs, stick around for the part of the evening when they all standup and start singing...brilliant.

[Al Dente]

Iron Balls McGinty

[JPW]

So, if you are in downtown Silver Spring and you want a sports bar to watch sports and you don't care about food, then by all means give McGinty's a shot.  Otherwise don't bother.

Now, if you happen to be at McGinty's on a Saturday night and a society of rugby referees happens to be holding a dinner in the private room upstairs, stick around for the part of the evening when they all standup and start singing...brilliant.

Nah. Go to the pool hall in the basement. More and better TVs. : )

[Kev29]

Nah. Go to the pool hall in the basement. More and better TVs. : )

Galaxy? That place closed awhile ago.

[JPW]

Galaxy? That place closed awhile ago.

Really? Oops.

[jdc]

Since I referenced it in the Samuel Beckett's post, here is the link for The Room at McGinty's. Curious what your thoughts will be, Don.

FWIW, looking over this thread, I don't love McGinty's as a whole (I do wish DTSS had a real sports bar, rather than one that has a few TVs and only has a big TV/sound for special occasions like World Cup matches), but I actually think the bar food/regular menu has improved. I wouldn't get anything super complex, but fish and chips or a burger or one of the stews usually works. I still think some of it may be a bit too pricy, at least for what I am looking to spend if I'm sitting there watching a game (food and drinks can add up pretty fast). The service is always amateurish in the upstairs bar, I agree with that.

[DonRocks]

Since I referenced it in the Samuel Beckett's post, here is the link for The Room at McGinty's. Curious what your thoughts will be, Don.

FWIW, looking over this thread, I don't love McGinty's as a whole (I do wish DTSS had a real sports bar, rather than one that has a few TVs and only has a big TV/sound for special occasions like World Cup matches), but I actually think the bar food/regular menu has improved. I wouldn't get anything super complex, but fish and chips or a burger or one of the stews usually works. I still think some of it may be a bit too pricy, at least for what I am looking to spend if I'm sitting there watching a game (food and drinks can add up pretty fast). The service is always amateurish in the upstairs bar, I agree with that.

jdc, do you know if McGinty's menu is available in The Room, and vice-versa?

To state the obvious, there is no better critic than yourself. This applies to every diner and to every restaurant critic. That said, you have brought this to my attention, and I'll be happy to throw my opinion into the mix.

[jdc]

jdc, do you know if McGinty's menu is available in The Room, and vice-versa?

To state the obvious, there is no better critic than yourself. This applies to every diner and to every restaurant critic.

I don't know for sure, but from the way they have a separate website and a separate host stand outside of that dining room, I can't imagine. At best, I'd imagine the normal McGinty's menu might be available inside, but the Room menu is not available in the bar areas. What is unfortunate, if that's the case, is that there are very few "non-bar" seating options for the regular menu - so if I wanted a shepherd's pie, but I don't want to sit in a handful of booths at an area with TVs or potentially loud music, etc. - where do I go?

And agreed. Just wanted to note that since most of the posts are 2012 or before, I believe they have a new chef and menu since then, so they may be less relevant. Still probably isn't in the first 10 places I'd go to eat in Silver Spring if I just wanted a meal (versus wanting to have the game on, etc.), but it's not a poor option by any stretch.

[DMVDining2]

We went for dinner at The Room at McGinty's last week and basically asked ourselves "what is this place doing in an Irish pub?!" because chef Nico Amroune is doing some amazing things in the kitchen. The spring lamb Provení§al was the highlight of the meal: perfectly-cooked, medium-rare lamb with a terrific herb crust. The prices are reasonable given the high-quality of ingredients and generous portions. Feel like it's a hidden gem tucked amongst an ever-growing dining scene in downtown Silver Spring. Great addition to the scene. 

More on the blog: The Room at McGinty's: Fine Dining within an Irish Pub

[jdc]

A couple of McGinty's updates, as one of my neighbors has taken to the place and so I've been three times in about the past six weeks (once for brunch, twice for dinner). Don, again, I will implore you to move McGinty's up the list - it's still not a standout place, at least in the regular dining room/bar area (I've not done the Room), but it needs some separation from the abomination that is Fire Station 1. There is a little bit of a sense of adventure on the menu now, many of the classic dishes like the stews and fish and chips are generally higher quality (and admittedly, higher-priced), and the ingredients are generally fresh (and not Sysco/reheated - the only think I can think of that might have been were the fries)

For brunch, they do a prix-fixe three-course meal with an included beverage, or a la carte (and they serve until almost 4 PM, I think). My friend and I both did a la carte fritattas (zucchini and corned beef) and found them to be relatively generously filled with fresh ingredients. For dinner, we've done salads (black kale and "smashed cucumber" with peaches), both with an added chicken breast. They're a bit pricey for what you get, but the fruit and vegetables were fresh and nicely presented, and I appreciate that they delayed bringing out chicken for me because they were concerned the initial one they cooked was dried out. Generally speaking, I wouldn't go to there for salads (even though they were nice) unless I was the only one ordering one and the rest of the party wanted a "sit down" spot, with Sweetgreen and Cava around the corner with more options and a lower price point, but they're nice options to have once there. The other time we had sandwiches - my friend had an Irish club she really liked (thought it was generous with the fillings and the toasted sourdough was a perfect complement), and I had their "Greenbird" which is a turkey burger patty, brie, friese, avocado and aioli. I thought it was pretty tasty, and their sandwiches are pretty well priced ($10-$11 range) as compared to the rest of the menu (where many appetizers are around $10 and most every entree is north of $15 and many are north of $18.). I might consider the salad or the chips over the generic fries.

The summary point, again, is that McGinty's is not great - but I think that its food is above typical pub food and Irish stews at this point, with some sense of adventure and craft (though there are certainly wings on the menu as well). I can't speak to "The Room", which apparently aspires even higher, though I did overhear one of the servers telling another table that it is not doing well (underpromoted, etc.) and that they don't expect it to last the fall.

[DonRocks]

46 minutes ago, jdc said:

Don, again, I will implore you to move McGinty's up the list - it's still not a standout place, at least in the regular dining room/bar area (I've not done the Room), but it needs some separation from the abomination that is Fire Station 1.

[You're right. Done.]