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Daniel O'Connell's, Old Town Alexandria - Irish Pub "Without Freezers" on King Street


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Hello all, didn't see a thread for this place so I figured I'd start one.

Within the last few months, Daniel O'Connell's Restaurant has replaced Bullfeathers at 112 King Street in Old Town Alexandria. I believe they have expanded the space as well.

The owners (Mark Kirwan and John Brennan, I believe) have imported most of the interior directly from Ireland. Its handsome dark woods occupy multiple levels, some of which overlook each other.

I stopped in on Saturday on the recommendation of a chef friend of mine. This is not your typical Irish pub fare.

Here's a link to the restaurant's website: http://www.danieloconnells.com/ (The place is named after a 19th century politician.)

The menu features haute cusine with an Irish flair. It was great stuff. After finishing a generously-sized cocktail, I dug into their carmelized onion tart with tomato and goat cheese. The crust was deliciously sweet. Each of the three entrees that came to the table were terrific. The scallion seared tuna was perhaps the best. Also got a sample of the butter-poached lobster with potato gnocchi. Every bite melts in your mouth. My curried diver scallops were great too, and the plate featured tastes both sweet and savory.

I'll mention two nitpicks, but they're only personal problems -- that is, not eveyone will have an issue with them. First, the portions sizes of the main courses are not very big. For example, the aforementioned lobster dish was only accompanied by about 5 or 6 gnocchi. But I believe this is intentional, because the menu has a decent selection of sides that can be shared. The entrees range all the way from the high teens to the mid-thirties. If you go in there realizing that you should factor the cost of a side or two into your meal, you probably won't even pay attention to the portion sizes. The only other complaint I had was that the desserts really seemed to focus on the heavy. Again, this is just a personal opinion. I usually like something light and fruity, and the Irish would appear to like their final course to be warm, creamy, and chocolatey. I probably could have done their sorbet sampler, but instead of dishing out the $8, my party decided to hit one of the nearby ice cream shops instead.

To end on a positive note, O'Connell's website says they have a $6 weekday lunch menu. Without having tried it, I'd still say that's a safe bet. And our service was outstanding. Our waitress was very attentive and the kitchen had a fantastic turnaround time for 8 pm on a Saturday night.

Has anyone else tried this place yet? I'd like to see some other thoughts besides my amateur foodie opinion.

edited to add:Ventworm status!! Amateur no more?

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From their website:

JOIN US MON-FRI FOR A $6 SPECIAL LUNCH

MON- PASTA OF THE DAY $6

TUE- SESAME TUNA SALAD $6

WED- IRISH QUESADILLA $6

THU- WRAP OF THE DAY $6

FRI- PHILLY CHEESE STEAK $6

I've wandered through a couple of times and not bothered to stop and drink or eat. The numerous bar spaces, on both levels, are very nice, but they seem to be designed more for sitting down and eating a meal than having a casual pint or two. When I've been in the place has been packed so sitting down and having anything wasn't an option.

I'm glad to see they've expanded their menu beyond the VERY limited opening menu. I don't think I'm inclined to pay those dinner entree prices, when I know what I can get up the road from another Irish chef for very comparable prices. That being said, I'm looking forward to getting in there and trying some starters with a Guinness.

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QUOTE

GRILLED BLACK & WHITE PUDDING PIZZA 12

damn, that should be an interesting dish!
This pizza is really tasty! Very very thin crispy flatbread, grilled (of course) with a lightly scattered topping of crumbled black pudding, caramelized onions and dabs of Irish goat cheese. Very simple, but with a variety of flavors from the slightly spicy, earthy sausage, the tangy goat cheese and the sweet onions. A few microgreens tossed into the mix and you have an excellent appetizer pizza -- and my new addiction. We also tried the 'Crabquettes', an appetizer of 3 golfball-size crabcakes served with a tangy honey-mustard dressing. The crabmeat is mixed with a house-made tartar which adds an extra tang to the mix. Had to order a second on this one :unsure:

Worthy of mention: the front bar is the smoking bar while the remainder of the bar areas in the restaurant are all non-smoking. This place is great!

-Camille

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Last night my wife and I decided to give Daniel O’Connell’s a try. I only had one complaint, so I will get that out of the way first, the seats suck, and the straight backs are incredibly uncomfortable. Other than that, it was a positive experience. Neither of us was in the mood for a large meal, so we stuck with appetizers. We split the Fried Oyster and Calamari, and the Crabquettes. The Oyster and Calamari was competently prepared, but could have used a little more salt. I also really enjoyed the papaya ketchup that it came with. But the Crabquettes were definitely the star. These are one of the best crab based dishes I have had in a long time. The binding agent used to hold these together is the tartar sauce, and provides a very nice succulent flavor.

Chef Lawson came by the table after we finished our meal, and we chatted for a few minutes. I was impressed by how he spoke about each of his dishes, and after he described the black and white pizza to my wife, and convinced her to give it a try next time (she was initially turned off by the mention of blood pudding). We will certainly be back soon.

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Last night my wife and I decided to give Daniel O'Connell's a try. I only had one complaint, so I will get that out of the way first, the seats suck, and the straight backs are incredibly uncomfortable. Other than that, it was a positive experience. Neither of us was in the mood for a large meal, so we stuck with appetizers. We split the Fried Oyster and Calamari, and the Crabquettes. The Oyster and Calamari was competently prepared, but could have used a little more salt. I also really enjoyed the papaya ketchup that it came with. But the Crabquettes were definitely the star. These are one of the best crab based dishes I have had in a long time. The binding agent used to hold these together is the tartar sauce, and provides a very nice succulent flavor.

Chef Lawson came by the table after we finished our meal, and we chatted for a few minutes. I was impressed by how he spoke about each of his dishes, and after he described the black and white pizza to my wife, and convinced her to give it a try next time (she was initially turned off by the mention of blood pudding). We will certainly be back soon.

Those straight-back benches really are uncomfortable - they force you to learn forward. Also, that Black & White Pudding Pizza is no longer on the menu.

Nevertheless, my young dining companion and I had a surprisingly good meal at Daniel O'Connell's the other evening, ordering just plain and simple fare.

This place is not cheap - a pint of Smithwick's ($6.50) and a Diet Coke ($2.95, cheerfully refilled without asking) ran well over $10 for the two including tax and tip.

The menus on the website are not current, and the prices have edged up a bit. There's no getting around Matt being fourteen, thus his O'Connell's Burger ($11.00) with bacon and "Dubliner" cheddar (essentially, curds). Sticking with the "simple is best" theme, I noted that the menu said "fresh" cod in describing the Fish & Chips ($13.00), and had the following conversation with our very professional, enthusiastic server:

"By any chance, is the cod in the fish and chips actually fresh, or is it frozen?"

He smiled. "We no longer have any freezers here."

At that point, I thought to myself, 'okay, whatever,' and resigned myself to a touristy frozen fish and chips.

Well, if this was frozen cod, it sure did a pretty good imitation of being fresh. Beautifully battered, and served with a veritable mountain of fresh-cut, slightly herbed fries, this was an excellent fish and chips dish that must have surely contained close to 2,000 calories, all-in (I understand fries are cheap filler, but I have to think anyone outside of an NFL lineman would prefer half the fries, and just a bit more cod). I've had mushy peas only several times in my life, including in Ireland, and I've never really "gotten" them; but I had my "mushy pea moment" at O'Connell's - they were a deep, dark green, and sure tasted like coarse-mashed fresh peas to me. Matt's burger came with a similar daunting portion of fries, and was a great, juicy, massive sandwich whose only flaw was being cooked to medium-well when ordered medium-rare.

Both of us agreed that Daniel O'Connell's surpassed expectations, and I wouldn't hesitate to come back and try it again in the future. I don't consider myself an expert in area Irish Pubs, but both this and Shirlington's Samuel Beckett's have now surprised me.

Cheers,

Rocks

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The owners (Mark Kirwan and John Brennan, I believe) have imported most of the interior directly from Ireland.

Sounds like a place I'd like to check out.

A semi-rhetorical question: Why does it seem that only Irish Pubs import their interiors? Do other restaurants import interiors and we just don't know it? Is it a bandwagon thing (one pub did, now all do)? Just how much has to be imported before this claim can be made? And is it possible to import such interiors indirectly from Ireland?

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A semi-rhetorical question: Why does it seem that only Irish Pubs import their interiors? Do other restaurants import interiors and we just don't know it? Is it a bandwagon thing (one pub did, now all do)? Just how much has to be imported before this claim can be made? And is it possible to import such interiors indirectly from Ireland?

I am no expert on this, but I think the answer is that there is an industry in Ireland that specializes in manufacturing Irish Pub interiors. For example - The Irish Pub Company. I doubt you could find much of this stuff manufactured in the U.S. I do not think the look and feel of the interiors of other restaurants are as much a part of the fabric of the enterprise as they are in Irish Pubs, which may help explain why you do not see this phenomenon with other restaurant types.

Another question - Why are there so few British Pubs in the U.S. as compared to the abundance of Irish Pubs?

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Another question - Why are there so few British Pubs in the U.S. as compared to the abundance of Irish Pubs?

They never forgave us for kicking their ass in the Revolutionary war? :D

Mr. MV offers that British pubs are not as ubiquitous as Irish pubs in their look. Just his guess from living in London for 2 years where "his pub" was the Hereford Arms.

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Barbara and I have been in twice, once for drinks and snacks, and then tonight for dinner.  I had planned on fixing a steak at home for dinner, but the damn thing hadn't thawed, so we went out.  I found a parking spot in old town directly across for Daniel O'Connell's, so that was dinner.  I had the 16 oz Cowgirl Ribeye, a bone-in ribeye steak.  It was properly cooked and damn tasty, served with a whiskey peppercorn cream sauce.  The so-called au gratin potatoes were a thin layer of potato slices over mashed potatoes, but since the mashed potatoes were tasty I'm willing to give them a pass. Barbara had the shepherds pie with a reasonable (not thick) layer of potato over meat and veg.

Previously, we've had the scotch eggs which were excellent.  Overall the quality of food is good and provides a reasonable value. It's worthwhile if you want good pub dining in Old Town Alexandria.

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Barbara and I have been in twice, once for drinks and snacks, and then tonight for dinner.  I had planned on fixing a steak at home for dinner, but the damn thing hadn't thawed, so we went out.  I found a parking spot in old town directly across for Daniel O'Connell's, so that was dinner.  I had the 16 oz Cowgirl Ribeye, a bone-in ribeye steak.  It was properly cooked and damn tasty, served with a whiskey peppercorn cream sauce.  The so-called au gratin potatoes were a thin layer of potato slices over mashed potatoes, but since the mashed potatoes were tasty I'm willing to give them a pass. Barbara had the shepherds pie with a reasonable (not thick) layer of potato over meat and veg.

Previously, we've had the scotch eggs which were excellent.  Overall the quality of food is good and provides a reasonable value. It's worthwhile if you want good pub dining in Old Town Alexandria.

Not the best picture quality.

  Jim's Ribeye

post-1215-0-69385900-1392302240_thumb.jp

  My Shepherds Pie

post-1215-0-38220000-1392302253_thumb.jp

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"By any chance, is the cod in the fish and chips actually fresh, or is it frozen?"

He smiled. "We no longer have any freezers here."

I think the freezers are back.  We stopped in tonight for a dinner out, just because I didn't want to cook and kind of wanted to go out.  The 'cowgirl steak' is gone, replaced by 'steak frites' on the menu. It was a smaller strip steak, reasonable given the cheaper price, but it was served with fried potato wedges that looked like they came out of a plastic freezer bag.  You know, the little wedges with the skin still on them. The steak itself was good, with a small dish of bernaise on the side.

Having said that, the classic Irish dish Caesar salad was good, the small one big enough for two to share, with a large parmesan crisp.  And the Tapas of the Sea appetizer was OK, with two very good scallops as the centerpiece, and a few calimari rings, one large buffalo shrimp, and a crab ball that may have also come from a frozen bag.

I'm guessing that they're aiming the dishes at a price, and while I get that I kind of miss the food they were serving a year ago.  Given the economy and the high rents of Old Town, those may have not been sustainable.

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