By the Gastronomes

March is a grand time to visit our two wonderful Irish Restaurants…Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub and Daniel O’Connell’s Irish Restaurant & Bar. Even though this article is in our Dining Out Column, the approach will be different. I wanted to write about the opening of each and my thoughts.

Some of you might not agree with me, but I feel that Murphy’s is more of neighborhood “Cheers” kind of place while O’Connell’s is more upscale with Old World charm. You can’t deny, however, that they are both Irish to the core.

Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub & Restaurant

713 King Street

I moved to Old Town in 1977. This beautiful destination was not anywhere as big or popular back then. Actually, only Alexandrians knew much about Old Town. Old Town proper back then extended from the Potomac River to the 700 block of King Street, one block on the other side of Washington Street. Almost all of the action was down on the waterfront with restaurants and shops occupying old seaport warehouses. In fact, the revitalization of the wharf area had only begun that decade. Back in the 60’s, Old Town was just a thought.

I met a guy, David Stasko, at the Fish Market Restaurant in the Brass bar and we became lifelong friends. Dave grew up in Alexandria and knew everything and everyone. He invited me to come play rugby with West Potomac Rugby and I accepted. This was my entree to Old Town. We would meet with other new friends every day at one of the bars on lower King Street. The now defunct Ireland’s Own was the only established Irish bar in Old Town but word about a new Irish bar opening up in the west end of town drifted down to the water so we decided to investigate.

I don’t recall exactly what time of the year it was, but one nice day in 1978, we walked up to 713 King Street and walked in the front door of Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub. They were still in the opening stage, finishing up the bar and setting up the room. We met the owner, Tom Mooney, and had a good conversation. His goal was to bring authentic Irish cuisine to Alexandria at a fair price and good Irish hospitality and music as well. He and his family have achieved that goal. Today, rather than on the outskirts of Old Town they are one of the anchors in the middle achieving Tom’s goal every day.

In addition to food offerings that you may find on most menus, they have some unique Irish offerings as well. Shrimp Killarney, Jameson Baked Oysters, Irish Egg Rolls, Shepherd’s Pie, Irish Stew, Bangers and Mash, Guinness Burger and Irish Meat & Potato Pie.

Murphy’s also has one of the largest bars in Old Town and is usually packed with locals who call this pub home. They have a wide selection of draft beers and Irish Whiskeys. There is a small stage in the middle of the restaurant along the wall opposite the bar where entertainment is provided seven nights a week with no cover charge. It is here that I first met some of the talented musicians in the Alexandria and D.C. area.

For those chilly days there is a wood burning fireplace centered two-thirds of the way back in the dining room. It is magnificent!

Murphy’s has a second floor dining room with a full bar and a stage as well as a fireplace. This room is used for special events, private parties or for overflow on weekends or other special occasions.

I give my congratulations to Tom Mooney, his wife Melinda and son Tommy for achieving their goal as they celebrate 46 years in Old Town.

Daniel O’Connell’s Restaurant & Bar

112 King Street

Compared to Murphy’s, O’Connell’s is a new kid on the block – they celebrate their 19^th year this month. After an extensive build out – the space was formerly Bullfeather’s Restaurant – the “new” Irish place picked a great day to open its doors for the first time…St. Patrick’s Day 2005. The management removed all of the furniture except one table in the back of the main bar and stored everything in a box truck parked out front (clearly that was before 100 King became a pedestrian mall). They must have had a premonition, since it was standing room only and folks were shoulder to shoulder after a few hours. We took advantage of the grand opening and headed for O’Connell’s early. We were lucky and sat at the only table on the ground floor. Needless to say, it was a very successful grand opening.

O’Connell’s was founded by Dublin resident John Brennan and former partner, Billy Sullivan, and is today run by his daughter Kate who is also the General Manager. Kate is doing an excellent job at O’Connell’s with the help of their very capable staff.

Once the build out was done, they brought a life-long collection of antiques from churches, museums and other historic structures in Ireland to be placed in the new restaurant. One of the first things you will notice upon entering the establishment…their attention to the details. It is truly a step back in time and you feel as if you are in a pub in Ireland. There is a smaller bar as you enter with furnishings from an apothecary. After climbing two steps you enter the main bar and dining room. Keep in mind that the back bar is hundreds of years old – yes hundreds. Be sure to check out all of the artifacts on the shelves and walls. For those chilly spring days, they have a gas fireplace with high tops in front available to warm you up.

O’Connell’s also has a second floor for dining that is open and looks down into the main dining room. Also on this floor are the Fitzgerald Room and Bar and the O’Sullivan Room and Bar. Both are utilized for special events and private parties. The upstairs is decorated with antique furnishings as well with a pulpit from a church over-looking the downstairs dining area. On nice days the, second floor bar has a deck for outdoor dining and drinking.

The bar at O’Connell’s is extensive with numerous Irish whiskies in the line-up. As a matter of fact, they will be launching their hand selected O’Connell’s George Dickel Platinum Anniversary hand selected barrel this month. While Dickel is a Tennessee whisky, we think this is pretty special. And for all of you beer lovers, they have 16 on tap and too many to mention in cans and bottles.

Like Murphy’s, O’Connell’s offers “Auld Favorites” like Fish & Chips, Shepherd’s Pie, Full Irish Breakfast, Bangers and Mash, Guinness Burger, Lamb Stew, Corned Beef and Cabbage in addition to other American offerings.

This establishment has become one of Old Town’s favorite gathering places as the Irish hospitality is welcoming. As with Murphy’s, I have been a regular since their opening.

Both Murphy’s and O’Connell’s offer great happy hour prices, brunch on weekends, live entertainment and my favorite – the Six Nations Rugby tournament play in real time. I bet you were wondering how I was going to weave rugby back into this story. In fact, at the time of this writing Ireland is at the top of the heap.

As St. Patrick’s Day approaches, make plans to visit both of these Old Town gems.

Sláinte!

*Be sure to check out the St. Patrick’s celebration events in both of these places in their respective ads in this issue.