Has a lot going for it !

Rating – 4/5

Nitesh Hub – the Mall situated right after Westin has been seeing some recent big ticket openings as Irish House has now opened their second outlet in Pune. It is a rather spacious place with a lot of things going for them namely good food, decently priced drinks, a young and vibrant ambience further accentuated by live performances. When you mix them all together what you get to see is a success story in the making !

Ambience – As aforementioned the ambience is quite kickass and happening with live music / performances usually scheduled on weekends. Otherwise the usual DJ is pretty decent and plays some foot tapping numbers most of the times. Seating is available in a number of options with the best one near the Bar counter if you like to see your drinks getting prepared live and if you’re really fussy about them 🙂 The other options are a high seating Table for a group of ten else otherwise usual table/chair seating is available as well.

Drinks – Being a teetotaler I didn’t set my expectations high at all however I wasn’t disappointed with both my drinks. The Spiced Guava Mary expectedly was a spicy guava flavored mocktail with a sour and sweet taste infused with a bit of chilly flavor as well. The Chocolate & Peanut butter shake on the other hand was sweet and chocolatey but thankfully wasn’t overpowering with peanut butter. Both the Non alcoholic drinks are #definitelyrecommended.

Appetizers – The good thing about any course of meal here at Irish house is that they are always accompanied by fries or something on the side apart from what you have ordered which gives a feel good factor for sure. Following are my top picks:

Cheese Burst Chicken – A pretty decent starter this came with a generous filling of melted cheese along with minced chicken spicy filling. I would definitely rate the taste as above average but if you’re only going to have one appetizer while you’re here this may not be the best choice.

The Great Irish Fish & Chips – This is by far the most popular and in my view the tastiest appetizer one could get at the Irish House. This preparation is outstanding with a crunchy outer texture and an amazingly tender inner fish fillet gently sprinkled with condiments coupled with some veggies on the side. The accompanying dip is the perfect partner in this gastronomical crime and expectedly this is #highlyrecommended.

Original Belfast Chicken Wings – In case you’re tired of the usual BBQ sauce laced chicken wings then this is the appetizer you must order and hopefully it wouldn’t disappoint you. The texture is sort of crispy but not KFC like crispy but the spices used are pretty different and I loved this to gulp down with my mocktails. #recommended

Mains – A generous serving of grilled chicken served with grilled veggies combined with apple cider rice which were pretty flavorful. In case this is your idea of a mains dish then I can guarantee this wouldn’t disappoint you in the slightest possible manner. Each bite of Grilled chicken coupled with the mildly flavoured rice followed by a crunchy bite of grilled Broccoli was pure fun. #highlyrecommended.

Desserts – Let me specify some of the contents of the Irish Riverdance and I bet some of you might break into a dance step or two by the time the description is finished ! Here you go – it is essentially a beer mug loaded with Vanilla ice-cream, dark chocolate bites, chocolate truffles, chocolate coated cookies, gooey brownie, brownie crumble topped off with caramel sauce, caramelized nuts and fresh lager beer !! Everything was perfect until the last part (beer – a true teetotaler writing here 😉 I believe this can be had by both of my drinking and non drinking buddies as the beer is topped of right in front of you so could stop them from doing so. However if you’re a beer enthusiast this dessert is specially curated for you and there’s just no reason to not like it. #absolutelyrecommendedforbeerlovers

The Nutty Caramel Pie is devoid of any alcohol which isn’t such a bad thing and this dessert in itself is pretty competent as well. Served with warm caramel sauce that makes it a winner of sorts this is one gooey caramel and peanut butter pie that is layered with rich chocolate ganache and makes it an absolute sinful preparation. #highlyrecommended

The Verdict – They also have their weekdays set Lunch Menus for Rs 325/Rs 375 for Veg/Non Veg that offer quite a bit of value for money proposition. They do however levy a 10% service charge and they also have weekend set Lazy Lunch Menu that offers a 5 course spread at 595 + taxes that includes limited servings of Beer & Sangria. Overall I liked the overall feel of the pace and despite me being a teetotaler I would definitely come here once in a while for a party like atmosphere coupled with good and not so expensive food and some excellent customer service.