Looks like Decatur’s newest Irish pub – with a VERY red exterior – up on the Square, Mac McGee’s, is now open for business!
RSMcGregor posted the above pic of the bar area on Twitter. It is republished here with permission. After the jump, see his pic of the menu.
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Looking Back: The 2011 Atlanta Snowpocalypse
How appropriate. It feels about as cold as I imagine Ireland to be.
Where on the square?
In the space that Saba formerly occupied.
i’d be eating from the kids menu, i think. the entrees seem too specific for my picky taste buds. but, i’m sure the drinks are good!
This should be fun. Mr. Nellibelle’s dear da is from Galway and Mr. Nelliebelle lived on the family farm for a couple of years. He will hate it. That will make it fun for me.
real question about McGee’s: Is an “Irish” pub doomed to fail in Decatur due to lack of authenticity? I haven’t been in so no judgments here, but from what I’ve seen, feels like a theme restaurant on some level.
The Irish don’t even have great beer. Well, they have one. And it’s a light beer (yes, I mean Guinness).
Mr. Nelliebelle will scream “Bloody American fake theme thing” the minute he sees it. I am so excited.
Beamish? Murphy’s? O’Hara’s Celtic Stout? I haven’t yet been to McGee’s but Ireland does make some fine brew and I hope they feature it.
I can put the owners in touch with a first class bagpipe band for their grand opening….hint hint.
Didjya hook the Iberian Pig up with a marachi band when they opened?
Ummm, bagpipes are Scottish.
And marachi is Mexican, not Spanish–the point to my question.
However, there are Irish pipes and they do use bagpipes in their music.
I wasn’t aware that “chicken curry with rice” is traditional Irish fare … you learn something new every day
Not traditional maybe, but y’know Indian/Pakistani cuisine is a little bit popular in the UK. Just a smidge.
Yeah! Just a little…
Born and raised in England myself, I made the comment with tongue planted firmly in cheek. Personally though, I’d prefer to see them serve a good, quick barfood “curry and chips” like Meehan’s used to before they “tarted up” the menu and got rid of all their “traditional” Irish fare. There are plenty of good authentic Indian restaurants in or close by Decatur if I want a real curry.
Sorry to have misinterpreted!
I myself like getting modern tastes of what’s popular in regional cooking — but then, I was raised in Ohio and Florida, so I wouldn’t know traditional Irish food if it kicked me in the teeth. I can’t miss what I’ve never had.
Heck, one of my friends while I was in law school over there was an Indian, and she swore the Indian/Pakistani food was better than what she could get in India! I wouldn’t know about India, but what I had in London was awesome. (And you’re right, Lauren, the Brits are mad for their curry.)
wait, you’re an attorney? who’d thunk it.
Eh? Whatchoo talkin’ about, Willis? (I don’t know whether to be flattered or insulted…)
Their is a back-side to that menu which includes Appetizers, Soup and Salad, “Pies,” and Sandwiches. I’m trying to tweet the picture to DMetro, but Twitter is overloaded. We ate at Mac McGee’s last night and the food was quite good for the price. The “Pub Format” is quite popular, and often you cannot any find a table at “Brick Store,” so I would like Mac McGee to succeed.
Back of the menu pic added to the bottom of the post above.
The food should be good – the chef is Ryan Stewart (formerly of The Glenwood and Eno).
It’s the first Irish pub I plan to visit for the food.
And in the spirit of openness, I should point out Ryan is a friend, as is his wife Besha (yes, that Besha).
He does fabulous things! (And I don’t know him other than how I met him once when a friend was so excited about a venison special at The Glenwood that the waiter had him come say hi.) I was excited before ’cause the menu sounds rad, but I’m extra excited now.
Huh. I didn’t realize it had all these foodie / journo inner-circle connections.
Who’s left to do the totally unbiased food reviews?!
Apparently it’s John Kessler!
The DNO has a bit on the new pub here:
http://www.decaturnewsonline.com/decatur_life/dining/article_3fc8c76e-fc99-11de-b5bb-001cc4c002e0.html
A wide variety of whiskeys sounds quite nice right now, with the cold and the kids being stuck inside (the booze’d be for me–not the kids).
I’m having lunch there on Monday!
ok, but THE GRANGE is also an Irish pub, so are we going to have a SLAM DOWN between the two … I VOTE FOR A GUINNESS SLAM DOWN
BTW, are they renaming The Grange after the name infringement flap and subsequent naming contest? inquiring minds are interested ….
I believe the renaming party is January 30th, which is when I assume the new name will be announced.
I see it more as another stop on The Grange to James Joyce pub crawl route …
… or a good place to roll over to for a nightcap after overstuffing myself at The Iberian Pig
I like The (soon-to-not-be) Grange, and I hope Macgee’s makes it, too– the more, the merrier, I say!
I ate there last night, food was good for the price (very reasonable) – Menu could use some tweaking so it stands out from Brick Store, Grange, Leon’s etc. I wish someone would bring back the cheddar-beer soup that Angel used to have (hint hint). Irish Food, and Pub food in general, is not varied enough to warrant as many similar restaurants as there are in Decatur, so they may have to go for personality in the long run to make it work. Definitely a great value either way.
Any good vegetarian places in Decatur???????
Vegetarian buffet at Rainbow in shopping strip at NE corner of Clairmont and North Decatur Road. Also, Your Dekalb Farmers Market buffet has many vegetarian dishes. Both delicious places to eat.
Well I for one am happy to see another Mick have a go at it.
I am a Dublin’er and I’ve been here for 14 years, So you could say I am a bit of an expert on the subject. It seems Irish pubic houses in America seem to be caught between pleasing the ex-pat Irish immigrant and pleasing the American. But the best Pub’s are those that find that harmany between both. Although I have yet to visit this establishment, my first impression was the first name over the front door ‘Dick Mac’s’ and now ‘Mac Mcgees’. “someone’s grandfather name”..I don’t know if I buy that story. message to Anto, I certainly hope as a good Irishman that you had no say in that bloody name. Which by the way is flavored with Scottish decent.
The menu on this pic above look fair, it seems this is only the front side. but from what I see they are covering all the major treats , Including Curry Cliff!, I think you must have been raised on tea and crumpets. I have never been happy with James Joyce for muliple reasons, nor The Grange. Neither of these places have what it takes to bring me a taste of home. The People, Pint or food. (In that order). The closest I have gotten in the Decatur area, is sitting down for a Pint of Vitamin G with Jimmy over at Steinbeck’s. Although Steinbeck’s is not ‘in your face’ Irish, Jimmy has the charm and manners of what makes a good Irish Establishment.
I look forward to dropping in to “Mac Mac’s” to sample ‘The Pint’ and the Irish breakfast.
Now for the real question Anto, Will those be Batcholor’s or Heinz Baked bean’s?…and can I get a cup of Barry Tea wit dat?
What’s a pubic house? 😉
Uh, your smiley face gives you away Nelle.
A Pub?
D’oh! I thought a pubic house was a house of ill repute. A pub, now…
Rumandlimes and I know all about ill-repute and pubs.
We went last night, and loved it. Didn’t try any food, but the booze and the space were just right. We had the little nook to the right of the door, with our own window to the bar, and it was a perfect setup for drinking and talking with friends.
Not to dis the Brickstore, which is a great American bar, but that place can be an uncomfortable PITA when you just want to hang with friends. Zucca’s got the nooks, but TV’s all in your face. Mac’s is a welcome alternative.
And Hear Hear! on Jimmy at Steinbecks. That’s another place that gets it.
Oh, and this whole subject reminds me to ask – what ever happened to the Irish Pub that was slated to open in the former art gallery next to Palate?
Any idea what the hours are? We went by today (Saturday) at 1:30 pm and it was closed.
Went last night and have no doubt we’ll be back. Very comfortable set-up, with what seemed like a genuinely friendly staff. The Dos Pistolas (?) was ideal for a ridiculously cold evening.
Seems they’ve wisely steered clear of trying to be BSP2: The Adventure Continues. Fits nicely, as some others have mentioned, in the “cozy hole” niche, with Steinbecks being the only other similar joint in town.
Don’t know–or care, really–how Irish or faux Irish it is. All I know is it felt good to be there.
Reply to nelliebelle1197 >>
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking-establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises in countries and regions of Irish and British influence
I know. I was teasing you ’cause you spelled it “pubic”. I have the brain and tastes of an adolescent boy wrapped up in the body of an old woman.
I had dinner there this evening and really enjoyed it. The lamb cottage pie was tasty and the Guinness was well-poured. A welcome addition to Decatur Square!
Stopped by last night and was pleasantly surprised.
It has a warm and genuinely Irish atmosphere. The staff were great although I waited a little to long before being asked for our drink order. The server caught us as we were about to get up from our sent and go straight to the bar, but I will give them some slack as they are new and it was very busy. they were back on they’re game for the next two rounds, which came with ease. The staff was very friendly, possessing that Irish charm (without the accent).
The Pint of vitamin G (Guinness) was well poured, tulip glass with the proper two part pour. It was proud of the top of the glass and did not contain any air bubbles floating on the top (signs of a bad gas mixture in the lines). I will say it came out a little colder than the desired 42.8 degrees, which I hope they will look into. If they Keg room is outdoors, it is quite possible that the temperature outside was colder at about 27 degrees, possibly effecting the lines to the bar. I do hope they address this topic.
I did not get to sample much of their food this time, We did however order some Chips (French fries) along with a side of Curry sauce. ‘Curry chips’ is an old Irish Favorite to have during or after a night of throwing back a few pints. The sauce was not up to speck as it lacked the proper flavor and basically tasted like curry power from Farmers Market mixed with salt and water. I suggest they try a brand name curry mix, such as ‘Macdonalds’ which is use in most pubs around New York, Chicago and Boston.
I do look forward to returning back for a full meal, which by the looks and aroma, looked very good!
I really hate it when a restaurant has a spelling mistake on the menu. It always makes me wonder if they don’t actually know about the food they are serving, or, if it’s just a typo, whether the attention to detail is up to snuff in other areas. But, that’s just the persnickety half of my brain. The other half of my brain is thinking that a bowl of hot Irish lamb stew would go down very nicely about now.
Wow. Tough crowd for opening night. Good luck and welcome to the square.
I tried it Thursday night and enjoyed it. I like the bright red exterior. It gave it a certain British/Irish flair like Portobello road in London. The meat pie was pretty tasty and I liked the pub fries more than Brickstore’s but they were not as good as Leon’s. The atmosphere was nice and I can see many hours hanging out here in weeks to come. I think it is a good compliment to Brickstore and Leon’s and hopefully they will get some overflow crowd from each other. This is the kind of place I was hoping Zucca would have been but the TVs at each table and the kids running around keep me from going back there too often.
Complement.
We decided we had to give it a try last night and were very pleased. Soup of the day was awesome, we were really glad that we weren’t able to order just a cup. Seriously considered licking the bowls. The seafood chowder was a hit as well. The soda bread was perfect – so often it’s too dense or too dry. Two corned beef sandwiches, both diners said they’d definitely order them again. I had the fish sandwich. Flaky, not greasy, delicious bun, and an appropriately-sized portion (I like fish, but the leviathon pieces served in some places are a bit much.) The beef pasty’s dough was burned, but my friend said the filling was excellent and ate the unburned bits quite happily. We made her tell the server anyhow, who let the kitchen know. The chef comp’d the pasty and gave us a free dessert. I am now a big fan of the sticky toffee pudding and of Mac McGee’s.
We tried Mac McGee’s the other night and were quite pleased. It was comfortable and relaxed, food was great, staff was attentive. To be honest, it felt like the Brick Store back in the early days – great menu choices and extensive bar. Walked right in, sat down and enjoyed ourselves.
Overall, I don’t think it was “spectacular” or the “hot new thing”, but I don’t think that’s what they were intending. I felt more like I was at home, sitting in a living room with friends and had an awesome bar within arms reach. We all tried the Lamb Pie, Steak & Mushroom Pie, and Chicken curry. Dessert was the sticky toffee pudding and chocolate cup thingy. At the end…nothing was left.
One day, you might find me hanging out in the corner working away and having a beer…which reminds me….I need to get back to work. DOH!
Went last night, the place is awesome, genuinely friendly people, great atmosphere. Welcome to the neighborhood, you fit in quite nicely.