7 Minute Miles

Jake O’Connor’s Irish Pub Excelsior


Lunch yesterday was at a new restaurant in Excelsior, Jake O’Connor’s, located on the corner of Water and 2nd Streets. It’s an Irish pub and restaurant with an authentic atmosphere, which I was told was brought over from Ireland piece by piece. I had fish and chips, which despite having Americanized chips, was very good. The other orders in our group included a BLT, various pot pies and several pints of Irish beer.

My friend Doug knows one of the owners and he said they have been open since the first half of December. The place was previously a hardware store that had suffered some fire damage, but the restoration and transformation to the current version is stunning. The original 100-year-old floor adds a sense of history, while the dark wood tones of the bar and booths bring that old-world European feel to what is really a brand-new establishment. There is a unique hand-painted mural in the back room depicting scenes from Irish literature (including a cameo by Sinead O’Connor), while the basement houses another bar and more seating.

Despite a lack of advertising and promotion, the word seems to be spreading. It was crowded yesterday and this looks like a nice addition to the west-side dining scene.

Originally published by DK on January 18, 2007 at 11:14 am in Food


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