Gallaghers

This pub in central Cork is named after blues guitarist and songwriter Rory Gallagher, who grew up on this street, and indeed numerous pictures of him adorn the walls. It was opened in 2013 by Noreen and Martin Gannon. The pub offered a short a la carte menu. There was a small selection of wines but we drank beer and a Guinness tonight. The twenty wines on offer ranged from €32 for Toltec Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon of unknown vintage and which retails at about €7, to €100 for Moët et Chandon, which retails at €60. In between was Vidal Sauvignon Blanc at €38 compared to its retail price of €14.

“Bang bang cauliflower” had fried cauliflower florets in a notionally sweet and spicy sauce. The florets were cooked all right, retaining their texture, but the sauce was barely detectable and so the dish tasted essentially like fried cauliflower, which was edible but not terribly interesting; having left most of it, the staff made no inquiry as to why it was mostly uneaten (10/20). Better was chicken and chorizo spring roll, a pair of rolls of filo pastry that was fried and contained minced meat, on a bed of spiced squash and stewed lentils. The pastry was a little overcooked and the dish for me needed more seasoning, but this was harmless enough (11(20).

Beef pie had braised beef and root vegetables with a puff pastry case, served with chips on the side. This was the best dish of the meal, there being plenty of beef in the filling, the pastry perhaps a little overcooked but otherwise fine (13/20). A “Super Bowl” was a salad of hummus, quinoa, squash, broccoli, fried kale and pickled red cabbage. Most of these elements were pleasant, though the broccoli was undercooked and the squash over salty, but aside from that this was a decent enough dish (11/20). Portions were generous, and we didn’t make it to dessert.

Service was fairly basic, with my starter being entirely forgotten and had to be made separately. The bar manager seemed more capable than the waiting staff and held things together. The bill came to €47 (£40) per person for two courses with beer to drink, so was probably a fairly typical cost per person. Gallagher’s was a harmless enough culinary experience, but is perhaps more likely to be a destination for those interested in musical history than someone in search of memorable food.