{"id":6352,"date":"2012-07-31T20:47:43","date_gmt":"2012-07-31T20:47:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.eataspen.com\/blog\/?p=6352"},"modified":"2015-02-12T17:07:26","modified_gmt":"2015-02-12T17:07:26","slug":"sydney-eats-finbarrs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/sydney-eats-finbarrs\/","title":{"rendered":"Sydney eats: Finbarr’s"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"fish-n-chips\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Best Reuben Ever<\/p><\/div>\n

Finbarr\u2019s Irish Pub & Kitchen<\/a> Dinner Review 7\/11\/12<\/p>\n

I must say, I was a bit hesitant about dining at Finbarr\u2019s Irish Pub & Kitchen<\/a> as I usually don\u2019t associate pubs with delicious, high-quality food, but I am happy to report that my assumptions were proved spectacularly wrong.\u00a0 The service was speedy, everything arrived at the table as ordered, and the food was so tasty.<\/p>\n

My dinner companions and I \u2013 my 14-year-old brother and his friend \u2013 chose a table in Finbarr\u2019s outdoor seating area, smack in the middle of the brick-lined mall.\u00a0 Given that I love people watching, our spot was perfect.\u00a0 The interior of Finbarr\u2019s, which I checked out prior to our meal, is a chic sports bar.\u00a0 I can see how it attracts all different crowds \u2013 maybe not for a \u201cladies\u2019 night out,\u201d but great for the dudes and families.<\/p>\n

The three of us started with an appetizer of asparagus fries, falafel, and artichoke fritters served with a lemon aioli.\u00a0 (The healthiness of the asparagus and artichoke cancels out the calories of the \u201cfried\u201d aspect\u2026 right?)\u00a0 I give this dish a big, greasy thumbs up.\u00a0 The fairly standard falafel was amped up by the aioli, the asparagus was crispy perfection, and the artichoke fritters\u2026 holy cow!\u00a0 I could have eaten an entire plate of them by myself.\u00a0 The artichokes are breaded and then fried, creating a delicious blend of soft and crunchy.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Deep Fried “Goodness”<\/p><\/div>\n

\"curried<\/a>

curried shrimp salad<\/p><\/div>\n

In a classic Sydney move, I ordered an entree I knew I wouldn\u2019t enjoy as much as the entrees of my companions.\u00a0 I searched the menu, filled with items like tacos and poutine and grilled meats, for something light and healthy, and finally settled on the Grilled Shrimp Salad.\u00a0 What was described as curry spiced shrimp turned out to be a pretty basic arugula salad with four medium-sized grilled shrimp.\u00a0 The only place that I tasted curry was in the ginger-lime vinaigrette.\u00a0 Obviously the dish was still tasty (it\u2019s hard to mess up shrimp and lettuce), but my eyes kept wandering over to the other dishes at the table.<\/p>\n

My brother had ordered what I think is the best Reuben I\u2019ve ever tasted.\u00a0 Served on Jewish-style rye with melted gruyere and swiss, and topped with thousand island dressing (hold the sauerkraut), this Reuben was warm, tangy, and dripping with deliciousness.\u00a0 It\u2019s a great size \u2013 neither overwhelmingly large nor unsatisfyingly small \u2013 and comes with a side of your choice.<\/p>\n

My brother\u2019s friend ordered the fish and chips, a pub staple.\u00a0 The beer-battered cod bites were served with fries in a paper bag and accompanied by a side of curry dipping sauce.\u00a0 The fries received an A+ from the table, and the fish bites were crispy and super<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Fish & Chips<\/p><\/div>\n

flavorful when dipped in ketchup. The curry sauce, though, might have been better used to marinate my grilled shrimp.<\/p>\n

Our full bellies kept us from ordering dessert, but I was really tempted by the warm brownie sundae and Guinness pot of chocolate.\u00a0 Just an excuse to return, I suppose!<\/p>\n

Finbarr\u2019s, opened in the December of 2011 by Denis and Kelly O\u2019Donovan, is a fantastic addition to Aspen\u2019s extensive list of eateries.\u00a0 In the little chat I had with Denis, he said of his wife, \u201cShe\u2019s an amazing woman\u2026 she put so much of the concept together.\u201d\u00a0 With this strong and compatible team running the show, I\u2019m not surprised Finbarr\u2019s Irish Pub & Kitchen has proven to be a success.<\/p>\n

-Sydney M.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Sydney, an 9-year resident of Aspen, CO, is currently attending Brown University where she is majoring in Brunch. \u00a0Her status as a \u201clactard\u201d frequently interferes with, but does not overcome, her unmatched love for froyo and grilled cheese. \u00a0Sydney enjoys traveling, photography, eating, eating while traveling, and photographing what she eats. \u00a0She is always available for a lunch date.<\/p>\n

View Finbarr’s Irish Pub<\/a><\/p>\n

Read more reviews by Sydney\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

View all eatAspen eater reviews<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I must say, I was a bit hesitant about dining at Finbarr\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[5],"tags":[246,440,460,533],"class_list":["post-6352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-aspen-restaurants","tag-finbarrs-irish-pub","tag-project-eatreviews","tag-reviews","tag-sydney","author-dmwkes","aspen-restaurants"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aUGV-1Es","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6352"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8615,"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6352\/revisions\/8615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eataspen.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}