First impressions are amazing. Beautiful decor, appropriate irish music and a large bar. With such an amazing atmosphere, everything else seems like let down. To start, I wanted to try a soup, only to find out my first three choices of soups were not available. I skipped to my main entree. Country fried steak over mashed potatoes with garlic spinach. It looked like someone went #2 on my plate and it was nothing but a pool of oil. For my son, a friend suggested that I get him the fresh made mac and cheese. IT WAS KRAFT MAC AND CHEESE! Bright orange and right out of the box! Who are they trying to fool!?!?!
If you want a loud rowdy Irish pub, perfect, If you want food, go to the Denny's down the street.
This is a fun place. Clearly attempting to re-create an Irish pub feel and not falling far short (which is more than I can say for most places in America!). The food is delicious and they have a great beer selection. Their whisky list is extensive but sadly horribly overpriced otherwise I'd probably give this place five stars.
Review Source:Well. Sad but my experiences with the food keeps going downhill each time I come back and have decided to no longer go for food until they change:
1. The sandwiches are skimpy on their toppings now. Not sure what happened but burgers barely have sauce and the steak sandwich (which used to be awesome) is now run of the mill and tough.
2. The salad (when ordered instead of fries) used to be micro greens with some real vegetable filler and was put on the plate. Now it is served in some crappy cup and it's all iceberg! WTF?! I have seen better lettuce in a package than what has been served on the side the last 2 times I have been.
3. Service. It used to be quite attentive but the last 2 times is was noticeably sub par (not at their original standard/experience); whether that be not actually following directions (I would like ___ as my dinner; instead it was brought out before everyone else's food) or just being non-existent (wife could barely get a water refill as it was a drop and go w/o asking if we needed anything).
4. Not sure what happened to the Guinness Beef Stew but it was an insult what was served (not stew really, more like pot roast. actually, pot roast gruel). I think a return trip to Ireland is needed so they can remember what it should look and taste like...
5. Um, what happened to the fresh chips? Haven't received those the last two times either? That one go by the wayside or did the last two (different waiters) just not bring them??? If your not a bit unique anymore then why should I come here?
I am REALLY REALLY sad to see this as this used to be my go to spot for work lunch meetings and when people came to town. But since our experience just keeps getting worse and worse? No mas.
IRISH NACHO'S, enough said.
:)
Our awesome friend, Brian, who is a bartender here recommended that we finally visit him here. Location is great, it's right off the 101.
This restaurant is so unique. The first time ever coming here, we were exposed to Bag Pipe players, it was so cool to watch.
Our server, I think his name was Matt? was really nice.
The food was SO DELICIOUS! I ordered the corn beef and cabbage, my BF ordered the rib eye steak. BOTH were a huge hit! We ended up taking the left overs home, because the plate sizes are so big. Our appetizer was the Irish Nachos, our server recommended that next time we substitute their homemade potato chips with french fries, I will take up that suggestion the next time I visit.
The architecture in the restaurant is so unique. It's so much bigger once your inside the restaurant. I had a great time and will be back.
I have been here 5 times now. The food is good, but the service is a hit and miss. 2 out of the 5 times I received the worst service ever. The server never checked on us, our drinks were always empty, and it took forever to get something. After waiting 30 minutes for the server to come to our table, I flagged him over asking for a refill and he pointed over to another server saying she will take our order. After waiting another 10 minutes I gave up and went to the bar. I complained to the manager, who looked about 15 years old, but he didn't care.
Review Source:I. LOVE. BRENDAN'S. I don't even drink and I come here without hesitation, whenever someone suggests it. The food is great! Â The Corned Beef & Cabbage is on point. The Fish & Chips may be among the best I have ever had. The Reuben is good. Before you order, a waitress will bring a bowl of perfectly crispy kettle-cooked potato chips to your table. The service is up to par. I have never had an issue with a waitress being inattentive. The atmosphere is fantastic. Its so comfortable and laid back.
I've also been here on a Saturday night. The crowd is highly diverse. The DJ is... not so great. It seemed as if he couldn't pick a genre. I understand wanting to play something for everyone, in theory. The execution of it just does not work, though. Later in the night, around 11ish, they seemed to finally settle down into a clubby/Old School hip hop groove, which was a lot easier on the ears.
I would recommend this place for Lunch or Dinner or if you wanted to get together with some friends for a late night hangout.
I guess that a Bagpipe player constitutes live music! Â They have a nice selection of beer and a great happy hour. Â The hamburger and fries on the happy hour menu was very good, quite large and only $5. Â It is one of the few restaurants that has Kilkenney on tap. Â That makes my husband a very happy guy. Â I had the turkey burger, not on the Happy Hour menu, and enjoyed it.
Review Source:Was visiting the town last year (2012) with homegirl and wanted to "go out" at night , so we got dressed up and came here on a Saturday night in JUNE and the place was pretty much empty.
Atmosphere: Chill people. Good music. An okay dancing space but basically you could make every floor space a dance spot.
Parking lot: Plenty of space
Would definitely go there again. Next time maybe not in heels and a leopard romper.
Great cozy atmosphere. Â The drinks were great and well poured. Â The food was terrific. Â We found Brendan's by using Yelp and were not disappointed. Â The night was very cold and windy. Â We craved a warm environment and comfort food. Â We found it. Â
We ordered Chicken Curry which came with a huge serving a perfectly cooked broccoli seasoned with garlic butter. Â My husband had Chicken Pot pie which was good but did not compare with the Curry.
Dessert was their Whiskey Bread Pudding...wonderful
I went here a few months ago and I really enjoy this place, especially for Camarillo. The environment is really nice and decorative. The bartender was extremely nice and helpful and actually from Ireland which made the place seem even more authentic. I ordered the fish n' chips and well drink wise... I don't remember too much after the first few Stellas and Jager-bombs. All in all, it was a great night at a wonderful place!
Too bad I don't remember too much from the night. :p
Came in for a quick beer and snack and to watch the games. Â Wish the TVs were a bit larger. Â Brendan's is nicely decorated and welcoming for a pub. Â They have plenty of seating around the bar area with really comfortable benches along the outer wall.
About 10 beers on tap, with a good portion being Irish beers or English beers. Â They have a pretty nice menu with lots of different Irish fare. Â I'll have to come back to try some of those, but we weren't too hungry so we settled on some onion rings. Â It was decent sized for an appetizer that was shared with the table.
They have a dart board and shuffleboard as well to help pass the time during commercials. Â The crowds are friendly and energetic.
We ducked into Brendan's after a movie a few nights ago. There wasn't anyone to greet us when we arrived, but a hostess arrived a few minutes later. The delay gave me time to enjoy the great decor. The crowd was mostly in their 20's, mostly in a dart area and at the bar. This is a large establishment with seating for at least 200 people.
We were seated after a few minutes of waiting. I was put off, though when I was immediately asked to leave a credit card with the server. I was told this is a policy after 9:00 pm, which made me wonder what type of neighborhood I was in, if a restaurant can't trust its customers after dark. I also wondered if Brendan's considered how such a request would make its customers feel. Then I noticed the graffiti carved into our table, reminiscent of a rowdy dive bar.
The service thereafter was acceptable - our server was attentive, and returned to our table often... almost too often with little time in between. I felt rushed. And, because I felt rushed, I skipped any starters, and ordered dinner - lamb shanks. I'm a big fan of lamb, but wasn't very impressed. They were tough. Frozen, not fresh, probably not slow braised long enough to properly tenderize them, and were missing a little flavor. Some garlic, onions and/or mushrooms would be an easy remedy. Broccoli served on the side was very overcooked. Mashed potatoes were fine - nothing to rave about - just simple mashed potatoes.
Needless to say, I skipped dessert. Oddly enough, when I told our server we were done, she quickly returned with our check and credit card, dropped it off at the table and dashed off. I had to wait for her to walk by again to flag her down and give the credit card back to her so she could charge it.
This bar/restaurant is good for young 20-somethings who aren't concerned as much with quality of food as much as they are with beer selection. The menu is very heavy with beer selections, including many choices of mixed beer concoctions they're very proud of. This is definitely more of a bar than a restaurant, and I can't say I'd return for a meal.
Seems like a popular Irish bar to hang out at. Very casual. No need to get dressed up to go here and sometimes that is exactly what you want. Our table was dirty and we had to ask three times for it to be cleaned. I understand they were busy, but it shouldn't take three times of asking, and more than 20 minutes of waiting, to get a table cleaned.
Review Source:I've heard good things about Brendan's from friends and I'm glad I got to check it out with my ochem classmates :D
The decor is really cool because they actually have real books in the bookshelves and not some fake painted ones along a wall lol
The service is kinda slow but there are a lot of people so I guess it's understandable. I ordered a garden salad for $5 and it was a generous proportion for a meal. I also ordered a Strongbow (alcholic cider $5) and it was light yet tasty :) I also ordered 3 shots of well tequila ($6 each) and chased it with a slice of lemon and cinnamon (the cinnamon was a new thing to try and it was surprisingly good lol).
Overall, the atmosphere is filled with 20-30 something year olds who come in fun groups to have a good time and it doesn't get too loud or rowdy which I like. The darts is a fun way to meet other people but all the people I needed were at my table making organic molecules out of the stick and ball model kit lol :D
Came in here with a friend for dinner on a Saturday night. Pretty cool atmosphere. We had to get on a waiting list for the dining room which was odd since there was clearly plenty of open tables. Oh well. More time for playing darts.
The restaurant is pretty big and open. There was 3 separate eating areas. Not sure which was which when I first came in but apparently, the seating at the bar also included the darts area as well, which included view of the TV screen. The next time I come back, this is definitely where I'll be sitting.
Your typical pub I guess. although it does say Irish pub and you'll find some irish dishes, you can still get your classic all american grub.
For myself, I ended up with a shepard's pie and a guiness to washed it all down. Guiness is guiness, shepards pie was okay. not much to write home about. Best part was the home made potato chips. I think they're home made. Damn those were addicting.
What was kind of annoying is the bagpipe playing guy. First time was cool but the second time around, kinda annoying if you asked me. There should be a one time per hour kinda rule.
I wish there was a negative star
This is the worst place around. The management is a drunk fool.
Don't send any ill prepared food back because it is over seasoned and not prepared well, much less the over 45 minutes it took to get it.
Because if you do send it back they throw you and ban you from the place forever. Wow I guess they have more business than they need. What a way to treat customers. They dont have to worry about us ever wanting to come back but they should worry about the other customers that read this a don't go there.
Cross this place off the list as nice places.
Been here twice in the past 6 months.
First time was for lunch, and that I would have given 4 stars for. Â Had the reuben and it was delicious. Â Was with my two children and they really enjoyed their kids meals. Â Service was great.
Second time was for dinner. Â Service again was great, and had the vegetarian shepherd's pie. Â Had a lot of pepper and sad to say the veggies were of the frozen variety and not fresh (think peas and carrots and the carrots are the small cube-shape carrots). Â When there is overuse of pepper and not using fresh ingredients, I am not coming come back for that again.
I like the decor too and ambience.
On a scale of one to ten, a homely waitress here is an eight. The owner must have a policy to only hire hotness, male or female. Â - Â And with a superb selection of draft beers, who had eyes for the food.
Okay, the glib aside, the Shepherd's Pie had succulent innards but the potato crust was too thick and dry. It gave it a total feeling of being a serving of mashed potatoes with a dollop of sauce. The pot roast was a bit sparse on the meat and the veggies were over cooked but the fries were excellent.
This venue excels, though, in ambiance, constructed with a medieval maze of private booths set off from a convivial bar and a friendly, competent wait staff.
Have been here more than a few times, from opening week to present, and I have noticed a visible decline in the quality of the drinks, service, and food as this place has remained open longer, and also as resources have gone to their new location in Agoura Hills.
I love the idea of an Irish pub, and I loved Brendans when it first opened. Wonderful decor, an upscale atmosphere, and Guinness poured the right way (slow pour). Ate a meal here during opening week, and it was one of the best steaks I've ever had.
Fast forward a few months, and I'm waiting much longer than is reasonable for a drink from the bar (no longer poured the slow way, now they pour the Guinness just like any other beer), the place is always crowded just like anything reasonably new and fancy in Camarillo, and the food is... mediocre. I suspect that ingredients have been switched to lower-cost alternatives in order to cut costs, which is understandable from a business point of view, but it's a shame.
It feels like this place lost something that maybe I just hoped it had in the first place. Brendans has turned from an Irish pub into a bar/dance club, with crowds of college students, a DJ, and mediocre bar food. Still a good place to go hang out with friends, but neither relaxing nor conversation-friendly.
Went here for a buffett celebration dinner. The decor is very cool which is why it got 2 stars. The service was terrible. We started off at the bar ordering drinks. If I said we had to wait 5 minutes from the time of ordering a drink to the time of receipt of said drink, that would be an under estimate. As we sat there waiting, we could see our drinks sitting on the rail. We drink a lot, so we saw this often. Many times, other bartenders would move the beers out of the way so that they could service them. JUST HAND THEM TO US! Very frustrating.
After getting terrible service at the bar, we proceeded to sit in our "area" and order from the waiter. We thought the wait at the bar was long, but it paled in comparison to the wait at the table. The waiter actually brought us the bill before he even brought the drinks. Unreal.
The food we had was alright, they served fish that luked like tuna, but they called it something odd that I can't think of right now. Whatever it is that they called it, it was not the name of something that you would want to eat pan seared. I think it was corner catch or something like that.
After striking out with drink service seated, we tried our hand at the bar again. Disasterous results. This time, after waiting an excrutiating amount of time again, we reached over and grabbed the beer ourselves. This was not well like by the waitstaff. They also claimed that guiness needs to sit for 5 minutes or more after pouring. Nice try.
Got to be a better way, especially for the prices of their drinks.
Brendan's has the WORST SERVICE and their food always comes out like crap. My husband really likes the place, so I tolerate it's ridiculously overpriced food and beverage when he really wants to go, but after tonight NEVER AGAIN!
A group of friends and I were participating in a national event called World Book Night - we got some free books from the organization putting it together and were to head to our local hang out to give them to people that passed by. We emailed Brendan's in advance and communicated on their Facebook page as well. When we got there, the hostesses were overjoyed at what we were doing and took two of the free books themselves. When our slower-than-slow cocktail waitress realized what we were doing, though, she told us we couldn't. We couldn't move to a table where more people would see us either. And we couldn't put up any make-shift signs indicating what we were doing. We just couldn't.
Had Brendan's told us before tonight that we couldn't give their patrons free books we would have found somewhere else to do it. But as our waitress said "I'm trying to say this without being rude, and you guys are more than welcome to just stay and drink!" Sadly this isn't the first time I've felt the people at Brendan's were rude, and whether she was trying or not that is exactly what they were doing. Never again!
(And poor Brendan's - I wrote about it on my blog which has a huge local following... <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fheatherchristenaschmidt.com%2F2012%2F04%2F23%2Fthere-is-no-room-for-literacy-at-my-local-pub%2F&s=6416263558a70d8ce09c8251f85b13c2e25e9a2ffb74105f19f74f86221f2b08" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://heatherchristenas…</a>)
This place has a GREAT atmosphere!  It feels like you are in Dublin.  I have been there a few times and  the service was fine.  The nachos over potato chips are very good.  The whiskey wings are GREAT! Guinness and beef stew  and Irish Lamb stew were all good.  I don't usually have dessert but the hot fudge brownie with vanilla ice cream might be worth returning...just for that!
So happy Camarillo has a nice restaurant in the area! Â Looking forward to returning again.
Pros: Open late night. Only place that I've seen nachos on potato chips... DELISH!! Their hard cider on tap has a nice fruity taste, similar to wine.
Cons: Bangers and mash were only half good. Bangers needed more spices but the mash was great. Had an issue with one of their new waitresses... called in a fraud claim to my credit card.
Overall: The Irish know their potatoes!
Been here a handful of times since they opened their doors. Once even before the Grand Opening had happened and their full menu rolled out.
Unfortunately, every single time I've been cursed with slow, inattentive service bordering on negligence.
Every.Single.Time.
EVERYSINGLETIME... And I hate to think why.
I kept coming up with excuses for them but I'm done. I'm sticking with the bar top (which is pretty slow itself).
They've got 1 1/2 stars for their pretty awesome pub grub, bar offerings and happy hour menu.
-The steak and mushroom pie is a reason to get out of bed in the morning.
-The whiskey list is impressive; the beer offerings are quality.
-For $5, their happy hour burger is pretty tough to beat.
Additional one quarter stars for trivia night and decor each.
I'm sad, because we could've had a good thing goin', Brendan's...
I'm liking Brendan's more and more. Have been back for dinners, lunches and Happy Hour. The food is consistently good and hot. They took the fish tacos off the Happy Hour menu but the burger and the wings that are still on there are an incredible deal and very delicious. Homemade potato chips? Hold me back. I prefer these over the fries, which are also super.
The waitstaff is great. Very friendly and attentive. They pour Guinness with the right head on it and check on their customers often. Love the decor and the atmosphere and have sat in every room. They have big private booths, a dining room and cozy bar areas. All the seats are great.
Bf and I stumbled upon this place after shopping at the outlets. I remember this place used to be a sizzler restaurant but you can hardly guess that's what it used to be. The place looked legit. We sat in this room like secluded booth which created a very romantic atmosphere, +1 star.
It was happy hour and the food on the menu was $4.95. I ordered the hamburger and bf ordered the prime rib and some irish nachos to share. We both had pints of newcastle. The Irish nachos came out within 2 minutes and was basically potato chips with nacho cheese sauce and meat. There were so much nachos! All this food for $4.95!! Next came bf's prime rib, he sliced me off a piece of meat and it was really really juicy. I thought the prime rib was better than Lawry's in Beverly Hills. It came with mashed potatoes and zucchini slices. Yum. My burger however, was a little bland, nothing too special. So What did i do when bf's food tastes better than mine? Switcheroooooooooooooo of course :] (*Bf wanted me to mention that prime rib during happy hour was not 4.95 but 10.95)
I really liked the fact that our booth was secluded in a little room like nest so we could talk privately. I was able to feed my bf, get fed, and have lots of private conversations in our cozy little booth.. LOVE it. If you happen to be in Camarillo and want a nice kick back place for beer and good food, this is your place to go. I would definitely come back to Brendans.
Irish pub? Â I don't think so. Â The menu is not what you would expect from a place claiming to be an Irish pub and the food they do have will disappoint.
The drinks are overpriced and the staff is slow and unfriendly. Â The atmosphere on a weekend night looks like 24 hour fitness just closed. Â Nothing but kids new to the sport of drinking.
Have fun lads... Â without me.
I think this is my first-ever one star review. Â I was hoping it would never come to this, but Brendan's has reached a new low.
The only good thing I can say about this place is that if you really insist on having an overpriced, underwhelming meal in a theme restaurant you no longer have to drive to Anaheim. Â
The first problem was when the bartender was trying to help a local family choose a beer. Â In doing so she described Guinness as a "very thick, very heavy beer". Â Really? Â Have you ever heard anyone in a real Irish pub describe Guinness that way? Â It's actually quite light-bodied for a stout.
Strike two was the Fish and Chips. Â The menu states "The Best Fish and Chips You've Ever Had" which is not a smart thing to put in print regardless of how good or bad it is. Â I heard that Jerry Seinfeld used to rip his opening act if they said anything nice about him when they introduced him because if they say something like "and here's the greatest comedian ever" you have nowhere to go but down. Â Brendan would have been smart to follow that wisdom. Â The pieces of fish were shaped in almost perfect rectangles, bringing to mind the frozen fish sticks I suffered on the Fridays of my youth. Â Good fish and chips should be served piping hot but these were almost room temperature. Â They should also be served with a nice crunch batter but these were about 75% mushy and 25% mildly crunchy.
My friend had the Chicken Curry which was served in a way I've never seen before. Â It comes with rice AND fries which was the first clue that something was amiss. Â It's served almost like an American dinner, with the chicken on one third of the plate, the rice and the fries neatly arranged on the other thirds. Â Very odd. Â So much for the big bowl of comfort food that is traditional pub curry.
On top of everything the service in the bar area was slow, and we were seated along the back wall that literally vibrates and shakes you if you lean back on it because the dishwasher or other big machine is on the other side (probably something they inherited from the Sizzler that used to occupy the space).
If you never leave Ventura County and your palate has been destroyed by sodium-filled meals at PF Changs and Olive Garden then you'll probably be happy as a clam eating this terrible food next to their fake, electric fireplace. Â If you have actually had good Irish pub food then you're in for a huge let-down. Â What a disappointment. Â I hope I never have to write a one-star review again... it's quite depressing having to re-live the experience. Â I think I'll have a Guinness next to my real fireplace.
I know Camarillo is lacking on bars so I was very excited to hear about this place opening. My wife would comment that the building used to be a Sizzler. This made it better in my mind, I remember all you can eat shrimp as a kid. I still get goosebumps thinking about them... I was hoping to walk in and it would be haunted by ghost shrimp that would swim up to my mouth and tease me. Alas, this did not happen.
Ok so back to Brendan's. This place got a lot of hype coming in. I heard the decor was incredible. Imported from Ireland. The ceiling alone was worth going for. I always like a good ceiling in an Irish bar so that way when I fall over backwards drunk off my ass I have something nice to look at.
I decided enough is enough, I took aforementioned wife and head out. We're getting drunk today honey! (2pm) We walk in and it has a dark ambiance. Nicely decorated. Traditional Irish music ringing in my ears. We head to the bar, tuck ourselves in the back as not to bring attention to our alcoholism....
The bartender comes over. And this is where everything went horribly wrong! Homeboy comes up and asks if we would like a drink in a horrible fake Irish accent. It was bad. He made a fool of himself for starting off like that. 1 star gone right away.
I ask if they have Courage on tap. Anyone that has been to as many Irish/English bars as I have will know that Courage is an incredible beer but as of 3-4 years ago is no longer imported to the United States. I always check just in case though. He said he had never heard of such a beer. Another star gone. If you're going pretend to be Irish at least pretend to know your beers.
I get some other beer. I can't even remember what it was. I was already frustrated.... After the 1st pint I began to notice the Irish music was becoming annoying. They're really trying to hard in this place to make it Irish. It's like a TGIF's version of an Irish bar. I didn't hear any Leprechauns come out singing happy birthday to the children so at least they saved a star there.
As time and beer went on we decided to order some food. Looking over the menu it was obvious this was going to be a large tab. I decided on the fish and chips. Generally a safe bet. Wife..... BLT. They use "Irish Bacon" there. Not sure what the hell that is but it looks like bacon. Slices of fat from the belly. And obviously the pig didn't have the luck of the Irish because it's cooked body was sandwiched between 2 pieces of crappy (possibly wonder) white bread. No... I think this was an unlucky American pig. If they knew me, they would know I have a talent of picking out fake Irish accents and can tell the ethnicity of pigs.
So her sandwich was nothing special. It lacked "Irish Bacon" My fish and chips were decent. A little too much breading and wasn't crispy at all. I like crispy. Best part of it was the tartar sauce. And they give you a bunch of it! Luckily the beer was doing it's job and I didn't really care.
So after about 2 hours we decide to give up and ask for the tab. It came out to around $80. This was 2 lunch items and I'd say 7 beers. It's pretty expensive. But what do you expect? They have to make up for how much it cost to decorate the damn place.
I hope this served as good warning for you. If you think you're Irish because you own a copy of Boondock Saints this place might be for you. But other than that? Go sit in a clover infested field with Guinness and a stick to bash snakes. You'll save a lot of money and feel more like St Patrick than this place will make you.
In conclusion, when you really think about it, it's pretty sad that we came here to get drunk. How hard is that at an "Irish" bar? We walked out because we were frustrated at the place. I have heard terms to describe me as "Embarrassing" "Childish" "Immature" "A drunk" and "What's wrong with him" None of these were used on me here. I think they actually said "Thanks come again!" Something I would have never expected leaving an establishment I had set out to get drunk at. 2 STARS Brendan! 2 STARS!!!!
Great expectations aren't always reality...
if you read any of my other reviews, you know that Im an eating drinking fool. Part of being a fat guy, you eat, part of being an alcoholic, you drink. I do both, well.
I hear about Brendans and its 200 whiskeys. This to me is like a blond porn star to Charlie Sheen, I HAVE to have it.
Sadly, this decision came about during lunch yesterday, and Its one I regret like no other. My assistant and I were out running errands, and the place we had wanted to go was closed, so we decided on Brendans, and this is where my sad tale begins.
First, it bears no resemblance to any irish pubs I can remember blacking out in over the years. No big deal, but for all the effort spent, it could look better. It looks like a bar that has a few tables strewn about to serve food in during the days when the drunks have to stay out of the sunlight.
Second, they dont have a Corned Beef Sandwich!!! WTF? Are you kidding me? They have a Reuben, but no corned beef. Having a good part of my family hail from County Cork, I have never met another Mick named Reuben, but thats besides the point. I ask the waitress to do up the Reuben on Sourdough, with no kraut, and add mustard and lettuce, Â simple right? a side salad to finish it off.
The first delivery was a Reuben, no kraut. Send it back and get a grilled, buttered sourdough, otherwise dry. I refuse to actually call it a sandwich because a sandwich should actually have some meat on it. There was TWO, count them TWO thin slices of corned beef on my sourdough, with nothing else. Pathetic didnt even begin to describe it. The side salad was nothing more than a spring mix from a bag, thrown on the plate, completely dry.
My assistant had a tuna melt, that smelled BAD, and she ended up sick to her tummy all day.
Normally I would give a place a second shot at earning my money, but the showing was SO pathetic, and SO bad, that I just cant see a reason to throw another $30 at lunch when even subway is better.
Sorry guys, Im crushed, and Camarillo still doesnt have an Irish pub.
Had a lunch date there on a Sunday. Â Suffice it to say I finished my lunch elsewhere. The food was not good. Be sure to get drunk BEFORE you try their food. The fish was not fresh, the apricot spread had way too much whiskey in it, the salad was miniature, the mashed potatoes were exquisitely bland, the lemons were somehow dry and there were no french fries.
Not everything was terrible though. I liked the clam chowder and the butter was excellent. Oh and the artwork on the walls was worth the hassle.
Treat this as a nightclub, not a restaurant and you won't be disappointed.
I was really hoping Brendan's would deliver, but I think with all they've invested that their aim was to be an authentic Irish pub with high quality food, authentic beer and a good vibe. Â They do have a good vibe, and the fish & chips and bangers & mash was good, but for $14 each, plus beer, plus water coming out to a lot of money, I'd rather spend my money elsewhere.
Plus, this would be a great place for happy hour, and all they have are their $14 entrees for $10. Â And only for 1 hour - 5:15 - 6:15. Â And no beer for happy hour. Â
So hopefully they'll add beer to the happy hour, in addition to some cheaper pub/bar food, expand the happy hour to about 3-6 and make table water free. Â Would love to give this place another couple of stars. Â It has potential.
No way, thought I... How could this place get so many one and two star ratings? Â Well, we found out today.
Cute insides, yep. Â Good Irish Draft beer, yep... Â and ZERO else. Â
Cautioned by the number of low ratings on this place we decided to get a fish sampler with chips and corned beef sliders first, so that we would know what to order for our meals. Â ...cut to the end, we ordered nothing else, got out of there and went over to Wood Ranch!
Forever for our server to acknowlege us. Â We ordered appetizers, two beers and two iced teas immediately. Â 25 minutes later beers came along with the soda bread, butter and jam. Â "We" liked the soda bread, but we knew what it was...the unsuspecting (as others have written) didn't like it. Â Hardly any butter (a whipped tablespoon?) for 10 slices of bread. Â
Iced tea was 'tropical.' Â Come on. Â New restaurant, don't you know we were done with tropical in the 80's??
Finally arrives the fish and sliders. Â Cold. Â Each appetizer was $9.00. Â Two, count them, two tiny sliders with one, yes one, tiny, thin slice of corned beef that didn't cover the bun. Â Nothing else but a bit of sauce on the plate, yes, $9.00!
Fish, not so good.  Drowned in vinegar it was palatable, plus a  half-handful of chips, $9.00. Â
Biggest disappointment was that one of our party is vegetarian. Â There was a salad....nothing, yes zero, else. Â She asked the server to ask the chef if he/she could make something up for her that was vegetarian. Â "No," was the answer from the kitchen.
We expressed our dissatisfaction to our server who responded that she's heard it a lot that the food isn't very good. Â She has told the management about it and was told, basically, to shut up and serve it, it's none of her business. Â We suggested she keep her serving options open 'cuz we're not sure how long this place is going to stay in business.
Now the insult. Â Two beers (small), two iced teas, two appetizers, $40.00. Â We think it takes a lot of nerve to charge that much for so little, and so bad. Â The best news was that there wasn't very much of it! Â
Do not go here thinking you'll eat. Â Drink beer, maybe. Â Nice decor, but not enough to bring us back. Â You gotta actually get a chef that can cook.
We had a blast!
My post is about our dinner last Saturday night. I'll post up my pictures later but I think I weirded out the wait staff by taking pictures of my food and the booth. They actually asked if I wanted to get IN the picture and be with my husband and I said "no, that's ok - this is for Yelp!". They just sort of looked at me and went "OOOHHH K...." haha The only thing I was thinking at THAT moment was "boy I hope they know what Yelp! is"...but how could they not, right??
So let me go back to the beginning...
We walk in and there is a velvet red rope dividing the in from the out. We had actually tried going there earlier but the line scared us away and ended up going to bella victorian for drinks first. After I was sufficiently tipsy off of wine, we headed back to Brendan's and there was no wait outside!
There's two gorilla sized tuxedos at the front entry - one has a moderate Irish accent. Very nice men.
We had like a five minute wait inside, the staff seemed attentive to our needs. We stepped over to the extremely crowded bar to grab some beers and I couldn't believe it... the bartenders actually were scanning the area behind the patrons in front of them to make sure nobody had an empty hand (or glass). The nice bartender took our order and drinks were given to us speedily! I had a loaf of bread in a glass (Guinness) and hubby had a Coors light. The world was grand.
Our buzzer went off, and we were whisked to a private room-booth (not sure what you really call that). I joked with the waitress that it needed a beaded curtain and she revealed that there is a room in the back you can reserve (as of February) called the "Snug". Hmm... snug. Can you bring champagne? Just kidding.
I ordered a Ruben sans the sauerkraut with Sweet Potato fries. Hubby got a burger and steak fries. The cornbeef was really good, I think I would have liked something more done with the rye...it was too dry and not flavorful enough for my liking. The SP fries were OK. Nothing spectacular. The steak fries were salty and slightly underdone but after many beers you're not interested in eating fries... he really liked the burger, the meat was good quality.
I got a little frustrated with (I won't mention her name because I don't want to get her in trouble) our waitress. She was sweet as can be, but towards the end we were ready to get out and waited a while for our check. She apologized sincerely and we understand that things get out of hand, just don't forget about your paying customers!!
Oh, and they were out of toilet paper in the small stall in the bathroom... so the nice drunk chick in the stall nextdoor handed me like half a roll.
The staff and the patrons are both really nice. I'm not sure why there were so many people dressed like they were going to a club but any excuse to dress up is Kosher to me!
Good luck Brendan's, I see a bright future for you... Slainte!
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,971 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,316 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,913 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,986 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
