Showed up for the first time to play at the Suday Nite Blues Jam  at this small bar that had been going on for many months.  Found out when I got there that the Blues Jam had just then been cancelled.  Jam organizer/leader was informed of this cancellation as well, when he walked in to set up about 25 minutes before the jam was supposed to start.
No reason given, and, the management didn't even have the wherewithall to apologize for not contacting him ahead of time to inform him of the cancellation, and save him the trip of showing up. Â Worst of all, he had to hang around for an hour or so, to inform those who eventually showed up to play of the cancellation, nice thing for him to do, but what an ordeal(!) to have to hang around after that.
No way am I gonna support that type of unprofessional F&B management behavior, and so I won't be back, and am informing my musician friends who likely won't be back either....
Cheap beer. Standard selection. Extremely spacious. Decent Irish pub.
Came here for the free pool (Friday nights I guess?). They could really redo the felt on the table though. Not to mention fix the overhead light, unless playing in darkness is your thing. Also, it was nice to see the entire bar come together and cheer on the Warriors as they squeaked by the upstart Nuggets. Stephen Curry is way too sick.
My friends and I came here on a Thursday night and it was fairly crowded but we were still able to get a booth. Beers were $4.50 which is pretty cheap. The crowd was fairly young probably 21-27. The owner came around and cleared our glasses, which was super nice! He was super friendly and told us that running a bar was a hobby of his. He even held the door open for us when we left! So nice!! They have a pool table and they have all the sports channels playing. Definitely will be back !
Review Source:3.5 stars!
Great place to chill with your friends! Drinks are super cheap here (not the best, but you get what you pay for). One time, I bought a glass of beer on tap and a well drink and paid about $6 total. I initially thought the bartender only charged me for the well drink, so I had my bf ask if she miscalculated. But turns out that she didn't because it's just THAT cheap. Great deal!
It's always a great time here (when it's not crowded) since they offer free pool table, foosball, and darts! :) Everything's more fun when you're a little tipsy lol.
No cover charge, and awesome live music.
It's too bad it's only a cash bar (not bad for my wallet though, I suppose), but aside from that, great atmosphere.
The service was pretty good - as good as it could be on a packed Saturday night - and I was able to get drinks within 3-4 minutes of waiting at the bar.
Definitely a fun and popular place to go if you're in San Mateo
Yay to no cover charge and live bands! Â :) Â
Boo to a cash only bar. Â They do have an ATM machine inside if ya need cash. Â Guess it weeds out those that want to get really drunk. Â
Shared table is pretty cool and packed as the night goes on. Plenty of booths too.
Staff was friendly, but I ordered the same drinks twice from 2 different bartenders and was charged more by the 2nd one than the 1st one. Â Next time, I'll wait for the same person to make my drinks. Â
No real dance floor, but plenty of uneven space in front of the stage to shake your thang! Â
Over all, it's a great spot to go with friends, friendly staff and plenty of guys...ladies. Â :) Â
And the fact that there is more than one stall in the bathroom is an added bonus.
Drop in and have a pint (or two)!
Yay! Mad hatters N singing!
Yay Mcgovern's! Came to watch the giants game. Should be fun!
Wooooo! Love Mcgovern's. Decent live band (playing green day as we entered) and a mad hatter. Happy times!
One of my all time favorite places. The owner is a delight and such fun to talk to. Â The bartenders are friendly and make great drinks. (Mad Hatter anyone?) You can eat peanuts and leave the shells on the ground or order a pizza from next door and eat it at one of the comfy booths. Â There are pool tables and fooz ball and darts for entertainment as well as tv's showing local sports action. Â
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They  have karaoke on Thursdays and you can get up there a few times for sure if you are in the mood for singing, but the karaoke guy also plays dance tunes between songs which is a nice way to spend a Thursday night. They usually have a band on on the weekends and the volume is not as high as some other bars in the area, which is great.  Why do they have to blast music!!!???
Anywhoo, you can dance if you want to or shoot the s bellied up to the bar, McGovern's is a chill spot where you can hang with a load of friends and perhaps run into someone that you haven't seen in a long time.
I love this place! Â The bartenders are super friendly, especially if they recognize you from other visits. Â This is the local watering hole for my softball team, and has also become our choice spot for Monday night football and any other occasion that merits a get-together over booze. Â
On top of the cheap drinks and laid back atmosphere, they offer the following:
Free pool
Free darts
Free Foosball
For Monday Night Football, there is even free food with the purchase of a drink. Â
Love this place!!!
Also, every time I am there, the ladies restroom is clean and fully stocked with paper products and soap.
Stopped by here for a quick drink around 5:30PM.
Went to the bar, got our drinks, easy. Â They also give you a bowl of peanuts for you to crack and toss on the floor. Â
We also ordered a few shots and the prices were pretty decent, plus!
This place seems to be a good chill spot for the after work hours to just relax.
Maybe we'll be back to check it out during the nighttime hours.
This is hands down my most favorite bar in San Mateo. And lets face it, if you're still living in San Mateo having reached legal drinking age, then either you've fallen victim to the bad economy or made some arguably poor life choices.
The prices are extremely reasonable, with $4 pints of imported beer, and $3.50 very strong well drinks. The staff has always been very nice, personable, friendly, and still appreciate a dollar tip. The local games are always on the flat screen tv's, and there's a live band on Saturday nights. Plus, free pool and fooseball! Also, most nights free bar nuts that you can throw on the floor. Who can't appreciate that?
Shamus ( The Older Gentleman that owns the bar) often makes an appearance, just popping in to socialize with his customers. McGoverns is a great place to either party it up with a small group of friends, or grab a casual cold one with a pal after a long day.
Been here a couple times ... It's a good place for catching up with a friend over cheap drinks & peanut shell tossing. Â Simple joint, nothing stuffy, a good sized dive by most standards with random mixed crowd and not too young (like Oneills). Â If you shoot pool, be warned the sticks all suck.
We went here last night for a beer after awesome grub at La Cumbre and on our way out, noticed some very cute men post-softball game enjoying pizza with their beer. Â Nice.
The drinks are strong, the crowd is weird, and the floors are dirty. All the makings of a solid dive bar.
They get an extra star for supplying decks of cards to their patrons. Â Why yes, I was in the mood for drinking games tonight!
Only four stars because I can't seem to go there without seeing people from High School. Â Inevitably, hoppin' hometown bars means unnecessary awkward nostalgic encounters.
This place is always busy! Â I have to say that no matter when you go, it always seems to be cracking. Noelle is an amazing bartender, and the owner Shamus is always very hospitable and amusing. Â Its often loud, and they often have live bands, so don't come here if you want peace and quiet! Â
I haven't really had too many off nights here, they always seem to be pretty good.
This was my go to bar!
Every Wednesday night this is where you would find me for months!
Nothing says a good time like cheap drinks good company and the ability to meet new people!
Always was meeting someone new while I was in there.
Plus It was a good half way point for me and my friend to meet once a week, cause at the time I was living in the south bay.
The rule of thumb bout this place is that its "Cash Only" Why they are able to keep things so cheap. There is an atm machine inside of the store so there is no need to worry if you don't have any cash.
If you didn't know games are free! You just need to ask for the stuff. Nothing says a good time like getting to play some free pool :)
My favorite thing about this place hands down has to be the peanuts! I love that when you walk in sit down BAM! There they are. In a bowl waiting for you like a good boyfriend/girlfriend. ((Not like people are like dogs or anything))
Another factor that I enjoy about this place was the fact that the woman's room was clean. I have no idea what the men's room looks like but the women have a really great looking bathroom its kept clean. So that made me happy and always why I wanted to go back there.
If your looking for a chill place and just want to hang out and enjoy some music this is the place to go.
My buddy and I love this place. We love, love to talk smack and kid around with the owner Shamus ( Old irish guy). We always ask him where his daughter ran off to (Fiona), and he thinks just how far back in years she worked there and how the hell we still remember her name.
The service is quick, no snooty bartenders nor any tank tops allowed. He finally gave into the "Internet jukebox", i've been bugging him for years to get one. I'm sure he did his homework on getting one. This place on Wednesday night 11/24/10 had a line of people waiting to get in at 1130pm and sure enough manning the door was Shamus.
I swear, every time I come here I'm shocked and awed at how inexpensive booze can be outside the city limits. Â And free pool?!
This was my local, oh, 10 or so years ago when I worked at a neighboring restaurant and it's still alive and kickin and under the same ownership.
Way to go McGov's. Â Oh, nice new jukebox!
McGoverns is okay. Growing up around here, you tend to run into a lot of people from high school, which can be fun.
It is cash only which is annoying, but they do have an ATM located in the bar. Plan ahead, though, and stop at the ATM on the way. Drinks are cheap. They have good music on the jukebox.
So maybe McGovern's is where you bump into people who you went to high school with. But that's not all bad, right?
--------------------------------------------------Â----------------------------
McGovern's is just past Spiedo, across the street from Draegers. I've lived in the area my whole life, and only noticed it when looking for it.
Peanuts are only for weekdays (I'm assuming Monday-Thursdays). Went here on a Friday night and didn't find any peanut shells anywhere. I was sort of disappointed, but maybe that's reason to go back again?
jukebox: $1 for 4 songs, but nothing by the Cure. Yes, I went through all the CDs.
For a pub/bar, the bathrooms are really clean. :)
Love that there are a lot of places to sit.
"**"
OK, the bullet hole with cracked glass front door sets a disturbing first impression... Â Makes you wonder what you're walking into. Â
However, the place is cool: a little dark and dingy feeling - but aren't all dive bars like that?  Peanuts that you can toss your shells on the floor (obviously - not an upscale place), *free* pool and a great selection of  beers (~10 ) on tap - including Redhook ESB (i'm not biased or anything being from Washington and all...but +1 star for this alone).  If for nothing else, the ESB and the laidback cool bartender will bring me back.
The best pub in San Mateo. The place has a long history in the SF Bay Area having been located in San Francisco and then moved down to San Mateo.
Sheamus McGovern was a fixture on the weekdays but I haven't seen him lately. You can also find Irish expats having a drink on weekday evenings.
They have peanuts for the taking and you're supposed to put the shells on the ground. They don't serve food, but you can find any number of restaurants within a 5 minute walk.
The bartenders are very friendly and the prices are very reasonable.
This is a pub, not a dive bar. I know a dive when i see it and they are great, but this is a pub.
The ceilings are high, the drinks are cheap. $10 for a pitcher of PBR, and not those girly pitchers they have at other place like Moons, but 6 pint pitchers. That's right 6 (six) pints. I usually order a pitcher of PBR and a screwdriver for my woman and i've paid anywhere between $11-$16. The trick to getting strong drinks at any bar is to have a guy order them, take notes girls.
The people aren't my kind of crowd but I usually meet my friends  there who live a few blocks away. The owner is friendly and always has something nice to say about my motorcycle. The rest of the staff is ok. Did i mention the drinks are cheap?
I've been there many times and only ran into a hostile patron once but he was just jealous of my motorcycle and the fact that I was being escorted by 4 ladies (and he by 3 dudes). Add cheap drinks and it's almost justified.
The music sucks. The peanuts are good and plentiful, and you can toss the shells on the ground. The bathrooms are decent. Free pool and foosball! Plenty of seating and standing room, fast service, and easy parking (tons of street parking in the front, huge covered lot in the back). Pizza place on the corner to sop up the alcohol after they kick you out. Plenty of cops around...
The reason I gave it 4 stars (almost gave it 3) is because of the music.
I came here with Kevin N. for an afterparty after the UYE whisky tasting while we waited for his train.
The first thing I noticed was all the peanut shells all over the ground. Somewhat amused, I knew this place was going to be interesting and it definitely had the dive bar vibe to it. We sat down at the bar and the bartender said he will clean up, so he took his arm to sweep off all the peanut shells on the bar to the ground. haha
I ordered a pint of beer and Kevin got a Manhattan martini. While enjoying our drinks, a drunkard started to talk to us and kept telling Kevin that he was Phil Mickelson. I bet Kevin wishes he was since Phil is the 2nd highest paid U.S. athlete behind Tiger Woods. Also the drunk questioned Kevin's masculinity since he thought his drink was "girly". I don't really consider Manhattans girly though. At a certain point, I couldn't understand what he was saying. I probably needed a few drinks in me to decipher the drunk talk.
You also have the option to play pool or foosball. This place is cash only and has an ATM on the premises. Drinks are really cheap and interesting characters can be found here. I wouldn't mind coming back again!
...scuuse me, but your nuts are on the floor.
- - such judgment is checked at the door at mcgovern's, as they welcome peanut shells strewn about. Â one of my friends felt it cathartic to catapult his shells off our table, onto the floor.
what's better than free nuts? Â a f*cking foosball table!! Â oh, how i wish i had my foosing partners (hayley w. and mary l.) w/me to challenge unassuming patrons... Â *rolls up sleeves* Â yeah, we're pretty good. Â ; )
probably the largest pub that i've been to.
(...which brings me to an important point:
a pub is NOT necessarily synonymous w/a dive bar. Â mcgovern's is certainly not divey in any way. Â - - just had to clarify.)
the bartendress asked my friend if i was old enough to drink. Â
...which made my day. Â : )
gripes? Â my cranberry vodkas were very much lacking in alcohol, and, after the third drink, i woke up my liver and made the switch over to drinking beer. Â
despite my poor cocktails, i still had a fine happy hour w/a few of my friends. Â
notes:
*cash only.
I thoroughly enjoy this place. One of my favorite bars hands down. All the bartenders are very friendly, they make you feel at home. They also have pear cider on tap, i don't know about you, but i love ciders! So thats very cool. During the week its always nice to go in, its very subtle and you can always catch a free game of pool. There pool is always free and they have a Foosball table. Their drinks are really reasonably priced and generously strong. They also have a pretty decent jukebox.
Cash only.
No happy hour because  their drinks are already super cheap.
McGovern's is a hidden dive bar gem! Â My friend Kevin organized a get together here and I never knew this place existed, although I've been on that street many a time.
This place:
-Is unpretentious
-Is spacious
-Has cheap drinks
-Has friendly bartenders without attitude
-Keeps their TVs on the right sports channels (I got to watch the Red Sox vs. Devil Rays brawl replay on ESPN.)
-Has free pool
It's very casual, the people are laidback and it has a great neighborhood bar feel.
The only cons: 1) cash only 2) one pool table is missing a cueball, an eightball and had doubles of several balls. Â We got around this by using an extra 1 ball as a cue ball and smeared chalk all over the extra 12 ball to mark it as an eightball. Â Makeshift pool at its best, but hey its free.
I walk in with a large group of people and everyone sitting at the bar turns around and looks at us, while the band in the back played on. Â When they see a group of laughing, already-drunk people, they turn back to the bar and continue on.
It's that type of place: Â dive-bar feel, cheap drinks, lots of sitting room, although when everyone's standing (dancing, lounging by the free pool tables), it gets a little cramped. Â They don't take cards but that doesn't stop you from going back and getting more drinks.
There were genuinely fun people there, who were more into having a good conversation with a stranger than just being closed off into their own groups. Â
The good definitely outweighs the bad in this bar.
Went for a friend's 21st. Not exactly my choice of bar for such a momentus occasion.
Absolutely loved eating countless pounds of peanuts and throwing the shells on the floor. Parking was very easy, and cheap during the day: $0.25-0.50 per hr in the garage, meters on street.
It's quiet, dark and cheap. The bartender, an Irish guy, was very nice. Ordered a Whiskey Sour... paid $4, tasted like a double. Awesome!
Wish they had Tanquaray Ten, black Bush, or Cutty Sark... three of my favorites.
After O'Neills shut down at 11.30 (???), Ash and I decided to stumble our way here to polish off a night of drunk dialing, chain smoking, and heavy drinking of Irish beer.
SO imagine my happiness when I turned around and saw my friend Heather standing RIGHT NEXT TO ME! I was so flipping overjoyed that I did the usual squeal/obnoxious/very drunk/etc etc of delight. Then we did a hop/skip/jump over to McGovern's and got in without any problems. Manuvering our way THROUGH there, however was a different story. But Gordeezy got us all beer--in a PINT glass (like it should be), and FILLED TO THE TOP (take a note O'Neills). AMAZING.
It started to clear around 1am, and thats when I started making the drunk dial rounds. Then we made our way over to Moon's and thats when I caught a cab and went home. It SOUNDS boring, but I think I'm going to write a seperate review about drunk dialing. Much more interesting, I promise.
Oh and Ashley's boyfriend asked why we didn't makeout. Uh..because she's my SISTER?! We're not in Kansas anymore, hun.
I went to Mcgovern's to play with my band. Â Our friends in another band set up the show because they played there before and said it was a pretty happenin' place on a Saturday night. Â I ordered one drink and told him I was in the band and he said he would give it to me no charge but "don't tell the boss," great, thanks for your outrageous generosity. Â Most bars give you at least 2 free drinks without the sass. Â Well we started playing around 10pm and played four songs. Â After each song we were told to turn down by the old angry bartender, on the fourth song he told us to call it quits. Â Ridiculous! Â We're a rock band, not punk or heavy metal. Â They advertise live music on Saturday night and then they tell them they can't play. Â Our friends band was so upset that they left without playing, they knew they would be too loud for the old geezer too. Â
The Yuppie crowd seemed more interested in themselves then some good live music anyway. Â The jukebox went back on and the patrons chatted the night away without ever hearing what these local acts had to offer. Â Live bands should probably avoid this place unless you are an acoustic act. Â The room doesn't sound very good anyway with a tile floor and not much sound dampening.
Ahhh. Â Now this is more like it.
If you're looking for a dark, casual, and local place to catch up with friends over a couple of snakebites (half cider, half beer I'm told), or some black and tans, this is your place. Â
Picture a long, almost shot-gun like room with a long bar down the one side, and booths down the other with a row of grubby picnic tables down the center. Â Grubby is the word that comes to mind. This is a good thing. I wouldn't go so far as to call this place a dive (pints are $4.50), but with a little less work, it could get there.
Me and my boys spent a couple of hours here on a recent Friday night reminiscing about mutual friends, musing on life and raising kiddos in the modern world (where 6th graders get laptops and 8 year-olds know how to do Google searches for "nakid girl" at slumber parties), and, of-course, the always-entertaining indiscretions of our youth.
McGovern's was very relaxed and chill, and yet busy. Â The room is pretty big, so even with a lot of people around, it doesn't feel crowded. Â I give this place high marks for authenticity including a grizzled yet friendly bar-tender who truly hails from the Old Country.
Two head-scratchers worth pondering after spending time at a place like McGoverns:
1. Â How is it possible that I come home smelling like an ashtray in a place where there is no smoking? Â Dive bar aroma therapy, anyone?
2. Â Why do patrons of places with cheap drinks have worse urinating aiming skills than patrons of places with expensive ones?
Someone hit me back here.
3 stars for this aspiring dive bar. Â Cheaper drinks and clientele who pump more money into the jukebox playing retro-hipster tunes would help bring this down to dive-bar hall-of-fame 2 star status. Â A bar can dream.
Reasons why I like (not quite love) McGovern's:
It's almost always completely deserted, except for my drunken coworkers.
They only accept cash, so when my coworkers get that sad face because their credit card just got rejected I get to come to the rescue. Somehow there's power in buying a guy a drink.
You can bring in your own appetizers (and dog) because they don't serve food.
Even though the pool table accepted my coins, you don't need to put coins in to play.
The mystery of how a place with 2 pool tables ends up with 3 4-balls and no 2-balls?
Pear cider on tap for $2.50 during happy hour. Priceless.
We went here last night and well lemme say....way less than impressed!!
We get there around 12:30am and there are people standing outside, so we think it must be crowded or something. We get in there and its a ghost town. Now don't get me wrong I like it when bars aren't packed but I don't like feeling like its my friends and then just 1-2 other groups of friends there.
We order our drinks (myself and my 2 other friends got the same drink) and they were charged $15 for 2 while I paid $7 for mine. What is up with that? No price consistency?!
Then they have this HORRIBLE band from the city playing. Think of Cake without their gimmick, Presidents before they practiced, etc. It gave us all a headache.
But once the band was done, it was much better, but needless to say, we didn't say past our one drink.
..."where everybody knows your name..."
 Ok, so I'm biased.  This is MY homebase.  Throw your peanut shells on the floor, and be prepared, for cash is king.  But goddammit, it's the best pint of Guiness in San Mateo.  Just please behave or I will hunt you down.  Serious! Â
 PS  the jukebox KILLS!!!!, oh and  hottest bartenders in San Mateo (you too, David).
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