Molly Maguire's Irish Restaurant & Pub

We attended an event here and were impressed with the warm and beautifully-executed Irish theme, lots of wood and red and coziness.  There are many different rooms and a number of outside spaces for hanging out -- don't miss the one upstairs.    

I could not spot one thing on the menu for a vegan, but we go to Arnold's Way for great raw food when in the area.  Molly's is of course a good place for a beer.  There is one of these in Lansdale and another one coming in Downingtown, which is quickly becoming a fancy beer town.  There is even *another* Molly's in Jim Thorpe, but I don't think it is related to these, which were started by two Irishmen who worked together in the corporate world.

Given the bloody labor history involved with the actual group, the Molly Maguires, exploited Irish workers in the coal regions of PA in the 1800s, I hope the place treats it workers equitably.

Molly's was my go-to spot when I first moved out here...since then, I've explored and moved on. This isn't to say Molly's is bad; in fact, they are more than decent. I especially like coming on Sundays when the Irish band is playing. You can never go wrong with a rightly pour Guinness either. One of the main reasons I used to go to Molly's a lot was the Magners cider on tap. When I first moved out here, Molly's was the only place to serve cider on tap, though since then, most bars do now. The inside is large with plenty of room. The strive for an Irish theme is there but lacking... Again not bad, but not perfect. The staff is OK, and that's about it. I would rate Molly's as the top Irish pub in the area, but could stand some improvements. Go here and check them out. Shoot for a Sunday afternoon to catch the tunes.

I decided to stop in here for dinner with my girlfriend since we've frequented the Molly Maguire's in Phoenixville, without a visit at an opportune time for dining.

Between this location and Tabora Farms at the other end of the block, this is really the only sign of life on the street it's located in Lansdale.  I'd hope that more store fronts and restaurants continue to populate the main street, but it's still far from a neighborhood revitalization, so it's difficult to "bar crawl" around the area.

Molly Maguire's did a solid job revitalizing this location, which is much longer than it is wide.  They have a long straight bar with approximately 24 beers on tap lined with high tops that run about 2/3rds of the length of the building.  At the back of the establishment, there is a dining area. They have outside seating and appear to also have seating available upstairs (similar to the Phoenixville location).

The menu is well themed with many takes on Irish food and they also have specials, including a "macaroni and cheese du jour."  The menu gives the appeal of a typical franchise business, not surprising since they continue to expand their locations.

For appetizers we had the Irish Nachos and the Reuben Spring Rolls.  These dishes resemble typical pub fare and were good in quality.  The Irish Nachos include waffle fries, ham, tomato, scallions, and cheese; the dish is not as cheesy as you'd expect for nachos and were a little lackluster compared to my expectations.  The Reuben Spring rolls were good, some more corned beef in the recipe would make them even better.

We both had the Fisherman's Wharf for dinner that includes a sampling of many of their seafood offerings: scallops, shrimp, crab cakes, and cod including a side of cole slaw and corn.  All of the fish was perfectly cooked, but lacked seasoning.  Since corn was out of season, the buttered corn was not fresh and soft.  The cole slaw was very good with the perfect balance of mayo and vinegar.

The service here was satisfactory.

They've done a great job revitalizing, but aren't great in their delivery of a great dining experience, but this is one of the better places to stop around Lansdale.