Kevin Brennan and Mary Malone entertain at the Auld Dubliner.
On St. Patrick’s Day, Irish eyes were smiling and Irish hearts were happy, at least where I was. I spent the day at The Auld Dubliner, an Irish pub in the river town of Gloucester City, NJ, “just over the bridge” from Philadelphia. Though it opened in October 2008, this corner bar and restaurant has an “auld” feel to it. In fact, it reminded me of McGrory’s Pub in Culdaff, County Donegal, where I spent a few memorable nights nearly a decade ago.
Like McGrory’s, the emphasis at The Auld Dubliner is on food and music. The food is Irish. (Don’t laugh—there are plenty of Irish pubs in the Philly region that “specialize” in nachos and chicken wings.) A few years ago, that might have meant a runny plate of shepherd’s pie, greasy fish and chips, or corned beef and cabbage so bland it might as well be drywall. But at the Auld Dubliner, the corned beef and cabbage comes with a chive mustard sauce, the fish and chips are light and crispy, and the shepherd’s pie is thick with beef and lamb.
And the music: On St. Patrick’s Day, fiddler Mary Malone and guitarist-singer Kevin Brennan, who anchor the brand new session there, sat in front of the fireplace, their chairs positioned on a beautiful kilm rug, looking as though they were playing in someone’s front parlor. That’s my kind of pub.
Apparently, a lot of people felt that way, because the place was packed, as you can see from the photos.
