Nantucket is full of restaurants that primarily target the influx of tourists in the summer. Of…read morethose, only a small percentage are year-rounders, serving year-round Nantucketers, who tend to be more down-to-earth and less inclined to pay $30 for a sushi roll than the average fair weather islander. Kitty Murtagh's is one for the year-rounders.
Tucked away on a small side street behind the mid-island Stop and Shop, this reliable old Irish pub is low key and pretense free, with a lovely patio for al fresco dining in fine weather. Indoors, there are pool tables and occasionally live music. The food is nothing earth shattering, but it's fairly priced and fairly good -- and the Irish menu items are fairly authentic. No surprise since co-owner John Keane is an Irish transplant who came to Nantucket in the late 1980s to work as a bartender at the Chicken Box, a semi-legendary live music venue a few doors down (where my BIL used to play with his band, incidentally). Keane and his partner, Caroline Montgomery, own not only Kitty Murtagh's, but also Queequeg's, Tree Bar, and Town, downtown mainstays.
At a recent dinner, IRISH NACHOS ($15; Melted Cheddar, Bacon, Tomatoes, Scallion, Potato Skins) were well made, with a good balance of crisp potato skin, cheese and other toppings. You won't find Irish nachos on menus in Ireland, unless it's at an American pub. Like green beer and big parades on St. Patrick's Day, they're an American invention -- quite a tasty one, though, unlike most green beers I've had.
More authentically Irish GUINNESS BEEF STEW ($20; Gravy, Root Vegetables, Mashed Potato, Dinner Rolls) was made with tender beef and carrots in plenty of gravy. It was particularly lovely to discover that the mashed potatoes that came with the dish were scratch made and quite delicious.
It's hard for me to resist an IRISH FRY UP ($20; Eggs, Bangers, Rashers, Black & White Pudding, Charred Tomato, Irish Beans, Mushrooms, Fries), otherwise known as a full Irish breakfast, whenever I see it on the menu, even when it's dinnertime. Kitty Murtagh's version was fairly good. I loved the nicely pan-fried little disks black and white pudding, charred tomato, mushrooms, and eggs, which I requested over easy. Bangers had been a bit over boiled and the "Irish beans" were probably canned (tinned) Heinz baked beans, however. I have a number of Irish friends who enjoy the nostalgia of tinned baked beans, especially on buttered toast, but they're not my personal favorite. Fries were a stand-in for more traditional pan-fried potatoes.
We were not overly fond of the IRISH CHICKEN CURRY ($32; Indian Madras Curry, Jasmine Rice, Mango Chutney), which was made with several times more untempered "curry powder" (aka garam masala) than there probably should have been. It was also weirdly and horribly sweet. We do sometimes enjoy the genre we think of as British-Indian food, e.g. the chicken curries you can find at just about any pub in London. I can only guess that the chef mis-measured the amounts of curry powder and sugar while making this batch.
Our ten-year old insisted on ordering the GRILLED CHEESE & FRIES ($12) from the children's menu, which she found very much to her taste. I didn't try it, but it was made with amply buttered white bread and American cheese. She said it was good as Panera's, her paragon of grilled cheese. ;)
Overall, it was quite a pleasant meal. We'll surely be back with the pup to sit on that pretty patio and try the shepherd's pie.
