Eastway Social Club is commonly known as 'The Alpha.' It's situated in the middle of Rathcoole…read moreestate and in bygone days once housed the local cinema (called The Alpha) but is now home of the locals watering hole. It's a pretty basic bar, not great but by no means the worst I've ever been to. They're a chatty bunch, good service, good craic. Honestly though you need to be careful in this area . You probably wouldn't want to head here unless you come invited. I'm not a regular or know it all about the area, but I would reckon that's your safest bet. If you're interested talk to someone local about it. I don't want to put any one off but just be mindful of the area you're in if you decide to nip in. Rathcoole is a predominantly Loyalist estate so be careful. It falls under the category of a 'Blue nose bar' and is known as a Loyalist, members only working mens club.

RAOB - The Royal Ancient Order of the Buffalos, to give it it's full name, or simply, 'The Buffs'…read moreas it is locally known, is a two storey bar and members club, located directly across the road from Carrick Castle, with excellent views over Belfast Lough. I've been in here a number of times, usually to functions in the function room upstairs, but it's not somewhere that I would ever make my local, as it is pretty much an old man's bar! They do have a pool room, just off from the downstairs bar, which is cool as I do enjoy the odd game of pool, and most of the bars in Carrick don't have a pool table, however the pool room is rather shabby. The staff are reasonably friendly, and the drink is cheap enough, so you would be hard pushed to dislike this place - it's just that if you are under the age of 50, it's not a very happening place to be.

Very friendly pub. Was here last summer on a few occasions, never met such friendly people or…read morestaff. Especially when you are from another country. They made me feel right at home. Great smoking place in the back too, wish we had those in Canada. Very clean facility..

I suppose I still don't fit the criteria to go in here but I did anyway and I wasn't expelled…read more It's been around for all my lifetime too - a bit like a credit union in that I thought one had to be a member, Catholic, a man and a worker as with credit unions here one has to be a member and meet the geographical criteria to be so. I think one of the biggest credit unions in the world is the American navy for which one has to be in Uncle Sam's navy. However I digress. I can tell you that this august establishment isn't a throwback to the 1960's as they couldn't now care less if you are agnostic, a Jain or Zoroastrian. Nor do they mind if you've never worked and as for men, well don't get me started, but again it matters not a tinkers curse if you are a man, woman, pan, bi or any other sexual or like me assuredly agnostic in all such matters. It is a comfortable place, it is friendly and I guess what matters most is darn good cheap alcohol. What's not to like. Local hotels here will rip you off but here you can get the same alcohol at about half hotel prices and usually they make you feel welcome, unlike bar staff in the nearby canal court hotel who seem not to fully grasp that customers make paydays. As we are Irish it's important that they deliver great craic (not to be confused with the other sort of crack) banter, frivolity, self deprecating humour or, if the mood takes you, to discuss how you'd change the world so long as the beer is cold and the welcome warm. They had two guys on singing which was a nod to normality and I can think of worse places to be on a cold, damp Saturday night.

The welders is exactly like the club from peter kays phoenix nights but without the entertainment…read more Its about as traditional and old fashioned as any old clubhouse gets and not being a regular there's that feeling of being watched all the time. When there's food on its good quality pub food. The decor inside is old fashioned and there's loads of old trophies in glass cabinets, one did make me laugh as it had a teddy of bully from bullseye in it. There's plenty of pictures of the shipyard and ships built in Belfast.

Located in East Belfast, the outside of the Welder's Club does not look like a restaurant or pub…read more In fact, it resembled a long-closed Blockbuster Video store; it's metallic facade as uninviting and archaic as the thought of actually travelling to a store to rent movies in 2015. Standing in the shadows of Samson and Goliath, the twin shipbuilding gantry cranes that built the Titanic, this social club gives no outward evidence of it's storied and welcoming interior. We entered and I was surprised at how busy the establishment was for a Saturday afternoon; a typical, yet very welcoming pub with plush red seating, the odd gambling machine and that one guy at every bar in Ireland that is so blitzed that one of his eyes looks consistently inwards. I was also taken aback by the amount of families with small children in the place. But tripping over pint-sized Irish children wasn't going to deter me from my mission - to eat dat gravy. Seeing as it was already 2:30pm and I hadn't eaten since my son woke me up for breakfast at 6am, I was starving. Barely looking at the menu I was sure if I just ordered Fish and Chips I would be just fine, and sure enough, I was. The order was placed with a side of house gravy, and the wheels were set in motion. Within about 15 minutes our food arrived, and perhaps it was my anxiousness to dig into the gravy, perhaps how hungry I was, but I decided to just dip a fry into that boat of goodness and go to town. Except you know how when the Terminator dies at the end of Terminator 2 by being dipped into a vat of molten lava? Yeah, that on my tongue. Oh how it burned. After the sauce had cooled down a bit, I took another bite and discovered that while it had the starchiness and beefy ruggedness needed after a long day toiling at the docks, what it lacked (in contrast to the lively establishment) was any character. Even though I would say there was about a 70% opacity on the chip, a hearty number by any means, It was an entirely forgettable gravy experience. In an establishment with such a rich history and filled with such character (and characters), it's unfortunate that the gravy was barely a step above Tesco brand granules slow cooked over the oven while Downton Abbey plays in the background. For more gravy reviews, visit https://gluttonforgravy.wordpress.com/

I have concerns regarding the ethos and the attitude of the senior people (owners and management)…read moreof this establishment.... I comment from personal experience. My 'with severe learning difficulties' daughter used to (for over 4 years until April 2019) live in Blair Lodge. Having experienced a number of 'issues' which subsequently necessitated input from myself (my daughter does not have proper speech) I found myself subjected to appalling and unacceptable practices from within Blair Lodge (including the making of false and unsubstantiated (confirmed by Eastern Health & Social Care Trust following investigation instigated (insisted upon) by myself) allegations by Blair Lodge owners and management.... and routine failures to address issues (to provide clarifications and answers when pressed to, instead chosing to adopt a 'keep scthtum' / say nothing sort of position). There is even reference in official Patient & Client Council documents (copies of which were provided to me by the PCC) that the manager of Blair Lodge indicated to the SE Trust that I had committed a sexual assault against her..... which is a lie..... both the SE Trust and PSNI have confirmed in writing that this never, ever occurred (since the claim was untrue and I have relevant documented materials from a number of relevant organisations (the SE Trust, the PSS, PSNI) in my possession and I have nothing to hide, I have no problem with referencing same) ..... shockingly I feel, having made such a vile claim, she's still the manager. I have grave concerns that an organisation (the Corriewood Private Clinic organisation which owns Blair Lodge) responsible for the care of the most vulnerable in society would stoop to such such depths, re making false allegations (which I feel may have been deliberately linked to attempting to blacken the name of a legitimate enquirer (confirmed to be so by the SE Trust..... official SE Trust documents in my possession incorporate 11 separate apologies (relating to governance related issues, etc), confirmation that my enquiries which seemingly irked Blair Lodge / the Corriewood organisation so much were legitimate and 'related to your (my) daughter's care' by the Corriewood organisation. I have grave concerns that within an organisation of a type (care sector related and involving the most vulnerable in society) re which everyone has a right to expect the highest levels of openness, transparency, honesty and trustworthiness..... would engage in such practice. It is reasonable to assume that if an organisation has been seen to have been 'disingenuous' to investigators in one instance, that same organisation is likely to be willing to do the same again in other circumstances. Where vulnerable individuals are concerned such practice is unacceptable. It is also concerning I feel that in July 2018 this organisation (the Corriewood organisation) was fined £75,000 for negligence which resulted in the (wholly avoidable) death of a resident in their Castlewellan premises and that in June 2019, following the raising of concerns relating to client safety by a whistleblower, unannounced regulator (RQIA) inspections instigated as a result, resulted in the RQIA determining that vulnerable clients in the 'care' of the Corriewood organisation were at 'risk of harm' due to a range of unacceptable practices (including clients not receiving their vital medications, falsifying of controlled drugs records, using unregistered staff, etc, etc...... and the RQIA issuing 7 separate 'Failure to Comply' Notices, with Northern Ireland's Health Trusts placing a ban on new placements...... and all of this coming less than a year after Corriewood had, after being fined the £75,000, made a statement in relation to increased client safety in the future. Speaking as a parent of an individual for whom previously the Corriewood organisation had responsibilities relating to her care, re her health and safety, etc and based on both my daughter's and my own experiences...... I would NOT recommend this facilty (Blair Lodge) or the organisation which owns it (the Corriewood organisation). I subsribe to the 'if you have nothing to hide, speak up / out' school of thought..... hence I do speak up...... but where I have legitimately and understandably attempted to acquire clarifications and answers from Blair Lodge / the Corriewood organisation, silence appears to be the preferred position...... I question why this is. Ivan Preston (tel: 07788 593495)

My Local I'd say, fantastic place to go for a drink, it's cheap, quiet and has plenty of space. Has…read more3 levels, 1st Floor is where the Dance Hall is, usually only open on selected days of the week or for do's, 2nd Floor is where I can normally be found lol this is called the Sports Bar all drinks under £3, downstairs also may I add, pool or snooker 50p, 3 TV's for to watch the Horses, Football, Darts etc... And lastly there's the 3rd Floor but this is for members only. Typical working mans club, never any trouble, always full of of decent people. I have always had a great time here anytime I've been, friendly staff & patrons, I will probably be going here till I drop haha. Definitely worth a visit I've brought two American Tourists here and they loved it!