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    The Burren

    3.5 (606 reviews)
    Open 11:30 am - 1:00 AM (Next day)

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    THE BURREN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Live music
    Casual
    Loud
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - The Burren

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    Guinness Beef Stew
    Monica L.

    Came in here when it wasn't busy at all and was pleasantly surprised by the food! The decor inside is festive and the seating is basic but spacious. We got the Mediterranean snack plate appetizer, stew, and lamb burger. Everything had decent flavor and decent portion sizing! Service was also pretty quick and friendly.

    Outside
    Vicki M.

    Cool place to hangout get some food and drinks and if you go all the way to the back room you can also see some cool bands play! We went to see one of our favorite local cover bands "Broken Heels" play there. And it was awesome! The room is not that big and it does get packed on a Friday night, so we had to work our way through all the way to the front. The band was great and after a while we got to work our way to the left side of the stage so we were right next to the lead guitarist and our friend Clinton the rockstar and see him playing and him see us too! It was cool to rock out with them. We left around midnight but apparently they got till after 1 am. For parking we got SpotHero parking in a lot behind one of the residential buildings nearby only a short walk away. There was a $5 cover charge which is not too bad. Overall good experience!

    Rhode Island Calamari
    Monica A.

    Everyone in the Boston/Somerville/Cambridge area needs to visit The Burren at least once in their life. You can't live in or visit the area and not go -- it's a true local staple. The front is a cozy pub with live music and afriendly vibe, while the back turns into a lively dance space that's perfect if you're in the mood for something more energetic (and absolutely chaotic). The food is decent, the bar is standard, but the overall experience is what makes it special. Like I said, everyone should go at least once.

    Sarah E.

    Nice pub for a quick drink or an evening with friends. Live music many nights. The seasonal cranberry mimosa was fantastic! We'll be back now that we've found this little gem.

    Scott A.

    This is an A+ gem of a pub in Davis Square. There is live music every night, and that often includes live Irish music. There are two big bars to belly up to so the service is good. I have not eaten food there, but it appears to be traditional Irish and American fare. Very few darkies.

    From left to right: Samuel Adams Seasonal. Lord Hobo Dbl. IPA!
    Daniel C.

    This probably has no bearing on this review but in the mid 90's I saw a film called, "Next Stop, Wonderland" which is one of my favorite movies. One of my burning memories are The Burren's pub scenes where all the characters socialized via drinking, conversation and ruminating on life's mysteries. From this spawned my lifetime interest in both craft beer and bossa nova jazz. This past summer I had a chance to venture up East and this bar was quickly put on the itinerary. Nostalgia is a very powerful emotion and just seeing the facade made me pine for that time. Massachusetts, at least this part reminded me of Austin, Texas times a hundred. I'm sure if you are a local you already have a plan as how to maneuver through this town. But to the out of towner parking is pretty nonexistent. After circling around the bar for an infinity a parking spot was finally secured. Seeing this place on film then firsthand were two different experiences. Firstly there is an outdoor patio which made it feel like this could be in any town. Secondly once inside it was all the things I imagined. It felt like a rustic Irish pub with a lived in history and lore. Sure we have similar style pubs in my hometown of San Antonio, Texas. It's just for me all the touches: the wooden floors, pictures of The Chieftains and the bar area which reminded me of "Cheers" are all the hallmarks of a New England pub. Since I got here shortly after the bar had opened the place wasn't too busy. The tapmaster, who was working the place alone seated me. This is where I must interject on the service, it was absolutely superb. I say this as he was doing quadruple duty moving from one table to the next. Taking orders. Cleaning tables. Then checking out tickets. When he made his way to my table he was all smiles. Typically before I have even stepped into any establishment I have already surveyed their menu. I knew precisely what I wanted. Instead of ordering a Guinness Stout, which is a customary in an Irish Pub I opted for a pint of Samuel Adams. It reminded me of the ones they had in the film. In addition I settled on the Guinness Beef Stew with accompanying Irish Soda bread. No sooner did I order it did the food come out. The serving was ginormous. The stew itself was really good particularly for pub fare. It was a big bowl with chunks of meat the size of New Hampshire. Was the food good or was I swept up in the moment? The Burren was by far the highlight of my trip to New England. It's an Irish Pub with a storied history alongside awesome service in an unassuming place. As far as bar food is concerned it was really good. Was my experience blurred by the passage of time? By nostalgia? Maybe a smidge. However this pub delivered on all accounts. Next time I come around these parts I'm hitting this place up. And I'm gonna sing "Danny Boy" with the two older Irish gentlemen with a Sammy and Guinness in tow.

    Pat N.

    the spot for nightlife outside of the city. best live music in both the front and back rooms. to go to for a traditional irish bar. friendly staff. does get very crowded at night.

    Open music practice on Sundays!

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    3 months ago

    Bouncer pushed me last night. Watched them make a girl cry. Truly the worst experience have had at a bar in awhile

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    3 years ago

    Sat on patio - waited and waited for a server - no one showed in 15 minutes so we choose a new location

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    1 year ago

    Classic pub. Patrons and staff were really friendly. Live music and real draught Guinness; what more could you want?

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    Ask the Community - The Burren

    You might also consider

    The Dubliner - Fish & Chips

    The Dubliner

    (219 reviews)

    $$

    Downtown

    I made the reservation at the Dubliner for a birthday dinner with my family. We arrived a little…read moreearly for our reservation and the hostess was welcoming and pleasant. She was able to find us a table after a short wait at the bar. By the way, at the bar I had the best Guinness I have had in a while - a great pour. Once we sat down, Rachel was right there to welcome us and get us started. This exceptional level of service from her continued throughout the evening. We started with the sharing platter and each item was fantastic. Everything was hot and delicious. Of particular note were the pigs in blankets - the sausage is fantastic. The only disappointment was that it came with one scotch egg instead of two. For supper, two of us ordered shepherds pie, one Guinness pie, one Guinness stew and one Fish & Chips. Everyone was very happy with their meal. Great flavor/seasoning, good portions and perfectly cooked beef and fish. We continued to enjoy the Guinness and Smithwick's on tap until the end of the meal when got a round of Irish Coffee which was delicious. Rachel was spot on with her service and attitude and even engaged in a conversation with us about our next trip to Ireland and she reinforced our desire to go the north of Ireland including Donegal where she is from. At some point my wife told Rachel that it was my birthday and that I am not a cake person. Rachel managed to get the kitchen to make a personal size apple crumble which was scrumptious and happens to be a favority of mine. In fact my wife commented after that she would have ordered it but it was not on the menu as a dessert. Another example of Rachel going above and beyond the call to ensure we had a great experience. And we did. Thank you to Rachel and all the staff and chefs for a briliant evening. I can't wait to go back!!

    First visit, traditional, Irish pub, except I feel that it was a bit sterilized to appeal to the…read moregeneral tourist public. I had the Beef & Guinness Pie with the sides of carrots and mashed potatoes and an extra side of broccoli. Great comfort dish along a side of a draft beer. Lots of food options and service was overall adequate.

    McCarthy’s

    McCarthy’s

    (33 reviews)

    Porter Square

    If you're looking for a family run Irish pub with pub fare and live music in not one but two…read moresections and complete with an Irish bartender/server named Harry - look no further! First of all this place is huge!! Second of all they have lights in the entire place making it look festive and bright!! Third we walked inside the restaurant part (McCarthy's) and there was a live band playing right there. Nice! There is a whole second upstairs section with a bar plus seating plus a small stage for open mic etc. Finally there is another section downstairs called Toad - cozy space which also has a bar and a stage for a live band. Our first time here as our friend was hosting a Runners Comedy, Open mic and Trivia night - hot off the heels of the Boston Marathon obviously! So glad we came and experienced the cool fun night but also enjoyed this new place! Trivia was hosted by Ben and wa as fun! Some questions were easy but some were hard esp if you're not a runner! Some people got up and shared jokes and stories of running or other stories. Harry the server was great - very friendly! We even took photos with him at the very end! The menu had traditional pub favorites like shepherds pie beef stew etc But they also had a lot of plant-based options which is great to see! Among the specials they had salmon tacos and chicken curry- which I got. It was flavorful and tasty although I was expecting it all to be in a sauce but it was more like a stirfry almost with the pieces of chicken and veggies on top of the rice. Still tasty. Huge portion so I had leftovers for lunch which is always a good thing. The hubs got the spicy lamb burger which came with fries which were great and he liked the burger. We were in the upstairs section and after the event as we were heading out decided to check out the Toad where there was another live cover band playing. So we watched them play a couple songs and then finally headed out. Parking was easy in the nearby shopping center lot. Overall a great time!

    If it was based on atmosphere this place would get 5 stars!…read more Was here for dinner on Monday night and there was a group playing the fiddle, banjo and guitar! Was such a nice surprise! Order the beef stew and it comes with a side of brown bread. The bread was delicious, tasted like brown bread I get when I'm home in Ireland but the stew was a little bland. Lots of potatoes in it, could have done with some more beef, there was maybe three pieces in the whole stew

    McGonagle’s - Steak Sandwich

    McGonagle’s

    (64 reviews)

    Dorchester

    I'm not in this neighborhood often at all. McGonagle's is located in the Port Norfolk area on…read moreNeponset Avenue in Dorchester. This is a great spot to have a drink and a bite to eat. Super relaxed atmosphere and tv's, so it would be a great place to watch a game. Friendly bartender and the fish and chips was good. They also have pizzas that looked great. My friend had a pesto with burrata and she said it was awesome. They also have gluten-free pizza, whihc is good to know. Our table neighbor had the pork chop, which also looked great. They have a small parking lot, which would fill up quickly. We went on a very "off" time, so we were able to park in that lot. Otherwise, you'd need to find street parking.

    If this was a pub as opposed to a restaurant be a good place for a drink and watch a game…read more Let me explain. Went there with my family for dinner. We were seated right away at a table in the middle of the floor. Told that was best that could be done. Like eating in an aisle. After a few minutes we were asked if we wanted still water or not. Still, we said. Then if we wanted drinks, told her water would be fine. Service started to decline from there. Also no condiments come to the table, but water. We ordered bread and butter and a spice bag, but vegetarian. No bread today ran out. And no plans to bake anymore. We wait close to 25 minutes for our appetizers. Spice bag arrives and I had read rave reviews about this. Open it and its filled with chicken and french fries. Server grabbed it and told us, kitchen error. They would make another, be there in a minute or two. I asked would this show up with our entrees. No, be spaced apart. We waited over 15 minutes, it arrived. Was supposed to have cauliflower, peppers, onions and french fries. There was three pieces of cauliflower and no peppers or onions. What was there was tasty and well spiced. And as soon as we opened the bag and started eating, entrees show up. Fish and chips portions are huge and very nicely fried. Excellent crisp and fantastic steak fries. The Pizza #1, excellent tomatoed base and the crust had a good chew to it. I ordered the Beyond meat lasagna. Huge portion with a green salad and cole slaw. Cole slaw was creamy and very nice. Green salad was fresh but drenched in dressing. My fault should have asked for it on the side. The lasagna was disappointing. No seasoning, no garlic or onions or oregano. It was, I think a British version of lasagna. Ate about half could not eat more. No desserts, but drinks, tea and hot chocolate. Or I did not see it. Server apologized for the timing of the meals, the error with the Spice Bag and the lack of bread. She was sweet. Lots of sports being broadcasted, and a huge long bar. I would come for beer and soccer or football. If I wanted Irish bar food I'd be better going to the Burren. And parking is a challenge. They have a very small lot, we got lucky and found a spot. Hard pass on McGonagle's.

    The Burren - tradamerican - Updated May 2026

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