My Lansing Westside neighborhood roots run deep. I attended Verlinden Elementary and
Sexton High School with a 3 year stop for middle school at Otto on the North side. My
mother and her family were displaced from St. Joe St. during the 496 project when she was
in grade school and settled just blocks from Sexton. My much better half grew up in the Old
Oakland neighborhood and much of both of our families still reside in the area. Both of us
have many memories of the old Irish Pub, all the way back to when Brian Riley was the
owner back in the mid 90s. Later, when we first got married, our first home was but two
blocks from the Irish Pub and we'd venture over for lunch, to celebrate St. Paddy's Day, or
to attend fundraiser dinners.
Sadly, the Irish Pub went dark in 2013, and many Westside neighbors waited for over a
decade to see the corner of Saginaw and Verlinden come back to life. The new owners have completely renovated the interior, brining a new floor plan and updated aesthetic that
pushes well beyond just a new coat of paint. The centralized bar offers open sightlines
throughout the pub with a separate entrance and counter for takeout orders. The most
popular addition to the new iteration is the expansive outdoor space which welcomed
customers throughout the summer.
My first visit was on an early Sunday evening when the Lions weren't playing, and the bar
staff said that it was clearly impacting how busy they were. The second visit was on a
random Tuesday night and the parking lot was packed, and most tables were occupied as
was the majority of the rail around the bar. The Irish Pub has some of the friendliest,
attentive barkeepers I've encountered of late and the rest of the waitstaff seemed to be
hustling around with smiles and cheerful greetings for all.
What's Good:
The Jalive Burger ($14) turns up the heat on the local legend. A nicely cooked beef patty is
topped with a housemade olive and jalapeno sauce, with white cheddar, lettuce, and
tomato. The sauce definitely had a kick, I can't remember the last time my mouth was this
hot. The olive sauce itself was flavorful, but my burger came with a large chunk of raw
jalapeno that I certainly wasn't prepared for. The accompanying onions rings were large
and crisp, but not among my favorites around the area.
The Meat-Lover's Pizza ($18.50) was large with gooey cheesy goodness topped with
pepperoni, bacon, and traditional Irish Banger sausage--which was a welcomed Irish twist.
The star of this show, though, was the crust, which was a nice balance of puffy dough on
the inside and a delectable butter-garlic crispiness on the outside.
The Irish Pub's Crispy Brussels ($4.50) had a perfectly charred outside that is flavored with
garlic and a rich olive oil. The sprouts themselves were on point but lacked some of the bells and whistles offered at other establishments, such as bacon bits or a nice balsamic
glaze.
What's Really Good:
The Haddock Sammie ($14) was crusted in housemade black & tan batter with a cornmeal
crunch hugged by a super-soft Brioche bread. The massive haddock filet was served with
crispy fries, and my only complaint was the limited amount of the tasty housemade tartar
sauce. The fish itself was flaky and cooked properly. I wish I'd ordered two so that I could
have another for lunch the next day.
Pot pie is a traditional Irish dish, and I've enjoyed chicken, fish, and beef pies while
traveling abroad- including a trip to Dublin in 2005. The Irish Pub's Beef Pot Pie $16)
measures up to those found on the Emerald Isle and is a perfectly balanced trifecta of fluffy
mashed potatoes, hearty chunks of beef swimming in a peas and corn brown gravy, and a huge, buttery pastry. For the take-out version, each ingredient was served independently,
so you could combine them to your own liking. Reminiscent of Shepards pie but
deconstructed in an unpretentious way.
Best Bite:
The Crab Soup ($8/cup) is special. Its creamy decadence is contrasted with chopped
carrots, celery, and red bell peppers in a hearty broth that was thicker than a bisque, yet
thinner than a chowder. Substantial chunks of lump crab meat crowded the bowl with
yumminess. This soup was hot, tasty, and comforting---a perfect answer for these cold
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