Keegan’s Irish Pub

We made our way into Keegan’s just before the noon hour on an overcast saturday in late May. Upon entering, it became apparent this place has a distinct feel and culture that is un-​rivaled through the East-​Hennepin Avenue Scene. It was almost as if we had found ourselves inside of an Irish Bar in NYC. Being an Irish Pub, it was all we had hoped for and then some. The bartender and waitress were top notch and mingled with the regular late saturday morning Bloody Mary regulars with unmatched nice and warm conversational flow, which reminded me of the TV Show, Cheers. The interior décor made me feel like I was in a true Irish Bar as various deep cut classic rock tracks set the backdrop for a Summit Pale Ale to go with some of their stellar array of breakfast food. I left this place feeling warm and very full! If you ever find yourself along the East Hennepin Ave Corridor, near the University of Minnesota Campus or in the heart of Northeast Minneapolis, I highly recommend stopping here at least once.

We only stopped here for drinks in the afternoon. The servers were extremely friendly. We sat outside in the front of the pub. They made sure to come out a check on us.
The food smelt AMAZING, so I definitely want to go back to eat!

Our waitress was very nice and the atmosphere is good here. The bartender came to take our drink order before we even sat down! For a small meal I ordered the banger boxty. The menu said it would be a potato pancake filled with fresh sautéed vegetables with a vanilla glaze. The potato pancake was yummy but I’d suggest getting the glaze on the side since there was a little much for me on there. There were a few very small pieces of sausage in the cake (not an extra $ 2 worth) and the «fresh sautéed vegetables» included about ¹⁄₃ of an unripened tomato and the rest was all sliced mushrooms, which are not a vegetable. I think the menu could change and say what their boxty has in it. I wouldn’t have ordered that had I known it was mostly mushrooms. The waitress comped the food when she checked on us and apologized. Pints of harp were $ 7.

I go to Keegan’s on every trip to Minneapolis. They have very good, traditional, and hearty food, but the real reason I go is for the Bloody Mary’s. The best. Prices are right.

We had a great time at Keegan’s. Staff were helpful in selecting beverages and tending to all of our questions, and the food was great. I had a breakfast sandwich and other members of our party had burgers. My hash browns were fabulous — very hot and crispy! The egg sandwich was also very hot and fresh. My items were not over salted and I appreciate that; you can always add more. The place was crowded and a bit noisy, but that is to be expected because they were having a special event.
The reviewer who ordered via Bite Squad would do well to go the pub and give them another chance. Her meal was probably stale and damaged due to transport.

beer battered fish & chips were ok. the fish was thin & brown. the fried are frozen then baked but they were good. chicken tenders were frozen then baked. kind of reminded me of chicken tenders you’d get at a community center. won’t be back.

This is easily one of my favorite places to eat in town. The food has always been delicious, at least what I’ve had, the prices are reasonable, and the atmosphere is fantastic. If you’re a person that enjoys beer, their selection is quite large, and varied. The only issue I’ve ever had with them is, occasionally, the computer system that their credit card machine runs off of is on the blink, so paying can take a bit of a while. While I understand that mistakes happen and that technical issues are a part of life, this has happened the last two times I’ve been there. Also, the staff is always very friendly and personable.

Went out to dinner here last Thursday. Trivia looked fun but we were too late to play. The atmosphere and our server were excellent; both were friendly and welcoming. Beer selection was good too. Food was nothing to write home about and the prices were fairly high. I think this would be a great place for a first date especially with the trivia. Also a good spot for a couple drinks.

The atmosphere in this place is great! Awesome pub for beers and regular people.
The service was superb as it wasn’t very busy. The waitress was around to our table a lot and we never had to ask for her for anything as she was always at our table!
The beer was great and they have a huge selection.
The reason for the ³⁄₅ stars is because of the food. The wings were over cooked and the worst wings we’ve had. The Caribbean jerk wings had absolutely no flavor and cut my gums as I bit into them! The flatbread pizza was ok and most certainly not the best, but also not the worst either.
This is the second time I’ve been to this bar/​restaurant and will probably never come back as there are so many others out there that deserve my business and curiosity!!!
:)

The rail whiskey is really not good, but for $ 3.50 happy hour we liked to call it our «base coat» … a good primer for things to come.
When we had questions about the «real stuff,» the waitress sent the bartender over, who gave us EXCELLENT whiskey recommendations and took very good care of us. Green Spot (an off-​menu tip) and Red Breast 15 year both did us very well indeed.
Meat and black bean burgers were both well above average for Twin Cities pub fare, and the veggie Boxty appetizer blew our minds. Definitely a «best in class» appetizer, perfectly cooked mushrooms, like a delicious Irish crêpe … mmmm.
All together, we got spectacular service and delicious fare on a Friday evening with great ambience and a comfortable crowd level to boot. I have a feeling we’re going to become regulars.

I had purchased a Living Social voucher for another restaurant that went out of business, so I exchanged it for one to Keegans. Big mistake.
Went here with my wife, her brother and his daughter. We each had 2 beers, I had a burger, my wife and neice shared the Samosas and each had some soup. My brother-​in-​law had the corned beef platter. The food was not very good. The potatoes tasted like instant, the corned beef was dry, as was the burger. The kicker is, that after the $ 30 voucher discount, our bill was $ 75.00 ! Total Rip-​Off !
I will never go here again !

Yeah. Well I wanted to give this pub a chance but screw it. Walked in with the shorty bartender with the bald head and goatee ignoring the bar while he watched the Wild game. He finally turned around after a while and said «you want a beer?» And I was like «I don’t know just yet, do you have a good menu?» He plods over grabs one and flops it it front of me and walks away. After waiting a couple more minutes, seeing him just stand talking to someone else I’m like «screw it» and I walked out. There’s plenty of places in NE. Don’t go here

Best Irish pub in the city. Visited for the first time on a recent trip to MN. My husband is from MN and this is his favorite spot. I have to say the Irish chips are to die for. We went for dinner and for brunch the next day. It was awesome. The food is authentic and the beer and whiskey selection is great.

Going to Keegan’s is like visiting a traditional Irish pub in Dublin without having to buy an airline ticket. Great drink selection, tasty food and an atmosphere where you can carry on a conversation plus an opportunity to hang out with Irish folks. What could be better than that ??

It was a Sunday morning when we stopped in for breakfast. The woodwork in the place is spectacular and seating was very comfy. The place was not very busy. Waitress was friendly and fast to the table with water and ice tea. I ordered the Irish breakfast. Two eggs cooked over medium, two sausage links that have a different taste than American sausage, two slices of canadian style bacon, hashbrowns and toast. The jam was delicious. There was a item called black pudding. If you like all spice you might like this. I will spare you the contents of the item, but it was not eaten on my plate. They have plenty of standard breakfast offerings, but I wanted to try something new and I am glad I did. For dessert I ordered a cupcake. For $ 5 it was disappointing. Vanilla with buttercream frosting. It was good, but served from the refrigerator. Hard to eat. I expect a fresh cupcake for $ 5 or tell me it is not fresh. The kitchen was slow for the few patrons but we were not in any hurry, If we had been super hungry this could have been an issue. Not sure I would bring kids here if it takes so long to get food out of the kitchen. Parking was on the street. Not a very large place, but what they do, they do well. For an authentic Irish bar, this is the place.

Great Irish food at reasonable prices. I especially love the Ulster breakfast platter on Sundays, and the Guinness and steak pie. Great atmosphere as well with a classic old time bar. The only quibble is it can get crowded quickly and there aren’t a lot of tables.

As much as I don’t like the Irish décor and closed in feeling of the bar itself, the servers and bartenders are very nice. I came here with my cousin to watch the dodgers/​cards game during this years MLB postseason. The bartender had no issues letting us try multiple samples in order to find out what we liked. It is important to note that I have little experience with all these import/​hoppy bears and IPA’s. I went with this Alaskan White Polar Bear Wheatey Beer. It was delicious! Because of this patient cool customer service from the bartender, I will be come back to Keegans again and again, without having 2^nd thoughts of the whole «Irish» atmosphere. I can get over it now. lol I’m glad there was a waiting list at JL Beer’s otherwise we may have never tired Keegan’s that night.

This place is my jam. Mainly, because it totally looks like an Irish pub and is super vibey. Decent happy hours, weekly events like bar trivia and traditional Irish music.
The food: I think their food is pretty good. They have some great sandwiches and entrees. Now brunch… they do a full Irish breakfast that is super authentic, but everything else I have had there has been so-​so. Great Bloody Mary’s– they come with a piece of bacon and a hard boiled egg! For a bit extra, you can get it with their infused spicy vodka. And its spicy. Mmmmm.
So, I recommend this place is a you want a vibey pint. And, who doesn’t?

Good happy hour beer specials. Has a small patio out back but there is no view. Does not take Amex.

Oh Keegan’s, I want to love you. I really do. But, for every good thing, there is something equally bad (or worse). Please fix these things and I will become a regular I promise!
First, the good stuff: The interior is absolutely stunning. As others have probably stated, the bar itself was made in Ireland and shipped over here to be assembled. Awesome. Come here on St. Patty’s Day. It is an absolute blast, but be warned it is PACKED. The beer choices are pretty good and there is ample seating on normal nights. The location and interior itself make it worth a trip.
The bad: The pricing is just off. It is absurd to pay $ 6 a beer when you can get the same beer anywhere else for $ 4 – 5 not on happy hour. The food is below average. Nothing has ever made me want to come back for the food. The «St. Brigid’s Irish Chips» look like something I tried to make when I was little and microwaved potatoes with cheese on top (mushy and flavorless). Not at all worth $ 10.
The ugly: The bartenders here need to come back down to earth. Many times I have been snapped at, scowled at, or completely ignored for nearly 30 minutes. The wait staff have been pretty good, but avoid the bartenders if possible.
All and all, will I come back? Yeah probably. Will I do so regularly? Oh no, not at all. Keegan’s is like the old friend who you see once a year; good to see now and then, but then you remember why it is only now and then.

TOP O THE MORNIN TO YOU…
A little bit of Ireland right here in Minnesota! I do a little jig everytime we go to Keegans. I’ve been here several times in the last 4 years, including a wild and crazy St Patrick Day’ s celebration that surpassed any I had ever been to, EVER ! Outside tents with a band, celtic singers, irish whiskey everywhere, beer everywhere, and kilt wearing men.
So, this exquisitely decorated pub was created by an Irishman who traveled here from Ireland, accompanied by this incredible wooden backbar and bar. Lace curtains, etched glass, dark wood, charming pictures, and so much more. Even the rest room is darling. Really. Couldn’t be more Irish. And yes, on Sunday nights there is an Irish music Jam Session. Free.
I can come in here almost anytime, and at least 1 bartender remembers me and knows that I am the mom of a regular, Talk about instant respect. And everytime I’ve been here the husband/​wife owners are roaming around, putting out fires like managers are supposed to do. The staff is always quick, professional and there to do their job with a sincere smile and accuracy. Like professional FOH people are supposed to be. And that’s why they make money. Last visit, we counted the Irish Whiskey bottle selection. We came up with about 30 choices. Damn.
And of course all the Irish beers on tap too. That’s a given, along with the traditional Irish fare on the menu. I was impressed with the large selection, along with the American fare too. However, my experience with the food has been hit and sometimes miss. Again, maybe it depends on who is cooking. That happens. I’ve never been disappointed, but I’ve never been WOWED either.
Cue Riverdancers…
K A D E M I L A F A L C I A KEEGANS

I was here on a Friday night, I called early in the day to say that I had 10 – 12 people coming out for my birthday. They said they could put a few tables aside for us. My sister, her boyfriend, and I got there a little early. We ordered drinks and appetizers right away. Our server was quick to get our drink orders and food in.
People started arriving and our server was very prompt with service. Twenty people ended up showing up, quite a few more than the original estimate. But our server was great-​she even had split checks when we were ready to leave and all of the tabs were accurate! I’m a bartender-​so when servers are unable to do this efficiently I get really frustrated.
The food was great, great drink selection, and great waitstaff. I had a fantastic birthday there. Wish I had caught the servers name-​she was really awesome and I appreciated all of her hard work.

We ordered here through Bite Squad (*which is awesome by the way*) But the food at Keegan’s Pub was DISGUSTING! I have never been so utterly miserable and disappointed with food in my life! My Chicken Pot Pie was a mess, a small piece of limp «puff pastry» on top of a soggy mess of a few pieces of dried up old chicken, a couple of mushrooms and some peas. All in a watery substance they called sauce. I’m horrified! We paid almost $ 10 for this!
My husbands fried fish was dry, hard and very unappetizing. The chips the meals came with cost a dollar extra. They were also hard, cold and horrible. I have indigestion as I write this, and we just got done trying to eat this awful disaster of a meal which went directly into the trash.
The St. Brigid’s Irish Chips were a soggy pile of more chips, hard, cold and covered in fatty, hard lumps that were supposed to be bacon. The cheese was congealed and dry too. I’m so angry because we wanted a fast meal delivered to our home because our child is sick and we couldn’t go out and didn’t have time to buy groceries and cook a meal. We wasted $ 50 on 3 items (including delivery fee and tip to Bite Squad) This is unacceptable!
I called the Keegan’s Pub today to complain and I was told the General Manager would be calling me back tomorrow. I really hope he does. I just want my money back or something decent in exchange for this awful experience.

Very odd that it took until this point in my life to realize that food tastes better after you’ve had 2 drinks. And I can thank Keegan’s for this epiphany. If I was feeling nasty I might say, ‘and I sure needed those 2 beers to be able to stomach Keegan’s food,’ and then say something insensitive about beer goggles.
Cheeseburger was fine, Irish Chips ok, Atlantic Salmon with mash potatoes and asparagus I enjoyed more, and really liked the Chicken over crab (maybe because it was the meal after which I had drank the most). Also appreciate the Funky ceiling and walls, trivia night, outdoor seating, occasional live music, daily specials, and friendly people and staff.
It has a certain charm to it, but could be more so, the whole décor just doesn’t come together well. I’d recommend an overhaul of the place.