O’Neill’s Irish Bar

Bad service at lunch. Waiters weren’t freindly.

This is a decent Irish bar … Food is good and beer is cold. But every time an Irish song comes on they switch it to an 80’s song. Happened to us twice now.

Sadly, O’Neill’s has closed as of the end of July. I spent several nights dining upstairs, lunch downstairs at the bar, and several beers after work. It was a good place. The food was a little bit better then the other Irish pubs in the area and the Guiness tasted just a little bit fresher. But O’Neill’s has closed, probably to be replaced by a GAP or TGI Fridays.

I was only in NYC for about 3 days, but ended up at this bar multiple times. This is a great little Irish pub with the nicest Irish bartender around. Great music and a fun Irish crowd. Please choose this over McFadden’s, which may be tempting because of its dollar drafts, but is really a nightmarish college frat douche mecca.

This is my favorite Irish pub anywhere. What you have here is authenticity. From the bartenders to the food, everything is authentic Irish and perhaps the closest thing you’ll find to a real Irish pub outside of Dublin. As for food, I would highly recommend the Sheppard’s Pie. It’s the best i’ve had outside of Ireland. The Guinness is poured properly and the selection of Irish whiskey is plentiful. On weekend nights O’Neill’s features Irish music but can get a bit crowded. For a good spot I recommend getting here a bit early before the music starts.

An Irish bar tended by a true Irish gentleman on a night when there was an honest-​to-​good Irish session. No, not the kind of session with guys in white Aran sweaters, guitars and long necked banjos singing bad folk songs. Real stuff. Fiddle tunes on Irish button accordion, fiddles, whistle, etc. OK, my friend did bring a mandolin but he knows his sessions being a regular in the scene in London. He played a few songs at the end and the bartender set us up with complimentary shots of Jameson afterwards. Thank you kind sir. A lovely guy that told good jokes, good mood, what a bartender should be.
But the dinner… and the pints! Perfectly poured Guinness and Murphy’s (OK, a wee bit cold, but that’s a U.S. problem most of, unfortunately, understand) and a truly exceptional Irish stew with lamb (see uploaded photo). Me boasting to companion: «if they can match MY homemade Irish stew I’ll be impressed.» Did they? I left with tail between legs, incredibly humbled. A remarkable bowl of goodness with healthy lamb taste, savory gravy and plenty of potatoes and carrots. Damn fine!
Oh, and almost everyone in the place spoke with an Irish accent. Plenty of places in the city for Irish to hang out. I expect they’re here for reasons I observed: it’s a damn fine place.
Well, this is a remarkable little pub in the midst of the New York City madness. A spot of Irish heaven for a New Yorker or just a visitor.
Highly recommended.

Not sure the nights that people are going here that have the bad reviews, but go on a Saturday night 9pm+ and you’ll be EXTREMELY happy. Great Irish sessions that are exactly like they are in Ireland (except for the microphone), of which I’ve lived before for 5 months.
Bartenders are a pleasure, people there are not trying to pick up someone else just a great night of enjoying the music, beer and good times with a crowd. Can’t comment on the food as I haven’t had it, but I’ve there 5+ times over the last few months

Meh. I went here tonight for dinner and I was not very satisfied with some of the items we had. First off, the menu that was listed on this site, wasn’t the right one. It appeared as though the actual menu contained a lot of items that were much more expensive then originally advertised.
The atmosphere of this place also seemed kind of run down. I don’t know how to really describe it. It was like nobody really expected people to come in and order food. The waitress was fairly attentive and food was cooked well but it did take some time to arrive and I just felt like it was average. We had burgers all around and I had the Sante Fe burger and it was good but it was a 13 dollar burger, when I was expecting about a 10 or 11 dollar one.
I don’t know. This place isn’t a place that I would return to. The food was meh, the surface was meh, and the lighting was terrible.

If my sins were to finally catch up to me and the Big Guy upstairs decided it was best that I went to Hell for eternity, this bar would be found somewhere around the 1^st circle. I’m not talking 7^th circle type stuff here, but the kind of place that hurts just enough for you to rethink your actions here on earth.
Service was abysmal. Guinness pours were subpar (and I require a good pour dagnabit!). And the bartenders were quite snarky. No, no I didn’t enjoy this at all. I gave you several opportunities but you just… well…were the 1^st level of hell for me.

Adding an update for the May challenge. But I stand by the original review. If you like good service and great food at even better pricing, give O’Neils a try. you won’t be disappointed!

I wanted to love this place after frequenting the London location during my semester abroad but the NYC O’Neill’s pales in comparison to it’s Picadilly counterpart. The space is small, the crowd is so-​so, and there are bars that are a lot livelier/​fun in the area.

Another midtown east sausage factory.
If you like a ton of dudes packed in to a small spot with blaring bad music, this is your place. Even the bartenders seemed miserable and looked like they wanted to be anywhere but there.
My wife was only one of perhaps three women in the entire place and she described it as, «I feel like I am a piece of steak being dangled in front of a pack of starving dogs.»
The only plus was the 20 ounce glasses of Guinness for $ 4 and that deserves its own star. +1

I walk in at 7:15PM on a Friday — good looking crowd. Mix of suits and casually dressed people. Late 20s-​30s. Death Cab, Feist and Florence + the Machine quietly playing in the background.
The bartender sees me idling by myself and makes room at the bar for me. Kindly asks a bunch of suits to let me squeeze in. He made sure my beer glass was always full. Gave my friends and I complimentary shots. Was treated as if I came there every weekend.
Pricing was very reasonable, even to this born-​again student. I will recommend this place to others. And I will be back. Its such a treat to go to a bar with great staff and a friendly vibe… in Midtown!

There’s a reason you can find an irish pub in virtually every city on earth. The irish are like missionaries of the church of alcohol. They do it right… friendly but not fake, efficient but not pretentious, heavy hands, buy backs, a nod and a wink.
ONeils had a nice crowd for a thursday night and there was a fun energy. It seemed everyone knew the bartenders. It was the opposite of a scene.

I came here for a date the other night. It’s a great spot to meet for drinks. It has a large after work crowd… I was wearing a sun dress and felt a little out of place.
It’s a good place to watch the game, as my date and I repeatedly kept checking the Yankees score (they lost ;(). They make solid, strong, drinks. They have good prices and the space can accommodate groups of friends. They play a good assortment of music. They have tasty classic pub food. The service was great and the bartenders friendly.
Overall, it was a great Irish Pub experience. I shall return (and hopefully the Yankees will win this time)!

I have experimented with my fair share of happy hours… It’s a hobby of sorts. O’Neill’s is my new favorite happy spot in midtown east. Why?
#1 — $ 4 drafts from 4pm-​8pm including Harp, Brooklyn, Stella, Guinness, and other pretty solid beers
#2 — Super attentive, friendly bartenders
#3 — Clean bathrooms
#4 — Good music (but there’s a jukebox if you have different taste than I)
#5 — Lively but not overbearing crowd
There’s really not much more you can ask for when you’re stopping by for a few drinks after work.

Fine
Irish
Pub with a
Four dollar beer
Happy hour lasting until its 8.

A bar.

This is a good bar. Not a good bar «for midtown», but simply a good bar. I doubted my friend who recommended it to me, who had doubted the friend who recommended it to her. I love being pleasantly surprised.
I went on a Saturday night, so that might account for the lack of an after-​work crowd many have mentioned. There was an Irish band that played while seated at two of the tables, and later on some men in kilts appeared to join them. The two bartenders were super attentive and gave me and my friends two rounds of shots on the house for her birthday. During our cigarette breaks we chatted with the owner, also a great guy. A random guy asked me for a kiss on the cheek, which I gave, and he said «perfect» before disappearing. And it was.
It was a little hot (no AC that I could feel) but the front of the bar is literally a wide open space that spills out to the street which I liked. There are lots of tables, especially upstairs where the clean bathrooms are. Also, $ 6 for a rum and coke. In fucking midtown. I’m officially won over.

Great happy hour if you’re uptown — I think it’s from 4 – 8. $ 4 for draft beers, including Stella! YESSS! But sadly, no happy hour food specials, though my friend and I were hungry so we both ordered the bacon cheeseburger medium well with fries. Not bad.
The place is your typical bar with upstairs seating. However, I don’t think it’s open during happy hour. We sat towards the back since we had food, service was good.
4 stars for the happy hour! :)