Foley's Inn
235 O'Farrell Street (at Powell)
Tel: 415-397-7800
At some point in time we are all connived into spending time in Union Square. For the last three years I have spent almost every day there, which has given me ample time to find which venues are worth my valuable time. Foley's Inn is one of the few I deem a worthy respite from the onslaught of tourism.
Foley's is a restaurant, bar and a hotel. The website is dedicated mostly to the hotel, but there is one picture of the restaurant (or better yet the bar). Located on the corner of O'Farrell and Cyril Magnin, it is pretty much in-between shopping and the hotels. This leads one to assume there may be excessive amounts of tourists in the establishment, however there tends to be a decent ratio of local patrons.
The restaurant is a large space with a beautiful old world style bar running down three quarters of the right hand wall. As a general rule they request that people not eating sit at the bar. There are a couple of partitions which break up the large dining area, and give the drinkers more area for socializing (at least someone understands).
The charm of the environment is its non-pretentious staff and decor. The original flooring from the previous restaurant was maintained, and several of the small tiles are chipped which maintains the rustic feeling. In the back to the left of the main dining area is a banquet facility for small banquets, which alsosports a small version of the main bar.
Music
Live music can usually be found during the weekends, and sometimes Thursdays. This can be anything from three piece violin ensembles to big name Irish Celebs (I don't know any names to give an example). I have seen some very entertaining people perform, and a few talented folks as well. The music tends to stick to old Irish jigs, with the drunks and the regulars singing along.
Food
he menu offers several dishes that are definitely Irish, and a few standard American dishes to accommodate vegetarians and anyone wanting standard American fare.
Appetizers
There is a decent selection of appetizers, which tend to appease the bar crowd. It is one of the few restaurants in town that serves good calamari, which is usually very fresh. The buffalo wings are another crowd favorite; unfortunately it seems that the portions have grown smaller.
Main Fare The fish and chips are a personal favorite, and the chicken pot pie has an excellent sauce. I also give two thumbs up on the Guinness and barley soup. The salad menu is decent, but sometimes the dressing is too heavy.
The standard menu is fairly decent, there is an offering from various lunchtime sandwiches to nice dinner items. A couple of hints:
Price
The prices are very reasonable for Union Square. Lunch items are less then $10, dinner items are $10-$15.
Service
Sometimes the service can be excruciatingly slow, even to the point of waiting an entire lunch hour just to be served. This really has to do with the flow of tourism, but if you are on a time schedule be careful. This is a great place to kick back some drinks and watch the game, as well as meet interesting people around you. It is not necessarily a good place to go if you want to eat and bolt. The staff, mostly Irish, are pleasant but can be a bit rushed when slammed.
The Bar Recently they have renovated the basement, and it is now a bar and nightclub type scene. I haven't seen it in full action, but rumor has it that they have a few bands in there as well as host a DJ. Hmmmm...sounds like a job for Camper.
Of course I would never review a restaurant without reviewing the bar. The physical bar itself is very beautiful. It has a very nice old world charm to it. The prices are very reasonable for the area. They carry a broad range in whiskeys, vodkas, tequilas, as well as your standard Irish and domestic beers.
by Nate Paul
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