Thursday, February 3, 2011

Mo's..No, not the crappy burrito place...No, not that steakhouse either...Yes, the quasi-Irish one.

Last weekend the girlfriend and I decided to go out for our usual Saturday night dinner, and we had decided to go to the Olive Garden near Hamilton Town Center because it was both close and free (the only reason to actually go to Olive Garden) since we had gift cards.  Apparently people in the Noblesville/Fishers area really dig Olive Garden because there was a 40 minute wait and it was only 6 pm.  As a consequence we abandoned this idea and headed across the street for a meal at Mo's Irish Pub.

Aside from having a similar name to other restaurants Mo's isn't a bad place at all.  It tries to have a nice Irish pub look to it with a dimmer atmosphere and a lot of dark hardwoods used on the interior.  However, I couldn't help but think the place seems a little confused.  Part of the interior design says pub, but then you see all the neon signs and 40 billion televisions and I think sports bar.  The menu is similarly fashioned.  You see some traditional fare on there like fish and chips, shepherd's pie and corned beef and cabbage.  The problem is the menu also has chicken tenders and ugh...quesadillas.  Now I realize they are a chain, and they're trying to appeal to everyone.  It just seemed strange to me.  I guess if you want a more authentic experience go somewhere else. 

Now on to the food.  I decided to go with my old standby of fish and chips.  Not real adventurous I know, but in my opinion if you can't do that dish right then the your restaurant isn't worth coming back to.  Well, my verdict was that it was good, but not outstanding.  The fish was served in several smaller pieces with standard out-of-the-bag fries on the side.  The fish had good flavor, and the tartar sauce that came with it was very creamy and delicious.  Truthfully though I prefer my fish and chips served as one big piece a la the Claddagh or Broad Ripple Brewpub.  There was nothing special at all about the fries.  The menu claims they are "seasoned" which I suppose they were, but when I see that I'm expecting more than just salted fries.  My meal was also served with coleslaw and a warm piece of pumpernickel bread and butter.  The coleslaw, which I know I can be picky about, was very good and was neither too creamy nor too vinegary.  The bread and butter was a very nice touch.  I wish they would have brought a basket to the table instead of just 1 piece with the meal. We also decided to split a dessert.  There weren't very many dessert options (only 3 I think) and the only one I can remember is the one we got which was the apple crisp with ice cream.  It was good, but again pretty standard stuff.

Our total bill including our two entrees, 1 drink (I got water.), and dessert ran us $35.00 not including tip.  I didn't think that was too bad at all.  My fish and chips entree was a healthy portion and competitively priced at $12.99.  The girl got a roast beef and swiss with au jus and I think her's was around 9 or 10 bucks.  They also let her substitute the fries that came with her meal for garlic mash without an extra charge.  Alright, let's get on with the ratings.

Taste:  7.5/10  Overall pretty good.  I consider the food just a shade below some of the other Irish pub places I've been to.  The fries could use a little improvement.

Value:  7/10  Not good or bad really.  I got exactly what I paid for exactly the price I would expect to pay.  One suggestion I would make is for the restaurant to go ahead and serve that delicious bread to every table while patrons are waiting for their meals just to give everyone a little more bang for their buck. 

Addendum:  I didn't speak much about the service because it wasn't really noteworthy.  Again keeping with the theme of this place not especially bad or good.  The manager did seem present and involved which is nice, and he came by to check on each table as well which was a nice touch.

Mo's Irish Pub on Urbanspoon

8 comments:

  1. I have been to Mo’s a Place for Steaks as well as the “Welcome to MOES!!!” burrito place. Both of them are towards the bottom of the list. Any derivative of the name Mo’s in a restaurant is not a good thing. Come to think of it, the only Moe that I like is the one in the Simpson’s.

    I also like one big piece of fish unless the fish is actually small (like fried lake perch). Otherwise, it reminds me of fish sticks. Anytime I post about Fish and Chips, everyone tells me to go to Red Lion Grog House… in all due time..

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've heard of Red Lion also, but I've never been. The name reminds me of the Irish Lion which just makes me miss Bloomington and yards of Guiness.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Have you tried Brockway Pub on Old Meridian in Carmel? It's the pub underneath my old apartment...
    It's one of the few places I go to actually order the fish and chips.

    ReplyDelete
  4. No I havent been there. Wasn't really sure what it was called. You need to get it next time you go to broadripple brewpub all.g with some scotch eggs.

    ReplyDelete
  5. That many people had gift cards to Olive Garden??

    ReplyDelete
  6. @anon I should hope so but unfortunately I have a feeling they were under the impression it is actually exceptional Italian cuisine.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Mo's Irish Pub is actually owned by the same folks who do Mo's A Place for Steaks. As for being a chain, it's only a 3-location chain a the moment, so it has that going for it, at least.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mo's_Irish_Pub

    Honestly, I only go there for the cheese & chips (cheese fries)! Other stuff I've had there has been alright, though.

    ReplyDelete
  8. @Beth
    Well you learn something new every day. Thanks. Yeah I have to say I don't dislike their food. It's not bad by any stretch..I would put it a notch above big chains, but it's just not one of my favorite places I've decided.

    ReplyDelete