Kells Irish Pub

Definitely Irish. This pub/restaurant is located in a circa 1892 brick building and often has an Irish flag flying out front. The bar itself is 40 feet long and has cast-iron pillars. Kells hosts Portland's Irish festival, drawing about 20,000 people over four days (the streets are closed and tents are set up). The dartboards are pig bristle and you'll often find Ireland's soccer matches and rugby on the large screen television. The food is traditonal Irish: Ballycastle sausage rolls ($5.95 for lunch), Dublin coddle and Irish stew ($5.95 each at lunch, $8.25 for dinner), corned beef and cabbage ($11.25). There's also a wide range of appetizers, salads and other entrees, including fresh fish.

The draught beer list includes Guinness, Harp and Murphy's, of course, but Mount Hood, Bridgeport, Widmer and Deschutes products are among the dozen draught choices as well. A full bar features the largest selection of single malt whiskies in the Northwest, offering 53, from Aberlour 10- and 20-year ($6.50 and $20 per pour) to Tamnavulin 22-year ($20).

Hours: Open daily at 11:30 a.m., lunch served from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., dinner 5:30-10 p.m., pub menu 3-10 p.m.

Other vitals: Wine available by the glass. Weather permiting, they roll out canopies over cast-iron tables for outdoor cafe-style seating. Live Irish music on Mondays, traditional/contemporary Wednesday through Saturday. Parking on street and in two city lots, smoking in pub but not in dining room, fully wheelchair accessible. There is another Kells at 1916 Post Alley in Seattle.

October 1994