Kelly O'Bryan's Restaurant & Carlos O'Bryan's Pub — Restaurant in British Columbia

With some down time between the BC Craft Brewers Conference and the BC Beer Awards, my friend was wanting to catch the Jays-Mariners game. Although not into watching sports, I decided to join him for a beer and a bite to eat in preparation for an evening of imbibing at the BCBA. He brought us here – first time for me, a revisit for him.

With the game already underway, the restaurant was quite busy. Nevertheless, the hostess was gracious in giving us the best options for seating. We chose a booth on the ground floor where my friend was able to view a screen and I didn't need to. The TVs weren't blaring or the patrons raucous, so we could easily carry in a conversation. Our server, Kate, was great. She was friendly, knowledgeable about the menu, offered a number of food recommendations, and was apologetic about the limited vegetarian options. Kate was also a good judge of timing, knowing when to check on us to see if everything was okay or if we needed anything else.

Draught beer options are Guinness, Kilkenny, and Harp, as well as a gamut from the House of Molson. There were three craft options, of which we chose a local Steel & Oak Pilsner. For food, my friend selected the portobello mushroom burger. While I'm not vegetarian, mama told me to eat my veggies. So in addition to the Oktoberfest soft pretzels special to go with the beer, I ordered a beet salad on Kate's recommendation. Both of us were quite satisfied with our food & drink.

I should note that Kelly/Carlos O' Bryan's is an "Irish-themed" family restaurant and pub. What this means in practice is that the variety of food and beverage options have more to do with Canada than Ireland. So if you're just looking for a neighbourhood pub with a large selection of comfort food that is welcoming to families and sports fans, Kelly/Carlos O' Bryan's offers good...

I had the chance to visit the new Kelly O’brian’s and below is my experience with them.

Food: 3.5/5

We ordered the chicken fajitas and jerk fettuccine pasta. The fajitas were great, fresh lettuce, tomatoes along with seasoned chicken and vegetables. My fettuccine however could have been a bit better. The chicken was grilled however just with salt and pepper, it was not marinated in traditional Caribbean flavours, the majority was in the sauce. By no means was it inedible, it did taste good however not what I expected, I guess my fault for ordering something more traditional like stew or shepherds pie. Perhaps next time!

Decor: 5/5

It was great to see what they did with a historic building and turning it into what they did. As you walk in you’re welcomed with a nice, large bar along with tv’s and music. In addition, the washrooms were nicely done, clean and organized.

Service: 4.5/5

We were greeted by the hostess at the time as soon as we walked in it felt great. While she went to locate a table for us, we were then greeted by two additional people just to make sure we were attended to. Thankfully we were able to find a table within a couple minutes, the timing worked out great. We were seated to our table and our order was put in fairly quickly. The manager on duty came by a couple time to check in on us and take away our dishes, great teamwork! The only feedback I will make note was that it happened to get busy as we were waiting for our food and it did take some time to receive it, it would have been nice to be acknowledged that we were patiently waiting.

It is a great spot to check out in New Westminster and I do recommend people to try. I will visit again and see if there is...

Came as a group of 3 for dinner and were seated in a booth in the restaurant section (the bar area was popular by the entrance). I had their Tuna Poke Bowl ($23.95). Wasn't sure how it would be at an Irish pub, but the poke bowl surprised me in a good way. It had a lot of ingredients, including avocado, edamame, mango, cucumber, and pickled veg (beets, I think). The carrots were cut nicely for presentation, but the long strands made it difficult to eat without slicing further. Could have used more ahi tuna, but the avocado portion was generous! Noticeable heat in the Togarashi spiced aioli.

The St. Patrick's Stew ($27.50) was rich and hearty, with an abundance of AAA braised beef (somewhat tender), carrots, potatoes, crispy onions, kale, and a Guinness Gravy. Had been craving Yorkshire Pudding, and this one hit the spot with crisp and a solid puff tasted best when dunked in the gravy. Ended up with some leftovers. The Berry Peachy Mocktail was recommended on the menu. Very refreshing, fruity, and visually it looked cool with the peach slush/foamy topping!

Our server, Jordan, was attentive and took down our order by memory, making sure to confirm it before he left for the kitchen. Checked in as well and made the experience a good one! Overall atmosphere was casual, and a little dim for lighting, as expected. We came on a birthday so could receive up to $30 off the birthday diner's meal, as we came after 4 pm. They have a small parking lot, which was quite full around 5 pm on a Monday....