McVeigh's Irish Pub — Restaurant in Toronto

We were highly recommended to this place by our Airbnb host. We were told that the food was really good and one of the best pubs in the city. So we checked the reviews on google to confirm and decided to check it out. Because of the recommendation and the google reviews, we had high expectations. But, we won’t be going back or recommend anyone to go there. First, the food. My wife got the shepherds pie and it was still COLD in the middle. I had the fish and chips and the fish was tasteless. Even ketchup didn’t save it because the tartar sauce was not good. As for fries, it tasted like refried day old fries smothered in salt. I normally finish my food because I think it’s rude not to but I couldn’t do it with the fish and chips. Second, the service. We got there around 7 and the place wasn’t busy, lots of empty seats. We sat ourselves because no one came to sit us so not a problem. Then the waitress noticed us and welcomed us. A few mins later, one of the gentlemen from the bar came and asked if we wanted to anything to drink and we ordered some drinks which he brought back quickly. But then we sat there for about 15 mins before the waitress came and asked if we had any questions. By this time we were ready to make our food order which she took. But we waited for some time to get our food - around 50 mins which was confusing because it wasn’t busy (and the shepherds pie was still cold and was already premade). Even after we got our food, no one came after to check how the food was or see if we needed anything else. Maybe it was just an off night but it was just very disappointing because we had high hopes...

Pricing was reasonable, food options were solid. Nothing about the establishment was extraordinary but I was happy they had plenty of tables available at 9pm on a Saturday. It kinda felt like the pub was trying to be the very best 3.5 star experience it could have been and it delivered on that for sure!

One rather disappointing thing was that our server spent about a minute complaining about being there that night and how she was sorry that she wasn't peppy yet as it takes her a few hours to "warm up" and that she would rather not be there. I understand she was probably trying to seem relatable, but I didn't really appreciate this. Usually, service makes customers feel good about being there, not bad for the staff.

Would rate a 3.5 but I'll go with a 4 for now because it wasn't a...

This is probably the only place in the village that isn't posh and nearly perfect it is a bit more dated and worn. Service was a tad bit slow, especially for a place that wasn't that busy. And the drinks were "MEH" at best. For example I ordered a Reposado tequila on the rocks. Was told they don't have any, while starring several bottles of it eventually got some and came on one tiny ice cube, my friends ordered a gin and tonic, again only 1 small ice cube. Not sure if they were running out or just don't use ice. The red wine tasted like it had been sitting for a while and just was about to turn . They did have live music which was nice, and overall it is a fun atmosphere. As long as you don't expect too much or the same experience like the rest of the village...