Kelehans Bar & Restaurant — Restaurant in Galway

Review of Kelehan’s Food: 4/5 Service: 1/5

I’m American, and perhaps expectations around service differ depending upon where you’re from, but our experience at Kelehan’s on the evening of 7/6/25 was frustrating, even by the most basic of standards.

We had a reservation at 6:00 and arrived at around 5:50 PM and didn’t leave until 7:45 PM. In that time, every, single, other, table, around us, had turned over at least once. Meanwhile, we sat with very little attention and painfully long waits between courses. At one point, our dinner was completely forgotten until I finally flagged someone down to ask about it. We were told that whoever picked up our appetizer did not mark as such in their system, so our dinner was never prepped.

The food, once it arrived, was absolutely excellent! My wife had the pan-seared chicken, and I had the roast pork. Both were perfectly cooked and full of flavor. On day 12 of our visit, and 5 cities later, this was quite possibly the best meal that we’d had. However, that didn’t make up for how we were treated.

Before leaving, I spoke with the manager, Daren. I told him honestly: the food had been amazing, but the service was s#!. Apparently my word of the word s#! multiple times to describe the service we experienced struck a nerve. I apologized, but explained that I was attempting to convey my sincere sentiments. Instead of taking that feedback seriously, apologizing, or trying to make things right, he brushed it off and offered a few excuses. There was no real apology, no real ownership, and certainly no effort to make it right.

Sadly, the apple crumble we ordered for dessert, which was also SIGNIFICANTLY delayed and is what ultimately prompted me to speak with him, was the one true low point from the kitchen, dry, mealy, bland, and extremely disappointing. We each had one bite and left the rest.

No discount. No courtesy. No reason to come back.

Great food deserves great service. Here, you only get half...

We recently availed of the private event space for my daughter’s christening. We had 40 adults and 15 children. The space was perfect for us. The kids could move about playing without any worries and there was still plenty of room for everyone to sit and chat. Having a private bar was a big plus. We had a buffet meal (kids and vegetarians catered for also) , which was very tasty and plenty of food for everyone. Desserts weren’t an option but there was no issue with a delivery from another local company arriving earlier in the day. Access was also given for a balloon company to decorate before we arrived. Large screen tv and full sound system for music. We had a kids entertainer join and there was plenty of room for her to set up. Staff were friendly and so accommodating. Plenty of parking. Will definitely be back for our next big celebration....

Kelehan's had a bit of a firey reputation when we were children. There was always a 'whiff of sulphur' about the place that only added to its reputation.

In the years since, it has evolved into a very acceptable restaurant and bar just outside Galway City. We visited it on a Bank Holiday Monday for lunch. It was very quiet, we were seated in a very nice 'alcove' all to ourselves that certainly added to the atmosphere.

The food was, very nice but a little underwhelming particulary the 'Tomato Soup' which tasted very flat and thin. The staff more than made up for things, they were very attentive and obliging. An enjoyable lunch but perhaps not a...