Keagan's Irish Pub & Kitchen — Restaurant in Virginia Beach

We decided to go out on 4July2025 at about 10:00PM, still three hours before last call and four hours until close. I am a disabled veteran with a really bad back so I requested a booth. There was a one minute side conversation that ended with "...as long as it's my table." Famous last words. Spending three years during high school and college, prior to the Navy, I waited tables. And for those that don't know, restaurants are divided into zones, so when a guest makes a request for a specific table (i.e. being a "potential problem pain in the ass table"), either a server gets double sat (two groups of guests he/she may have responsibility for at the same time for all tasks) or it gets assigned to a different server. Well, it was obviously Mila M's turn to be sat, so she was assigned as our server.

We sat in a beautiful wood bench by the door, adjacent to the bar, very spacious and comfortable. We enjoyed the tree made out of Jameson bottles across from us. Even though they had live music and we sat adjacent to the bar, the volume of the music was enjoyable and didn't interfere with normal conversation.

Mila walked over to us introduced herself, was very friendly, and seemed knowledgeable about the menu items. We ordered drinks, I had a Hardywood West Creek Cider, on tap, and I enjoyed it. Mila told me people usually order the other brand they have on tap. I decided to take a chance. The Hardywood Cider was good, but not on the sweeter side. So if you find some hard apple cider drinks too sweet, then this is your goto.

We ordered the fried pickles as an appetizer and they are huge and delicious, served with ranch. The breading is like a beer batter and suits the pickles well. She took our appetizer order with our drinks, then cane back to take our food order with our drinks.

I ordered the Fish and Chips and the fish was light, flaky, not very fishy, and rather delicious. The batter did not overpower the fish except at the very end pieces, but I enjoy those crispy ends anyway. It's served on a bed of French fries that come out crispy and with good flavor. It's served with a lemon wedge and tartar sauce. I asked for malt vinegar.

My table mates ordered potato skins, 1lb of wings, lemon pepper flavored, and an order of onion rings. Kind of a hodge podge for the two of them to share.

Sorry, no photos of the potato skins or wings, but I did get the onion rings, which are in the same beer batter as the fried pickles, so very tasty. I couldn't help but snag one.

So far, everything is great, the app came out at a perfect time, the food came out at a perfect time... yet Mila, in a different Devin clear across the restaurant failed to notice our drinks were all less than half full. For the next 30-35 minutes, while we were dining, Mila did not stop at the table one time. Sitting with empty water glasses, empty drink glass, an empty bar glass (drinks from the bar can significantly increase the cost of a meal, therefore increasing the amount of tip). She finally came over to ask how we were doing and we asked her for four boxes. Not once, looking at the table while standing there with seven empty glasses, did she ask if any of us would like a refill or a drink to go. She brought the boxes, we packed our food, paid the bill, and I left a 20% tip. When i enjoy my meal out, and the wait staff is exceptional, I usually leave between 30%-40%.

Now, being a server, a half full drink should prompt a "are you ready for refills or would you like to wait a bit?" Nothing like that when she had to leave her station of assigned tables all the way across the restaurant to deliver our food. Now, as we were not in her section, even though she "strongly suggested" We were going to be her table, we were neglected. As servers walk their own section they scan for issues with food, disgruntled glances, EMPTY GLASSES, yet even though Mila wanted us as her table, we were obviously an inconvenience. We sat down at about 10:05 PM and got our check at 10:48 PM. We were also only sat with one place setting of silverware. Now...

Husband and I went here due to the fact that the restaurant we wanted to go to was packed(Leaping Lizard) so on the way home we stopped by city center in va beach and hit up Keagan's. 1st we wanted to sit outside since it was so nice out, WRONG MOVE; their sitting area is next to the large garbage bins and completely reeked of a cross smell between low tide and cow fat. I asked the hostess to move us inside where we sat at a cute table just for 2. Problem avoided? NO...really dark, unable to really see menu. They have little candle lamps on each table that don't put off enough light to see at all and was not even lit until after a bit when a gil finally came with a lighter. Then our waitress comes, pretty girl, most of them were pretty and wore cute little plaid skirts as uniform, however this one barely greeted us, barely said a word, and being our 1st time there was not a good impression. Husband ordered a guiness, since this is an "irish" pub and I ordered a grape cosmo(grape vodka, cranberry, another kind of vodka, and lime) Drinks arrive....NO shamrock in the beer and in a run of the mill glass. Cosmo comes, CLEAR, tastes like vodka and water...NO grape flavor, no cranberry, no lime juice. I tell her, she barely says a word. Asks me if i want another drink, I told her I wanted this drink made correctly. Appetizers come...fried calamari and bavarian pretzels...asking too much from this pub; calamari was all batter no squid, pretzels were run of the mill. Husband and I both ordered steaks which actually came how we asked but we each got a side of baked potatoe. Again, 1st timers, and NOWHERE on menu did it say WITH sour cream, i dont eat sour cream and could not exactly just brush it off. For all who have waitressed in the past, including myself....you would normally ask every customer, "Have you dined with us before?" or something along those lines and on things like a baked potatoe that they put sour cream and cheese, you would ask if that is ok or offer it plain, or a different side. waitress comes back after a bit, which our food was served by someone else, and I now have to ask for a different side since they are out of potatoes. Again 1st timers!!!! I do not know the menu and ask what else they have, she told me 4 things. I asked for a menu to see the rest cause she didnt know, ordered something else. Meantime husband tells me that the potatoe was not all that great anyway and his steak was mostly fat. That is the larger steak that is their specialty, the 14oz. I got the 8 oz with shrimp and it was ok but nothing fancy and ran at 17.99. The couple of times the girl walked by, she did not fill my drink(which i only had water since they could not make a drink properly that i wanted) and due to the fact that ordering Guiness in an "irish pub" was not up to expectations, my husband did not order another. Girl came by and finally asked when we were done eating if we needed anything and i had to tell her to bring me some more water, a box for leftovers and the bill. We waited a while (one trip to the ladies room, make up check, and walk back to table, which at any other restaurant the bill would have come by then and husband would be ready to go, just waiting on me) I come back, sit down, and no check for another 5min or more. Girl comes over and asks us if we want dessert........NO!!! WE DONT WANT DESSERT, i WANTED the stupid bill so we could get out of there. I told her, NO, just the box and the bill like i said before. She snapped back with a reply that she did not hear me. This waitress was snooty from the 1st moment she came to our table to the last minute we were there and even on our way out. I could not believe the rudness and ignorance. 1st timers and...

Love keagans but DJ they had for karaoke sunday 11/19 was not experienced. Been there before for karaoke normal guy runs it fairly for people who take the effort to arrive early. Got there between 9-9:30 and only sang once. Sang around 10 pm and MULTIPLE times got pushed back in the lineup while he let his friends skip the lineup and sing multiple times.

I understand their sunday night karaoke is busy and I may only sing 2-3 times but once in 4 hours is very frustrating. Multiple times I would be close to getting my turn and all the sudden would be bumped back to slot 20 again to accommodate his friends.

I rarely spend money at places for drinks aside from dive bars so taking time and money to go someplace with friends, spending nearly 100$ on drinks for me and friends then getting treated lesser to accommodate friends of the DJ was very frustrating.

Especially after he had little idea of how to work his own sound equipment and had my friend (who happens to be a sound technician) rebalance his equipment to enhance and boost his sound and setup was such a slap in the face.

Anytime i asked about why myself and friends kept getting pushed back he seemed too drunk to respond and disregarded any questions.

Normally I love sunday karaoke here despite not singing much but the DJ tonight ruined the entire experience and sense of fairness and courtesy for my entire group.

Please vet out the people running these events better. Or step in when there is very apparent favoritism happening. Because you will lose clientele when the djs friends go up 4 times before you even get to sing a second song.

Despite the DJ, staff is very friendly, attentive and quick working. No complaints on the actual employees because they do their job well. Just wanted to make it known about the “entertainments”...