Lately, I've been behind on getting my
blogs out within reasonable time after actually going to the bar.
The flu and the holidays took a leading part in these delays but
mainly it's been time management. This week I tried going to a bad
bar. Different people had different opinions which bar it should be.
Any bar that someone said was awful someone else loved. I instead
picked a bar that under its previous ownership always seemed awful or
at least the people that I knew that went there reflected that. This
week we find out if Bar #23, Irish Kevin's can erase its bad
reputation, even if that reputation was only in my head.
Everyone upon entering Irish Kevin's
said, in one way or another, “Wow, this place is really nice!”
The second, thing three out of four of us said was, “Where's
Johnny?” We had all come from Bearden's in Rocky River in
different cars. He had put the intersection into his phone to get
directions and stopped paying attention to his surroundings. Once he
reached 117th and Clifton he realized that something was
amiss. He of course was properly mocked once he finally reached
Kevin's bar. A week later, publicly mocked on the blog. Ha, Johnny!
Irish Kevin's is surprisingly spacious
and clean. There are nice beer signs around the walls. They have
their own line of shirts hanging above the bar. Games include pool,
darts and Keno. They have a stage for live music. Wednesday seems to
be old man night at the bar, but I think the crowd is normally a bit
younger. The bartender gave us quick service but couldn't give
information about the beers
They have a great Kentucky Bourbon Ale
on tap that was came was smooth and bourbony. Before I could drink
it I learned that the tables in the booths aren't heavy nor attached
to the floor. I put my hand on the table as I went to swing into the
booth and catapulted the drinks off the table. Don't worry, I held
onto my own drink. Johnny and I were later allowed behind the bar to
check out the bottles in their fridge. I went with Troegs Brewery's
Dream Weaver Unfiltered Wheat Beer. It seems what they didn't filter
was the lame. The beer wasn't necessarily bad but didn't really add
anything good to the mix. Irish Kevin's makes it's own sodas with
cane sugar!
I didn't think they had food. There
was almost no mention of them having food in the bar except a random
mention of wings. I have since learned from their Facebook page they
have a bunch of fried bar food favorites. They now have fried
pickles.
Irish Kevin's is an overall good
affordable bar that turned 3 last month. To survive in Lakewood you
need more than a gimmick, you need the basic qualities without which
customers will inevitably be repelled. They are a clean, comfortable
bar that gives the option of getting something you'll want to drink,
eat, do, watch and listen to at a fair price. Kevin's Irish Kevin's
primary customers are still probably the population within walking
distance but they make sure their customers don't have a reason to
look for a new bar. Check out Irish Kevin's, bar #23, they are
reputed to be a good place to be.
Awesome: Soda, Atmosphere
13601 Detroit Ave.
216-226-5718
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