Shamrock Irish Pub

Ok — this is a dive bar and I knew it was a dive bar. No problem, I love to take a dive every once in a while. I don’t even mind the homeless people milling about trying to score free drinks. I get it — we are all one people, one community in this great world. We need to coexist.
I love that there are no yuppies or want-​to-​be gaga’s and pozer tony hawk pranksters.
But that’s the only good thing I can say. I don’t care if you’re a dive bar, there has to be some level of cleanliness when you are serving beverages for consumption. The amount of dust in this place is sickening. I’m not wholly positive that the glasses are clean. I found a booger on my napkin… and it wasn’t mine. Puke.
Also, it’s cash only, which these kind of places usually are. Just a heads up.

Love this place not a yuppy upper class bar differently an Irish pub we just need to get some good looking women in this bar find myself trying to hook up with bartender because to much sausage in the pub.

I remembered this place from WAAAAAAAY back in 1976. I was 20. Do the math. (I’m 59!) The place was called: «Wally’s Shamrock» back then. ‘Ya, I can’t believe it, either! I’ll be 60 (YIKES) soon. That is, if I make it. I’ll be 10 years clean & sober in 2016. I’m being «punished» for the «Good Thing» I did. Um, getting sober. Hell, when I was drunk, I was never sick.(maybe I just didn’t notice!) Since I’ve been sober, I’ve had 2 strokes, and am on my second bout w/​cancer. «What the hell does this have to do with Wally’s?» Well, I think i’m gonna’ drop by just for old times sake. Time’s a tickin’ ‘fer yours truly. Judging on the reviews that said it’s sort of a dive w/​«weird» people – My kinda’ joint! Hey– you have NO idea of the stuff that used to go on back in the day! You think you’ve seen strange… HAAAAAAAAA!!! I COULD go on, but, I’ll spare ‘ya the long story! Hope it’s STILL the same! Yep – Wally’s is on my «Bucket List.» See ‘ya soon.

hey @the1withDLasKIN mall mutes ! !, the booger nose picker behind the bar on fry/​sad-​nightieees was very lackadaisical las wk in servin me n my war vet buddies because we were tryin clean billiard chalk off our hands by flickn our fingers„ but from her perception she viewed it as us actin like children and mimicking a child flicking there boogers off their fingers-​and to that fiasco we were mocking her, because„ yu kno!, , the lemon cutting incident when the customer immediately vacated in disgust … …but still paid for the drink… w/​out drinkn it, TTyl

9 ball tournaments happen here on a regular basis so that’s on the plus side. Negative is homeless people sleeping on the bar, bar is dirty and dusty, and an off smell to the place and I know its dive atmosphere. Overall a decent experience, I would come here once every other month for the pool tournaments.

I’ve been living in Alameda for awhile and I sort of avoided this place because there are so many other more inviting options in alameda. But now that I’ve been in, I’m sold!
Yes, some of the people might be on the weirder side in here, and it isn’t clean at all, but the bartenders are always really nice and they make REALLY strong drinks!!! I would much rather go here and pay a reasonable amount for a stiff drink than go to a fancier bar and spend tons of money for weak drinks.

I have lived in Alameda for 4 years and I have gone to many bars trying to find my Cheers… Well I did I love the Shamrock! The bartenders are friendly and nice prices are not bad at all great people and environment. My husband was a hermet but now he goes with me and we have a blast! Yes it’s a dive bar and it is cash only but well worth it!!! I love this bar

It was a sunny Sunday afternoon in February in alameda California, my friend Danny and I woke up in are bunk bed… REALLY HUNGOVER! OMG… So we decided we had a hankering for a drink. Being somewhat irish we knew we needed an Irish pub to fix us. To Shamrocks we ride! The bar was clean, with good service and smooth banter. We asked for pbr and next thing we know… a few cheap dollars later, we have what we need!! it was relaxed but a party atmosphere! Delightful

It’s inexpensive, seedy, unpretentious. Yes, dear, it’s a dive bar. A place to chill and get a shot and a beer and play a game of pool. Class conscious poseurs and high maintenance girls need not apply. Go get a mohito somewhere else.

Don’t let the crybabies below fool you. Shamrock IS a dive bar… if you’re looking for fancy overpriced cocktails and rude bartenders this is not your spot. If you prefer a chill, relaxed neighborhood place to wet your whistle, look no further! Shamrock is good people!

A couple of things…
1. Karaōke guy/​company was horrible
2. Cash only! Bummer!
3. Bathroom was unsatisfactory.
4. Music was awesome.
I mean it’s a bar. That’s what you usually see at a bar like this.

Ive been reading the reviews particularly the low star ones and as a life long alamedan, theyre pretty accurate! ive been here more times than id like to admit over the years, mainly cuz my nephew lives rite around the corner, but i always want it to b betr… NEVER HAPPENS! seems like the the old dirtbags just get replaced by new, younger dirtbags every year. dudes all hangin outside smoking weed and not even tryin to keep it on the DL, it really looks like some crap on foothill. last time i went there for my birthday (for a quick shot) it hella smelled like raw butt. WTH?anyways, the smell of purp from outside temp made it stop.classy.hope it gets cleaned up, feel like it could be great…

Not a huge bar fly, but this place is cool when there’s a DJ. It’s also nice for a quick drink, even though the bartenders are not consistent. One pours weak drinks and another will pour just right. The drinks are a bit pricey too, especially considering that they’re stingy with the alkie-​hall. If my pool playing skills were up to par I’d probably visit more often, as it is close to home.

This place is typical dive bar. I don’t notice anything particularly Irish about it. So if you’re looking for an Irish pub, its better to look elsewhere. That being said its the cheapest drinks I’ve come across on Alameda ($ 8 PBR pitchers) and has pool tables, a jukebox and a pretty normal crowd. One complaint is there seems to be a lot of turn over with the bartenders and some don’t really seem experienced and/​or friendly.

I have pretty much had it with the Shamrock.
Just as a bar: it’s grimey, the jukebox is dangerously and obnoxiously too loud, the fluorescent lighting is unpleasant, and the linoleum makes it unpleasant to hear any music there (jukebox or live).
The bartenders used to be pretty cool, but recently they just seem like they don’t know what they are doing. I went there on St. Patrick’s Day, and the drink specials listed on the fliers were not sold at the bar — the Guinness was $ 1 more than advertised. Later in the night, the bartenders got into a fight with each other and some of the customers got into a fight too. By the end of the night, the bathroom had absolutely nothing in there, except for the dirty toilet and an overflowing trash can.
I have witnessed fights and seen cop cars in front more times than I care to remember. The drinks are cheap, but it’s not worth it.

Some nice bartenders. Interesting people. Always something going on.
The Shamrock is a straight up dive bar. There are always different characters comin in, from Don the Meat Man selling high quality discount meats, to coked out bouncers and «models» for night time special events. One of the regulars once hooked us up with a pretty long crank call to a coworker that was one of the most entertaining crank calls I’ve ever heard. It’s gone thru periods of smelling horribly, having broken windows, and horrible bar upgrades gone wrong. I’ve also had a lot of interesting drinks at good prices. On St. Paddy’s day, they’ve got some pretty decent corned beef.
Most of the bartenders that have worked there have been cool, but unfortunately theres a pretty bad turnover rate there. Part of that turnover has very recently included new management and new bartenders. Because of that, I have had to lower my rating to only 3 stars, despite the many good times I’ve had there. The last time I went, I was charged 7 bucks for a SHOT of crown, during the day. A shot of crown! A whole bottle can go for $ 15, and bars get it even cheaper than that! This place is/​was the quintessential dive bar, you’ve gotta do quite a bit more classying up of the place before justifying a $ 7 shot of crown. I hope this gets remedied soon.
I will be back for the Shamrock’s unique «ambiance,» but probably less often now.

I dropped in on a Sunday afternoon while exploring Alameda. Spacious digs, friendly patrons, prices are about average. I imagine that this place gets really crowded and loud on the weekends; you won’t find a selection of Schnapps this large anywhere outside of a sorority party.

Nice enough folks, but they were out of 3 of the first 4 beers I ordered, and the fourth one arrived at room temperature. Not sure what else Alameda has to offer, but my guess is that you can do better elsewhere.

Three years ago I wrote:
A patron of Shamrock Irish Pub literally lured me inside last Wednesday night. One drink turned into three extra strong cocktails. I can’t comment on the atmosphere. I perched myself atop a bar stool and never came down. I never even looked around. It was happy hour, and so was I! Drinks always taste better when someone else buys.
Three years and four lost stars later:
Oh, the comedy theatre that is Shamrock Irish Pub! My girlfriends and I visit this place on those nights that The Fireside doesn’t open or closes before we’re ready for Nations (See what we’ve resulted to, Patrick?). We’ve seen everything from The Coast Guard to homeless drunks to that guy who usually wanders around without shoes. One time we even watched as a chunky butt woman knocked a neon sign off the wall as she danced on top of a table. The beauty part is someone almost always buys us a round of drinks. The ugly part is this place wouldn’t change even if the walls were painted and the floors refurbished. The same odd mix of folks would still group together and start a fight.

More for the early 20 year old folks.
The atmosphere is kinda like a Golfland /​The Great Entertainer with the 2 pool tables, foosball table, and with all the «let’s get wasted dudes!» roaming around.
— $ 3 dollah pbr’s.
Not a dive by a longshot.