McGuire’s Irish Pub

McGuires has always been a favorite among my family and I back home in Pensacola Florida. Destin’s is just as amazing and delicious! If we can’t find a place to eat we can always have faith in coming here to find good food and good company.
The steak burgers are an intresting experience. The different kinds of burgers keeps you on your toes. None the less, all are juicy and cooked to perfection. I have mine cooked med well and it’s never failed me.
And our favorite appetizers are usually the calamari. They sprinkle a litle cheese on top and each bite is loaded with just the right amount of lemon kick.
My wife absolutely loves the steaks here. That is her go to meal and it’s yet to fail her yet. This is the only place she will ever eat steak.

I just got back from lunch with my son. My (adult) son had the fried chicken lunch special, which was not horrible, but certainly not good. He generally has a hearty appetite, but ate ½ of one piece of the chicken, and his mashed potatoes. I thought I was «playing it safe» to select corned beef and cabbage, since this is supposedly an Irish pub. Bad, bad choice. Two slices of mushy corned beef criss-​crossed over a huge mound of boiled cabbage, and a few boiled potatoes and carrots. It all had a slightly metallic taste. I literally ate two bites of corned beef, and one bite of each of the veggies before I gave up. Yuck. Honestly, you get a far better «homestyle» meal at the grocery store hot bar, at about ½ the price.

First time in Destin. While exploring the neighborhood a neighbor recommended McQuires. What a wonderful place! Love the atmosphere, the friendly and professional staff, and of course the food and drinks. If ever in Destin again we will certainly go to McQuires. My husband loved the fillet and the bean soup

In recent years, McGuire’s slipped in the taste or quality of their food. There was a cook who enjoyed salting everything to the point that it should never spoil. Unfortunately, every dish tasted like a salt cowlick.
To my pleasant surprise, on my recent visit, someone took the salt shaker away from the cook. The result is typical American comfort food that tastes very good with an the atmosphere of a Boston (and Irish) pub.
I grew up in Northern New England. This is the type of food my mother and grandmother used to cook and serve. Forget the jalapeños, kale and arugula. Bring on the beef, potatoes, and root vegetables along with a mug of beer and large and hand cut french fries. When traveling to Boston on business, I bypass the fancy restaurants and seek out an Irish pub for a good hamburger, authentic fries or Shepard’s pie and a cheap mug of beer. McGuire’s is reminiscent of these pubs but less expensive, probably because the taxes in Massachusetts are high enough to start another revolution.
People go to McGuire’s because they serve comfort food that is inexpensive and served in large quantities. It is often very crowded as a result of this combination.
The day we ate there, we arrived about 1:30. The parking lot was full and there was a waiting list. Cars in the lot were from throughout the Midwest, Canada and the Northeast. Sweatshirts cheering the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox, and the Minnesota Twins were prolific. Unlike other times of the year, there was not a Florida State t-​shirt in site. McGuire’s is obviously a hit with the snowbird flock that visits Destin in the winter.
Those who live in Florida were wearing coats and long pants. Those that recently arrived from Toronto, Boston or Minneapolis were celebrating the warm weather, sitting outdoors waiting to get in enjoying wearing their summer shorts and some wearing flip flops. More power to them.
I always order the Senate bean soup (18 cents with the purchase of an entrée). It was excellent. For 18 cents, it doesn’t have to be that good.
There is a daily special. I had the meat loaf ($ 7.99) with mashed potatoes and green beans. No peppers and other stuff you might be eating at Taco Bell or Chipotles. Add a little ketchup and enjoy the beef without all that other stuff.
McGuire’s makes its own beer. I can’t vouch for how good it is; they were serving a lot of it to patrons at lunch.
The cheese cake for dessert weighs in at about one pound. Seriously. I saw some tables ordering this dessert after gorging on hamburgers that are also about one pound and a large serving of fries. I presume they took it home to eat for dinner since some of these voracious diners were still able to walk after they finished eating.
There are dollar bills pasted all over the ceilings and walls. Many of them are signed by spring breakers who enjoy the Destin area after the snow birds leave. These younger vacationers like to put down the name of their latest romantic entanglement and the date they gave away one of dad’s dollars to the restaurant. Many people find this unique or even charming.
So, McGuire’s is a tourist trap of a different nature than one usually encounters at the beach. But, like some restaurants that fall within this description, the food at McGuire’s is usually very good, very filling, high in carbs, and inexpensive.

This place is incredibly unique and fun if you’re on a vacation in the Destin area. The décor is unlike anything over ever seen. The menu offers many selections and the food is superb. The waiter was extremely attentive. Most of the customers were there to spend time with friends and enjoy the place. That’s nice to see in this day in age when everyone seemingly rushes around on a daily basis. The Shepard’s pie and fish n chips are one of the best things on the menu.

If you’re in Destin, you need to visit this place. They have dollar bills covering the ceiling of the entire restaurant, it’s glorious.
It has amazing food. The waitresses are extremely nice.
They have outdoor seating, upstairs seating, an outdoor bar and gift shop with tons of cool stuff.
My experience here was very pleasant and I recommend it to everyone.

Let me start this off by telling you to read the signs leading you into the bathroom. I ended up in the women’s room for being careless.
Let’s start this!
I really enjoyed this place!
While we walked into a gigantic line we somehow were able to slide right in to a «small» booth. I guess a booth that can fit a four adults is small here. Either way, not sure how it happened but kudos to the hostess for hooking us up.
Right away you can see that this is a fun place. They have over a million dollars hung from the ceiling, Irish music being played throughout, and a staff full of smiles and energy.
We sat down and were treated immediately by our server, Buckley. This guy is easily the best server I’ve dealt with in years. He was quick, attentive, and friendly. All without being pushy or seeming impatient in any way. He did a great job explaining the beer lineup, and giving food recommendations. They serve you bread before the meal, which is covered with like a honey glaze. It was slap your mama good! For dinner I ordered the Reuben Burger, no corned beef. Not the best burger I’ve had but definitely not the worst. They sear both sides and still leave plenty of juices to cover your face and dribble on your shirt. Unlike other places, Buckley didn’t hover over us. He let us enjoy our meal while dropping in at appropriate times, appropriate being when we had a mouthful of food.
I can’t say enough good things about this place. I’ll surely be back before my time in the area is up.

So far this place is very cool! Beer is alright (I’m a beer snob), but it’s local so that’s a plus! The bread they gave us to snack on is phenomenal. Rye bread with a honey glaze and grass fed bitter. I ordered a peanut butter and bacon burger, which was outstanding. I even threw some jalapeños on if. The décor on the walls is awesome, but make sure you are careful of choosing the right restroom! Our waiter Buckley was one of the friendliest fellows that I have ever experienced. Check this place out!

You need to see this place! It’s worth it just for a look. Then stay for the food and libations.
Molly McGuire’s is what I’d call a storybook Irish American Pub.
To start: check out the signed dollar bills. You can’t miss them, they cover every inch of the ceiling and most of the walls. Truly amazing. They also have a rather well stocked Irish gift store, filled with everything you can imagine related to all things Blarney at a reasonable price.
The place huge! It has:
Outdoor seating, (nice for good Florida weather).
An Outdoor bar.
An upstairs seating and full bar area that is somewhat temperature controlled and dry, though maybe not as good on cooler days if you’d rather be warm.
A banquet/​party room — good for huge groups and revelry.
A large primary seating area, booths/​tables.
Upstairs reserved bar table seating, (nice perch to hear the live music and see everything.)
Open Bar seating, if you can find a seat, you can eat and drink both.
My wife and I opted for reserved seating, and were set up in the tall table bar area. We loved it! Brian, by the way, is one of the best servers I’ve experienced in the business to date, and I worked in the industry for 12+ years, so that says a lot. Ask for Brian if you get the chance — he’s the sort of server I aspired to be.
That said, the food and drink options, to use Brian’s term: are truly gravity-​defying!
First, I must say that they have smoked, yes — smoked, prime rib. It has it’s own special box on the menu for a reason. I had it, and when I was done, I wanted another plate of it. It’s that good. Get it around 6pm when it just comes out of the smoker. It puts some Texas brisket I’ve had to shame.
The blacked grouper was good, along with the fried grits cake; something else I’ve never had yet really do need to re-​create in my own kitchen.
The house salad was tasty, but the Senate Bean Soup everyone raves about was definitely worth adding. It’s a house tradition, a must-​try for .18 cents. Veggies note: It does have chicken stock.
The garlic mashed potatoes and baked potato are true Ériu classics. You just can’t pass them up. Better get a serving of both with the real butter and brown bread that come to the table. YUM.
After several rounds of the beer they brew on site — yes, it’s also a brewery with many excellent options, of which I believe I tasted them all — I didn’t have room for dessert or an Irish Coffee.
However… I learned from a nice local couple who chatted with us a while that the brunch at this place is crazy! Bottomless Mimosas, Irish Coffee, and 6-​egg omelets are just a few of the features worth coming back for.
May your path always be Green, and Golden!

Best Steakhouse in Destin! The Filet or New York Strip is perfect add a wedge salad with blue cheese and a loaded baked potato you have got the best meal ever! A must try is their hot spinach dip and if you love BBQ ribs, they are awesome, too! Can’t go wrong here — there’s something for everyone and the cocktails are phenomenal. It is kid friendly in the day and early evening hours for sure! Make sure to sharpie a dollar to leave on the wall or ceiling for luck!

Love! Always fun & everything is yummy!
Irish wakes sooooo good!
Love the fish & chips, love the Shepard’s pie & Reuban!
Nom nom nom!
Oh & get the bean soup!

This is just like a traditional Irish pub. Just bigger, with a gift shop on the side, and they brew there own beer! The inside is dark and woodsy.
I tried the Shepard’s pie. It was good, but a little on the salty side. The kids loved there Mac and cheese.
I’d like to come back and try the bean soup and prime rib.

Amazing Steaks, and the best bean soup I have ever had at .18 per cup… yes I said .18. The wait is pretty long, so be prepared, but not too bad if you can snag an outside table and have a drink while you wait.
They have a couple of specialty drinks in souvenir mason jars that are reasonably priced.
There is an outside shopping center across the street on the water that has fireworks once or twice per week around 8 or 9 I think.

What a great place!!! We were planning to go to another restaurant but ran into some other guests in our hotel that raved about this place so we changed and was certainly not disappointed. We ordered the Ribeye and it was hands down the best we’ve had in a long, long time. It was cooked to perfection!!! The meat was so tender the knife slid through like slicing butter. It was served with choice of salad and side dish, we chose asparagus. The restaurant is really cool!!! If you don’t get there early you will have a long wait. However, the restaurant seats 700 people so it goes by fast! The menu is packed with several mouthwatering options. I don’t think anyone will not find something of interest or go away hungry. Their portions are very generous!

One of my favorite places to eat when I’m in Destin. Took my fiancé here Friday night for her first visit. We started off with the Old Fashioned Ale and some boxeys. The boxeys are tasty, but very filling. She got a smoke gouda burger and I got the big daddy burger. They have an in house butcher, so you know the meat if fresh. We were given two huge burgers. They were both delicious, but we probably could have just split one sandwich. Our server was super nice and helpful. I got an Irish Wake as my topper (they can only serve you 3, but one is really all you need). Can’t wait to go there again.

BLUF: Great bean soup and weird mahi mahi. Funky cool, but touristy atmosphere/​seems to work.
This was one of many TDY dining stops along the ‘Redneck Riviera’ as locals call it near FWB. Brought the group of 15 folks visiting from Tokyo and Hawaii (and a few transplanted locals). We had to wait about 1 hour to get two large adjoining booths to accommodate our group. Incredibly busy for a Weds night past tourist season. But the outside seating was fine and there was an outdoor bar where we could get drinks and snacks for the wait.
Once inside, you are amazed at a ceiling adorned with $ 1 bills attached. Must be thousands of $ at hand if one was tall enough to grab them. Not sure how the fire department views this; perhaps they are not as flammable as ordinary paper.
Now on to the food, I ordered the 18 cent white bean soup (costs $ 18 if you don’t buy an entrée). It was exquisite! The best, and most satisfying bean soup I have had at any price. Copious quantities of dark Irish bread that was really nice too (if you like soft bread).
I ordered the mahi mahi as I was told this came out of the Gulf of Mexico and wanted to see if there was any difference between this and the Hawaiian kine’. Yup, a huge difference, and not a fish that I would ever have considered mahi mahi. Dense and dry, but not overcooked (appeared moist in the center). Our HI mahi rocks compared to this stuff. Nicely prepared and flavorful though and works to satisfy fish enthusiasts (I only ate mostly fish this week). Those that ordered burgers were overwhelmed by their size and most took ½ home with them. Marc ordered the Irish lamb stew that I was considering, but left much in the plate. I was later told that it was too salty for true enjoyment,
I enjoyed the atmosphere and the killer bean soup, so 4 stars.

So dear reader, I am sure that you can ascertain from the many reviews that this is a dynamite place to gather and execute pure unadulterated gluttony. It is. Destin and Sandestin have plenty of restaurants, but it is by no means a true foodie destination. Most of the restaurants in the area have tourist pricing while offering subpar vittles.
Not at McGuires. This is a true value. The prices are fair and the food is delicious. The portions are ginourmous and the drinks are strong. This place is always on the itinerary when we travel to these parts. Our most recent trip we came to McGuire’s one day for lunch pre-​beach time and another day for dinner post-​beach time. We had ridiculous left-​overs after each meal. For dinners here, it is a shame, but, we can’t even order appetizers because there’s no room left for entrée course!
I love steak houses. There are a few good ones in this area, but for $ 29.99, a USDA prime, aged, wood-​fired ribeye, a side, and a starter, cannot be beat.
So come for the loud Irish-​themed atmosphere. Come for the strong drinks or local craft beer. Come for the food and be prepared to wait, because this place is always slammed!

I am a huge fan of McGuires, now that I’ve finally been. I have been coming to Destin for 32 years, but never could find a good enough reason not to eat either a) on the beach or b) seafood or c) both. McGuires would be d) none of the above…
So finally, we stopped in with a large group this year and I was able to experience the spectacular food here… for my first visit, I had a rare filet mignon, which came sizzling on a buttery skillet, and the Shepherd’s pie. Both ranked as the best I’ve ever had… and I’ve been to some spectacular steakhouses around the country.
I will also throw some accolades out to the $ 0.18 Senate Bean Soup and the Irish Blue Chips. Both fantastic appetizers, but be careful not to fill yourself up before the big meal.
BOTTOM LINE: McGuires is sans a beach view and your typical fried seafood, but may very well be the best restaurant in Destin anyway.

Came here tonight after reading Unilocal reviews … Not impressed. I got the bouillabaisse … Prob the worst I’ve ever had, way to sweet and basically tasted like canned tomatoes. Kids meals were generic (like most places), and my husbands rib eye was pretty basic.
I loove places with a good history, the whole money all over the wall was really cool. But it was so dark in there I could hardly see anything. (I mean so dark, my husband had to whip out the flash light on his phone to check if his ribeye was medium or rare). Over all… It’s fine, but over rated for sure

This was the place to go in the Destin/​Valparaiso area according to my cousin (Air Force Vet). It was packed on a Monday night! We waited 30 mins for a table but it was well worth it!
I knew I’d be getting a ton of food! Steamed mussels to start… oh great garlicky goodness. I spilled about half of the white wine sauce on my pants but they were still awesome! I also ordered the Senate Bean Soup which is well worth the 18 cents!
I wanted to try a steak burger so I went with the Vidalia onions, mushrooms, and blackened onions. Didn’t want cheese but it was there anyway! One of the best burgers I’ve ever had!
Place is unique; touristy but good for locals too! Read the bathroom signs! Begging my cousin to go back before I leave!

Wir hatten die Ribs. Und diese haben absolut die Note 1 verdient. Das Fleisch fiel förmlich von den Knochen, und sie schmeckten umwerfend. Trotz des super Essens war die Portion so riesig, dass wir uns eine Box geben lassen mussten. Das selbstgebraute Bier hatte locker Europäischen Standard. Auch preislich kann man hier nicht klagen. Sehr zu empfehlen.