Galway Tribes Irish Pub & Alehouse

Good food, mostly irish or at least irish-​inspired. Good service. Servers have been pretty knowledgeable about the beer list. Nice ambiance. Even in the cold winter, they have a fire on the patio that you can at least see through the windows.

I’m averaging two stars from my first visit and four stars from my second visit. Actually, my second visit was more like three stars, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.
Visit #1: St Patrick’s Day 2008. For the first time in my life, I did not take the day off work, and in the evening I trekked down here to Patricia K.‘s stomping grounds to celebrate the holiday. The main area, with the music, was packed. I really wanted to hear some traditional Irish music, but our choice was between sitting in the crappy semi-​outdoor tent and wedging ourselves (standing) into a corner and trying to vulture a seat in the main area. Those people never budged, not one of them. We finally gave up and went to the tent. Earlier the tent had had no open seats either, but later some opened up.
The other problem was the food and drink. Beer was served in plastic cups – but sometimes they were 12-​ounce cups and sometimes they were 16-​ounce cups! Same prices! Only three choices, too (good enough for that day though – Harp, Smithwick’s and Guinness). Not to mention terrible pours. And the food menu was limited to 4 – 5 items and served in paper trays and foam plates with plastic silverware. Ugh ugh ugh. Worst St Patrick’s Day since 1998 (don’t ask).
Visit #2: Last Saturday evening around 7:30. Hey look – it’s a legitimate pub/​restaurant. It was full, but we waited less than ten minutes for a table. They were having live music at 9, and we were seated right by the stage, which wasn’t promising. Our visit did overlap with the music but it wasn’t deafening, thank goodness, and it was mostly enjoyable to boot.
Both bartenders were friendly and took good care of us. One heard me mention having recently tried Bell’s Double Stout and made a point to let me know that they had just run out (although I wasn’t planning to order it). The table service was fine, not outstanding, but I’m a big fan of the cute waitresses in short, plaid skirts.
Beer selection – five of the thirteen taps are devoted to Bell’s. Hey, I like Bell’s too, but how about some variety? I tried a Great Lakes Commodore Perry IPA which I really liked. There were a couple of neat surprises, such as Grolsch on tap.
Food – fairly middling. The menu is large, and I had a hard time deciding, not for so many great choices but because nothing really grabbed me. I ended up with an Irishman bison burger – cheddar, Irish bacon, and mushrooms. C+, nothing special. The fried calamari was supposed to come with bell peppers and red onions, but it was just plain, and consequently rather boring. C+ again. I tried some of the corned beef and cabbage (actually I finished what Patricia didn’t) and it was good, although the meat was dry.
I want to try their «Irish eggrolls,» the atmosphere is pleasant, and the music seems consistently enjoyable, but honestly, I can’t see myself getting back here anytime soon since it’s just a three-​star establishment and located about 750 miles from my home.

Made another venture out to Galway Tribes in an attempt to change David R’s mind about the place. I believe (pending his review) that it was a success.
First, we had a 10 – 15 minute wait so we sat at the bar for a drink. The bartender placed my drink in front of me and stated «this should warm you up!» And it sure did seeing as it was heavy on the alcohol. A+ to Mr. Bartender! It is so rare to find a bartender with a heavy hand when it comes to the liquor these days.
This time, I had the corned beef and cabbage. Excellent. The cabbage was huge! The potatoes were great and they respected my wishes to leave out the carrots. I also enjoyed their mustard sauce, which for me is abnormal. For dessert, we split their apple caramel bread pudding. OMG… so good. Moist and flavorful and devoured in record time.
At 9pm sharp, the live entertainment began. We were a bit nervous as our seats were right in front of the stage. I’m talking only a railing separated us from the band. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad! The acoustics were pretty good and I could even still hold a minimal conversation of sorts through the music.

I absolutely love this place. The owner is from Ireland and really stands behind the business. I have always had good food and the selection changes which I think is a plus. They also have TONS of live entertainment (nearly every night) and there is very rarely a cover charge. They offer regular special events as well. Its a great place to go with family or hang out with friends. The really great thing about the Tribes is their beer selection. It is so refreshing to have a place nearby that always has good beer. Plus, they have regular beer tastings and local micro brewery events. During events the wait staff can be a bit overwhelmed but if you’re there to have a good time, you won’t notice.
Check out their website and sign up for their newsletter… it is really helpful to know about their upcoming events.

I’d give it 3 ½ stars. I haven’t been there to hear any music, and I’d like to if I’m down that way sometime.
The food wasn’t bad, though there was a problem in getting it. My friend doesn’t eat cheese, and ordered his buffalo burger without it, but it came out with cheese. We were less than impressed when the waitress asked if he wanted it completely remade, or just have the (melted) cheese taken off. Even though it was ordered without cheese, and it was the restaurant’s mistake. It was his first buffalo burger, and he said it was great, but that part was just weird. I had potato soup (excellent) and a sandwich (the Rachel something), which it was really good (but damn I love sauerkraut). I’m sure I’ll be back eventually, but since I live on the north side, it probably won’t be very soon.

ive been here a couple times while visiting family in the ‘burbs and its a pretty nice place! they have a lot of non-​traditional beer on tap and the food is pretty delicious. a family friend requested curry sauce for the fries that came with her sandwich, which was pure genius.
if you like live music while havin a beer, this is your place. however, if youre lookin for a conversational dinner, either get here early or dont come. the bands coming in (seem to be, at least) rotate in style. sometimes traditional irish, sometimes more rock-​y. last friday a band from indianapolis, siochain, came and totally rocked my socks off.

People make mistakes. It happens. You. Me. We all make mistakes.
Having been here several times and having a wonderful experience several times, we expected the same last Friday night and it didn’t happen. It was evidently one of those nights that everything just went wrong.
What I like is when a business and person takes ownership and says, «Hey we goofed. Our bad!».
And that is exactly what Niall Freyne, the owner or one of the owners, did. He was genuinely concerned, apologetic, and responsive, and he made things right.
That to me is what a relationship is all about. We all goof. It happens. What I like is this guy and his team stand behind their product and service and you cannot ask for more than that.
In a world where you and I as consumers are used to getting lousy service and shafted on products it is refreshing to know that this place is different.

THIS PLACE HAS CLOSED.
Ehh…disappointing and overpriced suburbanite faux Irish place. Seemed like a good night for some beer and comfort food and didnt feel like driving aroundChicago looking for a parking spot so we headed down 80 to Frankfort. $ 60 and one hour later I wished I’d stayed home and eaten a couple of Lean Cuisines instead!
They do have a decent list of beers on tap (including 3 Floyds) but no bargain at $ 6/​pint. I ordered the small fish and chips at $ 9.95 — it came with ONE piece of fish and no peas (had to pay $ 3.95 extra for those!) and even had to ask for the vinegar! Fish was tasty enough but way too mingy for ten bucks. «Chips» were standard issue fries — crisp and hot but not authentic. Husband tried the shepherds pie — yuck! It had some spicy brown sauce in the meat, very few vegs and the mash was piped on top rather than covering the meat. He only ate half the small dish which was also way too pricey at $ 13.95 even if it had been edible.
Might as well have gone to Bennigans if I wanted fake Irish!

I should take away a star for being so far away from where I live. But I digress, we went here last weekend to see an Irish band play and have dinner. We spent a while talking with the bartender and tried several types of beer or cider before we settled on Black Thorn and I forget the other — but we were happy and getting a bit drunk. The menu is pretty impressive, in that there’s a separate weekly menu that’s based off of fresh specials and they all sounded good. We had the salmon, the bangers and mash, and the oysters. On top of it all, we didn’t have to pay since we were with family! Overall a nice place for family, friends, and groups. Not especially romantic for dates. Good music too.