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- Hours:
Mon-Sat 11 pm - 2 am
Sun 10 pm - 2 am
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Music:
- Live
- Best Nights:
- Tue, Fri, Sat
- Happy Hour:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Coat Check:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Loud
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
30 reviews for Brian Boru Restaurant & Pub
Review Highlights
"In fact, the corned beef reuben is another not to miss- I..."
(in 7 reviews)
"5.00 Tuesday burger night can't be beat."
(in 5 reviews)
"Was very pleasantly surprised at how great the food in the..."
(in 3 reviews)
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30 reviews in English
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Review from Francesca R.
Takoma Park, MD
12/21/2011 1 Check-in Here
Love this place! Although it is a bit of a trek for us, my husband and I make an effort to make the drive up as often as possible. The food is always wonderful, and the service is friendly and attentive.
It's the holidays, so don't forget to bring home a bottle of their egg nog! -
Review from Michael B.
Annapolis, MD
11/21/2011
We arrived after getting dinner elsewhere and we were pleasantly surprised to find live music. The man playing was named Dan Haas and he was fantastic! The atmosphere here is warm and inviting with lots of dark wood for the bar, tables, stools, etc. We sat at the bar and had a few drinks while we listened to music. The bartenders were quick and attentive as were some of the other employees who stopped by just to make sure we were not hungry etc.
I've eaten dinner here before and it was fairly authentic Irish with lots of cabbage/corned beef/Shepard's pie options. However, it was fairly expensive for the portion sizes. i would recommend Brian Boru as a stop for drinks. -
Review from Gary H.
9/6/2011 1 Check-in Here
Not that I do much bar-hopping in the Ritchie Hwy area, but this is the best bar I've been to around there.
I came for the ladies' night. Correction: the wife dragged me here for the ladies' night. They have a very warm and inviting atmosphere and the drinks are about the same price as one would expect everywhere else. I was happy to see Smithwick's on their beer selection. We were at an Irish pub, after all. It's pronounced smiddick's by the way. Don't mispronounce it or you may be given a hard time... I learned that first hand. Of course it was all in jest.
I only had a couple of appetizers while I was there. Brian Boru has the standard fare of fried food amongst more traditional Irish selection. From what I had, it was nothing to write home about, but the entrees looked better than the fried corned beef we tried. We ordered a slice of chocolate cake, too, and it was massive! There was more than enough to share between four people.
My favorite part was that they have live music during the week. I'm not sure if it is every night, but we were there on a Thursday, so I suppose it's possible. -
Review from MICHAEL U.
Elkridge, MD
12/18/2011 1 Check-in Here
The Irish Family of restaurants gets it right again!
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Review from Scott D.
Severna Park, MD
11/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
Our second time here trying to keep our money close to home.
This is a good little "Irish Pub", i had the Reuben which was great and came with some big ole steak fries. My friend had the lamb stew which was OK too. No need to save room for dessert, the bread pudding and the Chocolate Mousse were just meh...
This place is clean and the staff is friendly so i left it at 4 stars. -
Review from John M.
Bountiful, UT
6/25/2011 1 Check-in Here
This is a great place for a beer, and they have a very fun trivia night on Mondays.
They serve Irish pub food, and it is yum. -
Review from John H.
Leominster, MA
8/11/2011
Shepard pie is very good but a small portion. Lots of beer on tap and no doubt a wide selection of Irish whiskeys.
Also tried the crab cake appetizer (excellent) and had a very good burger. -
Review from Robert P.
Glen Burnie, MD
7/23/2011
Stopped in here last night for a beer. Pretty cool bar, nice atmosphere, friendly bartenders. Had a 2 man band playing covers and they were surprisingly good. Enjoyed my time here and will have to come back and try the food at some point.
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Review from Wise W.
Pasadena, MD
9/19/2011
I have only been for the brunch, but it was well worth it. There was an excellent selection with a create your own omelet and fresh waffle stand. I would recommend a reservation as it fills up fast. For the price, I would have hoped for mimosas or bloody marys to accompany the breakfast.
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Review from Timothy O.
Annapolis, MD
7/26/2010
5.00 Tuesday burger night can't be beat. Comes with Fries.. 5 Bucks!
It's a great pub atmosphere. If you seriously go to a Pub with high expectations for taste, you clearly don't understand how Pubs work.
I've had other menu items besides the burger and they're as expected, nice wait staff and quick service.
It's probably going to become my Tuesday night dinner location.
If you can find a place around here that will give you a quality burger and fries for 5 bucks please send me a message. -
Review from Stef M.
Millersville, MD
7/18/2011 2 photos
Excellent food, great service and relaxing atmosphere. Only downfall is that it's bit pricey.
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Review from Ariana T.
Glen Burnie, MD
6/18/2010 1 Check-in Here
It's been quite a while since our company holiday party, which we had this year at Brian Boru. If you are looking for a place to host a corporate event, may I suggest that you do yourself a gigantic favor and give Brian Boru a call? As someone who has never organized any kind of event other than a house party in my life, I was totally worried that it would be a hassle to find a really fun, cool, party-like venue a month before Christmas. I thought it would be expensive to rent out the place, a hassle to find someone who could answer my questions, and a nightmare to organize a menu and a drink special to satisfy about 100 people. It wasn't.
The management staff at Brian Boru is amazing. I met with one of the managers once to check out the location and he went through all of my questions, immediately understood the vibe we wanted, and he made suggested based on everything I gave him, including budget. I was worried that our budget would be too small and that we wouldn't be able to offer much to our guests - I was totally wrong. He sent me a menu via email, let me make changes, and then revised it.
The party was perfect. One of our highest turn outs for a company event, the food was FANTASTIC, and the drinks were extremely reasonable. People mentioned what a great time they had and congratulated me on how wonderful my planning was but I promise - all I did was pick up the phone and have a few conversations. Everything else was taken care of by their staff. (The waitstaff for our party, by the way, were equally as amazing. Very friendly, extremely patient, and they had an uncanny knack for taking your drink order and then tracking you down in a matter of seconds, even if you had moved across the room.)
If you're not planning a party, and you're just deciding which Irish pub to frequent, I would absolutely go to Brian Boru over Irish Channel any day, even though Irish Channel is about 3 minutes from my house and Brian Boru is about 20. The commute is worth it for better food, better service, and a better atmosphere. -
Review from JR C.
Annapolis, MD
1/13/2010
OK, I admit; I am not much for salad bars or buffetts (except for Jimmy and Warren). Maybe I have a phobia for food that half of the world picked over before me (and I haven't had my H1N1 or flu shots yet). So my expectations are not so high. Plus the fact that one never ever knows how long those eggs have been sitting in that steam table.
Prejudices aside, Brain Boru was a pleasant Sunday brunch with the son (his b'day), DIL and the wee bairns. The eggs Florentine and Benedict were remarkably good in spite of holding in the steam tables. So was the Shepard's pie and corned beef (homemade and cured, I am told) Didn't try the omelet station, for which I think I was remiss... fresh cooked and looked mighty good. The Spread of food was commendable. You will not go hungry I assure you. In spite of my physique, I am not a big eater, so that's not so important to me. (It's my hollow artificial leg I keep trying to fill with wine and ale). Value comes in quality, not quantity in my book.
I have been a regular at Killarney House and I occasionally haunt Galway Bay (sister restaurants) so I know this group's capabilities. I presume that Sunday brunch is the same in all three, but this is my first experience with the Sunday Buffet.
Probably, I should be a bit kinder with the rating... don't get me wrong... the food was good, the place accommodating; but I'd still rather just order the meal I want and have it made to my order and delivered to the table.Listed in: Annapolis Haunts
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Review from Dizdav D.
Millersville, MD
5/28/2011
A good Irish restaurant. The food was solid, very friendly staff and good drinks. It was a fun night out.
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Review from Tim S.
Severna Park, MD
2/14/2010
Fair Warning:
I've been to Brian Boru dozens of times now. I know most of the bar staff by name, and it's my favorite place to eat/DRINK in Severna Park.
My Review of the Reviews:
See all those reviews down there talking about Sunday Brunch this, and Buffet that? Is that really what you're going to judge this place on? "The buffet food experience one hopes (often in vain) to avoid," really?
I've never been to Sunday Brunch at Brian Boru, and if I ever go, I'm not going to base my opinion of the place on that experience. That would be like going to Ravens Stadium for a concert, and being disappointed by the acoustics. It's a football stadium, it's good for WATCHING FOOTBALL!! Brian Boru is an Irish Pub/Restaurant, it's good for Corned Beef and Whiskey and BEER!
If you're reading these reviews, please don't form an opinion based on the Buffet Brunch connoisseurs.
My Review:
Here's a couple things to remember. 1) Service at the bar is likely to be better than anywhere else in the restaurant. So if you're comfortable with that environment, go straight to a high top table, bar booth, or the bar itself. 2) Tuesday night is Burger Night. It's really busy, especially around happy hour. Service might be a little slow, but the burgers (basically, any way you like them) are still $5 (with fries!!).
Anything on the menu with corned beef is really good, if you like corned beef. The fried oysters are good. The Prime Rib is good, but you should probably order it on a Friday or Saturday to get it as fresh as possible. The traditional Irish stuff is good if you like traditional Irish stuff (Shepherd's Pie, etc.).
If you're going to sit at a table (i.e. not at the bar) it's actually best to go during peak hours when they have the most servers working. Seems weird, I know, but that's just how it is.
Good Luck! And remember, it's an IRISH PUB, not a Denny's! ;-) -
Review from Drew P.
Millersville, MD
8/25/2009
Quick review of one of my favorite places...
Brian Boru is one of my staple restaurants. I usually find my way to the bar, so I have no comments on ability of waiters. I will say, the bartenders John and Erin are great. I prefer to go on nights they work, thats how great they are!! So make your way to the bar and enjoy excellent service and great drinks!
Warning: do not dare go here and skip the corned beef balls. they are an amazing appetizer. In fact, the corned beef reuben is another not to miss- I almost live off of it. Also try the fish and chips, I've never had it but I've seen it ordered A LOT. -
Review from Nick P.
Beverly Hills, CA
3/20/2009
I'm going to skip the food review because it's basically decent pub grub at reasonable prices, but I must ask, "What the heck is up with the decor?"
Honestly, how many Guinness signs and vintage ads can they hang in this place? It looks as ridiculous as a 1986 Toyota Celica with a big Nike logo plastered across the rear window. Unless Guinness - or Nike - are paying you for advertising their brand, skip it or keep it to a minimum if you feel compelled to share your love for these companies. We get it! -
Review from Josh C.
Annapolis, MD
3/1/2011
My wife, son, and I went to Brian Boru for their burger night recently and I had a horrible experience. Apparently the manager had changed burger night from Tuesday (the day we went) to Monday. That would have been fine (though a little disappointing) as there are a number of other tasty items on the menu. As we were seated the manager explained the day shift but said that they would honor the burger night prices on Tuesday this first week as well as Monday. We waited at least 10 minutes for our waitress to turn up. At this point we ordered our food as well as our drinks. She showed up again with our drinks and that was the last time we saw her until well after our main courses were served.
We ordered fried oysters as an appetizer which came out promptly and tasted very good. When our main courses came out my wife was happy with her corned beef and cabbage but I noticed that a major component of my hamburger was missing. I had ordered the Caribbean burger (a new item) which was supposed to come with a slice of pineapple (nowhere to be found on the plate). Unfortunately the burger without the pineapple was very bland and I decided to ask our waitress to bring out a slice (I decided to overlook the fact that the burger was overcooked, the tomato was mush, and the lettuce was wilted). Eventually our waitress turned back up (15 min after our food had been delivered). I explained the problem with my burger. She responded that she didn't know what was supposed to come on it but would get me the requested pineapple. I waited for another 10 minutes, with no sign of our waitress I flagged down a waiter and made the same request to him. 15 minutes later our waitress finally turned back up, explained that the kitchen wasn't prepared for the surprise extra burger night and would get me the pineapple eventually. By now my burger was cold, my wife was finished with her dinner, and my son was getting stir crazy. I sent the food back, paid for the rest of the meal (this took another 15 minutes due to our exceptionally slow waitress) and left.
After this experience I cannot recommend this restaurant to anyone. I might give it another try in a few months and update this review (don't hold your breath). -
Review from TJ S.
Steep Falls, ME
4/23/2011
John the bartender pours the perfect pint!!!
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Review from Katrina W.
Annapolis, MD
2/12/2011 4 Check-ins Here
Best fish and Chips in Annapolis. Another perk is they have cider on tap. The service was outstanding both at the bar and in the restaurant. I agree with other reviews about the Tuesday night 5 dollar burger night being an event one can not miss. Burgers are made to perfection. They are juicy and appropriately seasoned.
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Review from Amy W.
Baltimore, MD
4/28/2010
***Update - the food is still good, but now, if you go there for 5.00 burger night and don't order a drink, they will charge you 2.50 more fore the burger. Kind of icky!
Went last night for the first time for Tuesday's $5.00 burger night...Burgers were fresh, and excellent! There was no catch - they were $5.00 and came with fat fries (known as "Chips" in Ireland). I also had the Bailey's Chocolate Mousse - also very good, but not large enough portion for the price.
You should definately mark your calendar for Tuesday nights at this great pub! -
Review from Corrie D.
Arlington, VA
1/14/2011
I love Brian Boru, its my favorite lunch time spot. Nothing beats a Magners and a Dublin Dip - delicious!
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Review from Kirsten D.
Annapolis, MD
5/14/2010
I have to say I really liked the food and service, until the part of the walls came crashing down. Yep, that's right apparently they have these low wood partitions in the dining room that are not bolted to the floor. My two youngest toddlers were walking by and put their hand on it and whosh, it falls straight down to the floor. Luckily it went away from the kids so there was no blood or mass hemorrhaging. The waitress told us not to worry, that happens all the time??? Well, that is my last visit to that place since it is a death trap for the kids!
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Review from J S.
Severna Park, MD
6/14/2010
Love the place. Great service, the bar tenders are friendly and they make it a point to remember your name. To all you people who are complaining about the food...its a pub...drink more and everything will be OK.
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Review from Cindi C.
Bowie, MD
8/22/2008
Brian Boru is a sister restaurant/ pub to Killarney House & Galway Bay. So the menu is pretty much the same as the other two. I enjoy the Wexford Potato pancakes that contain Cashel Blue cheese (yummy!!!) mashed potatoes with the crispy crust. Of course you can't go wrong with traditional Potato & Leek soup. The Chieftain salad is set off by a Black Current Port dressing (they should bottle & sell this). My DH enjoys the Scallop casserole. I really like the Cottage Pie every time I get it. You can't go wrong with any dish that has lamb. I allwas like getting the carrots and parsnips for my side, it feels like home to me. Plus they have a great variety of beers, ales and lagers too. But doesn't everything taste better with a pint of Guinness?
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Review from L G.
Rockville, MD
12/3/2009
Family and I have been for brunch on a Sunday twice this year. Once, months ago. The second time a few weeks ago. Finally getting around to writing a review.
Based on the first visit, would have given three, maybe even four, stars. Was very pleasantly surprised at how great the food in the buffet was. Really tasty. Everything looked like it had just been cooked and was frequently refreshed. Was wonderful. Service was attentive and helpful, especially given that we have younger children.
The second visit was very different. The food was pretty uninspired and bland. Some of the food looked and tasted like it had been sitting in the warming trays for quite some time and/or had been prepared much earlier and then reheated. Basically, was the buffet food experience one hopes (often in vain) to avoid. The service wasn't so great either -- not altogether bad, but not like it was the first time.
Wondering why the big downward change between the two visits. Not likely to go back for brunch again, although might give it one more go at some point to see whether the second visit was an anomaly or reflective of a permanent change. -
Review from Jim P.
Pasadena, MD
Updated - 5/19/2009
Preamble: I really, really, really want to like this place. Three stars based on wanting to like it, and having been to the brunch first. If we went to Saturday-lunch first, it'd be two. Or, likely, one.
Been back a few more times -- the brunch is the way to go. Someone there cares about brunch. Perhaps, even, trained in or sampled from the Center Of The Brunching Universe. This is not a "ludicrous spread the size of a football field, like you find in Vegas" (soul-restoring as they can be) but more a "feature-replete, modest, high-quality buffet," like you'd find at a very well catered party. Not always exactly the same stuff each time, either, which is nice.
Table service can be a little weak (flagging down for more coffee, after my cup is as empty, cold, and unloved as Cheney's heart is fail-rific, as is having to ask repeatedly for more cream whilst the finally-delivered coffee cools) but for the price, atmosphere and food quality, ya' can't beat it.
Now, there's been an alarming number of rugrats running around the times we've been (try not think of the grubby fingers on the public food... try not think of the grubby fingers on the public food... try not think of the grubby fingers on the public food...) but ya' can't blame Boru for that. On the other hand, if they added a "Kid's Meal" brunch for, oh, I dunno, $49.95?, they'd earn more fans.
Anyway - The brunch rules. Great place, great (most of the time) service, great food. Heck, the steam-table Eggs Benedict were better cooked (though the muffin was a touch soggy, but it was on a steamtable, so you can't blame it!) than a certain over-proud-of-their-Benedict place up the road, and they were on a _steam_table_. Come to think of it, maybe i need to update that review, too.
But, to be fair and even handed (if a bit tirade-y): Saturday lunch was rough. For starters, no lunch menu, just a full dinner menu. Maybe the waitron screwed up and gave us the wrong menus, but I was surprised. They have a non-buffet brunch menu on Sunday (which looks quite good!), but no lunch menu on a Saturday? Fail. Further compounding the fail, the Shepherd's Pie I ordered (based on being so tasty on the buffet) was not well assembled - seemed nuked to hell and back underneath (the stew bit) while artlessly pasted with lukewarm potatoes on top -- smooth and featureless is great for drywall, not so much for food! And, suprisingly, not browned at all. OK, that's not fair, there might have been a hint of browning at the one slight crease on the 'Tato Top. Honestly, the Sunday Big Ol' Tray looks better, and more lovingly, prepared. Very disappointing... _particularly_ at Full Tilt Boogey Dinner Prices. Further, service was slow and inattentive... particularly unacceptable as there weren't many diners.
Most alarmingly, the Irish Coffees were hastily / poorly assembled, and nowhere near up to the snuff of the previous examples. There seems clearly to be an A Team and a B Team.
Further, it must be some East Coast Thing to take away an empty glass and... never... offer... another... beverage. Seriously... what's with that? Maybe it's an odd joke I don't get. (Never liked Seinfeld either. Was there some episode you all memorized lambasting being offered another drink in between bouts of self-glorifying wonder at how great NY is?) Must have missed that in initiation or something. Here's a tip, waitrons of the world: Offering another beverage (a) is friendly and (b) increases EtOH intake and (c) adds to the check total, then, et voila, a + b + c == d Wherein (d) = "Increases tip, sometimes substantially." Just sayin'!
So, maybe Saturday is the punishment shift - those that party too hard Friday night get saddled with what must be skinflints and no-thanks-just-water-orderers on Saturday, or something.
We'll be back for brunch, for _sure_. We'll still probably try a dinner or two.... but Saturday lunch was a surprising disappointment... if you're gonna phone it in, why open at all? Three stars. But barely. Brunch stays four, but if that slips... there will be much disappointment and gnashing of teeth!1 Previous Review: Show all »
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3/17/2009
Only been (so far) for brunch, so this review (and the stars) are based on that. After brunch,… Read more »
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Review from tracey s.
Severna Park, MD
1/27/2010
I expected the worst - not sure why. I have to say - it wasn't that bad. A fine place to grab some appetizers and a couple beers! nothing wrong with that! I'd probably go again.
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Review from antoin k.
Glen Burnie, MD
4/23/2010
The Rib eye was a tough sinewy piece of meat smothered in frozen mixed vegetables. Did not deserve to even be called a steak. Beer selection was great and somewhat saved the day.
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Review from justin a.
Glen Burnie, MD
4/24/2011
just got through eating at brian borus for the second time the first time it was not impressive at all but i figured why not try again. little bit about myself i went there by myself im 26 years old and i have tattoos. so upon arrival the hostess gave me this look like what the hell are you doing here type stare. I was then seated where i had to wait about 5 minutes for my server who continued to cater to a larger crowd. Anyways upon her arrival she hastely took my drink order as well as my food order and didn't even ask what kinda dressing I wanted on my side salad. Anyways my salad was promptly brought out what a disapointment it was a very small portion and wasn't fresh it had been sitting in a refrigerator since???Anyways my main dish was then brought out it was chicken and vegetables served in a cream sauce the presentation was very nice and the flavoring was relatively good as well chicken was a little bland but all in all it was ok. The service was very lack luster and kinda upseting to watch a waitress cater like that how did she know I might have been a millionaire anyways in conclusion I would suggest eating at this place just dont get the waitress named alicia
