Murphy’s of DC

ah. it’s closed. no wonder. :)

This is a frustrating place. You want to drink, it’s fine. You want to eat? It’s time to roll the bones! The first meal I ever had here was — no exaggeration — one of the best meals I’ve ever had in my life (mac and cheese with blackened chicken and a few beers. Very simple, and absolutely perfect). This was back in April or May; I’m writing this in November.
Unfortunately, everything I have had here since has been pretty lackluster. Last time I was there, I ordered the roast beef sandwich, and couldn’t finish it — because I am pretty sure the roast beef itself was on the verge of rotten. It was *foul*.
How did they go from «one of the best meals I’ve ever had» to «I hope this doesn’t kill me»? I don’t know, but they did. Someone needs to clean house. I live in the neighborhood. I WANT them to be my local. But they’ve got a long way to go at this point.

Murphy’s is a great Irish pub & bar in Woodley Park. Just off the Woodley Park metro. Wonderful traditional Irish food and classic American favorites. You cannot get a bad dinner at Murphy’s cause ever dinner is fabulous! Large selection of beer and wines and nice bar & patio.

I mean, dang. This brunch puts DC brunch to shame. My potatoes were cold and chewy and my omelette was mediocre at best. The cheese inside was luke warm and hardened. I had to pat down the grease off my eggs and the biscuit was so dry that it crumbled out of my very hands. The menu said that brunch was supposed to come with a mimosa (which was greatly needed to wash down and forget what was being eaten), but we had to request them ourselves. Our server seemed annoyed by everything and was seemingly displeased at all times. I would absolutely never ever ever recommend this brunch to anyone ever.

Wow… this Irish girl is impressed. My friend and I had the fish and chips and corned beef… OMG THEY WE’RE BOTH AMAZING! Service was a little slow but the good food made up for it. BRAVO!

This is a stone’s throw from the hotel, Marriott Wardman. Ok tap beer, the mozzarella sticks are ok… the Shephard’s Pie is good and the Rueben is so so… and that is why you have a so so restaurant.

Close to the Omni Shoreham and I wanted a Guinness. Walking by this pub over a weekend and a few weekday’s this pub was never busy. Location should be good as directly across from an apartment complex and two large hotels. Service was slow and the Guinness was not great (which usually indicates either/​both don’t know how to pour a Guinness or the keg was not fresh). Did not try the food. The entertainer was good and funny (live guitar/​singing/​jokes) so the reason for the lack of business was not his fault.

I only got beer here, and it’s hard to mess up beer. The prices were decent. But man, we came here to watch a soccer game and barely lasted the half before we bolted.
First off, they were ill prepared for a crowd. I am sure this is not the first sporting event that attracted a large crowd. They are across the street from a large conference center hotel. Tons of people stay at this hotel. And, there main competition, the overpriced hotel bar. All that said, it took forever for our beer order to come through.
Problem two, they don’t believe in air condition. It was in nineties and humid as hell. We were dripping in there. That is fine for your own home if you want to save a few bucks, but don’t drive your clients out by being cheap. In the end, you will lost more than you will save.
On a cool night when there is no crowd, I am sure this hole in the wall serves its purpose. But my visit was far less than stellar.

The food is nothing to write home about. I came here for dinner twice. The first time I had the French dip, which was flavorless beef piled onto a roll. The au jus it was served with was oddly peppery. I ate half and happily abandoned the other half on the plate.
The second time I had the Reuben, which was better, but still not great. The corned beef at least had some flavor and a multitude of sins can be masked by Thousand Island dressing and sauerkraut.
Service was good on both visits.

So apparently cottage fries are not fries, crisps, or chips. They are basically sliced potatoes. Wish they said something when I ordered.

I found myself here with family during the afternoon after visiting the local sites. We were hungry, and other locations in the area were busy with an extended wait. We were immediately seated in the back bar area, and our orders were taken quickly.
Our food was pretty good (Reuben sandwich), and it came out hot and in short order. The reason I wasn’t impressed with Murphy’s is that it was in less than great shape. There were stock items and other things in the dining area, around the tables, and overall the room was pretty worn. If you’re looking for a dive bar that tries to cater to an Irish theme, then this is your kind of place.

place is good for drinks, but not for dinner
ordered corn beef, thought would be good since its irish bar. Turned out gross and taste like eating rubber corn beef.
Had calamari for app and the dipping was microwave to heat it up
my wife had crab cake, it was ok but dried

Good place to grab a drink. No food tonight strictly liquid diet. Tables outside where you can smoke! Did not even know that is possible in DC. Black and Tan with a side car of Jameson.
Fast and friendly service. Nice break from the convention hell I am trying to avoid across the street.

Very simple. Overpriced. Mediocre food at best. Excellent location. If you’re at one of the hotels and just want to get out for a quick pint, it will do.
Honestly though, you’re better off spending a dollar on the red circulator buses outside the metro and going one stop into Adams Morgan (or walking over the bridge if you’re not lazy).

So I’ve been thinking about what I want to rate Murphy’s. It’s really not very good, but I do like going to trivia there. But, you see, there are two parts of the previous sentence. One has very little to do with Murphy’s (trivia is run by a third party), and one has everything to do with Murphy’s (the food is not supplied by a third party).
I’ve only ever had a burger there because burgers are half priced during trivia (OK, yes, that’s a positive). The burgers tend to be overcooked and could use some flavor. Last time, I ordered a Murphyburger with cheese, bacon, and BBQ sauce. I was not pleased when a plain hamburger came out. The waiter went back to the kitchen and returned with my new and improved Murphyburger: the previous plain hamburger with two pieces of Canadian bacon and a cold piece of cheese slapped on it and a small container of BBQ sauce on the side. Yes, Murphy’s, I did want you to make a bad burger even less appealing.
I will say that the potatoes that come on the side are tasty, but you only get 3 – 4, so they are gone before you can say, «Let’s try somewhere else for trivia next week.»
Also, the bathrooms are gross.

There’s a lot that’s good about Murphy’s.
Mostly, Tuesday trivia is legit. The questions and format (run by Trivia Tryst) are the best in town, and it lacks some of the most common trivia stressers: the atmosphere is just right — not too big (but not small) — and the music plays at reasonable volume. Getting a table isn’t difficult. Also, the specials are good (half-​off burgers and $ 3.50 Heinekens).
Other good things: Happy hour (½ off all drafts and all apps 4−7PM). I’ve found the service to be friendly and attentive (if not the most competent). They have a good amount of TVs (including outdoors) with plenty of sports.
Not so good things:
— While the half-​off burger deal is a good one, the burgers themselves are… pretty poor.
— The bathrooms are disgusting. I mean, I can tolerate it, but it’s a restaurant, it’d be nice if they were at least reasonably clean? The men’s room is also awfully laid out. (To go into unnecessary detail: While using the urinal, if someone walks in, you get hit in the back with the door. If somebody walks out of the stall, they are staring at you head-​on, which is… awkward. Both happened to me within 10 seconds)
— Like I said, they are sometimes not the most competent. I’ll let Valerie S. tell the full story… but when she received a plain burger instead of the «Murphy Burger» she asked for, the waiter left and returned with the same burger… plus a piece of uncooked cheese, two slices of bacon, and a side of BBQ sauce. It was hysterical. (Note: She found it less hysterical).
I recommend coming for trivia… though I see no reason to go any other time.

We were staying across the street and were looking for a casual lunch spot. The menu fit the bill.
Our waiter was horrible. We sat way too long to order. We flagged down a waiter and he said he’d be right back. When he finally returned, we told him we had some place to be in an hour and he said the kitchen was backed up so we wouldn’t make it. Mind you, the place was nearly empty. We took our chances and the kitchen was efficient enough to produce two adequate hamburgers and a forgettable mac and cheese.
We will not be back!

The $ 9 champagne brunch on weekends is a great deal. Many people opt to watch games in the outdoor patio area. The food, décor, and service are not impressive, and once I had to scrape off leftover crumbs from the table myself after sitting down. However Murphy’s might be a great alternative to Open City next door, which in my humble opinion is pathetically overrated (I am not waiting in line for over an hour to get brunch ever again). Also a good place for New England sports fans.

After completing The Nation’s Triathlon earlier in the day, our TEAM decided to celebrate here since it was walking distance from our hotel. We managed to find several large tables in the outside patio where we could all hang out.
We all were able to let loose and beers were being ordered all around. My teammate decided to order fish & chips and devoured it. She kept saying they were the best fish & chips she’s ever had so of course, I had to try them too.
Our waitress was covering a large area so it was hard to flag her down but I eventually did. When I got my dinner, I thought the fish was pretty darn good. Large pieces of fish and very flavorful. I thought they were a bit greasy but they’re fried, what do you expect? I did not care for the fries or «chips» though. they were cut in rounds and weren’t really crispy at all. In fact, they were kind of soggy. I took a bite of one and left the rest on the plate.
Since we were here celebrating for hours on end drinking and being complete fools, as the night went on, the place begin to completely fill up. Soon, you couldn’t even get around. With the crowds also came the smokers. Unlike California, you can smoke outside in the patio so we were consumed with plumes of cigarette smoke. It made me realize that we are very spoiled in California. This kind of ruined the evening for me. I can handle a few people smoking but when the entire area is smoking, it was tough for this California girl to cope.
By this time, it was midnight. With the exception of the 2 hour nap I took after the triathlon, I had been up since 3 am. The smoke had made me realize it was time to call it a night. So I did. For the 4 or 5 hours we hung out here drinking and celebrating, Murphy’s did pretty good and supplied an endless flow of beers for the evening.
I’d recommend the fish but not the chips. Service is spotty but does the job.

We dined here because it was so close to our hotel and I really wanted a burger. It seemed like the place to go.
We walked in and could not find a host/​hostess to seat us. We did a lap around the establishment and noticed a drunk man at the bar shouting at the patrons. That’s when we decided this place wasn’t for us. But, we couldn’t find anything else nearby and we were traveling on foot. So, we gave it a try anyhow.
This time, we walked in and finally were seated by the hostess. First of all, the tables were so close together, it felt like we were dining with the people next to us.
So, we order drinks and we order our food. Some of our drinks came in plastic cups because the waitress said they ran out of glasses… *shrugs* Okay.
Now, 20 minutes or so later a member of the kitchen staff comes to our table with an item we didn’t order. We say, we didn’t order a steak, but a steak sandwich. Okay. Hopefully both our orders will come out soon. By this time, I’ve finished my drink and ask for another beer. About 10 minutes goes by and we asked what happened to the beer. The waitress said, «Oh! The keg kicked. So, did you want to wait or did you want another beer?» Well, I guess I already did wait because you never told me that the keg was kicked, haha. Anyhow, I order a different kind of beer.
Then my boyfriend’s steak sandwich finally shows up. Yahoo. Oh, but wait, he asked for vegetables instead of fries and there are fries on the plate. :/​And wait, where’s MY burger? We wait another ⁵⁄₁₀ minutes for my burger to show up. And, get this, their cottage fries were burnt beyond recognition.
The waitress was kind enough to remove the burger and beers from the bill, however, we were still charged for the first incorrect item that came out. We did clear that up.
She did apologize and stated how busy it was. But, I must say, we looked around and the place did not look busy at all. I can’t imagine what a slow night looks for them. Or a night that it’s actually busy, you may find yourself not eating or drinking at all and if you do, it will be from plastic-​ware.
If I return to DC I will not be returning to Murphys.
Cheers!