Irish Fry Up from Mitchell’s Public House.
Reminder Publishing photo by Tyler Garnet
When people think of starting their day off right, they — hopefully — think of the most important meal of the day: breakfast.
I checked out Mitchell’s Public House at 490 Pleasant St., Holyoke, which is their new location after moving a few months ago.
When I went to the restaurant, it was in the morning, so probably a little too early to enjoy a Guinness, but that is why I may have to visit again.
When you walk in, there are two different rooms — the right for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and the left was a bar with a few tables to enjoy watching a game and/or drink.
They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner with a lot of traditional dishes for each meal as well as Irish breakfast which consists of rashers sausages, black and white pudding, Irish baked beans, Irish brown bread, all imported from Ireland.
Dishes included an omelet with a side of either French toast or home fries, but I wanted to try an Irish breakfast that includes several kinds of sausages, bacon, eggs and a few other sides to fill me up.
Although I usually say I am Irish during the month of March, I wanted to make sure to extend it a day and try one of their house favorites, Irish Fry Up, which is two eggs, rashers, Irish sausage, black and white pudding with beans or tomatoes, served with brown bread or toast.
I was not adventurous enough to get the beans, but made sure to try the brown bread and ordered my eggs scrambled.
The food came over very fast and I was quickly pleased with the spread on the plate. All of the food was delicious, and I have never had black and white pudding, but it was better than I expected.
When I read on the menu “black and white pudding,” I expected something similar to the pudding cups our moms used to pack us for lunch, but this was very different.
I admit I looked it up, but Irish black and white pudding is a traditional delicacy that has been enjoyed in Ireland for centuries. They are sausages with a unique blend of meat, fat, grains and spices.
Now that I know what it is and have tasted it, I want to have them any chance I get. The brown bread was also very dense, rich and a great bite.
A great bonus was the entire meal was very reasonably priced.
Besides the food, the atmosphere is very friendly. It has a local vibe where everyone knows each other.
Customers were waving to people they knew in other booths and others were coming in to get “their usual,” according to the waitresses who served them.
Where I grew up on Long Island, I had a local diner near me that so many people from the community embraced and would go to enjoy a good meal but also run into people they might not see too often. It was a spot to meet up after a long day at school or a long night at work.
I got a similar sense when I was at Mitchell’s Public House.
Although many customers were discussing the Red Sox, Celtics or Bruins — go New York — there was a great community vibe that makes me want to go back to catch a game or try their lunch or dinner options.
They have a wide array of lunch and dinner menu items with daily specials that is already making me want to go back.
I would recommend Mitchell’s Public House to anyone in Holyoke, but would mention to drive slowly as you approach it, because you may miss it.
