4 out of 5 stars

I’ve been to Trali Irish Pub twice now and both times really enjoyed both my meal and the atmosphere.  Once you find Trali (behind BJ’s at Brier Creek) and struggle to find parking you’ll enter a warmly lit convivial environment complete with comfortable tapestried seating at traditional-looking wooden tables.  Weeknights this place will be buzzing with activity and it can get a bit loud, but not rowdily so when I’ve been.

One our recent visit, we enjoyed one of the appetizer specials of the day, fresh mozzarella with tomato and basalmic vinegar.  Friends have highly recommended the Guinness flavored mussels as well but I must admit I was also tempted by the fried camembert cheese with strawberries.  For my entree, I tried a prociutto and pea cream sauce over bowtie pasta.  It was perfect, lightly creamy and not too heavy, with thick slices of prociutto and fresh peas. Hubs tried out some baked cod from the daily specials menu as well, which he enjoyed. On a previous visit I had the cornish game hen, which was acompanied by some delicious roasted potatoes.

I don’t think you can go wrong at this friendly pub, where the attention to detail put into the décor hasn’t exceeded the attention paid to the quality of the food and the preparation of it. Stop in for a drink and find out what the new specials are.

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4 out of 5 stars

O’Malley’s Tavern is hidden in a quaint shopping center off of Glenwood Avenue, across from the Rooms to Go and just up the road from Crabtree Mall. Fellow reviewers’ descriptions of a dive bar are correct, but this is a dive bar with personality. Well-worn wooden booths welcome you on one side, and the other sports pool tables and comfortable-looking couches. Patrons seem to be made up of a come-as-you are local crowd, which is a breath of fresh air compared to many places farther down Glenwood. Speaking of fresh air, now that all bars are non-smoking it shan’t deter you from visiting this hidden gem. They even have a nice patio out front.

I actually only stopped in here for breakfast, but really did enjoy the simple meal and friendly service. The breakfast menu here is actually pretty broad, taking up two sides of a menu page. I had the country fried steak and two eggs with toast, plus choice of hash browns or oatmeal or grits for $5.75. My steak was relatively small, but quite satisfying for the price paid. Hubs had Byron’s Breakfast, consisting of two eggs, two sausage links plus wheat toast for $5. His sausage links were deliciously herby and tasted homemade. Prices are reasonable with lots of options to choose from, including corned beef hash, sweet potato sticks, yogurt, omelettes, pancakes, breakfast sandwiches, french toast and more.

Drink (including pitchers) and food specials look generous, so try them out any time of the day.

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