Irish and Bar. Two words that inspire thoughts of drinking and good times. But good food? Not so much. So you can be forgiven for coming to Passage Irish Bar in Astoria solely to get your drink on. They do after all have one of the City’s largest selections of Irish whiskeys and beers. But if you’re skipping on the food, you’re missing out on some seriously great grub.
The menu features a lot of typical bar food with its own (often Irish) twists. For example there’s Baked Guinness Mac n Cheese with a strawberry wine crust that’s one of my new favorites macs in town. But they also do some Irish classics including lots of imported black pudding and drinks made with Irish energy drink Lucozade. It’s a fun mix of gastropub and classic Irish cuisine. The narrow bar has plenty of tables to catch up with friends or watch the game while you gnaw on some bites. I tried a good deal of the menu and my favorites are below:
Baked Guinness Mac n Cheese Smoked Bacon. Mac n’ Cheese. Too much of a good thing? Never. But the mac itself is surprisingly good and the not-too-sweet strawberry wine crust is a pleasant addition. This is one of my top 5 macs in the City.
Jameson Spring Rolls You may be noticing that you won’t be the only thing marinated in Irish alcohol at Passage. That’s a good thing. The Jameson makes a tasty marinade for the steak inside which also comes with onion and tomato.
Passage East Signature Salad Yeah the food here isn’t the healthiest. So if you’re feeling an overwhelming urge to do something good for you body, this baby green salad with dried tomato vinagerette is pretty tasty.
Banter Burger When I first started making burgers in high school, Worcestershire sauce was one of my favorite ingredients. It’s great to see a restaurant finally employing it. The Banter also comes with blended red onions and is topped with pepperjack cheese and chipotle mayo. It’s definitely a step above your typical bar burger.
St. James Date Sometimes the beauty is in the simplicity. Nutella and ice cream mixed to resemble the iconic beer tastes delicious.
The 99 Another simple but delicious dessert is this soft serve with Cadbury flakes. That’s real UK Cadbury, not the garbage we’re generally forced to eat here.
Lucozade Creamsicle Lucozade – a popular Irish energy drink – gets the cocktail creamsicle treatment with Smirnoff Citrus, Sour Apple, Rhubarb Bitters and a topping of Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. If you’re looking for a dessert cocktail that’ll keep you going through the night, this is it.
Note: I was invited as a guest of the establishment and received a complimentary meal. This was not in exchange for a positive review and opinions expressed are my own.
Passage Irish Bar & Kitchen
40-11 30th Avenue
Astoria, NY
