Paddy's Disappointments

Why am I disappointed? The first reason is painfully obvious to any Notre Dame fans out there. The Irish were out-played by Michigan. Notre Dame came out swinging, easily marching down the field for a score on their first possession. Michigan came right back to tie it up. Then Dayne Crist had to be sidelined for a while. The Irish’s 2 back-up QBs, included Joe Montana’s son Nate, couldn’t make anything happen. Meanwhile, Michigan’s offense picked apart the Irish defense, bringing the score to 21-7 at the half. Crist came back out to retake the lead at the end of the 4th quarter, but Michigan came right back with a game-winning score.

This was a different-looking team from last week. The Irish were firing on all cylinders against Perdue: offense, defense, and special teams. The run game looked like it wouldn’t solely consist of Armando Allen. But Michigan’s defense made the Irish look like a one trick pony; Crist passing to TE Kyle Rudolph was all that seemed to work. The Irish defense wasn’t giving up any long balls to Michigan’s QB, who responded by throwing underneath all day and running for over 200 yards. I’m hoping this isn’t another hot-and-cold year for the Irish; I guess this Saturday’s game against Michigan State will show if the Irish can really jell.

My second disappointment came when Mrs. Paddy and I visited Catherine Rooney’s newly opened second location in Newark, Delaware. I consider Rooney’s Wilmington location to be one of Delaware’s best Irish pubs. The Newark version did not impress me, though. The new place in has the same authentic Irish pub look as the original: dark wood, cabinets adorning the bar, a parlor room. But the craic just wasn’t there. Newark is a college town, and while I expected a college crowd I was still put off at the obnoxious loudness of the bar patrons. Irish pubs are supposed to be fun, laid back places, not gin mills with people screaming at each other for no good reason. The whole staff was young, but I was surprised that the bartender did not give me a blank stare when I asked for a Powers neat. He did put my whiskey in a snifter, an unfortunate habit that too many bartenders have. Snifters are for cognac and other liquors; whiskey goes in a whiskey glass, damn it. The drink was ridiculously over-priced, too. The barkeep either rang it up wrong or management is trying to bleed liquor drinkers dry. The food was okay, about the same quality as the original location. The new location has the same Irish whiskey to Scotch proportion problem as the original location, almost 2-to-1 in favor of Scotch. They can still put Dawlwhinnie on the back bar, but no Red Breast? Let’s get with it, guys.

It was not an overall pleasant experience that we had, but I don’t think it is entirely the fault of the establishment. My opinion is that Rooney’s owners opened the wrong type of place in the wrong location. Irish pubs appeal to a more grown-up and civilized customer base; opening one in a hard-drinking college town is not advisable. The problem is compounded by the fact that Catherine Rooney’s has an established reputation and a loyal following. This new location may just hurt their brand. The owners of Rooney’s would have been better off opening another of their C.R. Hooligans sports bar location in Newark. Hooligans is a more casual place that appeals to a younger, more rowdy crowd. It would have been a perfect fit for Newark, as opposed to them trying to put the round peg of Rooney’s into the square hole of Main Street Newark. The absence of critic made all the difference; it goes to show how vital it is for a pub to have. The original Rooney’s has plenty to go around, which is why I keep going back. The new Rooney’s doesn’t have the critic at all, which is why I’ll probably not go back.

Paddy’s Grade: C-

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? paddythepublican@gmail.com

The Fighting Irish: Week 1

The Irish got off to a solid start this year versus Perdue. Dayne Crist appears to be a worthy successor to Clausen and Quinn. The ground game looks much improved and the defense looks better than it has in awhile. I know it's just one game and it wasn't exactly a blowout cakewalk (you guys got nailed for a safety? Seriously?) but I'm cautiously getting my hopes up. I'm looking forward to enjoying many a fine dram of Irish whiskey while watching Notre Dame do better than .500.

Inquiring minds may want to know which Irish pub I selected for my Fighting Irish viewing pleasure. Well, I didn't. You see, I knew I was going to probably get a bit loud and rowdy, this being the kick-off game and all. Plus, since the temperature leveled off into the realm of bearability, I was going to be able to partake in copious amounts of Irish whiskey (Tully Dew in this case). I know it sounds strange coming from a committed shanty Irishman, but I didn't want to act like a boor at one of my favored local pubs. I can't stand those guys who scream and holler at the top of their miserable lungs over every down of a game. I like a lively sports bar scene, but I don't need my ears to bleed because the guy next to me is blowing a very loud gasket because his fantasy stats are getting shellacked. I don't want to be that obnoxious, screaming jag-off, at least not in place that I frequent. So, I decided to take in the game at home, where I could bellow and carry on to my heart's content. I'd only be disturbing my neighbors, and we don't talk much anyway. (And probably even less so now, considering all the windows were open in my place while I watched the game). Now, I just have to decide what whiskey I'm going to have as an accompaniment to this Saturday's game versus Michigan. There's a bottle of Paddy on my shelf that's been looking awfully lonely of late. Here's hoping that I'll be toasting to a 2-0 start.