This is one of Quay Street’s longer established restaurants, owner-run by experienced restaurateur, Martine McDonagh, with the help of her two sons.
The smart brown/black facade faces McDonagh’s famous fish restaurant directly across the street, another McDonagh family venture, and - like most other Quay Street cafes and restaurants - Martine’s has a few tables for on-street dining in the summer months.
A small bar leads to the two separate dining rooms, the bright front one looking onto Quay Street or a darker one at the back with large mirrors and a motley assortment of furniture; bustling, with tables quite close together and low background pop/jazz music, there’s a clubby feel to the place specially the back room.
This Galway restaurants popular with locals and tourists alike, it is a middle-of the–road establishment offering European-style fare – plenty of old favourites, well done.
You can expect predictable but tasty dishes, based mainly on local ingredients, like salmon & potato cake with white wine leek sauces, char-grilled supreme of chicken with creamed potatoes, mushroom sauce & seasonal vegetables, rack of Irish lamb with green beans & dauphinois potatoes, and good steaks (Aberdeen Angus). Desserts include some classic comfort food (bread & butter pudding, apple tart...), and the wine list is carefully chosen.
Service is friendly, and there’s a good buzz. Many of the dishes are coeliac friendly and the early evening 2-Course Meal, chosen from the à la carte menu, is particularly good value at @ €14.95.
Seats 50 (private room, 20; outdoors, 20). Open daily for dinner only, 5-10.30pm (from 4pm Fri & Sat). Earlybird D €19.95, 5-7pm (4-6pm Fri & Sat); also à la carte. House wine €19.95. Closed 25 Dec. Diners, MasterCard, Visa, Laser.
