the irish lion restaurant & pub

wonderfulplacefor dinner. i brought my family here when they visited me. dad loved the yard of beer. mom loved the food. the chicken kiev is delicious. i've always had great service. it's busy so you know it's good.

fabulous. what a great place! !!! we happened upon thisplaceby accident. great find. we will return just to come back here. great food and great service.


-----07 apr, 2015-----

by accident. we were traveling and stopped to spend the night. what a fabulous find. the atmosphere is great, bartender friendly and knowledge and the food incredible. we will make a trip back here just to return to the irish lion.

best irish-style pub outside of ireland. found myself staying at the biddle hotel on the iu campus for a sherlock holmes conference and after a long day of travel was desperate for a guinness so trotted over to the irish lion after googling for a likely spot to find a decent pint of the black stuff. the irish lion was perfect, and quite frankly, for my money it is hands down the single best irish-style pub i've visited in north america...and i've visited a good number. staff was welcoming and the decor what you'd expect. initial drinks served quickly, or as quickly as one can pull a pint of guinness properly, and any questions about meal choices answered without hesitation. landed there on a thursday night after 8pm and was faced with an irresistible meal special consisting of a 12 ounce prime rib with roasted potatoes, soup or salad, and irish soda bread for $20. meat was cooked to the requested medium rare, potatoes were tasty and the house balsamic dressing was perfect on the mixed green salad. the irish soda bread was unbelievably good too. all in all, a perfect pub meal.

my wife and i enjoyed our visit so much that we were back the next day to meet up with friends. that time i opted for the shepherds pie, served with a side salad, and my wife opted for, on the recommendation of a friend, the corned beef and cabbage. while the shepherds pie was a of the individual crock variety, it was made with rather nicely seasoned lamb, which is a huge plus as most north american pubs just use ground beef. had mushy peas made their way to the plate it i'd forgive the crock and consider it a perfect pub meal. as it stands, i really can't complain. again, a very tasty meal and my wife was extremely enthusiastic about the corned beef being one of the best she's had. and since we liked the irish soda bread so much on the first visit, we actually ordered it as an appy while waiting for the rest of our party to arrive. my only complaint is that i didn't have a chance to come back a third time to sample some more intriguing items on the menu.

if you're in bloomington and like pub atmosphere and pub food, this is theplacefor you!

perfect for friend reunion. ist time here--to meet a friend i had not seen in eight years--so we wanted a quiet, comfortableplaceto talk and catch-up. the irish lion was perfect. lovely, comfortable, clean environment. no loud throbbing music, so we were able to talk to each other with ease. the beer was excellent--ok i had guiness so you cant go wrong--but it was delicious. all the food orders were very good--the lamb burger and the soup i would order again. the wait staff was attentive and caring with quick service

wedding. we had our 35 person wedding reception at the irish lion and it was wonderful! they were very flexible and attentive to our needs... they set the room up the way we wanted it and even put out ourplacecards. plus, the food was great! we had guests pick between chicken and beef. couldn't be more pleased!

awesome whiskey selection. overwhelming, if you don't know what you're looking at. don't know anything else about the food or the drink, but the wait staff were super nice and cool and theplacehas a lot of character. i'm looking forward to going back.

good pub, okay restaurant. thisplaceis practically legendary in btown, but the food isn't that great, especially considering the price.

the bar selection however, is extensive, and the atmosphere is unique, but not fancy.

this is more of aplaceto take your college date, or hang out with your upscale drinking buddies. not remotely family friendly, the target audience seems to be business casual.

good place, some good food, some okay. i agree with many of the reviews that the irish lion is a greatplacewith good ambience, good service, good prices. the food can vary. i recommend the bread bowls with either of the stews. i do not recommend the burgers. they aren't cooked to order and looked very much like they come as frozen, pre-formed patties.

the whiskey pie is an excellent dessert option.

best drink menu in town. if you want a fancy drink with great service, the irish lion is the way to go! they have a great selection, and the staff is wonderful. the atmosphere can't be beat, and it's the only irishplacein town.

greatplaceto nosh and drink. the brie plate is divine with soda bread... yum.

a local gem. from the charming ambiance to the ample menu thisplaceis a gem.

it's a greatplaceto grab some irish stew inside on a cold winter's day or a greatplacefor a beer outside on a sunny afternoon.

the downstairs features ample seating along an heirloom bar. cozy booths sit opposite the bar on the main level. a bi-level back end features more seating in a slit level above and below. additional and expansive seating can be found upstairs, making it a favorite for large groups.

the irish lion is particularly popular with indiana university graduate students, faculty, and staff and lacks (thankfully) the college bar vibe.

plentiful menu options, both traditional irish and american pub fare, as well as a fine beer and spirits selection make this a great, unique, experience in bloomington.