Irish Rover Owner threatens over bad food

I had dinner with my family last night at the Irish Rover. This is the third time in 5 years I have eaten here and it has only gotten worse. We were celebrating my sister's birthday whose son died a week ago tragically at 20 years old. My brother in laws steak was burned. I ordered the mussels they were over cooked and tasted so awful it literally felt like poison had gushed in my mouth. I spit it out and told the server. the server told me the owner was very out of sorts. The owner came over to me a 34 year old woman with her children and told me I was a liar and I better pay for my food before he had me arrested. The man was so crazed I left, he followed me out of the building calling me names. This is the worst restaurant I have ever been to in my life I have no idea why people eat here every dish I have ever ordered has been horrible and now I have been assaulted for not liking rotten food.

Very odd. My wife, son and his buddy Max had lunch at the Rover yesterday (Saturday 8 November) celebrating Max's 18th Birthday. Of all the wonderful things we ordered, such as scotch eggs, apple & walnut salad, house salad, ploughman's plate (with some incredible Sage Derby cheese onboard) and two fish & chip platters, each were prepared perfectly and were delicious. We marvelled at the portions of fish that were served. Even at market price these were a bargain. There is a reason that The Irish Rover has been a success since 1993: They serve delicious food and beverage at a fair price with hospitality that is truly genuine from both Michael & Siobhan.

My wife and I also dined at The Irish Rover last evening and we had the opportunity to observe the confrontation that Ms. Martinez described above. However, the confrontation that we - and several other diners in the restaurant - observed was markedly different from Ms. Martinez' description. Rather than the screaming, hysterical, out-of-control owner that Ms. Martinez describes, it was a screaming, hysterical, out-of-control Ms. Martinez that caught everyone's attention. A Ms. Martinez screaming that she'd been poisoned by the muscles, even though she'd managed to force 2/3 of the plate down her throat before complaining (very loudly to anyone and everyone who'd listen) about them.... You would have thought that all of the diners in the restaurant would have gotten up en masse and left the place.....none did.
And there was one final point in Ms. Martinez's post that caught my eye. She writes,

This is the third time in 5 years I have eaten here

then, later

every dish I have ever ordered has been horrible

. It makes one wonder, Ms. Martinez - - after that first visit of "horrible" food....why did you ever go back??
BTW, we thoroughly enjoyed our evening at The Rover, including our meals....(but then, we didn't order the muscles!! )

Thanks for your post Willie. When reading the OP I was thinking how different her experience was that any experience we've ever had at the Rover. We've always had a very pleasant experience with great food and service in the couple of times we've met the owner been very hospitable.

Hubby and I eat at the Rover often - and I mean often. We've always had excellent food, well prepared and a pleasant time. We've been patronizing the Rover since it opened and will continue to do so - often.

We also like it, go there three or four times per year. If we don't like the food at a restaurant, we do something radical -- eat elsewhere! The OP doesn't make any sense.

Dinner and a show. Sorry I missed it.

[Robin Garr]

We live in the neighborhood, and the Rover came to town just about the same time as we moved back from NYC, so I sort of feel as if we grew up together.

We go from time to time, mostly for the Guinness. I've reviewed on occasion, once with kind of a "meh" reaction, frankly, but over the past five years or more increasingly charmed by the food as well as the drink and the loverly Irish atmosphere.

The last time we were there, Michael Reidy, the owner, wandered by our table and was about as cordial and friendly as you'd expect of a smart, smiling Irishman. I had no particular reason to think I was "recognized" as a critic; as best I could tell, that's his style, and he does it to every table.

On the basis of this 20-year experience, I find the original post startling and, frankly, hard to believe. I don't necessarily think that there are two sides to every story, but I can't help feeling that there are at least two sides to this one.

I've never eaten there. I've also never had poisoned mussels and lived to tell about it, so this is totally going on my list!

And on her first post as well. I smell a drive-by.

[Robin Garr]

And on her first post as well. I smell a drive-by.

Facebook login is going to be a blessing and a curse, maybe. But in contrast with drive-bys of yore on the old forum, here you've at least got to pass the threshold of getting Facebook to accept your moniker, and 99 percent of the time it's your real one.

Further, we can ban an individual who gets here via Facebook just as we can ban those who get here the old-fashioned way. And we can even click back to the individual's FB page and, for severe cases, turn 'em in.

But all this being said, while I don't like the tone of the post either, the fact that the OP used a real name and identity takes it out of the spam category. I'd rather leave it and let this string of responses stand. I don't feel good about the option of censoring posts just because they speak badly of popular places. Better to let discussion work out the facts. (I'd also be delighted to have a representative of the Rover jump in. I'm not sure if Michael or Siobhan have ever registered here, but especially now that it's so easy, I would welcome them.)

I haven't been to the Rover in years but the OP may have the opposite affect on me at least. The Rover will be high on my list to visit in the near future.

Thank you to those who have recounted their good experiences at The Irish Rover over the years. After 21 years in business, we know that it is impossible to please every guest, but it is always our goal to do so.

As restaurant owners and as diners, we see occasional examples of rudeness and entitlement, but we have never seen anything like this woman's behavior, which included standing in the middle of a crowded, Saturday night dining room and yelling "the food here is sh*t," etc., SPITTING in my husband's face after he escorted her from the building, and then vowing to "ruin" him. We sometimes think our experiences over the years have made us un-shockable, but this incident left Michael truly shaken.

After the she left, another member of the party told Michael that he had recently buried his 20-year old son. We are truly sorry for the family's unimaginable loss, and we sincerely regret that this incident marred their gathering.

Siobhan and Michael, what a thoughtful reply... We eat at the Rover at least once a week and have for 10-12 years! Always had wonderful food and service and truly made to feel welcome. What more can one say--we love the Irish Rover!!!

I will also add my , oh, I don't know , maybe a dozen or so visits since their opening. I've been there on St Patricks Day, for private business meetings upstairs, to dining out with friends to dining alone. Every trip was warm and friendly with some excellent food. I find it hard to imagine any sort of circumstance as recounted by the OP.
And now I want one of their fish sandwiches. Maybe later this week!