Kildare's Irish Pub

Jonathan's parents and I headed up to Scranton to have lunch with some relatives of his mother. Our original plan was a steak and seafood restaurant, but it was closed when we arrived (dinner only it seemed), so we kinda drove in the general direction of the other stuff and found Kildare's. It was an authentic Irish pub that's a small chain (six locations: four PA, one DE, and one NC). The atmosphere was neat, the decor was cool, and it was a nice place to spend a few hours catching up and looking at photographs.

The menu looked pretty good, and they have some very good lunch specials. However, all five of us decided to go traditional and order boxtys. His mother and I went with the chicken (I got no mushrooms); everyone else went with the Philly cheesesteak variety. What's a boxty, you ask? Well, it was news to all of us as well. Apparently it's a popular dish in the Ireland countryside that's kinda like a burrito, only the outside it a thin potato pancake, not a tortilla. And not like a latke, either. It's like a pancake with some potato flavor... kinda like if potato bread was made into a pita, that's a good description. Anyway, the chicken type had grilled chicken, tomatoes, onions, and cheddar cheese inside, with plenty of sour cream on top. The Philly kind was roast beef with onions, peppers, and American cheese, with CheezWhiz on top. The portion was huge, and all of this was served with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables (mostly peas and corn).

I really enjoyed it, but I don't think I'd order it again. However, I can honestly say it's my favorite Irish dish so far (I have a history of disliking the Irish cuisine, LoL). It was an interesting combination of ingredients so it made for a very unique flavor. Everyone else at the table was also impressed with how different the meal was. I didn't eat many of the vegetables, but I can say that the mashed potatoes were only average - real with some skins. Anyway, if you're in Scranton, go ahead and check it out. I don't know of anything else in that area to recommend, LoL.