Annie Bailey's Irish Public House

Annie Bailey's Irish Public HouseAnnie Bailey's Irish Public House
Annie Bailey's Irish Public HouseAnnie Bailey's Irish Public House
Bar, Eatery

28 E King St
Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 17602-2850
United States

(717) 393-4000 | map
anniebaileys.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.71
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
28
pDev:
13.21%
View: Place Reviews
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Photo of Bluerabbitbell
Reviewed by Bluerabbitbell from Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev +14%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
Visited during the covid shut down on a Monday....... Not very busy. Anyway, great atmosphere and very decent beer selection. Would definitely visit again if in Lancaster, PA again.
Jul 27, 2020
 
Rated: 3.91 by robebo44 from Virginia

Nov 13, 2019
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

3.36/5  rDev -9.4%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2.75 | selection: 3.75
I stopped in at Annie Bailey's for two reasons. One, it was just a few steps away from the Marriott where I was staying, and two, their website advertised a good deal of craft brews on tap - 14 craft and just 8 regular beers (Miller Lite, Yuengling Lager, Blue Moon, Stella Artois, Guinness, Harp, Smithwick's, and Magner's cider).

Unfortunately the tap line-up I found was nowhere as interesting as what I'd found online, and although there were three that I couldn't make out (one actually had the tap marker turned around so that the bartender could see what it was but not the customer), I don't expect that they were so great - but I'll never know because the bartender couldn't seem to be bothered with me. So, one and done, I won't be having lunch here.

In my mind there's nothing worse than shitty bar service, but I'll just chalk that up to the general service of the place overall, or maybe even just that day in particular as when I walked in past the host station a man (who seemed like the current manager) looked away from me, and then ignored me later as I left. I found that very odd as they're in Lancaster where most anyone on the street will greet you as you go by. Additionally, the other servers I passed failed to say anything as well, although that's not that uncommon - but the common thread here seems to be that they're lacking in a certain desire to make their customers feel welcome and wanted.

So, food, I didn't try it. I don't mind waiting for a beer because the bartender seems to think that whatever bullshit task they're doing is more pressing than actually serving the customer, but I'm not going to pay $13 for a burger when I've been made aware that simple service is a burden and I might be left waiting while my food simultaneously cooks itself further and cools because I'd like ketchup with it.

The one nice thing is the layout and the decor. Now I've never seen a bar in Ireland that looks like this one, but I've seen many in the U.S. that do, and that's OK, they've done it up right and it's got a good look and feel to it. It's no Stag's Head in Dublin, but it's alright, but I do have to say that overall I felt it was kind of dirty. I didn't feel it'd had a proper wash-up, and I'd visited on a Wednesday - surely they'd have had plenty of time to clean following the weekend.

Positives: nice looking interior with a good feel, OK atmosphere, and a few good beers on tap.
Drawbacks: poor standoffish service, questionable cleanliness, a limited "Irish" menu, and high prices.
Apr 14, 2017
 
Rated: 4.43 by Blwissler from Pennsylvania

Oct 24, 2015
Photo of MadCat
Reviewed by MadCat from New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +14.6%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.25
So the place has the typical Irish pub vibe, fairly roomy and open inside, with an outside area in the back. Very accomodating to a large party, and excellent service. There is a good selection in the rotating tap list, as well as the usual suspects. There is also a good bottle list, from the brief perusing I did. Food is slightly more expensive than I would expect from an Irish pub, but the portion sizes are bordering on ridiculous so I guess you get your money worth. Food is good. I would happily eat here again.
Jul 08, 2015
Photo of harnish
Rated by harnish from Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +23.5%
vibe: 4.75 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5
Small but good selection of beer on tap and one awesome burger topped with pulled pork
Feb 16, 2015
 
Rated: 3.84 by Craft_Imperial from Pennsylvania

Feb 15, 2015
 
Rated: 3.8 by dfhhead25 from Pennsylvania

Feb 10, 2015
 
Rated: 4.11 by TrackcoachLVPA from Pennsylvania

Jan 11, 2015
 
Rated: 3 by newbeeraday from Pennsylvania

Nov 29, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by Renegawam from North Carolina

Nov 09, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by jzmaui1 from Pennsylvania

Jul 12, 2014
 
Rated: 2.75 by Stork_Brewz13 from Pennsylvania

Jul 02, 2014
Photo of Lancbeerguy
Reviewed by Lancbeerguy from Pennsylvania

2.6/5  rDev -29.9%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3 | service: 1 | selection: 3 | food: 3.5
I am a native to the area, and I like this pub. Since they opened, my friends and I would return from out of town and we would always stop here. In the past few years, it has declined in standards and service substantially.

Recently, it changed ownership, and we are all hoping that things will improve, but, so far, the service remains abysmal.
Jun 21, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Barnsley from Pennsylvania

May 21, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Durandal_777 from Pennsylvania

Apr 23, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by SharkNado from Pennsylvania

Mar 13, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by MargaritaMags from Pennsylvania

Feb 28, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by KolbMarley from Pennsylvania

Dec 06, 2013
Photo of Buller38
Reviewed by Buller38 from Pennsylvania

3.59/5  rDev -3.2%
vibe: 3.25 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.75 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
I have only been here during lunch times, but I have been reassured the dinner menu and meals are pretty damn good. Overall, the beer menu is pretty decent. It's a place I haven't been acquainted to that often. I hope to return to provide a better review or an updated review.
Oct 29, 2013
Photo of Scary_Version
Reviewed by Scary_Version from Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -0.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 3.5
One of my favorite places in Lancaster ( when I was 21). Great Irish bar, very cool interior and SUPER nice outdoor space. Can get crazy on the weekends so watch out if you aren't into ripping shots and pounding Miller Lites ( I still do on occasions ). Beer selection really needs to be updated. A few "irish" beers and then you're normals. Doesn't change to often and I never once saw a bottle list, although I know they have them. Really low key during the week and the food is good but nothing to write home about.
Jul 16, 2013
Photo of raleigh_blue
Reviewed by raleigh_blue from North Carolina

3.23/5  rDev -12.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3 | food: 3
Atmosphere: First time visiting 12 Dec 2012. It is a beautiful Irish style pub with dark wood everywhere, high ceilings, and well decorated. Seating is varied-tables, high tops, etc. I sat at the huge bar. The place with full with quite a few people standing with their drinks, waiting for a table or just carousing. A good vibe, for sure.

Quality: Honestly, I thought the taps hadn't been cleaned in a while. Other than that, hey its beer.

Service: Adequate. I waited quite a while a few times for the bartender to get my order. They looked a bit understaffed. Friendly enough staff. They tried to turn me on to a few beers that I had already had.

Selection: They had a selection of "Irish" beer such as Boddingtons, Harp, Guiness, Guiness Black, Smithwicks, some American adjuncts and a few local micros. Nothing on nitro or cask. If you are looking for new beers this is not the place for you. The quality of the micros was suspect as well. I understand the local flavor and appreciate a place that does it really well, such as the Michigan Tap Room, but this place seemed like its barrels were about a month behind everywhere else in the area (Bulls Head/The Fridge).

Food: I had the chicken curry and it was unremarkable and tasted as institutional as a chicken curry can. Bland/mundane mixture. The chicken, I will say was nicely done.

Value: Chimay's and Corsendonk were $10. Do I need to say more about the prices?
Dec 11, 2012
Photo of woodychandler
Reviewed by woodychandler from Pennsylvania

4.14/5  rDev +11.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4
Transcribed from undated notes from Spring, 2011.

I do not seem to get in here enough, simply because I do not frequent this part of downtown. They have a long windowfront along East King Street made remarkable by a Guinness sign, but which is otherwise unobtrusive. The entry was on the east end of the building and opened onto a long vestibule. Once through the twin doors at the other end, the m.d.s. was to the immediate left with the long bar to the immediate right. The bar ran a good two-thirds of the space, broken only by a glassed-in cabinet that sat in the middle of the space under a most impressive stone archway. The wood bar and the wood and mirror back bar(s) were recent (within five years) designs, but they looked much older. The whole interior exuded a warm, comfy feel. Booth seating with high tables and chairs ran along the exposed-brick left wall aft of the m.d.s., ending at the working fireplace which was fronted by leather chairs. On the other (south) side of the stone archway was a staircase leading to an auxiliary bar area and their offices. Past the staircase was a set of steps that led down to the lavatories. The server's station was just aft of the bar, followed by a series of standard restaurant tables and chairs along both walls, ending at the entry to the outdoor patio area. This area was complete with tables and chairs and its own bar.

Service: Just ask for Frank the bartender and all will be well.
Nov 09, 2011
Photo of canjeeps
Reviewed by canjeeps from Pennsylvania

4.06/5  rDev +9.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Annie b's is a beautiful establiment. This is tits when you think of an irish theme bar. Hand carved big wood structures. It reminds a lot like a kildares. Supposely the wood was shipped from Ireland. It has a fireplace inside and one on the deck. The deck is also very nice. Both the outside bar and inside have a long east coast style bar.
Onto the beer. Some 10 give take drafts. Good mix ipas, imports, locals, and of course guiness. Bottle list is average but good for Lancaster. Good whiskey selection as well.

Crowd is mix of older happy hour folks and switches tona young group as the night progresses. It gets very crowded on weekends.

Food, I have had good and bad items. I could not it a fair rating

If in town it is def worth a stop
May 18, 2011
Photo of DIM
Reviewed by DIM from Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -0.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4
This is an absolutely beautiful building. The dining/bar area is long and narrow with high ceilings. Lots of dark, well worn wood helps make the space seem more intimate. There are plenty of seats at the bar and spacious outdoor seating area. The menu doesn't have many options that appeal to me and what they do have is a bit on the pricey side. I ordered the bangers and mash last time and it was fine except for the heavy brown gravy it came with. Jes' pecan crusted fried chicken was much better. I'm not sure I'd call this place a beer destination. The day I was in they had Stone IPA, Troegs Sunshine Pils, and Seven Gates APA. That was it for the American craft selections. A German Hefe, American lagers, and a few ho-hum British beers rounded out the tap list. Not a bad place overall, but not my first choice either.
Jun 03, 2010
Photo of Slatetank
Reviewed by Slatetank from Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +5.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
I had the chance to visit Annie Bailey's with tenderbranson69 who is also my brother on First Friday. I have been here many times since it is across the street from my workplace and share a pint or two there with mughugger.

The place is decked out with Irish pub flair they old Irish whiskey jugs, classic Guinness bottles and fireplaces with dark wood around the bar to give the impression of an authentic Irish pub.

The quality is good, only just below very good since I once had a beer that tasted slightly off( maybe between line cleanings) The food and beer quality is very good overall and the attention to detail is taken seriously.

The selection is decent with Rogue and Bell's Frequently on Tap as well as Blue Point, Victory and the commonly seen Guinness and Smithwicks. They carry Lindemanns, Blue Moon, Harp and I had seen Yuengling Bock on when we were there.

I enjoyed the diver scallops dish I had for dinner from the appetizer menu and I have had the 5 onion Irish bisque on occasion which is nicely flavored for a creamy onion soup. I recommend eating at Annie's since the food is well made and presented in an appealing fashion. They have Kobe burgers and the commonly seen Shepherd's pie, bangers and mash and Fish and chips. I witnessed the quessadilla and it was big enough to eat as an entree also. Plenty of beef choices like Steak of the evening and still they have a good amount of seafood, pasta and vegetarian choices so no one is left out.

The place is slightly pricy for my budget but for the amount of food you get I consider the prices to be very reasonable and the selection of food for the price is very good. Frank Fontaine the bar manager is frequently seen and will certainly ensure a high level of customer service is delivered.

They have a very nice deck which is spacious and has its own bar. There are bistro tables and torches lit when dusk arrives for a nice ambience. I really feel welcomed when I visit Annie Bailey's and will certainly return perhaps for a Guinness 250th while it currently available.
May 31, 2009
Photo of tgbljb
Reviewed by tgbljb from Pennsylvania

3.98/5  rDev +7.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4.5
Visited the establishment on a Sunday for brunch. It was virtually empty and we were promptly seated. Our drink order was taken and soon served. Our food order was then taken and served in an appropriate time frame. I was able to find a good beer to drink, and he food was tasty and reasonably priced. That being said, with the selection on-tap the day we were there, I would not consider it a beer destination. I would consider it a restaurant to visit if you wanted some good food and some decent beer to go with it. I would not recommend it for its beer selection, but the food was very tasty.
Sep 20, 2008
Photo of Tucquan
Reviewed by Tucquan from Pennsylvania

3.88/5  rDev +4.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Annie Bailey's is in the heart of downtown Lancaster, PA on the same block as the new convention center and hotel that will be opened in 2009. There is a large parking garage right behind the pub, which is very handy.

Walking in the front door you are greeted by a host or hostess to see if you want a table or you can just saunter over to the very long and ornate wood bar that was crafted in Ireland and assembled here. It's a beautiful piece of work. In fact the whole interior is very rich with lots of wood, a stone archway and a fireplace.

At the back of this very long building are glass windows by the 2nd dining area and outside, there is a brand new deck with tables, umbrellas and another bar. There is a third barroom on the 2nd level with lots more tables and chairs.

Annie Bailey's has the expected wealth of Irish beers but what keeps bringing me back is the wonderful rotating variety of beers on draft. For example, during happy hour on some nights you can get a pint of Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse for $3.50. The last time I was in the pub, my wife had a draft of Lindemans Framboise Lambic and I had a couple pints of Arrogant Bastard Ale from Stone Brewing Company. The previous time, we both had Corsendonk Abbey Brown Ale. The pub keeps rotating through interesting brews! They serve some local microbrews from Troegg's and the always-excellent Stoudt's brewery.

The food is also an attraction. My personal favorite is the Kobe Beef Burger and my wife likes the crab cake sandwich or dinner. The crab cakes really are good since the Chesapeake Bay is just an hour and a half away and the crab meat is fresh. The rest of the menu is a nice mix of pub food like shepherd's pie and more elegant entrees featuring steaks, chops and free range chicken. The prices on the food are a little higher than some other pubs in the area but the food is of good quality and the very reasonable beer prices bring the overall cost down.

All-in-all, this is my favorite pub in Lancaster, which is what prompted me to write a review.
Jul 21, 2008
Annie Bailey's Irish Public House in Lancaster, PA
Place rating: 3.71 out of 5 with 28 ratings