Donnelly's Public House

Donnelly's Public HouseDonnelly's Public House
Donnelly's Public HouseDonnelly's Public House
Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

1 Water St
Fairport, New York, 14450-1527
United States

(585) 377-5450 | map
donnellysph.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.08
Reviews:
15
Ratings:
20
pDev:
7.6%
View: Place Reviews
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Ratings by John:
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Reviewed by John from New York

4/5  rDev -2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Brand new pub opened on 4/27/04. Owned and operated by the same folks as JB Quimby's (this is a good thing IMHO). Donnelly's can be found tucked away off Main St. (NY Rt. 250) in the village of Fairport (eastside suburb of Rochester). DPH occupies the space formerly held by the Green Tavern. It's also easily accessed from the Erie Canal path and Fairport Landing shops. I could see this as a nice little stop in a bike ride along the canal. The pub consists of an L shaped bar to the left of the entrance, tables and booths to the right, separated by a semi-open corridor. Two modestly sized TVs can be found above each end of the bar. The place was completely transformed and looks nothing like the old GT. Lots of medium/dark shaded wood decorate the bar, stools and tables. 22 draught handles display a nice assortment of local, regional and national micros (and the obilgatory macro or two to pay the bills). Highlights on tap during our 4/30 visit were Southern Tier IPA and Pils, Rohrbach Scotch Ale, Donnelly's Ale and Nathan's Private Reserve (both brewed by Custom Brewcrafters), Anchor Porter, Franziskaner Hefe, Spaten, Brooklyn, Ithaca, SNPA and others. I forgot to check on the bottled brew selections (my bad). Will check next time and update. We ate at the bar, the food was very good, was served promptly and with friendly service. The owner was genuine and stopped by to ask how everything was, calling us by name. A nice touch. I like this joint and will be back.
May 03, 2004
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.39 by brentblack1 from New York

May 26, 2019
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Reviewed by Handsome_Steve from North Carolina

4.31/5  rDev +5.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Great little place to eat and have a pint. Nice menu and the burgers as well as the wings are outstanding. Beer selection is really great; both on tap and bottles. I'd definitely recommend stopping in here if you are in the area,
Jan 22, 2018
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Reviewed by SLeffler27 from New York

4/5  rDev -2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Donnelly's is a comfortable local bar/restaurant. One enters through the bar, with tables opposite, and around the corner. The place is covered in wood, and has real charm.

The food is casual American fair, and well done. I tend to go for a burger, but have had a variety of lunch meals. All have been good. The tap list includes a range of macro to craft, with the date tapped listed. (Guess which ones have been on for a year?) The craft offerings include several local, and often the first time I have encountered that brewery. So kudos to Donnell's for supporting the new guys.

Service is generally very good, with an occasional surliness. I think that may be part of the shtick though.
Jan 10, 2016
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Rated by briancregg101 from New York

4.53/5  rDev +11%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
A great beer selection and fast friendly service. My RIS was served in proper glassware which I appreciated.
Feb 18, 2015
 
Rated: 3.99 by flyingPharmacist from New York

Aug 15, 2014
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Reviewed by myhopsdontlie from New York

4.55/5  rDev +11.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.75 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.75
The beers are priced from 4$-6$ for the most part and there is usually a very nice selection. They like to support local and New York state breweries a lot which is cool to see. Lots of times they offer a free pint glass if you buy a local beer. The food is incredible and very fairly priced (get the grilled garlic parmesan chicken wings). They have about 30 beers on tap with a nice mixture of crowd-pleasers and craft beers. They also keep their website up to date with what beers they have on tap at the time so you can even check out what they have before you decide to go. Overall a great place to eat, watch a game, and discover some new beer for a very fair price.
Jul 18, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by rdoupe from New York

Jun 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by BeerBucks from New York

Feb 01, 2014
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Reviewed by GreesyFizeek from New York

4.39/5  rDev +7.6%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.75
Don't get here often enough, as Fairport is fairly well out of the way, but have enjoyed every visit. The beer selection is well curated- the main beer lady is very knowledgeable, and very friendly. They make a huge emphasis on NYS craft beers, and feature a lot of specials around New York beers. The owner often travels to get kegs of stuff that doesn't distribute far, meaning I get to try Good Nature, Abandon, and Climbing Bines without traveling too far. The food is pretty good, typical bar food done well.
Jan 27, 2014
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Reviewed by Rback from New York

3.5/5  rDev -14.2%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.25 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4.25
Stopped in for a late lunch. Nice beer selection (Two hearted on tap is tough to resist) with + food (Potato bacon soup-may I have more please). Service was friendly but slow. Will be back but need to find something to do in town as the place is well off the beaten path
Dec 04, 2013
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Reviewed by DmanGTR from New York

4.45/5  rDev +9.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Went to Donnelly's on a whim last night with my friends. First time being here and I was impressed. We got there around 6pm on a Saturday night expecting it to be packed to the brim and no chance to get a table. However, we were seated within 10 minutes. Within that time, I went to the bar and got a Goose Island Bourbon County Stout and a GI DIPA without any wait time. The bartender was very friendly and quick despite running the 25+ tap bar with at least 20-30 people around by herself. Once we were seated, our waitress tended to us on a regular basis and was very friendly and even took the time to chat with us about beers.

Before I continue, I should mention that the atmosphere is very relaxed and casual. I saw middle aged couples in sweaters and cardigans having a nice dinner for two, a family of five with a little one in a high chair, younger folk like us at the bar and at some tables, and older folk in polos and dressier styles enjoying a glass of wine and some Bourbon County as well. This place is pretty roomy. When you walk in, the bar is to the left and runs along almost the entire wall. The coats and restrooms are on the immediate right. There is a dining area straight ahead and if you move forward past maybe 3 or 4 tables, you turn a corner to the right and there is another dining area with at least 6 or 7 tables along the window, with some more seating area away from the window. We got a table in this area. The walls and floors are mainly wood, not dark stained like mahogany or cherry, but not as light as blonde maple either. There is a ye olde Irish pub feel to the establishment, I guess warm and quaint will describe it satisfactorily. The music is not too loud and there are a few flat screens at the bar for those interested.

The food selection isn't extensive, but there is enough selection to please almost any palate and appetite. There is half a page of appetizers, maybe 15 different selections, along with soups and salads. We got the pulled pork nachos as an appetizer, which was very smoky, but delicious. For $10, though, I wish the portion was bigger, but no fault there as it was quite tasty. For the record, they smoke their own pulled pork and ham in-house. The entree selections take up a whole page and there are at least 20 different things from which to choose, mostly sandwiches, wraps, but also some steaks and other items as well. I got the Pittsburgh special sandwich, which is a half pound burger with pulled pork on top with dressings on a pretzel roll. Quite delicious. It came with fries and those were very crispy and not too salted for my liking. My fiancee got the Donnelly's wrap, which was very tasty as well, but the kettle chips were a bit too salty for our taste. My friend got the prime rib special, which looked quite delectable, with a seafood chowder and my other friend got the pierogies. Very good food overall.

As far as the beer is concerned, they have a pretty extensive tap selection compared to most other bars. Gems like Saphir Bock and Bourbon County show up here every now and then, but they almost always have a great standard craft selection like Brooklyn, Southern Tier, Goose Island, Bear Republic, Middle Ages, Blue Point, etc. Not much going on as far as a bottle list is concerned though.

Overall, I thought this bar is one of the better hangouts in the Rochester area. Their selection of brews are not as extensive as that of MacGregor's in Henrietta, but the good service, atmosphere, and food trumps the need for 120 different taps in my opinion. I enjoy the fact that we can go there on a Saturday evening and still get quick and good service despite being relatively busy. I do recommend this place to anyone in the area.
Jan 06, 2013
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Reviewed by craigmcg from New York

3.95/5  rDev -3.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
Donnelly's has vastly improved it's beer menu in the last year or so. They have about 20 rotating taps with a good selection of craft beer. The food is standard pub fare - you know the menu. For those who live in the east side, it's well worth a visit.

While you are in the Village, you can also visit a few other bars in the area, but Donnelly's is the best for craft beer selection.

Happy hour specials are really good - be sure to check the web site - recently I got Ithaca Flower Power for only $3 because Thursdays are drink local days.
Oct 02, 2012
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Reviewed by Franz4 from Ohio

4.13/5  rDev +1.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Stopped here for dinner, had the pulled pork with the bourbon BBQ sauce and it was great, along with all the other food we had.

Atmosphere and service was top notch, very friendly, a little loud, but I was also able to carry on a conversation without too much trouble.

Tap list was great, I went with the Hop Rod Rye, Rare Vos, and a chocolate Yeti to round out the evening. I also tried a sample of SA Cherry Chocolate Bock. There were probably around 20 taps total, mostly craft, nice varied selection.

We got there around 6:45 on a Saturday night, which was early enough to get a table, the place filled up pretty quickly though.
May 22, 2011
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Reviewed by Reiksguard from Rhode Island

3.75/5  rDev -8.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3
While in town visiting some family, we decided to venture out fo a pint of two and ended up a Donnelly's. 22+ Beers on tap was a plesant surprise with several odd ball selections on the list. Ended up having a Slyfox, while the wife had a Harpoon Seasonal.

The food menu was your general pub fair, although there was very little in the way of Irish influenced food on the menu.

Nice place...it has a bit of a worn look to it, but the selection and prices were great. This would be the perfect pub just down the street...unfortunately, its 300+ miles from my front door.
Jul 06, 2009
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Reviewed by davide169 from Pennsylvania

3.88/5  rDev -4.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
Stopped by here this past weekend as I was staying right around the corner. Located on a street just off the main drag its pretty easy to find.

As you walk in there is a bar to the left running along the wall that can seat a decent amount of people. Tables scattered throughout if you are planning on dining. A few tv's near the bar area that were playing sports.

The beer selection was decent. Nothing mind blowing but they had a very good selection of beer brewed in the local area. A pitcher of Middle Ages was only about $10.

The food was very good though. A step above the usual pub fare you would find.

If you are staying in the area, or happen be driving through and need a place to stop this is a solid choice. I wouldn't go out of my way to stop though.
Feb 11, 2008
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Reviewed by armock from New York

4.36/5  rDev +6.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5
Visited this place while in town for Christmas to grab a pint or two with the wife. I was pleasantly surprised when I walked in the place is very nice looking clean with lots of wood. They have 22 beers on tap with none of them being BMC if you want that stuff they still have it in bottles for you. The price was pretty reasonable I paid $6 for a local seasonal and a regional IPA. Service is ok they only had one bartender working when I was there service was a little slow because he was very busy. If your in the area this is definitely a place worth going to.
Dec 31, 2007
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Reviewed by iceball585 from New York

3.75/5  rDev -8.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
I've been going to Donnelly's since around when it opened. It is a great place to have a few pints. They have an outdoor patio area w/ many tables so its a very good place to go on a nice day and enjoy a beer outside. It's its only a 15-20min drive away from the city of Rochester.

There beer selection gets better and better everyday. They have your typical domestic beers to make the average person happy, but they also have many many good beers on tap. Some of the taps are constantly changing to bring in new seasonal beers. The beer prices are very reasonable as well.

The food is typical bar style food (burgers, ultimate nachos,... etc) but the quality of that food is above average. I definatly recommend the Spicy Seafood Chowder.

Overall if your in the Fairport area and are looking to try something new then stop on over at Donnellys for good times, good people, and great beer.
Aug 06, 2007
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Reviewed by boulevard2 from New York

4/5  rDev -2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
I've never heard of this place but recently visited because of a music festival going on in the neighborhood. The bar is of decent size with plasma screens for me to watch some golf. My first intuition is to check the draft selection and to my suprise they had 20 tap lines of many different brews including macro and micro. Some selections included Middle Ages. Rouge Dead Guy and my fav Titan Ipa. Because of the festival I was served in a plastic cup which I wasn't fond but I servived!. I do know they have sandwiches and finger food that looked very good so next time I will try some food. The service was friendly and attentive which is a plus. Overall if your in the Fairport area this is a great place to have a beer and relax so enjoy.
Aug 29, 2006
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Reviewed by kbnooshay from New York

3.93/5  rDev -3.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
I visited this place the day they made it over the 1 year hump. I am glad they are doing well this is a nice place to grab a few great beers and soem good food. The atmosphere is pretty great especially if there is a game on. The decor is nice and woody. The brooklyn brewery mirror/sign at first was a taunt as they didn't carry it, but now they do. The selection is pretty nice blend of local and nationals beers but i feates of their own (made by custom brewcrafters) dysfunktional ale and bar only high falls pale bock. The waitress are great for the most part. There is this bartender that looks like annie lennoz yet she denies it. What the hell? But there si one that always has this dumbass blank look on her face. Anyways the food is a little more expensive that regular bar food but this is also a nice place to just have dinner. Anyways i love it.
Jun 23, 2005
Donnelly's Public House in Fairport, NY
Place rating: 4.08 out of 5 with 20 ratings