New pub and grill offers Irish tunes, brews and food

Around town

Friday, Oct. 30, 2009

Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photo by REID SILVERMAN Manager Shavon Rice, left, and co-owners Dana Spicuzza and Robyn Rebarchick are some of the familiar faces at D.B. McMillan's, which opened in July in California. E-Mail This Article | Print This Story Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photo by REID SILVERMAN Clockwise from center, a chicken and cheese boxty, Bailey's Irish Cream cheesecake, a whiskey cheddar burger and chowder.

Formerly an Italian bistro, this Wildewood Shopping Center establishment will soon lengthen its list of Irish potato pancakes — or boxty.

In the barroom of D.B. McMillan's, a pub and grill open since July, an electronic timer counts the days and minutes and seconds until St. Patrick's Day. On tap, choices include Harp and Smithwick's and Guinness. On the wall, one reads, "God created liquor to keep the Irish from ruling the world." And in the corner, on a small stage, David Norris plays guitar and puffs into a harp, his traditional Irish dress emboldened by a bright green, faux top hat that obscures his eyes and a Scottish folk tune like "Nancy Whiskey."

Ah, what a merry atmosphere.

The timer, meanwhile, like most things here, bears the mark of Guinness. You find it in the pictures of Ireland set into the dark, wood walls. You find a hint of it with butter and garlic in the mussels ($6.99), in the marinade of the steak ($14.99) and the gravy of the bangers (sausage) and mash ($8.99). (D.B. McMillan's also has a house beer — a slightly pale ale — priced at $2.50 for pints.)

So much has changed within the restaurant formerly known as Petruzzi's — everything, that is, except for the ownership, and even the musician, who once played non-Irish tunes at Petruzzi's. Co-owner Dana Spicuzza said the pub and grill is named after her grandfather. He built Lenny's, the restaurant across the street, she added.

D.B. McMillan's seems to fill up fast after work lets out. Groups fill up the tables in the barroom, and the full menu is also available to those sitting at the bar. The dining room, for what it's worth, is cordoned off enough from the bar to provide a volume level one expects from a standard restaurant experience.

The establishment offers nearly a dozen appetizers, ranging from oyster shooters ($1.25) to fried brie ($5.99). Whiskey wings ($7.99) are described as jumbo wings with a whiskey barbecue sauce. Of the eight-or-so on the plate, only one was truly jumbo, though they were at least sweet, meaty and more than slathered with sauce. For a nice twist on nachos, try crispy cottage fries ($6.99) served with sour cream and topped with cheddar jack cheese, onions, tomatoes and jalapenos.

The menu blends pub fare with traditional dishes, like beef stew braised with Irish stout, and more modern Irish meals "from the sea," which range from fish and chips ($9.99) to shrimp deep fried or sautéed in garlic and butter ($14.99). The pizzas from yesteryear remain; new to the list, though, is a bangers and mash pie.

Specials are available daily, and the Sunday brunch features a traditional Irish breakfast which diners can order in two sizes ($11.99 for large, $8.99 for small). The deal includes two eggs, bangers, rashers (bacon), grilled tomatoes, potatoes and access to the continental breakfast spread.

D.B. McMillan's touts it shellfish chowder in a rich, cream sauce. Whiskey — one finds a hint of it in the Irish Caesar salad, even — is as favored as Guinness is, and the pub selections include an array of modestly priced burgers and sandwiches (and a foot-long hot dog) that come with fries or a small salad.

The staff recommends the Dublin steak and cheese. You might also try Kelly's club, a satisfying sandwich on Ciabatta bread with thin slices of seasoned corned beef and turkey topped with Swiss cheese and horseradish mayonnaise.

Some of D.B. McMillan's so-called traditional favorites, like corned beef or ham and cabbage (about $11), seem to recall the expression, or perhaps the necessity of, the slogan "Guinness for strength." This is another way of saying that the dishes are authentically executed, so perhaps be sure you care for the Irish aesthetic (a bit bland is one way to put it) before spending your bucks. Though I am genetically predisposed to enjoy such fare, I thought chicken Donegal ($15.99), from the traditional list, with a grilled chicken breast topped with shrimp and hollandaise sauce, would give your reviewer more to write about. I have better things to say, though, about the protein on proteins' sides of potatoes and cabbage as well as the house's melted cheese-topped shepherd's pie ($9.99), a soothing mix of meat, vegetables and mashed potatoes in a hot dish.

If you like garlic mashed potatoes, don't forget about the boxty. The potato cakes I tried were deliciously rolled up in pieces of chicken and cheddar cheese ($9.99). While it's certainly not something you eat every day, the boxty is also a clear winner, which might explain why the menu will soon have a steak and cheese option in addition to a veggie and shrimp.

D.B. McMillan's

23415 Three Notch Road, California. Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Tuesday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday. Entrée prices: $6-$19. Credit cards: V, MC, D, AE. Phone: 301-866-0777. Go to www.dbmcmillans.com

Irish music

The lineup at D.B. McMillan's includes Fair Warning on Tuesdays, John Pomerville on Wednesdays and Thursdays and David Norris on Fridays and Saturdays. Musicians start playing at 6 p.m.