O'Dowds of Roundstone

Someone from this business manages this listing.

1,025 reviews

#1 of 7 Restaurants in Roundstone€€ - €€€, Irish, Bar, Seafood

+353 95 35809+ Add website

Hours

Sun

10:00 - 22:00

Mon

10:00 - 22:00

Tue

10:00 - 22:00

Wed

10:00 - 22:00

Thu

10:00 - 22:00

Fri

10:00 - 22:00

Sat

10:00 - 22:00

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What is Travellers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Ratings and reviews

4.0

1,025 reviews

#1 of 7 Restaurants in Roundstone

Travellers' Choice 2023

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Food and ambience

Local cuisine, Irish, Bar, Seafood, European, Pub

“Fresh lobster is a special treat.”

“... wild Atlantic way also tried the Hummus with seaweed which wasn’t unusual...”

“We had Guinness (of course!) and the oysters followed by the salmon.”

“Sea bass was the special on the night disappointing it’s a fish that needs ve...”

Location and contact

Harbour View Main Street, Roundstone Ireland

+353 95 35809

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Can a gluten free person get a good meal at this restaurant?

Yes

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Details

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About

O'Dowds is a traditional Bar & Seafood Restaurant situated in the centre of Roundstone village overlooking the harbour. It has been run by the O'Dowd family for four generations since 1906. A bar has been operating on the premises since 1840 and it is widely regarded as the oldest pub in Connemara. It is now famous for its excellent fresh local seafood and it has one of the best pints of guinness in the locality. You can also taste some excellent irish craft beers like: The Galway Hooker, O'Hara's Irish Stout & O'Hara's light Ale.O'Dowds is open from 10am every day all year, serving breakfast until 12 noon, a bar menu is served from noon to 9.30pm every day. Fresh seafood include our own Home-made Seafood Chowder, Roundstone Crab Claws, Cashel Bay Mussels, Mannin Bay Oysters, Local Lobster and our very popular Fisherman's Platter, all accompanied with home-made brown scones. Chicken, Meat, Vegetarian, Soups S Sandwiches are also well catered for. Reservations in our restaurant are advisable during July & August & Bank Holiday weekends.O'Dowds has a special traditional pub atmosphere & friendly service which has remained unchanged for decades if not centuries. The bar is small & intimate with its traditional turf fire & beautiful views over Roundstone Harbour & The Twelve Bens.

PRICE RANGE

€6.00 – €21.00

CUISINES

Irish, Bar, Seafood, European, Pub, Gastropub, Soups

Special Diets

Vegetarian Friendly, Vegan Options, Gluten Free Options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

FEATURES

Takeout, Reservations, Outdoor Seating, Seating, Street Parking, Free off-street parking, Highchairs Available, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Wine and Beer, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Digital Payments, Free Wifi, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service

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4.0

1,025 reviews

Excellent

502

Very good

316

Average

113

Poor

Terrible

mwhzzi

Dublin244 contributions

expected more

Jan 2020 • couples

visited today for lunch based on a strong recommendation from a friend, however our food experience didn’t live up to our expectations. The dish of muscles was disappointing in that the muscles were presented in highly salted and bland liquid which looked more akin to ‘dish water’. The waiter suggested the extra salt taste was from the sea water...but there is salty and too salty!! The seafood chowder whilst chunky with fish and other pieces, was however lacking in good old chowder flavour which Ireland is renowned for.

Written 5 January 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

CathyCregan

Dublin128 contributions

A lovely spot

Nov 2021 • couples

We had a lovely lunch here. We were glad of their request for our Covid certs and a phone number for tracing. The bar inside was almost empty and we sat by a fire and enjoyed crab claws in garlic butter (quite dear at €16.50 but the gentleman explained crab is expensive just now) then we had hake and chips a pint and left very happy.

Written 26 November 2021

Galwaygirl39

107 contributions

Quaint little pub with fabulous food

Aug 2020 • couples

Quaint little pub with fabulous food. On a cold damp day where better to pop into than O’Dowd’s for some chowder & gorgeous smoked salmon salad. We didn’t book - foolishly- but we were told they’d seat us within 20 minutes if we waited, so we did! Super efficient welcoming service, tables clean, well spaced & all staff adhering to Covid measures. Everything was cleaned & sanitised during our time there from door handles to the phone. Card machine etc. Really impressive but back to the grub !!! Hubby loved his thick chunky fish filled chowder while my vegetable soup was also tasty & served with brown scones. Our smoked salmon was a generous serve and the accompanying salads were fresh and tasty. All in all a great lunch that just added to our fab staycation exploring our lovely country

Written 23 August 2020

U2fan

130 contributions

Overpriced and woeful food

Sept 2020 • none

Stopped off here late August one Wednesday at 3.30pm with my 3 kids having read great reviews on FB ... I had salmon pasta and at €17.50 was shockingly bad - I’d do better at home or even if I bought a package in a shop. My teens thought food was poor. Our waiter had no charisma and didn’t ask anything that would show he was in the tourist trade and he was old enough to be better. Plates were not thoroughly cleaned. Maybe I was unlucky but I won’t be going back . Also night time prices for day time food made the experience utterly horrible.

Written 9 September 2020

Patricia

Galway16 contributions

Seafood platter so disappointing

Jun 2020 • none

Seafood platter so disappointing . We walked dogs bay yesterday & ordered seafood platter to take away for dinner later . Seafood platter has always been my favourite dish from O’Dowds so was thrilled to see it in a takeaway menu. I have sat & cherished everyday mouthful on many occasions in restaurant . This had no prawns at all in it & I felt for the same price as sitting in restaurants the portion size did not live up to my expectations :.. I would certainly not do takeaway again . So disappointed !!!

Written 23 June 2020

unvalerie

149 contributions

Fresh seafoods

Jul 2020 • couples

Being at a fishing village, it's no surprise to find seafood restaurants such as O'Dowd's. What's surprising is it's always fully booked so it's difficult to book seats. We were lucky that the lovely people at Eldon's Hotel helped us book here on our first day so we're able to try it. Food is fresh and delicious. Presentation is nice too. I particulatly liked the Garlic crab claws and the crabmeat salad. My husband enjoyed the seafood platter. I found the chowder a bit too salty for my liking and the chocolate fudge too sweet. Space is limited so I think it's quite impossible to maintain social distancing. Wait staff wear visor so that's good. My husband also liked their iced coffee that we took away as we traveled back home.

Written 9 July 2020

Anonymous

1 contribution

Disappointing

Aug 2021 • family

My family and I dined here for dinner, the food was good however, there seemed to be a lack of system at the place, the staff were all over the place, very flustered and weren’t very attentive or courteous. We asked for a dessert and a Pint and waited for about 15 minutes only to be informed that they were out of the dessert we wanted and completely forgot about the pint altogether. We also were waiting for the bill and we ended up having to go to the bar to ask and one of the waitresses made a rude ‘smart’ comment to another waitress and both started laughing at us. Overall, to say the least very disappointing.

Written 24 August 2021

Breda Fahy

Westport40 contributions

Seafood to die for 😀

Apr 2022 • business

Visited today with my work colleague as I had heard it was brilliant for seafood but oh man was I happy I did. The seafood salad we got was to die for, they even served it with homemade scone and I was cheeky enough to ask for another one which was no problem. The price was so reasonable for the huge portion of the freshest fish and so delicious. The service second to none and the weather was so beautiful we got to eat al fresco so I will definitely be rushing back to Roundstone. Thank you. Breda Fahy (Galway Girl)

Written 27 April 2022

Destination401760

3 contributions

Good food. Good service. Nice atmosphere.

Oct 2022 • none

Lovely chowder, fresh haddock, fish pie au gratin and creme brulee for dessert. This washed down by a carafe of red wine all for €80 (including tip) was a great experience. Lots of guests were returning and we'll do the same.

Written 14 October 2022

Job

2 contributions

Disappointing lunch

Jul 2020 • family

Visited for lunch and was very much looking forward to it. Extremely watery chowder, with no bread, but scones? A tiny portion of crab claws for 16euro - not a main meal. Disappointing all round.

Written 1 August 2020

Mary C

Logrono3 contributions

Very Happy With Our Experience

Sept 2021 • friends

We visited here midweek for lunch. It was busy but we were able to be accommodated inside. We felt the Covid protection measures were handled very well. Clear measures being enforced in an efficient but relaxed way that left us feeling very comfortable about eating there. The staff were lovely and service was smooth. And best of all the food was delicious. We left very happy.

Written 1 September 2021

ken c

Portaferry128 contributions

Enjoyable visit well priced!

Apr 2023 • couples

Stopped for lunch and we're not disappointed. Really tasty choxwder loaded with various fish and smoked salmon salad. Very helpful staff in a quaint setting with a varied menu and really delicious food very fairly priced. Good selection of different foods on the menu. Well worth the visit and will certainly be back!

Written 29 April 2023

Nirina Plunkett

Dublin206 contributions

Average lunch with too many crab shells

Sept 2020 • none

I’d heard many great things about this seafood eatery, so we stopped in for lunch. I ordered one of the day specials, Crab Meat Salad, which was nice but to be honest it wasn’t much. Yes, the crab meat was excellent and flavoursome, but I did find a few too many pieces of shell, which is not ideal to crunch on. The salad elements of lettuce, tomato slices, carrot shavings and red onion were very basic. Overall my experience was a bit lacklustre and disappointing, though Lorna enjoyed her Crab Claws. We only had a 45-minute table (as we had not booked and nabbed an in-between table), and when we finished our meal we took our pints outside, which was a nice change.

Written 22 September 2020

Carmel Miniter

Galway191 contributions

Could do so much better

May 2022 • couples

Booked dinner as part of a break in Connemara. Food was good seaweed hummus was excellent as was the chowder to start. Sea bass was the special on the night disappointing it’s a fish that needs very little of anything too much frills and sauces ruins it and maybe this plate was under the warmer too long dry rubbery and tasteless on the other hand the second main dish was really good a fish pie style one. Very tasty and enjoyable, a pity that our side orders vegetables did not arrive until after we had finished our dinner .. staff were “not tuned in” no one came and asked was dinner okay nor did we want a dessert we would have spent more time and money but we weren’t encouraged or asked. So we paid and left the restaurant has a beautiful setting and is a real gem but training of staff and just generally knowing to look after the customers. There was plenty of staff for the size of the restaurant and 16 people eating when we were there was not a huge number for the amount of staff that were on to manage.. thank goodness we found kings bar just up the road and had a drink there while waiting for our taxi. Entertaining locals great atmosphere and super pint of Guinness thanks Joe for the welcome.

Written 28 May 2022

Thomas G

Pattersonville89 contributions

Overpriced and mediocre

Aug 2023 • family

We ended up eating here twice, hoping that the first time was just a one-off bad experience. The first time we were seated at 7pm only to be told that there was no seabass, lobster, salmon, crab claws and something else. We managed to find something with our limited options. The food was OK but definitely not anything to brag about. The second time we made sure they had everything available before being seated with drinks. Crab claws definitely did not taste fresh. We had a vegetarian either us who ordered the only option available which was a black eyed bean and veg burger. It was not a burger at all but rather a soft vegetable cake on a plate with tomato chutney on top. The service here is really good, unfortunately the food is overpriced, questionably fresh and not anything I would expect from a seafood restaurant on the harbor.