-Orange Coast Magazine
“The Best Hamburgers in O.C., At This Celtic Bar that has Something For Everyone”
-ZAGAT Guide
Newport Beach, California, Thursday, 11:30 am. Three friends in business suits sit down next to a crackling fireplace in the dark back room of an irish pub across the street from Fashion Island. In researching the state of burgers in OC, all signs had pointed this direction as an example of the best.
We perused the menu, but had no time this day for bangars and mash or corned beef, all three of us zeroed immediately in on the burger choices. We decided to go in three different directions and to split potions with one another. All burgers are hand-formed 100% certified Angus half-pounders. All burgers came with an inordinate amount of lettuce, tomato, choice of raw or grilled onions, and a REALLY good brioche-esque grilled bun. They asked for our temperature prefences and actually did a perfect job meeting the requests of two mediums and one medium-well. The burger quality and flavor was very high and all ingredients were high-quality and fresh (two characteristics not usually associated with Irish food. There were several sides to choose from, but we all chose pub fries which were good, although a tad bit undercooked.
Burger Choice #1: The Bleu's Burger
Our waitress recommended the Bleu's Burger as a "must have." Listed as having crumbled blue cheese and onions, it actually was more of a blue cheese dressing-type spread with crumbles in it, this is a good thing, not a bad thing! The flavor of the blue cheese dressing was very good, however, against the overall size and number of ingredients, it was not overly forward. It contributed to the overall flavor rather than overshadowing it. If you wanted more flavor, you could always get a side of blue cheese dressing and add even more (which we may or may not have done).
Burger Choice #2: The St. Patty's
Although our waitress steered us in a different direction than the St. Patty's we all wanted to order it. Listed as having tillamook vintage cheddar, oak-smoked bacon, and homemade guacamole, it was an interesting option at an Irish pub. One would assume a burger named the St. Patty's would be a patty melt (which, if Muldoon's wanted to be really creative, they could do with soda bread, irish cheddar, and corned beef or something suitably irish like a Guiness reduction sauce or something). BUT, this St. Patty's Burger must be named in honor of the green guacamole. We all agreed that this was the best of the three burgers because the guacamole really added a lot of interesting flavor to the overall taste.
Burger Choice #3: The Macho
The choice of the Macho Burger was really just to try something totally different since we figured it would be academically lazy to order more than one of the same burgers. Listed with jack cheese, sliced avocado, and grilled ortega chili, it was another unusal option for an Irish-themed place. It was very good and the sliced avocado was very generously added.
Overall Impressions:
I don't know what it is about Irish pubs, but I have never left one without feeling happy. Beyond that, Muldoon's is a "best of breed" Irish pub that has something literally for everyone. Were the burgers as good as all of the hype? The jury is still out according to us since there are many other burgers to try before labeling them the best in OC, but there really isn't much that Muldoon's could improve on. The highest quality ingredients, handled properly (we could hear and smell our burgers being cooked on the char-grill ten feet away from us), and served in a friendly and happy environment (our sassy waitress Amanda was a good combination of engaging when she was there, mocking when we mocked her, and not overly present when we didn't want her there) probably add a few points to the overall review. A burger eaten in this environment, with good friends, will always taste better than the alternative. Imagine the review if we had been drinking pints!
Note: We cut a piece of burger for our missing wingman, reviewer B who couldn't make this particluar outing. We didn't let it sit for too long though...all pieces were consumed by the end of the meal.
Muldoons
202 Newport Center Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
(949) 640-4110
http://www.muldoonspub.com/
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