Barna

Every visit to Ireland brings a new-to-us discovery. We have our favorite haunts and things, like the Saturday farmers market  and piles of late night garlic and cheese chips at Supermac’s, but we do our best to try at least one new restaurant.

On this visit, we drove along the coast to the village of Barna to wander along Barna Pier and to check out a renowned restaurant, O’Grady’s at the end of the pier.

The below sign alerts drivers to the fact that the road is ending. Point taken.

The views from Barna are gorgeous, and the ever-changing weather makes them even more spectacular.When we arrived it was bright and sunny, but during the course of our meal all of that changed into lashing rain, clouds, and wind.

Luckily, there’s no place better than a cozy seafood restaurant in the West of Ireland to wait out the storm with a pint of Guinness.

Irish prawn salads are one of my favorites, so I decided to go with that, served with fresh brown bread and Irish butter, for my lunch. I love the tangy Marie Rose sauce on the top, and the prawns were amazing, more like lobster than prawns, really. The portion was heaping and had a good amount of salad greens, onions, and tomatoes underneath. I could definitely eat this for lunch daily.

As the weather got worse, we talked over the crackle of a roaring fire and stared out at the boats and windsurfer braving the chilly downpour.

We continued our wait with a couple of strong, sweet, and creamy Irish coffees. When in Ireland. . .

As the saying goes, Ireland experiences four seasons in a day, and by the time we were paying for our leisurely lunch, the sun was out, and getting ready to set. The one big downside of visiting Ireland in the winter is how early the darkness sets in and how late the sun comes up. There were days I woke up at eight, and it was pitch dark out.

The upside of all of that rain? Rainbows, double and triple rainbows that make me squeal with delight every single time. Like so many other things in Ireland, rainbows just add a little more magic.

Our afternoon spent at O’Grady’s was one of our favorites of our entire trip. The restaurant has won many awards for its fresh, creative cuisine, and they are well-deserved. The service was warm and welcoming; we never felt rushed and really enjoyed being on holiday there. If you find yourself in Ireland, definitely spend a few days in Galway and make Barna Pier a stop along your journey.