When I feel the need for Irish beer and a some fish and chips we make the trek to Franklin to McCreary’s. They have the best pub grub I have had the pleasure of consuming in the Nashville environs. It is definitely worth fighting traffic on I-65 to partake.
I have never strayed off the fish & chips menu except for the “pretending to be virtuous” house salad before the deep fried feast. Keifel ordered the cheese and bacon slathered chips last time we were there and despite any pretending to be virtuous thoughts I may have been harboring, I dug in with relish (and skipped the chips that came with my fish basket).
The fish is cod filet with a shatteringly crisp batter about its being. It is better than the one run in I had with fish and chips in London. The chips, or fries for us Yanks, are thick cut and creamy on the inside crunchy on the outside. All the tables are set with ketchup and malt vinegar so you can be as gauchely American or as authentically British Isles as you prefer. However, aside from the decor and the beers, that’s as authentic as McCreary’s gets. There are wings and chicken pot pie to be had that I hear are tasty but haven’t been the purpose of my missions.
One of the very best things about McCreary’s is that we can make it a family affair when we go and it is smoke free, to boot. There are communal style tables lining each side of the very narrow shotgun space and a few seats at the bar in the back. Friday nights are music nights; I still haven’t figured out how they cram a band in there but they do it with regularity. Warm weather offers outdoor cafe tables looking out onto Franklin’s charming main shopping district.
All in all, for those of us who require our fried fixin’s to be more Continental than catfish, McCreary’s is definitely the place. Oh, and if you feel the need to top off your naughty night with some ice cream or caffeine, there is both a Starbucks and a Ben & Jerry’s within a block… not that I would do that or anything.
McCreary’s Irish Pub and Eatery
414 Main St
Franklin, TN 37064-2761
(615) 591-3197
Across the street from Franklin’s tiny cinema usually screening family fare
