Painted dark grey and wine, Naughtons is a smartly presented 1870’s pub the on main street, with French doors opening out onto a patio with seating for fine days.
Owned by Elaine Haugh and her husband, Robert Hayes, who is the chef, this friendly place is a lovely comfortable and really elegant pub.
With natural brick wall finish, beautiful mahogany counter, lovely mirrors and large paintings of the local area - painted by Robert’s mother, Anna St. George who has a studio in Castleconnell - it’s full of atmosphere.
There are two bars and nooks leading into each other, and high settle-bed type seating in part of the bar. The feeling is casual, with families at earlier sittings and a little more dressy later.
Styled a Fish and Steak Bar, the accent is on seafood, and on simplicity with seven starters and seven seafood choices offered, plus five meat dishes, and more seafood specials each night.
The main dishes tend to be pricier (pan fried hake in cream chive sauce about €21.95) but choices like smoked and white fish chowder (€5.95), tub of mussels in wine, butter and cream (€11) and Naughton’s Seafood Salad (€13.95) are very accessible – the salad is a mix of crabmeat and prawns served on a bed of seasonal salad with garlic or soda bread – and come with good accompaniments like home cut real chips or baked potato and seasonal vegetables.
There’s a children’s menu (€6.95), and a small but carefully chosen wine selection.
The only trouble with Naughtons is that it’s so popular - it’s almost impossible to get a seat here in high season (bookings are only taken from 9pm).
