Damn the Torpedos! Full Speed Ahead!

Farragut House

149 P Street

South Boston, Ma 02127

617-268-6348

Menu: Irish/American fare

Atmosphere: Casual neighborhood bar

Kid Friendly: For lunch and dinner sure, probably should leave late night to the veteren drinkers

Prices: Average prices decent portions

Since I started writing this blog, I realized there are a lot of places I go to which I think are cool, but I don't know a whole lot about the history of them. Take The Farragut House located in the heart of South Boston off Farragut Road.

The Farragut House is a great Irish bar, but I had no idea who David Glasgow Farragut, the man the bar was named after, was. Here is his story.

During the Civil War, Farragut was the U.S. Navy's first admiral. During his attack on the Confederate Fleet in Mobil Bay, he decisy advanced his ships through an abundant string of aquatic mines known as torpedoes. He pushed froward in spite of the danger of the mines and rebel cannon fire, issuing the most famous orders in U.S. Naval History. "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" and you thought Tom Petty said it...

Last night, Lou and I had some good friends, Eric and Mary, visiting from Petersborough, NH. We started our night off at the Farragut House. Lou and I love this place. When you enter the restaurant there is a large square bar in the center of the restaurant surrounded on the outside by tables and booths. The atmosphere in the Farragut house is always warm and welcoming. Dress code is casual, and the food is consistently outstanding. It is an Irish pub with hundreds of mugs and pictures representing Ireland hanging from every piece of empty wall space and even the ceiling.

The Menu is a mix of basic Irish dishes like Bangers and Mash and Shepards pie, to more mainstream choices like buffalo chicken wrap, and Paddy the greek's salad.

I've tried a lot of dishes at The Farragut House but my favorite is the Broiled Haddock. It's about a 4 oz piece of Haddock with light breading on top broiled with mixed vegatables and mashed potatoes. It's an Irish restaurant, so of course the potatoes are good, but the vegatables are what I really like. Most places over cook their vegatables or have a terrible selection, but here they are perfectly steamed al dente and are made up of fresh broccoli, cauliflower and carrots.

Lou usually gets the crab cake burger with a dill mayo on top, but last night he flipped the script and got the fish and chips. Sandwiches are usually served with steak fries, but Mary requested a garden salad with her Buffalo Chicken Wrap last night and they gladly did the substitute. Eric a self proclaimed picky eater opted for the steak sandwich, and was very satisfied.

I don't know what my favorite part of the Farragut House is. The warm atmosphere, the friendly neighborhood vibe, the fact they can poor a perfect Guiness, or the free Tootsie Pops they have at the end of the bar, but I do know, as long as we live in Southie, it will be one of our favorite places to go.