Lunch is Served
Posted by Hailey's on October 6, 2009 · 15 Comments
Hailey’s Harp & Pub will begin serving lunch tomorrow, October 7th, opening at 11:30 AM. Thank you to all the wonderful guests and well wishers during our first week open and thank you for your patience as we work to make Hailey’s Harp & Pub better each day.
Hi Flynn Family,
I just wanted to share some ideas with you that I have heard around town. Take them or leave them…
1. Wait staff is a bit inexperienced. The two times I’ve visited the restaurant, it seems that I’m doing the waiter/waitresses job for them (reminding them of who needs a drink/who needs food/what needs to be cleared from table).
2. Bar needs extra computer.
3. Bartenders need to get on the ball–need to clean up more often (tables and bar), need to spend more time focusing on who needs a drink rather than chit chatting with customers.
4. On a more shallow note: consider hiring a “traditional” male bartender–sleeves rolled up, quick on his feet, great with a mixed drink.
5. Guinness needs to be filled to the rim, not an inch short.
6. Every 3 or 4 bought drinks deserve a buy back, especially when there’s no drink specials. So far, my husband and I have spent $110 in 2 visits on beer. We truly can’t afford this, but we want to support your pub. A buy back costs you little but makes the customer feel important and cared for.
7. Clean up the wait station–you can see the mess coming back from the bathroom.
8. Changing table in bathroom. Lots of babies come to the restaurant, adding to the family feeling, but moms have nowhere to change the baby.
Otherwise, things look great and we look forward to spending time at your establishment. We love the idea, the decor and the willingness to invest in this great town.
Cheers!
Katie,
Thanks for the comments and suggestions. We are certainly trying to improve each day. The owner, Chris tried to email you directly but the message got bounced back – hopefully you will catch his response here:
thanks for the feedback, and i agree with you on every point and we have addressed some of the issues,
please see my thoughts below:
1)Wait staff is a bit inexperienced. The two times I’ve visited the restaurant, it seems that I’m doing the waiter/waitresses job for them (reminding them of who needs a drink/who needs food/what needs to be cleared from table).
we have been open 8 days, and the entire staff is new and we are working out the kinks, but from day one the service has gotten 110%
2. Bar needs extra computer.
its not the bar that need the extra computer, the wait staff uses the bar computer to process their checks, which causes a bottle neck, we need to have the wait staff to carry there own bank to make them and the bar more efficient
3. Bartenders need to get on the ball–need to clean up more often (tables and bar), need to spend more time focusing on who needs a drink rather than chit chatting with customers.
Agreed, we need to do better
4. On a more shallow note: consider hiring a “traditional” male bartender–sleeves rolled up, quick on his feet, great with a mixed drink.
Not shallow: hired two gentleman
5. Guinness needs to be filled to the rim, not an inch short.
agreed, that will be corrected asap
6. Every 3 or 4 bought drinks deserve a buy back, especially when there’s no drink specials. So far, my husband and I have spent $110 in 2 visits on beer. We truly can’t afford this, but we want to support your pub. A buy back costs you little but makes the customer feel important and cared for.
please stop in and I will personally remedy the situation for you
7. Clean up the wait station–you can see the mess coming back from the bathroom.
Done
8. Changing table in bathroom. Lots of babies come to the restaurant, adding to the family feeling, but moms have nowhere to change the baby
will add one in a few weeks
Hi There,
We were glad to visit Hailey’s for the first time on Friday evening.
We took my Mom and step-dad (we live in Metuchen; they’re from Brick)
and we all had a great time. You have a nice place and we’re so glad you
opened up here in town.
We all tried your Hailey’s Ale, which was good. Also the wings
(medium) and classic nachos with chili were terrific. My mom loved the
potato leek soup. Her corned beef and cabbage was spot on. My husband’s
burger was good but he asked for medium rare and got medium well. My
step-dad really liked his Guinness stew but it lacked hearty chunks of
meat. He still said it tasted great.
I had the shepherd’s pie. I make this dish at home using my Grandma’s
recipe (she was from Cork county, but likely tweaked the original,
knowing her). So I was surprised that the filling in the Hailey’s
version was dry in comparison. Frankly, it was like plain ground beef
with veggies and mashed potatoes. I know that everyone has their own way
of making it and I’m sure you like yours just fine otherwise why would
you serve it, right? Still, I wonder if you’ve ever tried it when it’s
made with either crushed tomatoes or a substantial gravy?
We’ll definitely be back. I can’t wait to try the fish and chips.
Thanks for hosting us Friday, and thanks for taking the time to read
this message.
Regards
Jessica,
Thanks for the kind words about our little pub. Our goal is to respond to
every email personally. We agree with your assessment on the Shepherd’s
pie, and we have and will be making more changes to it, so it will
remind you of your Grandma’s recipe. Being a brand new business, there
are many things that we know that we can do better and with constructive
feedback from our clients like this, every day we will get better at
delivering a world class experience.
Thanks you again for taking the time and sharing your thoughts.
I came in around 1130pm last Saturday. The place looks great. My only question is why was last call at 12am when the other bars in Metuchen have last call at 1am or 130am? Once again great place. i am hoping to come in this weekend for a good burger.
Ang – Great question:
We are an Irish family pub, and many, many employees have young kids that they need to be with, by having a reasonably timed last call at 12:30, which should works for our clients and allows my employees to get home to be with their families at a reasonable time is the best of both worlds.
Just wanted to respond back with saying thank you for answering my question so fast and I understand 100% now. A few people I have spoken with were thinking maybe the Boro of Metuchen told you the time you have to be closed by and too be honest I also was thinking the same. Once again great job with the Pub and I will be there Saturday night enjoying a beer and a burger. Best of Luck with the Pub.
Ang
Hi, Guys:
My friends and I are all very happy to have a lively new spot on Main Street to patronize, and we wish you well. I came to this site curious about your menu & prices and was surprised that you don’t have one posted. Will that be coming soon? Or are you still tinkering? Anyway, best of luck to you all.
Elise
No native Irish person would put crushed tomatoes in Shepherd’s pie! You just need more broth in the meat mixture and wetter mashed potatoes to avoid it becoming too dry. True Irish food is actually pretty bland. Boiled potatoes and cabbage may not satisfy the foodie types, but with enough butter, they’re yummy. Keep it simple and put some hot sauces on the table for those other people.
Hello Hailey’s,
My family and I enjoyed our first visit last night. My wife had the Corned Beef and I had Sheppards Pie. ! My daughter, not being adventurous, had a cheeseburger. All our meals were great! Our waitress, Becca was very attentive to us. I do have a comment, not negative…Have you thought about playing Irish/Celtic Music for atmosphere? I also realize that it does get loud in there at times so maybe the music is not feasible. Regardless, we will be back!
Rich
Hi Hailey’s!
I haven’t been in yet, but passed by a few times. I want to know, any plans for Halloween??
Just curious!
Visited for my first (and only) time a few Fridays ago with a few friends, around 9:30pm … place was way crowded with some Happy Hour leftovers, white wine was way too warm and the serving a bit on the smaller side when compared to other local places (was told there was no fridge space to chill wine and it was selling faster than planned), the establishment was HOT and needing of some air circulation despite the French doors being open, and walls were a little bare when it comes to Irish pubs, missing some Irish “flavor”.
Saw a 2-man band there that I thought was very good, really liked the idea of having the music on the low side so that us chatty patrons at the bar could continue speaking w/o being drowned out. How about finding some room in the entertainment schedule for a local 2-man band (a favorite of mine!) called The Bill & Andy Show? I haven’t seen them in ages (they used to play at the old O’Halloran’s in Fords) – they need a new Central Jersey location to play at
and what better than another Irish pub!
… We’ll try Hailey’s again soon, when the “novelty” dies down a bit and us Irish folks can make our way thru to the bar for a COLD cocktail.
DD,
At Hailey’s Harp and Pub, we appreciate our customers feedback and we do respond to every email. First, I’m glad that you were able to stop down and check out the local entertainment and still be able to hear and enjoy your friends witty banter. Second, I will look into The Bill & Andy Show for the new year, as the music calendar is booked for the rest of the year. Also, we have made changes to the wine glasses, as they are now larger in size, and the price remains the same. Candidly, the warm white wine could have been a bartender error, and I will monitor the situation so it doesn’t happen again. Finally, we continue to add Irish flavor as we acquire pieces, and many patrons have provided family pieces that they would like to be displayed on the pub walls ( I like this approach more).
We haven’t been open for a month even, and we have accomplished a lot wonderful things in a short amount of time, but there are things I know we can do better on, and over time we will.
We will look forward to seeing you there soon.
I second DD’s suggestion of the Bill and Andy show! I was a regular at O’Halloran’s in Fords and they fit right in. They play amplified acoustic instruments, and are compact and low-maintenance! They have a great sense of humor and know how to work a crowd. I know they’d bring their own crowd with them also. They know the appropriate volume level for pub too – always a good thing in my book!
I’ve visited the pub a couple of time now. It has certainly been lively when I’ve been there. Good pint of Guinness (although the rate at which it was being served should ensure that it tastes good). I’ll have to sample a pint of Hailey’s next time I’m there. A great addition to your “top shelf” would be Power’s Irish Whiskey. That’s what they serve the locals in Dublin – they keep the Jameson’s for the tourists!
I’m an ex-pat Brit living in the US, and having a good local is very important to me. Keep up the good work. Listening to your customers is a very positive sign.
If I can weigh in on the shepherd’s pie debate – NO to crushed tomatoes. When I make it, the filling is just ground meat (lamb is the best, but beef will do), cooked with onions, carrots and peas. Seasoned well of course. I do usually add a little stock to moisten it, but not too much. Then top with plenty of mashed spuds and cook until crispy brown on the top.
Music, beer, whiskey and food – I think I’ve covered everything!
Graham.
Graham,
Thanks for the feedback, especially the Shepherd’s Pie suggestions. We look forward to seeing you again soon.