Iona
Iona
180 Grand Street
Brooklyn, NY 11211
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718.384.5008
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Cards: Cash Only
Hours: Daily 1pm-4am
Subway: L to Bedford Ave.
Food/Menu: Click Here
Booze: Full bar
Happy Hour: Daily 4pm-7pm: $1 off everything
NY Mag says:
At last: an Irish-like pub for people who generally hate Irish-like pubs, Iona’s sprightly young staff (and their accents) couldn’t be more appealing; they want you to pick your favorite wooden bench and stay a while. Inside this former candy store things are dim and spare, and don’t expect to see gimmicky leprechaun figures or posters bearing limericks. Instead, you’ll hear drum-and-bass mixes or classic rock–and not too loud, either. A little back alcove is perfect for late-night snogging, and the fact that the bar’s not filled with lecherous old Irishmen pawing every female in sight is a blessing. That tradition is being kept alive instead by the neighborhood hipster boys.
Citysearch says:
TAGS: Bar Snacks, Bars, Bedford, Garden/Outdoor Seating, Good for Groups, Happy Hour, Notable Beer, Open Late, Ping Pong, Pub Fare, Sports Bar, ★★★★ Great
While the neighborhood’s lusty Stinger Club and Black Betty turn on the red lights, this pub (named for a Celtic island between Ireland and Scotland) proves a worthy complement. Wood-toned and gently lit, Iona reverberates with the Pogues and other alt-rockers as it fills up with conversational folk on the weekends. Although the bar does not serve hard liquor, Iona’s beer selection–largely Irish, Scottish and Belgian–is top-notch. Twenty varieties are on tap, including Guinness, Stella Artois and Fuller’s London Pride, and 30 in the bottle, such as Hoegaarden, Duvel and Schneiderweisse. In addition to beer, ale and bitters, the chalkboard menu offers four wines by the glass and snacks like potato chips and Mars bars. Irish-born bartender and part-owner Ailish Keating, who runs the pub with her friends Robert Hennah and John Crilly, has opened up the bar’s back garden–an attractive space with tree branches overhead.
