#navbar-iframe { display: none; }

« Home | Buddhist Multicultural Festival » | The Amazing Flickrace » | What's On in Sydney » | Sydney foodbloggers meetup » | The Apprentice, Ultimo » | More of Buddha's Birthday Celebrations, Darling Ha... » | Buddha's Birthday Celebrations, Darling Harbour » | Michitaro, Haymarket, Chinatown » | Good Living Growers' Markets » | Canton Noodle House, Burwood »

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

Paddy Maguires, Haymarket

beef and Guinness pie with chips closeup

Time is relative. Your perception of time expands and contracts depending on how much fun you're having. Or how much pain you're in.

We've had lunch at Paddy Maguires a number of times, but this was the first time we'd dined in a large group. Seven of us had headed over for a celebratory lunch, and after ordering and paying for our meals at the bar, we nursed drinks as we all anxiously stared at our meal buzzers in a game of lunchtime bingo.

chicken schnitzel
Classic chicken schnitzel $16.50
Crumbed tender chicken breast fried,

served with chips and salad or creamy mash and seasonal vegetables

The chicken schnitzel was the first to arrive. 28 minutes according to the image file properties (boy, I love digital cameras!). Its happy recipient was beside himself with glee, chomping on chips and hoeing hungrily into his schnitzel, an appealing shade of deep golden brown.

chicken scallopini
Chicken scallopini $16.00
Grilled chicken breast in a creamy sauce with spinach and semi-dried tomatoes served with creamy mash and seasonal vegetables


Chicken scallopini was buzzed a minute after. Sliced chicken breast in a creamy tomato sauce was garnished with semi-dried tomatoes, zucchini, carrot and broccoli.

The beef-and-Guinness-pie orderers licked their lips in anticipation. Lunch was near. Satiation was nigh.

The minutes ticked by. Drinks were finished. Stomachs started to rumble. Mr Schnitzel was polishing off the last of his chips as the pie people started to feel faint from overwhelming hunger.

This was torture. We were in pain. We could've starting collecting monies for a Forty Hour Famine!

We made enquiries. We made some more. Assured that they were "just waiting on more chips" we anxiously waited on the edge of our seats.

Finally, finally, our buzzer jolted a nervous dance on the table. Oh my god. Food. Food. Food glorious food!

beef and Guinness pie with chips
Beef and Guinness pie $16.00
Paddy Maguires own special recipe with tender chunks of beef

slowly cooked in Guinness with carrots, potatoes and onions.
Served with chips, salad and a crusty bread roll

For the perceived eon of elapsed time, our beef and Guinness pies was alas, disappointing. The beef cubes were tough and chewy, and the gravy was more akin to a watery beef soup. There was as much potato as there was beef--we counted six giant chunks of potato in one pie alone.

The chips looked tasty, but they were verging on stone cold which particularly perplexed us. The pastry was lovely and flaky and it did make for a pretty picture, no?

My fellow lunchers still remain scarred by the hunger pang experience. The funny thing? I've just checked the files and our pies were ready 35 minutes after we first ordered. That's eight minutes after the schnitzel arrived.

Time is relative. Those eight minutes felt like a lifetime.

Paddy Maguires

Paddy Maguires
Corner George and Hay Streets, Haymarket, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9212 2111

Monday - Thursday 9.30am - 1am
Friday - Saturday 9.30am - 3am
Sunday - 9.30am - 12midnight


Previous GrabYourFork posts:
Paddy Maguires, Feb 06
6 comments - Add some comment love

posted by Anonymous on 5/24/2006 11:32:00 pm


6 Comments:

  • At 5/25/2006 2:55 am, Blogger Gustad said…

    its a shame the Guinness pies wasnt good. it looks and sounds so good!

     
  • At 5/25/2006 9:00 am, Blogger PiCkLeS said…

    I don't usually go for the meat pie. Don't get me wrong i love pies but i hate how everyone has to ask me do you know the type of meat that they put in those?? i'm thinking..i don't want to know, just let me eat.

     
  • At 5/25/2006 10:41 am, Blogger Kat said…

    Have you tried the pies at Francois' Pastries (35 Union St, Pyrmont)? It's a new cafe and the spinach and ricotta pies are to die for. And the desserts aren't too shabby either...

     
  • At 5/25/2006 12:22 pm, Blogger Veruca Salt said…

    Prices & food look good but crap service just ruins everything

     
  • At 5/25/2006 1:12 pm, Blogger Julia said…

    Haha, funny about the time! Shame about the pies, especially when there is so much good (and cheap) pub grub around.

     
  • At 5/26/2006 9:40 am, Blogger Julia said…

    You MUST try the Robin Hood at Waverley. It used to be my local and I still call it my local as it's a really nice pub, and their $6 steaks and schnitzels are really good (plus they do ribs, bangers and mash, fish and chips and a few more $6 meals I'm yet to try).

     

Post a Comment

<< Home


      << Read Older Posts       |       >> Read Newer Posts