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CREAMY PINTS WENT DOWNEY A REAL TREAT!

Service with a smile and a chat in this top-notch boozer

DOWNEY'S, SOCIETY STREET, BALLINASLOE

THE three Commandos rolled into Ballinasloe right in the middle of the town's annual Horse Fair.

Not that you'd know. The only horsey folk to be found were members of the Hunting Association of Ireland, who were in town for a conference.

Locals told us the nag-trading only takes place at the weekends.

Blame the recession, they said.

The Old Commando was having none of that. He pointed out that he had lived through harder times and never heard tell of the Ballinasloe Horse Fair without horses.The pubs used to be packed all week, he added. Anyway, here we were in Ballinasloe walking
down Society Street. This long street is packed with pubs and restaurants - it's a lively place even without the carnival at the end of the street - or the 'hurdy-gurdies' as the old Commando insisted on calling them.

Halfway up the street is Downey's. It looks like a very ordinary pub from the outside but inside it's very swish.

The first thing we noticed were the candles everywhere, most of them in mirrormosaic jars on the tables. The young Commando thought they lent an artistic touch to the place.

The friendly barman immediately made us feel welcome and offered to bring over our pints.We thought of sitting in the raised snug by the window but decided to leave it free for a romantic couple - it was that kind of snug.

The long bar runs into the lounge at the back, where there's also a pool table and jukebox. The elegant décor includes alternating colour-schemes on the walls - some painted in a deep chilli colour, others in striped beige-and-chili and the rest covered in varnished pinewood.

Feel

Beige sofas with pin-striped cushions, red tulle lampshades and a brick fireplace add a living-room feel.

The widescreen TV was muted but the music certainly wasn't.The eclectic playlist went from Ian Dury and the Blockheads' 1978 classic Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick to Jacko, followed by toe-tapping Cajun music, Tina Turner, Mary Black and the Rolling Stones.

We thought this place was very rock 'n' roll. There was a mixture of hip young things and cool older folk, and we felt it would be the perfect hangout for Ron Wood and his teenage girlfriend Ekaterina, as neither of them would feel out of place.

Our creamy pints were served with a smile and a few friendly words from the attentive barman. At €4 they were not cheap by provincial prices but we liked the place too much to grumble.

The toilets were spotless and a lady told us it was bright enough in there to do her lipstick - though she added that there was no lock on one of the cubicles.

We knew this was a top-notch pub when we discovered the pub accepts Let's Go vouchers, which are endorsed by the local Chamber of Commerce and the Credit Union.

A poster advertised a disco and their very own DJ who plays 'till you get thrown out'.

We wouldn't like that to happen, so the Commandos resolved to always be on their best behaviour visiting Downey's.

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