Olde Castle Bar, menu in Donegal

Great atmosphere and good food, well worth a visit.

Olde Castle Seafood Bar became one of our favorite restaurants in Donegal Town. This historic place has seen many changes since the 1700s, when it was an inn and stables next to Red Hugh O’Donnell’s 15th-century Donegal Castle. The current building was restored in the 19th-century and has been home to the restaurant since 2007, when the O’Toole family opened the establishment. After we arrived in this historic town, Olde Castle Seafood Bar was where we had our first meal. We both ordered the fresh fish caught by the fishermen from Killybegs just down the road. The restaurant sources its fish from Killybegs and local fishermen. The dinner was excellent. We went back for lunch a couple of times more for some lovely vegetable soup with the fabulous Irish brown bread. Another day we had a charcuterie platter featuring Irish meats and cheeses that were refreshing and delicious. The servers were friendly and helpful, and the bartender was full of wonderful tales. Just what you would expect from a true Irish barkeep. We felt it was very reasonably priced, and all the food was delicious. We will be back.

Mediocre service, reasonable food for a pub. This certainly cannot be called a restaurant.

Nice place at first glance. You order at the bar yourself. We came in with a small dog and ordered food and a drink. (We didn't see a sign about dogs when we entered.) When our food was served, someone suddenly came to say that dogs are not welcome inside. A bit late when your food is already in front of you. So we just kept eating with the dog under the table.

Lovely pint of Guinness. Charming bar staff. Got the lobster but not much eating in it. Old stables to the castle I believe. Nice vibes.

Fabulous lunch when passing by the town. Quick service and reasonable prices. The food was excellent. We had the beef spiced sandwich and the summer salad. Desert was Sundae and chocolate fondant. All absolutely delicious.

Really enjoyed my visit to The Old Castle Seafood Bar. I had the seafood chowder and it was genuinely one of the best I’ve had – packed with fresh seafood, rich, creamy, and full of flavour. The Guinness was excellent too and paired perfectly with the meal. Great food, friendly service, and a lovely atmosphere. I’ll definitely be back!

When we arrived it was packed. We were able to eat at a counter. What we ate was well prepared and delicious.

Food was great, we arrived not long before end of food service. I had the chowder starter, followed by fish cakes. Shame they ran out of mussels for my friend, but the garlic bread starter was cooked well and went great with my chowder 😁 Service was really good, the food servers were very friendly and polite, the barman was a little abrupt. Overall great experience, hopefully be back one day.

It was very busy on Saturday, so we felt lucky to find an outdoor table without a reservation. However, customers seated outside have to order and pay in advance at the bar. We stood there for more than 15 minutes without anyone coming over to take our order. We finally paid at 7:40 pm, but the food did not arrive until 8:15 pm. No one came to set the table with cutlery or offer us any water. As shown in the photo, for 24 euro a lamd stew, the portion was very small. It was also overly salty and was served without any bread. Overall, the service was slow and inattentive, and the lamb stew was disappointing.