Celts Craft House

Happened to be in Apple Valley and found this hidden gem that is not very noticeable while driving. It's located within Grand Stay Hotel and Conferences. It was late - around 1:40pm or so - and we were on a father-daughter lunch date. The lunch hour rush was behind us and there were just a handful of diners. I assumed most of the staff would have left and they would be closing down after lunch. But no, they were open with supposedly a skeleton crew and the bartender, Jim (Schire) attended to us right away. They have seating at the bar or tables or booths. It was a very homely feeling inside and we settled down in a booth. They have a full bar and the choices of beer on tap made it a hard decision for what to have. Jim was happy to give us a taste. (I'll definitely be back for the nitro!). Did I mention, they have 22 or 23 different varieties on tap. We ordered some Jalapeño chips and were pleasantly surprised when the order came. Assumed it would be potato chips with Jalapeño rub but they were actually jalapeños lightly battered. They had a mild heat, very tender yet crunchy. We came to know that Al (Brady), the chef/owner soaks them in his secret marinade the day before. Talk about labor of love, this is a must have again on our next trip! The choice of burgers and sandwiches were also good. While my daughter ordered the Craft house burger, I went for the Rueben. It was loaded with corned beef which was so soft & tender that it literally disintegrated in the mouth. It is evident that both Al and Jim take pride in the restaurant while looking after guests. We live 35 minutes away but will be driving over again to try something else from their food menu and ofcourse the nitro!

I don't know how a place like that can call itself an "Irish Pub" when they only have Guinness for Irish beer. Was not impressed with the Shepherd's Pie, it tasted of mostly vinegar. Least impressive was the service, the waitress cut me and the rest of us off when we wanted to get one more round of drinks and just brought us the check instead when we otherwise would have stayed. Their loss. Would not recommend.