Shawn O’Donnell’s American Grill and Irish Pub has arrived in Skagit County. With two Seattle locations (one in the historic Smith Tower downtown, the other in the busy Fremont neighborhood), one in Spokane and their flagship restaurant in Everett, the family-owned restaurant chain seems to be doing well.
In early 2022, the O’Donnells bought the Farmhouse Restaurant in Skagit County and added it to their empire. One year later, the remodel to turn it into an Irish pub is nearly complete.
Although its address is Mount Vernon, the restaurant is closest to La Conner. Located at the intersection of Highway 20 and LaConner-Whitney Road, it makes an obvious stopping point for visitors who might be heading to the Anacortes ferry or down Whidbey Island. Pamphlets in the lobby and a gift shop make it seem touristy, but it always seems to be well-filled with locals in search of a huge breakfast, an early dinner or a comfortable chat over a beer.
The Reuben is a standout, made on dark bread with plenty of tender, thick-cut corned beef. A ramekin on the side resembles tartar sauce but proves to be very potent horseradish sauce. (Photo by Jessamyn Tuttle)
Every Irish bar needs to know how to pour a proper Guinness, and O’Donnell’s has it figured out. Every slow-poured Guinness comes with a perfectly creamy foam head, frequently adorned with a complicated pattern (recently they all had a Valentine’s theme). In addition to Guinness, they pour several more Irish brews such as Smithwick’s, Harp and Kilkenny. And, of course, you can get a half-and-half (Guinness and Harp). They also serve a range of cocktails, with some good deals during happy hour.
The food is mostly the same as the rest of the O’Donnell’s Irish pub menus, with classics such as Guinness beef stew, fish and chips, corned beef and cabbage, and burgers, but the owners have wisely kept a number of Farmhouse standbys, including the roast turkey dinner. An abundance of turkey also shows up in other menu items like the roast turkey club, the hot turkey sandwich, a turkey Monte Cristo and the Dubliner Toastie.
Among the Irish menu items is the shepherd’s pie. The lamb filling is fairly soupy, and the tasty potato topping only covers maybe a third of the plate, but it makes for a warming, filling meal on a cold day. (Photo by Jessamyn Tuttle)
I enjoyed the Dubliner Toastie ($16.99) a lot. Toasties are the grilled cheese sandwiches of the UK and Ireland, but come with an endless range of fillings (we saw a lot of bacon-and-brie toasties in Scotland a few years ago). This one had tender roasted turkey, mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, Dubliner cheese and “secret sauce” on perfectly toasted bread, making for an extremely good lunch.
The Reuben ($16.99) was also a standout, made on dark bread with plenty of very tender, thick-cut corned beef. A ramekin on the side resembled tartar sauce but proved to be very potent horseradish sauce. Fries were billed as “gourmet” but were nothing special.
Of the other Irish menu items, Donegal Bay clam chowder ($7.59) was not my favorite, but the shepherd’s pie was quite good. The lamb filling was fairly soupy, and the tasty potato topping only covered maybe a third of the plate, but it made for a warm, filling meal on a cold day. It’s available in pint size ($16.99) and Imperial ($18.99) and comes with soda bread and butter.
Where the restaurant really shines is breakfast. The Farmhouse has always been famous for its breakfasts, and Shawn O’Donnell’s sensibly decided to carry on that legacy. They open every day at 7 a.m. with a short breakfast menu available until 4 p.m., then have the full shebang on weekends, including a huge buffet on Sundays (I have not experienced it but it looks truly epic at $21.99 per person).
The Farmhouse has always been famous for its breakfasts, and Shawn O’Donnell’s sensibly decided to carry on that legacy. The BSTA eggs Benedict is served with spinach, tomato, avocado, nicely poached eggs and exceptionally delicious bacon. (Photo by Jessamyn Tuttle)
For weekend breakfast a huge range of food is available, from a full Irish breakfast to Swedish pancakes. Irish soda farls and gravy ($12.99) are an interesting spin on the usual buttermilk biscuit. I was very happy with the BSTA eggs Benedict ($15.59), with spinach, tomato, avocado, nicely poached eggs and exceptionally delicious bacon. The crispy bacon was a little hard to eat sandwiched in between the egg and the muffin, so next time I plan to order it on the side. By the way, that same excellent bacon is available as an appetizer or side any time you like, just ask for “snacking bacon” ($4.99).
Another feature kept from the original Farmhouse is the pies. Every day a variety of pies, including some truly enormous meringues, welcome guests from their glass cabinet at the main entry. Flavors vary, a slice is $5.99.
On Wednesdays and Thursdays, the pub hosts Irish music sessions, with lively traditional tunes from local musicians. The rest of the time, the background soundtrack plays energetic Irish bands like The Pogues and Dropkick Murphys. With Saint Patrick’s Day looming, they are expecting a big turnout to enjoy events throughout March, including an Irish whiskey tasting, a soda bread baking competition, bagpipe bands, Celtic folk bands and everything you could want in an Irish bar on the big day.
While there was a fair amount of trepidation over how much of the original Farmhouse would be preserved, Shawn O’Donnell’s has done a good job of making a place where both longstanding customers and new visitors can all be comfortable.
Shawn O’Donnell’s Skagit Valley Farmhouse is open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at 13724 LaConner Whitney Rd., Mount Vernon. Info: shawnodonnells.com.
