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If there was a non-Starr Philadelphia-area restaurant that you’d expect to be come a chain, you’d probably guess that one of the cheesesteak joints would be farming out to sell our city’s most famous artery-clogging concoction to unsuspecting citizens of other cities.
That may still happen, but there’s another place that’s growing up and expatriating from our area: Kildare’s.
The brainchild of chiropractor Dave Magrogan, Kildare’s currently has five locations in the region, having opened a Headhouse Square restaurant last January. With already thriving operations in King of Prussia, Media, West Chester and Manayunk, Magrogran has decided to make his future undertakings even more ambitious.
“At the end of September, we’re opening up a new concept called Doc Magrogan’s Oyster House,” boasts the doc himself. “It’s an authentic 1920s, 1930s Northeastern oyster house—something you might find in Baltimore or Boston.”
Located in West Chester, the raw bar and eatery will be outfitted with antique lighting, signage, furniture and raised-wood paneling. A Manayunk Doc’s is in the works and a Philadelphia proper location is being planned, but that doesn’t seem to be getting in the way of Kildare’s continued expansion. Magrogran has expressed a desire to open up 45 new locations spanning the I-95 corridor over the next five years.
“We’re going to go up to Boston and we’re going to go down towards North Carolina and Virginia,” says Magrogan. “We’ll expand at the rate the economy and real estate allow us to.”
And just what do we love about Kildare’s?
If you had to single out just one factor that is priming Kildare’s to be to Irish cuisine what P.F. Chang’s is to Asian faire, a focus on details would probably be it. From the chefs trained in Ireland and imported Irish furniture to the brown soda bread that’s brought out before every meal and the U2 playing in the bar, there is no doubt a concerted effort is being made to give the illusion of the old country.
“I’m Irish and I was familiar with going to Ireland and being in the pubs,” explains Magrogan. “I thought that was something the consumer here would appreciate. I thought they would appreciate drinking their beer and eating their food in a real authentic atmosphere, not a pretend one.”
We can only expect that Doc’s will be more of the same U2, Irish Car Bombs — there’s a special on teh 17th at Kildare’s! — and other authentic fare. Frankly, we’re speechless. Godspeed, Kildare’s (and Doc’s). Godspeed, indeed.
The Irish Way [Play Philly]
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