Oak Cliff News
Beloved Dallas Irish pub Old Monk opens spinoff location in Oak Cliff
Fish & chips at Old Monk
In news that seems fitting one day after St. Patrick's Day, one of Dallas' earliest and most revered Irish pubs is expanding: Old Monk, which has been serving craft beer and pub fare on Henderson Avenue for more than 25 years, is opening a spinoff in Oak Cliff.
According to owner and native of Ireland Feargal McKinney, it'll open at 810 W. Davis St. in the fall, in a pretty brick building that was most recently and briefly an F45 workout place but used to be Butch's Transmission.
UPDATE 11-13-2024: Old Monk in Oak Cliff is now open.
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Its arrival will give Oak Cliffers two Irish pubs within a few blocks, as Cannon's Corner Irish Pub opened at 1314 W. Davis St. in 2019.
Old Monk first opened in 1998, a pioneer not only as an Irish pub but also on Henderson Avenue, well before it became the entertainment hub it is today.
Its wide beer selection pre-dated the craft beer movement with beers from around the globe: England, Holland, Ireland, Germany, Belgium, the Czech Republic, and the US.
That was matched by a menu of pub favorites deftly executed including fish & chips, wurst boards, and steamed mussels. They were even ahead of the game on the vegetarian front with a veggie burger, made in house.
It has earned Old Monk much acclaim and slots on Best Pub lists in Dallas.
McKinney, who also owns two other Irish pubs on Henderson Avenue — the Skellig and Spider Murphy's — says that he and his partner Ellen Keenan hope to recreate some of the unique flair that has made the Henderson Avenue a perennial favorite.
"It will simply be called Old Monk Oak Cliff and we intend to have the same menu as Monk and build the space out and decorate as closely as we can to the Henderson pub," McKinney says.
"More importantly than the appearance, I hope to create a neighborhood pub that is in keeping with the neighborhood it is in and can be around for decades," he says.
Katie Arterburn, who has been general manager at Henderson for 12 years and will transfer to Oak Cliff as both manager and as a partner in the new pub. Conveniently, she lives five minutes from the new spot.
"Monk is 26 years old — not exactly a blistering expansion schedule, but I am excited to do this, looking forward to getting to know a new area and new neighbors," McKinney says.
Chef Shirley Chung.Photo by Samantha Marie Photography
Chef Shirley Chung is known as the "Dumpling Queen of Los Angeles."Photo by Samantha Marie Photography