During a recent trip Cindy and I took to Indianapolis with our friends, Scott and Marcia Schroeder, and Dave and Pat Heusmann, we had one last late night beer at The Claddagh Irish Pub in downtown Indianapolis (see map). I've been to The Claddagh (pronounced CLAW-duh) a couple times before, but this was the first for the others.
The Claddagh Irish Pub started in Indianapolis in 2000 by Kevin McDonagh, an Irishman who owns the Supermacs fast food chain in Ireland; and Kevin Blair, an American who was McDonagh's operations manager for Supermacs. Blair went to Ireland in the mid-90's to work for McDonagh at Supermacs and he was intrigued by the quaint Irish pubs that he went to and unwind with his wife and small children.
Even though he knew there were a number of authentic Irish pubs in America, Blair wanted a pub that "reeked" of Irish heritage and culture. The Irish have a term called "craic" (pronounced crack) that is used to describe a place that is fun, lively and friendly. Blair wanted to bring that 
"craic" to America, and with McDonagh's help he was able to open The Claddagh Irish Pub in Indianapolis (right).
The Claddagh was named after the legendary Irish fishing village of Claddagh which is now surrounded by present day Galway, Ireland. The Irish Claddagh attracted many visitors to the area - many of whom were writers - who wrote about the charm of the town and the friendliness of the Claddagh people.
The Claddagh Irish Pub soon began to expand into other larger Midwestern cities and there are now 17 different locations (with three more slated to open) in 7 states. Blair and O'Donagh made each Claddagh unique in layout and design, and put them in locations that would be easily accessible to most people. And each Claddagh is decorated with authentic Irish fixtures and furnitures sent over from Ireland.
The menu at The Claddagh consists of authentic Irish cuisine with a number of American favorites with an Irish bent added to them. I had the melted Irish meatloaf sandwich one time at The Claddagh and it was outstanding.
But the place is more of a true Irish public house with a large variety of Irish beers on tap and in bottles. Even though it was late and we were tired, we had to go in for the one last beer of the evening. We sat at a short table with short stools right near the fire place. It was great having a late night Smithwick's with my wife and good friends in a great place like the original Claddagh.
I travel to many of the cities in which other Claddagh's are located. I'll have to check a couple three of them out to make sure they have the great ambiance and "craic" of the original in Indianapolis.
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