Connolly’s: Irish Food, Cold Beer, Local Talent

Story by Matt Young | January 1, 2010 | Tags: bands, beer, calendar, cary, Connolly's, connolly's irish pub and restaurant, cornerstone, Daddy’s Alright, DJ George, Events, finally froday, Food, irish, Laughing Through Your Fingers, music, open mic, pubs, restaurants, rock, shmak, stage left, taweel, The Imposters, The Stone River Band, Three Beer Sally

I spent an hour with Sami Taweel, General Manager of Connolly’s Irish Pub and Restaurant, the other day.   I’d been going to Connolly’s since it opened in 1999 and always walked away being amazed by the local music scene that happens there every week.

Seems that Cary is full of talented entertainers with “day jobs”.  And that is Sami’s philosophy. “I am looking for local bands and entertainers to perform at Connolly’s.  There’s great talent in Cary, and they bring crowds,” Taweel told me.  I also seemed to think that Connolly’s was the only place offering live entertainment in this kind of atmosphere on “their side of town” which Sami corroborated as “once true”, although recently others have popped up.  “Most of the band members hang out here too,”  said Taweel, with a grin.  The pub mostly features rock bands, but there is also Wednesday night Live Traditional Irish Music with Mitch Ferguson and Thursday night Open Mic with Tino Gray. Connolly’s is located in the Cornerstone Shopping Center at the corner of Davis & High House.

In January, Connolly’s will host the likes of 48 Hours,  The Imposters, The Stone River Band, Daddy’s Alright, Three Beer Sally, Bill West and the Truth, DJ George, Laughing Through Your Fingers, SHMaK, and Stage Left.  Some of the more regular bands recently at Connolly’s are Bill West and the Truth, a three piece rock group with beautiful vocals, Finally Friday, a well known local guitar duo known for their upbeat style covering the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s,  Bobbing for Melons, a full 6 piece rock band covering classic and contemporary rock and SHMaK, a relatively new local band playing 60’s and 70’s “B-Sides” with some more recent stuff thrown in.

Connolly’s went non-smoking before the state requirement went into effect.  The pub also has a five dollar lunch menu and $4 pints of Guiness.  Sami, the son of Virginia restaurateurs,  says “NOBODY beats our prices for a pint!”   Fare includes fish and chips, corned beef and cabbage, shepherd’s pie and many other Irish/American and Irish items.

For all the musical events around town, consult the CaryCitizen Calendar.