It ‘keeps getting better’ at ‘Clancy’s at the Barn’

St. Patrick’s Day is days away, and Sean Clancy is busy.

“I’ve been making corned beef for a couple of weeks now,” said Clancy, owner of Clancy’s Irish Pub at the Barn at Lucerne, who estimates he’ll have almost 2,000 pounds of corned beef cured and ready for St. Patrick’s weekend. “With all the dinners and sandwiches we’ll serve in the pub along with the catering orders, we’ll go through a almost a ton of corned beef. We’ll also sell raw corned beef rounds and briskets in the butcher shop for those who like to cook it for themselves.”

Home-cured corned beef is a treat, and luckily, Clancy has his family’s recipe, which has been handed down for five generations. Clancy is a fifth-generation, old-fashioned butcher who is proud to have the sixth generation, son Ryan and daughter Maggie, working beside him. Together, they oversee the pub and butcher shop side of the business.

On the pub side, Clancy’s offers hearty fare and cold drinks. Listed under Traditional Pub Fare and offered year-round is Corned Beef and Cabbage along with Fish and Chips and Hot Beef Brisket that’s slow-roasted for days and plated with au gratin potatoes and green beans. Tallied under “Not so Traditional Pub Fare” are Clancy’s signature smoked meats and barbecue, including pork steaks, ribs, pulled pork and chicken, all smoked and slow-roasted over artisan-made charcoal.

“This charcoal is lump hardwood and made the way they used to make it years ago.” Clancy said. “It gives the meats a great flavor. There’s nothing else like it.”

Pub offerings also include custom grilled burgers made from hand-selected beef cuts that are ground fresh, which produces a burger St. Louis Magazine named one of the best in St. Louis. Chicken wings are marinated, seasoned and hickory-smoked. Homemade chips, potato skins and toasted ravioli are favorites, along with Ryan’s Stuffed Mushrooms filled with cream cheese and crab and crowned with breadcrumbs.

For a lighter meal, pair an order of stuffed mushrooms with a cup of Irish Cheddar Baked Potato Soup or a salad. Best salad pick for the not-so-hungry is the side salad, a smaller version of Clancy’s House. Heartier appetites might consider the Ultimate Chef Salad or the Steak Salad featuring grilled flank steak from Clancy’s butcher shop, located just inside the pub’s entry.

“Having a butcher shop on site gives us an edge,” Clancy said. “We can go right to the meat case and get what we need fresh.”

Since opening in the Barn 11 years ago, steaks have been a Clancy’s signature item and are the first thing guests see when they step inside. The meat case is filled with steaks, ribeyes, filets, porterhouse, T-bones and New York strips. All are featured on the menu and hand-cut on site.

“We still have our Saturday $15.95 steak dinner special where you get a ribeye, filet or New York strip with a twice-baked potato and vegetable, which began as our ‘any steak left in the case’ special,” said Clancy, explaining how the promotion originated as a way to clear out the meat case on weekends. “Instead of clearing out the case, I now spend Saturdays cutting more steaks.”

While normally closed to the public on Sundays and reserved for special events, Clancy’s will be open on Sunday, March 17, St. Patrick’s Day, so people can do St. Patrick proud and celebrate in a unique atmosphere reminiscent of pubs found in Ireland.

“We’re unique. We have a good atmosphere and great customers,” Clancy said. “It just keeps getting better.”Clancy’s Irish Pub at The Barn

930 Kehrs Mill Road • Ballwin

636-394-2199

11 a.m.-10 p.m., Tuesday-Saturday

Butcher shop hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

www.clancysatthebarn.com