Hooleys Irish Pub

El Cajon, United States

3.8

20 reviews

Contacts

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Telephone:
+1 619-670-7468
Website:
www.hooleys.com
Address:
2955 Jamacha Rd, El Cajon, CA, 92019
b/t Campo Rd & W Cuyamaca College Dr
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Today

Today –
Local time (El Cajon) 8:42 PM Saturday, June 21, 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday –
Wednesday –
Thursday –
Friday –
Saturday –
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

Hooleys Irish Pub & Grill is a restaurant that offers dining options and serves a variety of food items. Its menu includes corned beef sandwiches, fried calamari, boiled eggs, chicken tenders and wings, chips, shrimp cocktail and onion rings. The restaurant provides fish and chicken tacos, quesadillas, grilled chicken breast, burgers, soups and salads. Hooleys Irish Pub & Grill also offers French dip, tuna melt and barbeque beef. It provides a range of beverages and organizes various special events. Additionally, the restaurant offers catering services for parties.

History

Established in 1999.

Hooley [.poss Hidust. Hoolie — a hindu festival, brought back by Irish soldiers]Extended celebration, usually involving the consumption of alcohol. In the mid 1980s while touring Europe, Craig MacDonald, owner and founder of Hooleys, made his first visit to Ireland. So taken was he by the Pub Culture” of the Emerald Isle he decided there and then that he would one day import the warmth and charm of an old Irish Pub to his hometown in San Diego, California. With the help of two great friends (now partners), Craig realized his dream, and on Saint Patrick’s Day of 1999 the doors to Hooleys Irish Pub & Grill first opened in Rancho San Diego. As many Irish natives will attest, Hooleys Irish Pub & Grill captures the true magic of an authentic Irish Pub. From the polished brass whiskey still to the old church pews supporting the bar, all the interior was shipped from Ireland to Rancho San Diego.

Meet the Business Owner

Craig M.

Business Owner

In the mid 1980s while touring Europe, Craig MacDonald, owner and founder of Hooleys, made his first visit to Ireland. So taken was he by the Pub Culture” of the Emerald Isle he decided there and then that he would one day import the warmth and charm of an old Irish Pub to his hometown in San Diego, California. With the help of two great friends (now partners), Craig realized his dream, and on Saint Patrick’s Day of 1999 the doors to Hooleys Irish Pub & Grill first opened in Rancho San Diego.

Vicinity

Near this location:
210
ft
Pizza Hut
2959 Jamacha Rd. #20-C
210
ft
Pizza Hut
2951 Jamacha Rd
250
ft
Dickey’s Barbecue Pit
2959 Jamacha Rd
260
ft
Candy Depot
2951 Jamacha Rd
270
ft
Dickeys Bar-B-Que Pit
Rancho San Diego Town Center 2959 Jamaica Rd, Ste 2959-C
270
ft
Jordan’s Krazy Burgers & Hot Dogs
2959 Jamacha Rd

20 reviews of Hooleys Irish Pub

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Place rating: 1
San Diego, CA
Decided to go back to Hooleys again and I had to lower my rating from a 3 to a 2 stars. Not sure what’s up with this places customer service. Their Unilocal page says if you check in you get a free bread pudding with your meal. I tried to use the coupon with my pick up order and was told it was only for dine in. It doesn’t say that anywhere on the coupon. I asked the hostess about it when I arrived and showed her that the coupon does not say dine in only. She said, «yeah, our coupons are all dine in only». I didn’t push the issue. Didn’t really feel like having a pissed off hostess bringing me my food. Won’t be going back.
Place rating: 5
El Cajon, CA
Been drinking here since as long as I can remember. Eddy the bartender is the man. Staff is always great, drinks are reasonably priced, and food is delicious. Always gonna be one of my go to spots
Place rating: 4
Lemon Grove, CA
Hooleys is one of those places where we can go anytime and know exactly what to expect.
Everything on the menu is good, and pairs well with the Guinness that I love to drink.
Smoking is allowed on the patio outside, so don’t expect to sit out there with children. At times the bar area can get loud and rowdy. But since my wife and I love corned beef and Potatoes, we come here and enjoy the food.
Place rating: 2
Honolulu, HI
Good food but the worst service!!! I hope they read these posts. We go In there before our movies and learned how to meditate the service. For example we have learned to order appetizer separate from main because if not they come out together. Servers are never around and have messed up orders more times then I care to mention. Forget about refills we have to walk up to bar.
Place rating: 1
Las Vegas, NV
Everyone in my group got sick after eating here.
Saturday night we were waiting for a movie to start at the cinema next door and decided to grab some drinks and appetizers at Hooleys.
4 of us split the appetizer platter and had some drinks.
Early Sunday morning my wife kept throwing up and having diarrhea. The diarrhea didn’t hit me and the others until last night. We are certain it was Hooleys because it’s the only thing we all ate together.
Might be time for a health inspection.
Place rating: 5
La Mesa, CA
Neighborhood Irish pub as it should be. The staff is always friendly, kids are welcome and they have the standard Irish bar and food items that you would expect done very well. Another great thing about this place is that they have a ton of events for the local community and charities, a definite plus in my book so I’m happy to support.
Place rating: 5
San Diego, CA
This was our first visit, had a club sandwich and we were impressed! Friendly and efficient staff, we will be back to try something different on the menu.
Place rating: 3
La Mesa, CA
I used to love coming to Hooleys since it’s one of the chill spots in Rancho, but they keep raising their prices on certain items which has made me not want to come back in. They definitely Don’t have the «Taco Tuesday» special anymore. Each taco starts at $ 3 each (3 something)! They charge $ 4 and some change on their jalapeño chicken taco. Holy cow! Across the street they have tacos for $ 1 on Tuesday. Isn’t that what it’s all about?! Cheap tacos on a Tuesday? Once they bring their prices back down to what they originally were, I’ll come back since their tacos are good and their ranch is on point.
Place rating: 4
El Cajon, CA
This branch of Hooley’s is the best one. Compared to the location in Grossmont, which doesn’t have their waiters/​waitresses come out and even take your order outside, this location gives you amazing service inside and outside. I come here on random occasions, but my favorite time to come here is on Wednesdays for Whiskey Wednesdays, which so happens to be Wing Wednesdays. Every whiskey is half off and the wings are .75 cents.
Great place to be, and the wings are of very high quality. You will definitely have a nice night out and a fun time here.
Place rating: 4
San Diego, CA
Walked into the family restaurant side, got seated immediately but the guy grabbed a booster seat not a highchair for the baby so we had to wait a minute until we got settled in at the table. Our day server was really nice and suggested to try the cucumber jalepeño margarita which was on ice not blended or thick like other bars serve. My hub got a strongbow in a tall glass. We just stopped in for an appetizer. They have a kids menu too. My son had pasta Mac n cheese (their version was different looking) and potato skins. Unfortunately we had to rush through due to restless baby and it was nap time lol and take the rest of the food to go. Our tall brunette server was really understanding and packed it all up to go. Hopefully next time we can get a babysitter and a driver and really relax and drink and eat haha!
Place rating: 5
San Diego, CA
I visit Hooley’s at least once a week. It’s a great neighborhood place, with the fun vibe of an Irish pub, large TV’s for watching sports games, and a friendly staff who know their regulars by name. The food is delicious and there are always a lot of events going on there: I enjoy trivia on the back patio on Wednesday nights (the host, Stephen, is fantastic), and they often have live music, darts competitions, and other fun ways to spend an evening.
Hooley’s really isn’t the place to visit if you want healthy food (although there are several salads and vegetarian entrees on the menu). What they do best is hearty Irish fare, like their boxty Irish pancakes, savory Guinness stew in a bread bowl, and of course, their famous corned beef tacos. The tater tots are so, so good! And the bread pudding is a MUST. Seriously melts-​in-​your-​mouth delicious!
The best thing about Hooley’s is the staff. I’ve always had great service from the servers and bar staff, and they try really hard to get the food and drinks out quickly even on busy nights. If you go there, ask for Megan — she’ll take great care of you!
Place rating: 5
Jamul, CA
This place is great. Nice and dark inside, with rustic Irish décor. While I know the place DOES get busy, we have never had to wait for a table.
Hooley’s isn’t vegetarian by any means, however, it is surprisingly vegetarian friendly. The Zucchini Fish Tacos are killer, and they have lots of sides available. Its always nice to not have to make a fussy/​confusing/​custom order and and still have multiple options. The large beer selection is a huge bonus.
Place rating: 4
San Diego, CA
Hooleys Irish Pub definitely has that old Irish feel. Love the dark wood bar and seating throughout the interior. Nice laid back atmosphere. Grabbed some Bear Republic IPAs and ordered the Shepherds pie. Loved that they had darts and we could get a few games in. Had a great time after a ride out on the Harley. For some beers and food this is a great spot!
Place rating: 3
Santa Clara, CA
I often choose a bar, restaurant or coffee shop based upon free WiFi. If the place winds up having a poor WiFi signal, that ruins my experience. Hooley’s has a very poor WiFi signal. My phone was not able to connect to it, it was that poor of a signal. The bartender confirmed that’s typical and you might need to stand somewhere different to get it to connect then move back to where you were. If I need to do a WiFi dance, it’s not going to be good enough to make it worthwhile.
The nice thing was we arrived at happy hour and I got a Tanqueray & tonic for $ 5. Not bad pricing.
I liked the look of the outdoor covered patio, looks inviting, but we sat at the bar.
The bar and dining area are exceptionally dark. I don’t like it this dark in a bar, let alone a pub that serves food. One thing that comes to mind is cleanliness — is the place filthy? After reading other reviews, apparently it is filthy. Food on the blinds, dingy carpet, whatever else.
I am unsure if I’ll be back. I don’t always need WiFi when I want a beverage. In concept I’d have liked to have tried their corned beef tacos. But the dark & dirty left a mark. Which stinks because happy hour pricing was good.
Place rating: 4
El Cajon, CA
Taco Tuesday. Lobster tacos. Omg. That’s really all I have to say.
I’ve been a few times. Prior to my Taco Tuesday knowledge I went to order authentic Irish food. I had the boxty and it was gross. Could not eat it. I’ve traveled in Ireland and never saw boxty on any menu. I think it must be more English than Irish? The guiness wasn’t great either. Maybe the lines needed cleaning? All of that doesn’t matter once you’ve had the lobster tacos. You’ll be tempted to try the corned beef tacos. Don’t.
Place rating: 5
Oceanside, CA
I’m happy with the price of my Stone, which was at happy hour. Usually, at bars, I get cheap PBR for $ 5. This was like 12 ounces of a usually expensive beer for $ 5. Pretty good and not as overpriced as most places. The shrimp tacos were amazing. I’m so happy with them that I’m coming here to boast. Service is excellent!
Place rating: 5
San Diego, CA
Good food and great atmosphere. .authentic Irish pub style and they have bands on the weekends. Very cool vibe here.
Place rating: 5
El Cajon, CA
10 dollar boxty’s and 5 dollar Guinness. Food is always good and the staff is friendly. I would recommend visiting this restaurant.
Place rating: 3
La Mesa, CA
It was just ok… and here’s why…
The restaurant: I love the décor and ambiance that this place has, but it needs a serious deep cleaning. The window ledges are covered in dust, the shades that are pulled down in the afternoon have food splatter on them… These little details make a difference to me, because if you don’t clean the direct area that people see, then are you really cleaning the areas customers don’t see?
The service: Mainly seating… is an area for improvement. Although the waitress remembered our order with out writing it down, and she seemed friendly… It took way too long for us to get seated when 3 employees walked by us multiple times and there were more than enough tables open. I do have to commend the waitress we had because she did have a difficult customer at another table who would have frustrated me to no end and she handled it with patience and grace.
The food: The food is good. The menu is decent. We ordered the Sampler appetizer. it was huge and more than enough for 4 people if you’re ok with cutting the large items in half. I would skip the calamari though, way too chewy. I had a salad and soup as my entrée. The baked potato soup was just ok. It was a little cold to where the cheese didnt even melt. I would not order it again. The salad I ordered was good, very basic, nothing out of this world.
Overall, I would go back to Hooley’s to try something else on their menu, but I would opt to go to a different location.
Place rating: 2
Oxnard, CA
Skip-​able. Service was… overbearing, food was, average, and the ambiance was. rock star loud.
We had three people asking us very 5 minutes if everything was OK: not sure if they knew the others in their group existed. Food was just.OK. This is a bar, and things will be loud, but the TV’s were competing with eachother on who could blow a speaker first. Which had people yelling, at each other. The wine «deal» (3 $off for happy hour bottle) wasn’t applicable, even though it was on the list, because it «wasn’t in the computer yet». It’s a bummer, as this was date night, and we picked this location near a theater.
Last, maybe least: much of the staff wear Hooley’s Tshirts. Which, almost makes sense, however, the design is soo sublte, that it took us a while to figure that 2 of the three people were NOT just harassing us, but simply checking up on us.
This places goes to my «avoid unless REALLY hungery» list.