I don't think I've ever been to an Irish pub before. I think back in England people wouldn't really classify it as Irish unless it was actually in Ireland, otherwise it's more an Irish themed pub or bar. To add to this: I've only ever had Guinness once before in my life, and I must've been about 19 sitting in an overpriced pub somewhere in England. I only had it once because I remember utterly hating it. I was definitely not a fan. Fast-forward a decade and I'm now travelling through a small town (or city) of the name of Kutaisi in Georgia. To much surprise, in this old, former industrial town of the Soviet Union, there's a pretty decent attempt at an Irish themed pub. It's named Mary's Irish Pub, though I don't believe it really belongs to anyone named Mary in this general vicinity. Found down an old cobblestone road and tucked away in a rather beautiful building with a lot of history. The Georgian and Soviet aesthetic was still very much evident in the interior, which I found myself caring for a bit more than the Irish theme. Above the bar was a large television playing a football match between Liverpool and some other team of which I can't remember the name of. A group of Georgians were sitting right in the middle for the more optimal view.
The interior was met with a few cute stray dogs that clinged more to the heater than any other part of the room. One room had a small pool table in it to which it seemed relatively popular to no surprise. I didn't snag a photograph of it as to avoid taking photographs of total strangers playing a simple game of pool. Each room had decorations that either detailed the flags of beer brands from the ceiling, country flags on the walls -- oddly Georgia, Ukraine, Ireland, and the United States of America for some strange reason. Oh, and a strange Azerbaijan flag in another room. The flag side of things seemed a bit odd and definitely removed some of that general Irish aesthetic. Not to forget the odd seating arrangements that had these more circular grandma tea tables rather than drinking tables and seating. The walls were green and covered in all sorts of retro styled art with modern references. Little things from all over in regards to pop culture. I grabbed a Guinness out of curiosity, it only felt fitting to have one in this Irish themed pub in the middle of such a strange small town in more rural Georgia.
The Guinness came with a bit more of a price to it at 17 Georgian Lari, that is about $7. The rest of their options seemed more affordable with many Lagers being around 6 Lari, which is about $2. It really depends on what you're looking for, I guess. The Guinness wasn't as bad as I had remembered! I actually somewhat enjoyed it despite the first initial tastes being a bit off. In regards to food we just ordered a side of chips (what Americanised locations would call fries). Though we were cautious about ordering anything here since it had its fair share of negative reviews on the food side of things: either not looking like how it looked on the menu or just being utterly disappointing. I mean, its menu was trying to cater to the more Irish and British side of cuisine, and expecting it to be accurate is asking for disappointment in a place like this. So naturally it is best to avoid anything culture or what may seem a little more complicated for the Georgian palette. The chips were fine though. Didn't order anything else, and wouldn't dare to test their attempts at simple bangers and mash!
A particular feature of the pub that I thoroughly enjoyed was the board in which visitors had pinned things to it. From various football tickets from different decades, some panning back to the earlier 2000s, to concert tickets from metal bands like Lamb of God. I was surprised to see a high number of visitors from England here. Though also equally surprised to see the locations people had flown in from, or had previously travelled to. It was a nice cultural board that spoke of the different nationalities that had found their way to this "Irish" pub. Something I think a lot of places around Tbilisi have been lacking despite being such a large tourist hotspot for many. It's the sort of place you'd definitely revist for the atmosphere if you return to Kutaisi, but also a nice place that clearly locals enjoyed and spent their evenings at. From sports to pool to just enjoying a few drinks with friends. I guess the attempted culture it wanted to create doesn't really matter in the end, the main thing is that it manages to bring people together successfully, and it certainly has. But yeah, skip the food menu anyway.