My daughter Jenny and her husband, Josh, introduced us to another wonderful dining spot on the northern Oregon coast on our recent vacation there. Although we were blessed with mild temperatures, light winds and sunny blue skies during most of our week at the beach, the night we drove into Cannon Beach blew in blustery and wet, with a chill that announced autumn was at hand. Therefore, the cheery, crowded warmth of The Irish Table proved the perfect spot for a hearty meal on such a night.

Chef/owner Crystal Corbin offers what she calls a fusion of Irish and Pacific Northwest cuisine. She and her husband, Sean — who runs the front of the house and oversees serving up a variety of whiskeys, wine and Irish beers on tap — serve dinners only from 5:30 p.m. ’til close Fridays through Tuesdays. They share the space with a separate business, Sleepy Monk Coffee, an organic roaster and coffeehouse whose coffee has developed quite a following and may be found at several restaurants up and down the coast. The building itself, low-slung and weathered on the outside, appears to be several decades old and features a warren of small, connected rooms (no doubt the result of numerous additions and remodels over the years). Low ceilings, worn wood walls and an assortment of tables and chairs glow in the warm lighting; everything says cozy and welcoming.

The menu isn’t terribly extensive, but everything on it sounds wonderful, and everything we ordered proved to be so. The meal began with a loaf of the house Irish soda bread — warm and of a perfect texture. I had to remind myself to leave room for the rest of dinner. They’re lauded for their curried mussels and Dungeness crab toast; we shared the toast (crab heaped atop crostini with boursin cheese and a lemony dill vinaigrette) and decided it, along with a bowl of the rich, creamy, savory seafood chowder, would make a perfect meal all by themselves.

Trying to balance things out, I chose the house salad (mixed greens and other goodies sprinkled with a great aged Irish cheddar), but I made Harry promise to share a few spoonfuls of the chowder. (I had to verify its quality for the purposes of journalistic integrity, don’t you know!) Definitely will want to order an entire bowl all for myself, next time. Jenny and I both ordered the pork chops; our plates came with two enormous chops each, bathed in a huckleberry demi-glaze atop a purple mashed potato (champ) dish. The meat was perfectly cooked, tender and juicy, and easily could have fed two people. Harry chose the flatiron steak served with colcannon potatoes and wild mushrooms; again, the meat was perfectly prepared and the sauce accompanying it delicious. Josh opted for the fish of the day, a wonderfully prepared wild salmon.

We finished the meal sharing a warm, juicy berry crisp à la mode (thank goodness I had the salad instead of the chowder!). Everything about the evening was first-rate, including the excellent, friendly service. I couldn’t recommend The Irish Table more highly, and, clearly, the word is out about the place. They take reservations only for parties of four or more, and well before the doors open there is generally a line. On the night we were there, there were folks willing to dine out on the covered porch (where, despite heaters and blankets, it was still breezy and a bit damp) to shorten their wait for the wonderful food. Should you find yourself on the northern Oregon coast, don’t pass up the chance to try it. And if it’s a blustery, rainy night, you’ll appreciate the cozy atmosphere all the more!

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor