Murphy's Irish Pub, Mandurah

This pub, on the Mandurah foreshore, was lively at lunchtime on Easter Sunday, without being so noisy you couldn't hear the conversation around you. It's clean and the decor is pleasant. All in all a very laid-back atmosphere.

They have a decent lunch menu, not huge but the usual pub fare was there. I ordered the marinated chicken salad with cashews and caramelised pumpkin ($17.50). It was delicious, though packed to the brim with salad onion. Had this been listed on the menu I wouldn't have touched it with a barge pole. After I had picked it all out, I got stuck in. The raspberry dressing was very tasty. There was only four or five pieces of pumpkin, so maybe they should have listed feta - which was plentiful - on the menu, instead of pumpkin! The chicken was flavoursome without being too salty or overpowering. The feta was delicious and good quality, and there were just enough cashews too. Salads can often have far too much lettuce/rocket to outweigh the other ingredients, but not in this case. I would definitely order it again.

As an aside, my mum ordered the steak sandwich ($19), which I considered but for my fear of too-strong aioli. But I tried it - delicious! I'd probably order it if I had another lunchtime venture to Murphy's.

Murphy's also has a good, interactive website that's clearly updated often, to their credit. Recommended, especially for lunch on a weekend to watch the footy.