T.S. Mchugh Kitchen Capable, Inconsistent

X 1/2 T.S. McHugh's, 21 Mercer St. Irish and American. Lunch ($5 to $8) 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Dinner ($9 to $15) 5 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. 5 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Entertainment. Lounge, full bar. Major credit cards. Nonsmoking area. Reservations: 282-1910. ------------------------------------------------------------ The first time I walked into T.S. McHugh's on Lower Queen Anne, it was nearing midnight on a truly miserable Friday night. Rain was blowing sideways.

The dark green front of the Irish-styled bar looked inviting and the neon signs softened by the weather seemed like glowing beacons in the storm.

I wasn't hungry and I didn't particularly want a drink, but a pint of deep, dark Guinness Stout sounded like an antidote to the meteorological menace. I drank the stout slowly, watched the rain drip from my coat, and surveyed the bar.

A typical McHugh creation: Dark oak floors, sturdy wood seats, thick oilcloth table covers, brilliantly lit bottles reaching up to the ceilings like a multi-colored 80-proof mosaic.

Prints of Ireland on the walls; two Irish balladeers on the small stage. I sipped, warmed and planned to come back soon for a meal or two. Or more.

Which I did. After four trips to McHugh's in the past two weeks, I had to conclude that although some very capable work is coming from the kitchen, there also are some inconsistencies and shortcomings seldom encountered in a place with McHugh's name on it.

And that, too, may be part of the problem. T.S. McHugh's has Mick McHugh's father's name over the door. And Mick's name is among other owners on the menu, meaning that this is not a wholly owned and strictly run McHugh restaurant. The difference, I think, shows.

The mashed potatoes (with flecks of chopped green onion) are grand; the curly french fries are pretty - and pretty good.

The bean soup and the Irish Soda Bread basket look appealing as starters, but the bean soup was woefully thin and blandly seasoned.

Another pretty dish, the Beef and Guinness Pot Pie ($8.95) looked beautiful when it arrived. A square of fluffy puff pastry bubbled atop a steaming bowl of meat cubes in a dark ale gravy.

But the meat itself was tough, more chewy than tender, and many of the beef cubes had flecks of untrimmed fat attached and some of the rest were riddled through with gristle. A prep cook had saved time - and money - trimming up that batch. The finished product was picture perfect, until you tried to eat the picture.

I can recommend the house cabbage salad, however, without qualifications. It is a wilted salad of nicely crisped bacon in a tart, hot vinaigrette dressing tossed with shredded red and Napa cabbages, topped with crumbled egg. A few grinds of black pepper sets it off well.

The Clam Chowder is untraditional but tasty (a small dice of red peppers provides a color accent), made without potatoes and chock full of minced clams in a cream broth that is just right in terms of consistency - not too cream-thick (some clam chowders locally are fast becoming clam puddings).

Sandwiches at lunch are generous to a fault. A light-rye toasted Reuben ($7.45 evenings; $5.95 at lunch) was so thick it was difficult to get a mandible around and so filled with moist sauerkraut that rubber gloves seemed called for. Yes, it was sloppy but, yes, it was good.

The ham sandwich ($5.50), instead of using layers of thin-sliced ham is made, from large, three-quarter-inch thick chunks, cut to order from the bone. It's served inside an excellent dark pumpernickel.

A friend raised eyebrows in appreciation of the Gingered Chicken Salad ($6.95): "Chilled, broiled chicken breast, seasoned with sesame and ginger, tossed with snow peas, fresh ginger, red bell pepper, Napa cabbage and crunchy oriental rice noodles."

But McHugh's is a meat-and- potato environment and I ran into problems with some of the meat.

The "full pound" T-Bone Steak ($14.95), ordered medium-rare, was slightly over-cooked, but just slightly. T-bones are difficult; the two sides of the "T" firm up at different rates. It's a good steak at a good price.

The house Sirloin Steak ($11.50) was another matter. A generous cut of the loin is marinated in a Burgundy-mustard sauce before broiling. How long my steak had been marinating, I don't know; how long the steak had hung around the kitchen before going to its final bath, I also don't know. But it tasted - and smelled - over-ripe.

That just shouldn't happen. I tried three bites from different parts of the steak and gave up.

The Baked Ham dinner ($9.95) fared better. The Idaho, bone-in ham is basted in a mustard sauce and served with an orange port sauce. The latter was too bitter-sweet to complement the gentler flavors of the smoked pork.

The Irish Whiskey Cake ($2.95) is an eye-opener. I would hesitate to hold a candle to it. The traditional raisin fruit cake is soaked in Irish whiskey and served under whipped cream. It probably shouldn't be legal for minors. This is an 80-proof dessert.

As of this writing, Mick McHugh was in Ireland doing research at the celebrated Ballymaloe House in County Cork. Upon return, he needs to shake up this kitchen and restore his usual levels of quality control.