August, 2023 - Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs

Piper’s Corner is very much a trad bar, and while I end up there not so infrequently, I’ve oddly never been in when a session is on, despite being something of a folk music nerd. And while at some point I will have to remedy that, I enjoy the pub for a variety of other reasons.

First, though, some more background: Piper’s Corner opened in 2017, replacing the former Sean O’Casey’s Bar, which was less of a music experience and more of a dive one. And yet Piper’s Corner seems to have been embraced from the start, possibly because it offered a more ‘authentic’ trad experience, vs the more tourist-forward ‘trad evenings’ on offer in some places. I’m aware I’m on slightly dangerous ground here, as there’s absolutely a place for the shows aimed at tourists (if they are willing to pay for a specific kind of experience that’s keeping musicians working, why not?), and also because folk music is never static – it’s always evolving, so there’s no one ‘right’ way to play or enjoy trad tunes. Now, this doesn’t mean visitors are not welcome – not at all – just that it seems to be a more organic experience (for lack of a better word – and this is largely based on word of mouth, since you know I’m asleep by then most of the time). But even having missed out on the music, I have a special fondness for Piper’s Corner for another reason, too – one beyond its extremely handy proximity to the Abbey Theatre, making it an ideal pre- or post-play spot.

Back in 2019 – so, think 1-2 ‘normal’ years and a few extra-long ‘Covid years’ here – I went to a fateful meetup at Piper’s Corner. I was briefly in town for some meetings, waiting for everything to come through for our big move from the US, and it happily coincided with a Ladies Craft Beer Society of Ireland event – I would finally get the chance to meet some of my Twitter Friends (as people were back then) in person, and get some great tips for local beer (of course), neighbourhoods, schools, commutes (still a thing) and so on. Fast-forward four years, and some of the friends I made that night are now some of my firmest – and I’m still a huge fan of Kinnegar Scraggy Bay, which was very much a feature of that evening.

I was back with a few of them the other evening for a Beer Ladies Podcast planning session that turned into more of a session (still not a music one, though), and it was lovely to have some of the same group back in a spot with such warm memories. There were a few little features that made our beer nerdy hearts collectively happy too – the first, of course, being that Piper’s Corner still very much supports smaller Irish breweries, with a whole series of craft beer taps on one side of the bar. Given that a not-insignificant number of pubs that used to have a craft tap or two abandoned them post-lockdowns, it’s a much-appreciated effort, though of course you can get a well-poured Guinness or any of the other usual suspects as well. But the other nice touch is that instead of having to wander over to the other bar to see what’s on, they’ve popped the badges onto the main bar, underneath the other taps – a small but helpful touch that makes ordering that little bit faster.

At some point, I’ll need to actually stay up past my bedtime and catch a trad session or two…

Where: Piper’s Corner, 105-106 Marlborough St, North City, Dublin, D01 FD28
Access from the city centre: 7-ish minute walk across the river, LUAS Green Line
Food: Possibly some crisps, but it’s otherwise a traditional ‘wet pub’ of the sort we heard so much about during lockdowns
Sport: Very much a pre-game spot for GAA, and big games are shown
TVs: Mostly, no, but screens for the abovementioned ‘event’ GAA games
Music: So much trad!
Family-friendliness: I tend to find non-food pubs more adults-only, but I’m sure you could get a Coke on your way to a game at Croke Park
Pub-crawl-ability: High – a short walk to Kimchi Hophouse, The Flowing Tide, The Confession Box, Cassidys, The Palace Bar and many more; there’s a ‘Spoons around the corner as well
Local sites of note: GPO, The Custom House, Busarus, NATIONAL WAX MUSEUM, Abbey Theatre
Haunted: Perhaps someone brings a haunted instrument?
Other notes: Also a good whiskey selection; covered upstairs ‘outdoor’ patio for your smoking/vaping friends

Look! We’ve gone south of the river! It does sometimes happen, if the right opportunity presents itself. And so, to The Stag’s Head.

While I had been to the pub at some point in the dim and distant past, long before I moved here, it was very much as a tourist. And while it does still feel a bit like a ‘tourist’ bar, with its well-preserved Victorian interior (see also The Long Hall, The Hut, The Palace Bar) and Temple Bar-adjacent location, there is some genuine local colour as well. That’s what brought me in most recently: a friend’s birthday party, and she chose the location because it has a very niche place in Irish music history: it is (so the story goes) where Neil Hannon and Thomas Walsh dreamt up The Duckworth-Lewis Method – birthing the world’s finest cricket pop over (more than) a few pints. As an aside, the two have a new song out under Walsh’s aegis – check it out!

But back to the pub itself: while the ground floor hosts the main bar and generous snug, there are smaller spots to sit with a pint or a few friends, or even to host a corporate or life event – indeed, before we settled into the upstairs lounge, with its view over the alleyway, a wedding was in the process of winding down. The beer selection is mostly the usual suspects – a well-poured Guinness and the odd Five Lamps ‘crafty’ option – so not necessarily my first choice, but it’s worth noting that for a city centre Guinness, it’s not a bad price, and certainly cheaper than many (likely most) in the immediate vicinity.

It does feel a bit less welcoming than the places I more typically frequent, with a bit of a wait to be served, even without a queue, but some of that may be that the staff had already slogged through a wedding, and it was by that point a Friday night, so very understandable, especially in this part of town. But it is a beautifully-maintained spot, and there are times when simply relaxing with friends over a Guinness is called for.

And as a folklore nerd, I’m curious to see what one of their Folklore & Fairies evenings is all about, though I suspect it would be full of the louder spectrum of The People From Where I Came From, and I tend to avoid that crowd – still, perhaps something to try with a few friends rounded up in advance…if more local craft beer options were on offer, I’d be in!

Where: The Stag’s Head, 1 Dame Ct, Dublin, D02 TW84
Access from the city centre: You are there
Food: Toasties, oysters, pub grub
Sport: All sorts on the televisions
TVs: TVs in the main bar
Music: Live trad bands Fridays & Saturdays; stereo soundtrack was ‘wedding favourites’ on my visit
Family-friendliness: Likely depends on the time of day
Pub-crawl-ability: High – very short walk to The Oak/The Beer Temple, O’Neill’s, The Lord Edward, The Bull & Castle, The Brazen Head, The Porterhouse and all of Temple Bar, if you hate your money
Local sites of note: Olympia Theatre, Dublin Castle, Dublin City Hall, Chester Beatty Library, Christ Church Cathedral, Dublinia
Haunted: Surely a quality candidate for ghosts, if ghosts like dark wood and leather
Other notes: Extensive whiskey selection

Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: Piper’s Corner

Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: The Stag’s Head