Month: March 2026

Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: Lucky’s

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Lucky's and a screenWe are back in action this week, now that the Paddy’s Day crowds have moved on, and, as so often, we find ourselves in The Liberties. We’re visiting Lucky’s, a pub we’ve frequently stopped in during the Libertine Market Crawl (although they are no longer on the current route), but we have not really had time to relax there.

The beer garden at Lucky'sWith one recent glorious afternoon of sun, however, making the most of it was a moral imperative – and so, we repaired to Lucky’s. The main pull was their large and well-appointed beer garden to the rear of the pub; it’s one of a very few in Dublin that makes an effort to separate out the non-smoking bit of the outdoor area to a certain extent, which is very much appreciated.

The bar at Lucky'sAs a sister bar to The Circular, Lucky’s also serves Coke Lane Pizza from the late afternoons onward, and many of our fellow sun-seekers in the beer garden were waiting impatiently for it to open – it is, it must be said, quite tasty pizza. While on this occasion most people stayed outside, owing to the fine weather, it should be noted that the interior of Lucky’s is also very comfortable: no, it’s not got Old Man Pub fittings, but it’s nice to have a brighter spot on occasion (yes, grey counts as ‘brighter’ compared to many places), and there’s a lot of great art by local artists all around the pub. Also, COAT HOOKS.

A Rollover by Whiplash at Lucky'sBeer-wise, there’s a nice, rotating mix of local independent options from Whiplash, Rascals and Hopfully (among others recently on tap), along with the usual Guinness; bottles of flavoured cider seemed to be the thing the Young People were going for. Rather unusually, there’s also Hoegaarden, plus a range of cocktails and non-alcoholic options.

One of the reasons we so often end up in The Liberties is the sheer range of pubs on offer; although Lucky’s may cater to a younger crowd (broadly speaking), we found it a great spot to soak up a bit of sun on a weekend afternoon, and it made for an easy hop over to Dudley’s, one of our more usual haunts.

Yes, we need to make a return trip for the pizza, but that’s no bad thing, once we get more consistent sunny weather…fingers crossed. Lucky’s is a worthy addition to our list of Dublin’s best pubs for sunny weather.

Where: 78 Meath St, The Liberties, Dublin 8, D08 A318
Access from the city centre: Buses C4, G1/G2, 13, 23, 24, 27, 56A, 73, 77A, 80, 150, 15ish minute walk
Food: Coke Lane Pizza
Sport: Major sport on (rugby, Premier League, etc), but more musical than sporty
TVs: A few here and there, even outside
Music: Music for cool people – there’s also a DJ booth
Family-friendliness: Fine in the afternoon/early evening
Pub-crawl-ability: High – Dudley’s, Arthur’s, Swift, Love Tempo (still closed after a fire, as of this writing), Guinness Open Gate Brewery, Drop Dead Twice (just reopened after a fire), The Thomas House, The Lord Edward, The Bull & Castle and The Beer Temple/The Oak are all within a short walk; The Brazen Head is also not far, if you fancy paying more
Local sites of note: Guinness Storehouse, Vicar Street, Olympia Theatre, Christchurch Cathedral, Dublinia, St Audoen’s Church
Haunted: The Liberties should have plenty of ghosts. But Lucky’s? No sign!
Other notes: Very pet-friendly
Socials: Instagram

Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: O’Donoghue’s

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Exterior of O'Donoghue's. Yes, there's always this much traffic.Regular readers know that we tend to keep north of the Liffey, or else head more toward The Liberties when we must cross the river. However, we had occasion to be in the area on a weekday afternoon, and so finally made it a priority to call in to O’Donoghue’s – a pub we’ve had a few requests to cover.

Now, while it’s been on the list for a while, we’ve not made it in for a few reasons – not just our general laziness when it comes to heading south. We tend to avoid the more ‘touristy’ areas of town, not only because of the price of a pint in them (though we’re not quite talking Temple Bar pricing here), but because there also tends to be less going on in terms of food and beer selection in a lot of the pubs that pop up on the usual tourist trail recommendation lists. Add in live trad to the equation, and it can be a potent mix that signals ‘tourists only!’ – a combination most keenly felt in many of the pubs in Temple Bar, but that also applies to places like The Brazen Head. And on a recent walk past, the specific tunes and crowd spilling out of O’Donoghue’s that evening seemed to be, well, that.

Inside O'Donoghue's - much calmer!However, our midweek daytime visit was quite a different affair, and all to the good. Both the interior and the large beer garden were calm, though not empty – as we write this, it is Cheltenham week, and that tends to mean fairly full Old Man Pubs – the resulting crowd was a good mix of locals and visiting Yorkshiremen, most with an interest in the racing. It was also encouraging to see Lucky Pale Ale from Trouble on tap; so many of the ‘must-visit’ pubs here in Dublin – notably Toner’s, just across the street – only have Guinness and/or Heineken products, so seeing at least one local independent beer makes things much more interesting for us.

And the music heritage at O’Donoghue’s is a very real aspect of the appeal; The Dubliners are forever associated with it, and they are looking at you from a range of portraits and photos around the pub. The dark, scuffed (but not uncomfortable) wooden furniture adds to the atmosphere, and while it’s not as large and maze-like as its neighbour across the street, it’s still a much larger pub than you’d guess from the outside. And although the building may not be quite as old as claimed, it’s certainly in the general Georgian ballpark. But it’s the pub’s association with trad music over the last half century that makes it unique. And, like The Cobblestone, it still has a reputation for drawing trad musicians and fans from near and far – it’s not the frequently diddley-eye mix of tunes aimed only at tourists you get in certain quarters.

The beer garden at O'Donoghue'sThat said, we are more likely to take ourselves to The Cobblestone or Dudley’s if we’re in the mood for music and pints, but that’s more a function of proximity (and beer selection) than anything else. We can certainly see why O’Donoghue’s is still a real destination for trad, for visitors and locals alike, even if we don’t get down that way particularly often.

No Temple Bar vibes here!

Where: 15 Merrion Row, Dublin
Access from the city centre: Stephen’s Green is just around the corner
Food: Crisps
Sport: Rugby, horse racing, etc…
TVs: Screens both inside and out for the sport
Music: Live trad every night
Family-friendliness: More of a grownup spot, but children/families are welcome to stay in the guest rooms – no kids after 9 pm in the bar area, though, as standard elsewhere
Pub-crawl-ability: Medium-High – Toner’s, McGrattan’s, Kennedy’s and Doheny & Nesbitt are all very close, though we like to head further on up toward Tapped, Cassidy’s, Bowes or The Palace Bar
Local sites of note: Huguenot Cemetery, Little Museum of Dublin, St Stephen’s Green, Merrion Square, Fitzwilliam Square, Royal Hibernian Academy, Oireachtas, National Library of Ireland, National Museum of Ireland (Archaeology and The Dead Zoo), National Gallery of Ireland…etc.
Haunted: A strange lack of spooky tales…
Other notes: Main floor toilets
Socials: Instagram, Facebook

Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: Best Pubs for Stout

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A Guinness at The Gravedigger'sIt’s March, and while we wouldn’t dream of taking on the subject of ‘what’s the best pub in Dublin for Paddy’s Day?’ we are, nonetheless, aware that there are many additional out-of-town guests here over that weekend/bank holiday, and that most of them are looking for Guinness…as well as other stouts, given how synonymous the holiday and the beer style have become in the global public consciousness.

Hang on, you ask…surely, every pub in Dublin serves stout?

Well…yes. But it’s not just Guinness on offer – if you know where to look. And even your Guinness Experience will vary, both in cost and feels, depending on where you go…so let’s get cracking.

We also won’t dive into the ‘best pint of Guinness in Dublin’ discourse because 1) it’s Not Really A Thing* and 2) different pubs have different atmospheres, service, vibes, etc – if you love the Guinness at The Gravediggers it’s because it’s a nice pub in an interesting setting that’s been lovingly cared-for, not because there’s anything unusual about the Guinness itself. And yes, visitors will be told to go to The Gravediggers, The Long Hall, The Lord Edward, Bowe’s, Grogan’s and many others for the ‘best pint of Guinness,’ but at the end of the day, it’s down to personal taste and how crowded those pubs are on the day – they all have very fresh Guinness and expert bar staff.

But wait, there’s more!

Wicklow Wolf Truffle Shuffle at PorterhouseAlthough much – if not most – independently-brewed Irish stout ends up on tap in France or Italy, there are a number of places in Dublin to give some a try. Sister pubs The Porterhouse and Tapped each offer Porterhouse Plain Porter (your only man) and their Oyster Stout most of the time, but it’s also worth keeping an eye out for Lineman Astral Grains Foreign Extra Stout. Harty’s Bar or Porterhouse may get the odd cask stout from the likes of Brehon Brewing, too – their Ulster Black Oatmeal Stout is lovely, and a cask stout is a nice change from the more typical nitro stout.

Galway Bay’s Ostara Stout is usually on at their various pubs including The Black Sheep and The Beer Temple, often alongside 9 White Deer’s stout, which also happens to be gluten-free; Piper’s Corner is another spot that frequently has 9 White Deer in bottles. You can safely assume Guinness 0.0 is available nearly everywhere nowadays, and it’s still very much the standard for a non-alcoholic beer.

Slow Life at FidelityOther local stouts to keep an eye out for include Four Provinces Dublin Dubh – definitely available at their own pub in Kimmage, but frequently on tap at pubs such as The Botanic, Two Sisters and The Cobblestone. Whiplash’s Slow Life can be found at Fidelity and The Big Romance; they also make Dying Again, an export stout that’s been available more often than not of late. Wicklow Wolf’s Eclipse might pop up at Daphni or Kodiak, and Bullseye Nitro Stout from Rascals is on at their brewpub, along with their always-excellent pizza and pilot brews.

For the Leann Folláin fan, Urban Brewing (an O’Hara’s outpost in town) will always have it on, often in addition to their standard dry stout and other beers. Leann Folláin can also be frequently found at Brickyard and Dudley’s, too, along with Guinness and Beamish (plus many more beers of all varieties).

Gibney's Stout - really Rye River EventideAnd for the stout completist, there are a number of pubs that will allow you to try the big-brewery trinity of Guinness, Beamish and Murphy’s side-by-side; you can even set yourself up for a blind tasting if you’re feeling adventurous, and at some, you can add an independent option for good measure. For this type of experiment, we are fans of The Belfry, The Flowing Tide and The Hairy Lemon. The Long Hall also has Rye River’s Eventide on tap, and it’s a wonderful locally-brewed option (also keep an eye out for at at Gibney’s of Malahide, where it’s badged as Gibney’s Stout). Sheehan’s has recently styled itself something of a stout specialist, and it’s an excellent spot to try the fullest possible line-up of darker beers – if we had to pick just one ‘try all the stouts’ pub in Dublin, they would be the go-to.

For those just looking to try one or two Irish stouts in a very ‘ Dublin pub’ environment, Walsh’s, The Morris Bar and The Bleeding Horse have Beamish and Guinness, plus local non-stout faves from the likes of Rye River, Trouble and Whiplash.

We would be remiss in leaving out some of the exceptional stouts that tend to be can-only nowadays – Lough Gill’s barrel-aged stouts are all excellent, and can be picked up at spots like Craft Central or TheCru.ie, but without a true specialist craft beer pub like Underdog, there isn’t really a spot to expect to see them on tap very often. We are also fans of Hope’s seasonal export stout, as well as O Brother, Heaney, Lineman and Third Barrel’s offerings across the stout spectrum.

'We Dream in Beer' at The Open GateFinally, it’s worth noting that a pint of Guinness is only €6.30 at The Guinness Open Gate Brewery and there’s no cover charge or ticket required (though we’d recommend booking in advance on a weekend or holiday) as at the next door Guinness Storehouse – no, not at all the cheapest pint in town (that would be at The Lark Inn or The Auld Triangle, where it’s about a fiver), but given where it is in Dublin, and that it’s a tourist hotspot, it’s not at all a bad price. Plus, it’s practically direct from the source. The tasty pretzel is a bonus, and you may find a one-off stout – recently, we had a sarsparilla version there that divided opinion, but it was fun to try.

So, if you’re in Dublin for St Patrick’s Day, by all means get in your rounds of Guinness, but give some love to other local choices as well – it’s a great way to get off the usual tourist pub trail, so you’ll likely save a bit of cash, and you may find a new favourite beer.

*Yes, there are places with Bad Guinness, but that’s typically a dirty tap lines/skills issue…not really something you ever come across in Ireland, and not on the Guinness Quality’s Team’s watch. And to paraphrase The Princess Bride, anyone saying otherwise is an influencer selling something.