In our effort to fill in the blanks when we see you getting lost in our search results, we’re aiming to visit some of the more common pubs on the tourist trail here and there, now that the bulk of the summer holidaymakers have gone home. Indeed, this week’s pub is one we’ve only ever previously visited in that capacity, years before moving to Dublin: The Long Hall.
Visiting again with more ‘local’ eyes does make you notice different things, but the fundamentals remain the same: the beautifully-maintained – and, in this case, likely genuinely world-famous – exterior of the pub is unmistakable, with its signature red-and-off-white stripes. Inside, it’s the kind of high Victorian décor that is more commonly a pastiche these days, but The Long Hall comes by it honestly: its last real renovation was in the 1880s. And while the deep reds and dark woods are common to many other local Dublin pubs of this vintage – a subject to which we’ll return – there are unique features here, including the much-loved clock, added in 1912.
For us, it ticks more boxes from a musical history perspective – the Phil Lynott and Bruce Springsteen bona fides are legit, though arguably, it’s more the interior (and the central location) that put The Long Hall firmly on the tourist trail. Thinking back to that first visit and why it came so highly recommended, a few memories resurfaced: 1) ‘the quality of the pint of Guinness;’ 2) the very-Victorian feel; and 3) the availability of other local beers – at the time, from McGargle’s (now better-known as Rye River).
Coming back to the first point as a local, there is no objectively ‘best’ pint of Guinness. Yes, there are places where it seems especially appropriate, like The Gravediggers (or, obviously, the Open Gate), but given that fresh Guinness and clean tap lines are essentially a given everywhere, that ‘best’ pint is purely down to atmosphere. (I said what I said). As a visitor, The Long Hall is certainly a fine spot for one – but it’s also a nice place to enjoy that Rye River pint. Fortunately, that’s still an option – too many other pubs have turfed out long-standing local independent options for their pricey Changing Times beer (looking at you, The Bridge 1859), and while the stout is not bad, there are still too many tap lines here taken up with some of the other Changing Times options – though again, happily there are still other choices available here.
But it’s the middle theme – the Victorian interior – that feels different with more-experienced eyes. If you’re only briefly in town and don’t have the time to explore, The Long Hall is a great spot to see this kind of pub. But once you’ve lived in Dublin for a while – or even just spent significant time here – you’ll know that there are other pubs that are just as ornate, or even more so, but without the tourist crowds (and prices). The Hut and Gaffney’s are just two examples, but especially for the cut-glass enthusiast, we’d suggest visiting those as well for comparison. Both also retain more of their Old Man Pub atmosphere which the tourist crowd dilutes somewhat at The Long Hall, though we’d very much emphasize that this isn’t a tourists-only joint like The Brazen Head, just that there are a lot of them, much of the time, and that’s fine.
So, it’s less of a case of ‘you can never go home again,’ but rather, once a place becomes your home, you find your own regular spots that are likely not those you visited on a quick trip. These days, when I’m in this part of town, Caribou is my usual go-to (after stopping off at Craft Central to re-stock the home fridge, of course), but there’s still plenty to enjoy at The Long Hall, whether you are a local or a newbie. The experience may be a different one with less-fresh eyes, but that’s no bad thing…
Where: 51 South Great George’s Street, Dublin 2, D02 DV74
Access from the city centre: 5ish minute walk or right in it, depending on your point of view
Food: N/A
Sport: N/A
TVs: N/A
Music: Quite a generic playlist
Family-friendliness: Children not allowed – a rare-for-Dublin hard pass for the kids
Pub-crawl-ability: High – Grogan’s, The Hairy Lemon, Caribou, Peter’s Pub, Sinnot’s Bar and Bar Rua are all within stumbling distance, with many more beyond
Local sites of note: George's Street Arcade, Gaiety Theatre, St Stephen's Green, Dublin Castle, Chester Beatty, Craft Central (IYKYK)
Haunted: Again, a truly lamentable lack of ghostlore for a pub of this age
Other notes: There’s air con! And main-floor toilets, but not always in the most agreeable condition
Socials: Facebook, Instagram
Yes, it's cheating a bit, since we just visited a new-to-us cask ale spot last week in 
The Black Sheep
Cask ale, as we have often complained, is something of a rarity in Ireland. While there are a few more pubs with a regular cask offering up in Belfast, here in Dublin, it is simply not a regular feature in most pubs. Happily, though, a tipoff from a reader (cheers, Ciaran!) alerted us to a beer engine in regular use at Harty’s Bar. Naturally, we dropped everything to go investigate.
One reason this pub had not been on our radar is that, appearances notwithstanding, it’s a fairly new establishment (but also not; bear with us) – until about 18 months ago, it was the Dingle Whiskey Bar. But like its neighbour, 
While it doesn’t have the selection of beers next door in Tapped, with its enormous bar, for a small space, it has a good lineup of some of the more standard Porterhouse beers – the Plain Porter, Yippy IPA and Red – as well as Trouble’s Ambush. There’s also Guinness, of course, and Beamish. But as you know, we were here for the cask option: this week, it was 
We know that we tend to be biased toward pubs on the north side of the Liffey, but this week, we travel (relatively) far into south Dublin – all the way to Blackrock and . Once a quiet fishing village with a sideline in 
And while the 
There are some lovely little snugs and the pub also has a bit of a nautical bent – the seafront is right here, after all – but it’s very welcoming to all; the standard Guinness (and Beamish!) is on offer, and there is good support for independent offerings like Hope and Wicklow Wolf, as well as 
Our featured Dublin pub this week is one that has been in the ‘much requested’ queue for some time. While we had to make it a flying visit, we finally got to 
Until a little over a decade ago, 
And while it can be a bit rough around the edges, likely needing a few coats of paint and some repairs here and there (not to mention having slightly-infamous toilets), that’s part of the charm. Yes, it would be nice if some of the derelict buildings surrounding The Cobblestone were used for, say, housing, but it really does feel like a landmark as-is.
Irish pubs are, broadly speaking, welcoming to all ages during the day and early evening – or, at least, they are more often than not, compared to pubs and pub-adjacent spaces in the UK or US (the never-ending ‘kids in taprooms’ debate there notwithstanding). Dublin has a wealth of pubs that are especially good at catering to families, whether it’s for a meal or just a relaxing pint for the adults and a Coke or Club Orange for the kids.
In the city centre, it might be useful to navigate by proximity to a few tourist attractions. If Temple Bar is on your list, but this is a family trip and not a stag or hen do,
Going north of the river, 
If you’ve brought the family 
Have we found Dublin’s darkest pub?
All told, though, the vibe at Frank Ryan’s is extremely laid-back, and it can be a respite from the sun on a hot day; it’s not the sort of pub that’s going to be to everyone’s taste, but with so many in the broader 
Dublin excels at 
There’s a warm welcome, and not one, but two local independent beers offerings: Hope and O’Hara’s are always well-kept here. The bar serves two separate sections, each with their own respective snugs and other seating, and there are lots of little corners to duck into if you’re looking for that quiet solo pint. And it’s interesting to note that while everything you see now is very much hearkening back to the late 19th century, this is, in fact, an older pub – the original building(s) is/are Georgian, and its first license 
Our one knock on many Old Man Pubs is that they rarely offer any beers beyond the usual Guinness and Heineken (though to be fair, it’s usually an excellent Guinness from scrupulously clean tap lines), but as mentioned above, at Gaffney’s, there is good support for other choices, plus Beamish as another stout option. This beer selection, combined with the attractive interior, might just make it the perfect Dublin Old Man Pub.
It’s time for another one of our rare trips into Dublin city centre proper with a visit to McDaid’s, a pub with a fine literary heritage. Granted, there are many, many pubs here with similar claims to fame, but most do come by it quite honestly. There’s the requisite 
It would be interesting to do a deeper dive into the history of the building and previous pubs trading on this site…the ‘est 1779’ above the door has little to do with the current incarnation of the pub, which is a mid-20th century affair, and the building that houses it is 
The recent run of warm weather has led to prioritising pubs with lovely 
A recent BlueSky chat was a reminder that unlike the Neighbouring Island, we have few pubs that are a middle ground between Old Man Pubs, with a standard macro lineup (always Guinness, of course, plus Heineken or perhaps Carlsberg) and ‘hipster’ pubs with interesting craft beers…there’s no direct equivalent of a free house with a mix of standard macros, family brewery offerings on cask (sob) and local indies here in Ireland (with a very few exceptions – 
It’s also worth mentioning just how spacious Kodiak is – the main floor has two full bars, each with its own distinct feel (one darker, one brighter) and tap lineup, so for you beer nerds, check out both, and then there’s the large beer garden at the back. Then there’s even more upstairs (shuffleboard!) – hangout spaces that would be ideal for parties, and the well-designed toilets can be reached via lift or stairs. Indeed, simply by moving around different parts of the pub, you can switch up your experience of the place: start off with a chill solo pint in subdued lighting, then grab some sun