While it’s less of a ‘pub,’ the Guinness Open Gate Brewery re-opened this summer, and it’s a nice alternative for out-of-town visitors to Dublin who don’t want to pay for do the full Guinness Storehouse ‘brand experience,’ but still want to say they’ve been to the ‘Home of Guinness.’ But it does have a few attractions for locals, too – and it’s a very central spot to kick off a Liberties pub crawl, if that’s your inclination, but the real drawl for me is less the beer, which we’ll come on to in a moment, and more the fantastic nibbles: this is one of the only places in town you can consistently get a pretzel with a beer, and although it’s not an inexpensive one, it’s large, and well worth seeking out.
Regular readers will know I have a Grand Unified Theory about how pubs around the world should offer warm, soft pretzels with beer cheese as a snack, and it’s something we simply don’t have here in Ireland, beyond one-off Oktoberfest events – except at the Open Gate. The other menu items are equally good, and if you’re wondering how a cookie might be worth €10, if you pair it with the Dublin Porter, it’s an absolute treat – and still cheaper than a pint of Guinness in some spots in Temple Bar. The lesson here is that you may have come to try a few beers, but leave room for the food, too.
For anyone used to a reasonably trendy brewery taproom, the recent glow-up at the Open Gate hits all the marks – sleek-looking taps, photography-friendly spaces and industrial chic, though you do now get a better view of the brewing operations behind the glass wall. That said, this isn’t the sort of spot you’ll find 30 rotating taps; it’s still your core Guinness range, with a few more experimental options added on, though there are also legacy brands like Macardles in bottles, and it’s one of the handful of places you can consistently get Guinness Foreign Extra Stout. You won’t be putting a picture of your face in your pint, for an additional fee, as you can at the Storehouse, but that’s no great loss.
Perhaps my favourite thing about the Open Gate, however, is less about the beer and pretzels – though I love the Dublin Porter, and would happily drink it much more frequently were it available elsewhere around town – it’s the sign. Rather than the more common neon chalk or paint-pen listing of what’s on tap, there’s an old-school, railway station-style flipboard that resets periodically, and it is incredibly satisfying to watch and listen to. And despite being someone who once spent far too long each week in Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, I miss the old flipboard – it’s lovely to see that kind of retro tech employed in an engaging way (even if the taps don’t change quite as frequently as trains might be expected to go).
So, while it may be just as much on the tourist trail as its neighbour, the Guinness Storehouse, it’s a more chilled-out experience than trying to grab a pint in the Gravity Bar…and the selection is usually much more interesting.
And again, the pretzels are the real deal – if you’re a local and you ‘have to’ take a friend who is visiting Dublin for the first time, go to the Open Gate hungry – take one for the team!
Where: 53 James St, St. James’s Gate, Dublin 8
Access from the city centre: Buses 13, 27, 49, 54A, 77A, 123, 150, 151, G1, G2, 15-ish minute walk
Food: Small plates, including PRETZELS
Sport: Not here
TVs: No
Music: Fairly generic playlist, but likely depends on the night
Family-friendliness: No under-18s
Pub-crawl-ability: High – Arthur’s is steps away, with Dudley’s, Love Tempo, The Thomas House, The Christchurch Inn, Molly’s Bar, Swift, The Lord Edward, The Bull & Castle and The Beer Temple/The Oak all within a short walk; The Brazen Head is also a bit further away
Local sites of note: Guinness Storehouse, Vicar Street, Olympia Theatre, Christchurch Cathedral, Dublinia, St Audoen’s Church
Haunted: Something something big brand capitalism, maybe? The only ‘vibes’ are from Instagram feature walls, so perhaps spooky if that’s not your thing
Other notes: The beer garden is a great spot on a sunny day (but also well-covered – this is Ireland, after all)
Socials: Instagram
Dublin does not, on the whole, have the kind of grand railway station pubs and bars that you might find in the UK or Germany, but it seems 
It’s a bit of a funny spot, The Galway Hooker; the patio outside overlooks the Luas tracks, giving it more of a ‘commuter’ vs ‘real trip’ vibe, but it does afford a nice view of Heuston’s exterior, which is really rather nice by Irish train station standards; it can be a bit too easy to overlook when you’re in a hurry to catch a train. Inside, though, there are multiple options for people-watching, though it’s not as easy as it might be for trainspotting. The entrance from the station concourse only suggests a somewhat-unpromising buffet/carvery experience, but if you press on into the pub interior, a more impressive spectacle awaits.
The colour scheme is dictated by the red-brown (Burnt Sienna?) sails of the model 
And yet, while some of those elements may not be what tourists envision when they think ‘Irish pub,’ MeMa’s feels very much part of the fabric of the neighbourhood. One of the reasons I especially enjoy stopping in – beyond the comfortable seating options – is their support for independent Irish beer. There is always Ambush on from Trouble, and usually something from Rye River as well, plus a few other wild cards. The same can be said for their championing smaller Irish distillers, and some of the cocktails are a great way to showcase those producers (perhaps not, it must be said, in the ‘tower’ format, but in your standard-sized cocktail, absolutely).
There’s also what sometimes feels like a secret beer garden, which is a welcome respite on Parnell Street, and MeMa’s is definitely one of those pubs that seems, TARDIS-like, to be bigger on the inside. In addition, it’s a handy spot for us Northside folk to meet friends, with the Luas just outside. And speaking of meeting friends, it’s an ideal spot for a group hang (if you make a reservation, obviously – don’t be That Group that shows up with 15 people and no booking) – there are many seating options, and something for nearly every taste.
From the exterior, 
On a recent Saturday evening, I found people making the most of the remaining visit from the sun in the beer garden, which comes complete with a DJ booth and Oasis-v-Blur cigarette disposal – a reference that here in Ireland is both a GenX comfort blanket and general Father Ted reference that even the younger set who don’t recall the 1990s will recognize – they know all about 
All told, it would be a challenge to find a more inclusive, welcoming spot, and the bao buns are absolutely fantastic. 
Despite its Viking-era foundations, Dublin rarely feels like an ‘old’ city by European standards – something we can, in large part, blame on the 
Built as a house in 1734, Toner’s has been continuously operated as a pub since 1818, and to quote the 
And Toner’s does have an interesting history; it’s alleged to be the only pub Yeats ever went to, and his brief? occasional? presence in the front snug seems to be one of the connections that gets Toner’s onto the list of Dublin’s 
January 2026 edit: Love Tempo has been closed since a fire last year, but they indicate that they should be re-opening in the near future…keep an eye 
As at Fidelity – which is itself about to be a fair bit larger – there is a 
But for me, it’s the main space I found quite soothing: dark, but not too dark; and some banging tunes (jazz, electronica and a few old favourite Pet Shop Boys tunes), but nothing too loud. 
Bill Clinton wuz here. And you’re not likely to forget it, as he seems to be on every wall in Fagan’s, somewhere.
