Back in the 1990s – before Trainspotting, as it happens – Robert Carlyle and Shirley Henderson starred in Hamish Macbeth, a vastly-underrated Scottish cosy crime comedy-drama, with a bit of quirky/folksy paranormal goodness thrown in here and there for good measure. In the show, Carlyle played the titular Macbeth, a police constable with an adorable Westie, a fondness for the odd herbal cigarette and a work ethic that isn’t overly-dedicated to solving crimes, but who, nonetheless, keeps his small, eccentric village in good order. Shirley Henderson’s character starts off as a relatively conventional love interest (this was, after all, the 1990s), but as with all the characters in this excellent show, we discover much more as we go along.
What, though, does this have to do with Dublin pubs?
Well.
In the episode ‘No Man is an Island,’ Hamish decamps to a nearby island – we’ll be vague about why, and let you avoid spoilers in case you haven’t had the chance to watch – and during his absence, those left behind in Lochdubh are not thrilled with his replacement, PC Duggan, who is much more committed to following the letter of the law. In response, they employ a strategy of treating him like ‘the man before the man before Macbeth.’ Once again, avoiding spoilers, it is an absolute delight, and you should go watch the entire run of the programme.
No doubt, you are still wondering what this has to do with Dublin, much less pubs – but we’re getting there.
In 2024, Dublin craft beer OG Against the Grain closed abruptly, not long after a renovation. What had been a friendly and welcoming Galway Bay pub with an excellent tap lineup of own-brand and guest beers was replaced by the wildly-underwhelming Teach Tábhairne Ag Teach, a semi-sport-related concept with a single independent tap and a lot of beer you’ll find anywhere – a massive downgrade. As we’ve said before, we aren’t anti-Guinness, we just want to see it as well as a wider variety of other local beers. And this was…not that.
Fast forward to a few months ago, and what had been ‘the place that replaced Against the Grain‘ (at least, to our social circle) closed as well. Drumroll, then, for the opening of Barebone – ‘the place that replaced the place that replaced Against the Grain.’
Although initial chatter was the Barebone would be ‘just a restaurant,’ we’re happy to report that it does still feel like a neighbourhood pub – but one that also happens to do quite good food. Yes, the décor has been upgraded even a smidgeon more – lots of dark tiles, mirrors and subtle brass fittings (including very handy coat/bag hooks, which we don’t see enough) – but it’s all thoroughly welcoming, both for the person stopping in for a quick (or not-so-quick) drink and their more relaxed-dinner counterpart. While the taplist isn’t quite as extensive as it was during the Galway Bay days, there were independent options from Hope, Whiplash and Trouble, as well as more ciders than one usually sees, both on tap and in bottles. The cocktail list is interesting, and the only especially ‘expensive’ drink was Beavertown’s Neck Oil, which you can skip nowadays in any event. And there’s both Guinness and Beamish for the stout-comparing person in your life.
Food was fantastic – it’s not just your typical bar food – and it looks like a great spot for nibbles with a group, too, with a variety of options. The only major change to the layout is the addition of a DJ booth and some well-placed speakers – this is now another spot catering to the music enthusiast, in the vein of Fidelity or Daphni. In some ways, it’s a bit surprising there hasn’t been something more music-led here before, given the number of live venues within a short walk – ideal for pre- or post-gaming those events.
All told, Barebone is a great new-old addition to Camden Street – a welcome return in the sense that there’s a reliable pre-gig spot as there was in the Against the Grain days, but it also feels like it can be dialled-up as a spot for a ‘nice’ night out, plus everything in between. We’ll certainly be back.
And so while it’s true that we didn’t need to quite go to the extremes the townspeople of Lochdubh did, we're thrilled that the place that replaced the place that replaced Against the Grain is a worthy successor. And if you haven’t binged Hamish Macbeth yet, what are you waiting for?
Where: 11 Wexford St, Dublin, D02 HY84
Access from the city centre: Buses 9, 14, 15, 16, 27, 56A, 65B, 77A, 83, 140, 151, 15-ish minute walk
Food: Steak, Korean-inspired chicken, tacos…all interesting
Sport: Music >> Sport
TVs: More speakers than screens
Music: Well-curated vinyl selection, not dissimilar to that at The Big Romance
Family-friendliness: More of a grownup vibe
Pub-crawl-ability: High – The Bleeding Horse, Devitt's, Anseo, The Camden, The Portobello Bar, Whelan's, Ryan's of Camden Street…and the local ‘Spoon's, Keavan's Port
Local sites of note: Iveagh Gardens, St Stephen's Green, National Concert Hall, Marsh's Library, St Patrick's Cathedral
Haunted: Hopefully, the good times are back…but a few ghosts wouldn’t go amiss
Other notes: Fantastic service all around
Socials: Instagram, TikTok
Welcome to 2026!
As regular readers know, we are always on the lookout for 
While the ‘since 1793’ date is a little shaky, given the current building’s construction 
So, ghosts aside, what is the pub like? Well…most definitely not creepy. If anything, it’s a bit too polished to feel at all like a liminal space. There are several very different sections of the pub with their own character, but none are especially dark or gloomy. The front is much more ‘pubby’ and the rear more of a restaurant or hotel bar vibe (the many large TV screens are part of what gives that impression), though it’s worth knowing that the back bar is where the sole local-craft-beer representative is; there’s a Rye River tap if you know where to look. Indeed, the food was very good – a step up from a lot of pub food, though the enormous portions are perhaps created more for tourists than locals. There’s also the usual Guinness – and Murphy’s – plus some Warsteiner.
There’s a covered outdoor space too, more 
While it does have a theoretically reasonably interesting drinks lineup, like its fellow Bodytonic-managed bar, 
It is, of course, entirely possible that it’s simply aiming for a younger/cooler demographic, which is fair enough…though it does beg the question as to why there’s a mural of Peter Fonda on one side of the building…it’s not something that resonates with GenXers like us…are the younger Millennials into Easy Rider? We’ve been told it’s a ‘no’ from Gen Z: ‘…it’s no Taxi Driver.’
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 
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 
Stoneybatter
And the attractions are many: great support for local independent beers from the likes of Hope, Kinnegar, Trouble and The White Hag, as well as a notable cocktail list. For the more ‘traditional’ drinker, it’s possible to get Guinness, Beamish and Murphy’s, so if you’re one of those who enjoys doing the blind taste test of all three, The Belfry has you sorted. There’s also a wonderful little beer garden, and plenty of events that are very much rooted in the local community. It was an absolute oasis for this year’s instalment of the always-busy-but-great-vibes 
Our only other ‘complaint’ is that The Belfry tends to open later than some other pubs, so it’s not always handy for a quick weekend lunchtime pint. All the more incentive, really, to get there as they open to secure a comfy leather chair and a refreshing beverage…
Although the branding is different, Urban Brewing is an outpost of 
But what I particularly enjoy about Urban Brewing is that each part of the venue feels very different – the outside space is the go-to when the weather is good, but the modern bar in the old building has a lovely look and feel, while the vaults below are great for events – cosy and always beautifully decorated. And as a newer business in an older building, they’ve had the space to get their accessibility figured out in the retrofitting; there are lifts as well as stairs.
And while you’re not really here for the beer – labelled moderately-pretentiously-but-it-works as ‘pale ale,’ ‘lager’ and ‘stout’ in lower-case cursive on gold tap towers – they are, for the record, the Changing Times pale ale, Birra Moretti and, of course, Guinness. But if it’s good beer you’re after, you can do what we did and stop off at 
Sometimes, just sometimes, a fantastic new(ish) pub pops up where you least expect it. Dublin’s Talbot Street has had a lot of publicity 
At that time, the shopfront that is now the pub was The Morris Wallpaper Stores, and the signage from that era has been preserved above the door. The theme continues inside, with framed William Morris wallpaper samples on the exposed brick, giving a mix of industrial chic and cosy early-20th century-pub vibes. There’s a pizza spot toward the back (check for opening hours, as these things evolve) with more communal-styles tables, but the seating in the main bar is much ‘pubbier,’ and very comfortable indeed.
There’s a good mix of the usual Guinness-and-friends offerings, but also a handy Rye River tap, as well as Beamish for the Corkonians in your life. The cocktail list is interesting as well. On our visit, the staff were all wonderful, and the attention to detail that went into the design of the pub is evident. It hits just the right mark of honouring the building’s past without feeling like a theme pub.