This week’s Dublin pub is another frequently-requested one that we’ve put off visiting for far too long, and we were quite wrong to delay. Although previously labouring under the misapprehension that Mulligan’s of Poolbeg Street was a pub only for Guinness bores (albeit one with a few good stories), it is, in fact, delightful in nearly every way that appeals to us.
Although it does (actually) have an 18th century license, the modern pub looks barely touched since its 1880s rebuild. The dark reds and yellows, the wood panelling and the somewhat spare furnishing make for an unfussy Old Man Pub experience. It is, happily, lacking the busy array of old signage and remaindered hardware that can be overdone in some places, especially in overseas Oirish Pubs. There are two distinct sides of the pub, one entirely free of televisions if you prefer that experience. The beautiful back room is perfectly atmospheric, and there’s even a bonus outdoor beer garden.
And yes, the Guinness may be a draw, but there is a very strong local independent lineup as well: several Wicklow Wolf and O’Hara’s options are on offer alongside The White Hag’s Little Fawn. But even among the macro beers, it’s a wider-than-usual array: the full Guinness/Beamish/Murphy’s blind tasting is possible, and there’s Harp and Kilkenny as well, plus some handy non-alcoholic options. In short, there’s something for every beer drinker (as well as some ciders for good measure).
But it’s the stories that bring people in (and back) – we’re much more interested in Judy Garland’s visits than JFK’s – though there are so many tales of this particular pub that it has its own dedicated book. We’d also highly recommend a listen to this Publin episode about how an American visitor’s ashes came to be resting in the clock; it certainly drives home some of the pub’s atmosphere.
As regular readers will know, we collect ghostlore of all stripes, and frequently complain that we simply don’t get enough of it around Dublin pubs, so finding a few good tales (especially as we closer to Spooky Season) is always cause for joy. The fact that the sightings (soundings?) in question are a bit shadowy and vague only adds to their appeal.
Finally, the other reason we wish we’d stopped in before is that Mulligan’s also feels much more urban and down-to-earth than even some of its near neighbours; the rather florid JR Mahon’s around the corner can feel entirely suburban in comparison. As city folk, the vibe in Mulligan’s is much more (for lack of a better word) straightforward; the fact that they also have a cracking beer lineup is a real bonus that will keep us coming back to do a bit of ghost-bothering.
Where: 8 Poolbeg Street, Dublin 2
Access from the city centre: Right there
Food: Peanuts, scampi fries, crisps
Sport: The usual football, etc
TVs: Screens on one side of the bar
Music: Low-key tunes
Family-friendliness: Grown-up vibes
Pub-crawl-ability: High – Cassidy’s, Tapped, Harty’s Bar, Bowes, JR Mahon’s, Bill Aherne’s, The Oval, The Palace Bar, The Flowing Tide, Piper’s Corner and many more
Local sites of note: NATIONAL WAX MUSEUM, Trinity College, Abbey Theatre, Irish Whiskey Museum, O’Connell Street
Haunted: FINALLY, some spooky goings-on are reported
Other notes: Is it the platonic ideal of a Dublin pub? Perhaps…
Socials: Instagram, Facebook
We tend to avoid bigger crowds when out and about (and, frankly, we like to be home early – sleep is important!), but we recently made an exception to stop into 
It certainly leans more ‘gastro’ than ‘pub,’ but the overarching feeling about the place is ‘
And while it may feel a bit less spontaneous than your typical 
And while we are usually visiting 
Part music venue, part dive bar, 
And while the formal stage at the back of the main floor makes it feel more venue than pub, it’s got a rather respectable beer lineup, including its own beer from Trouble, as well as the more-common Ambush. There is also a Kilkenny tap – it’s no longer so lesser-spotted around Dublin – and the other usual suspects.
But downstairs, where there are more seating and stage options, is where there’s a bit of a slightly eerie historic atmosphere; the stone walls, low lighting, cool temperature and quiet (during the afternoon – not, of course, so much at night during a gig) do suggest, even if it’s ever-so-slightly, The Unseen. We couldn’t find any good ghost stories, but they do put on some good Halloween shows, so it’s worth keeping an eye out for that, even if the folklore isn’t forthcoming.
While you’re unlikely to find us out and about at one of their 2 am events, in a city with an ever-shrinking number of creative and arts spaces for both emerging and established artists, it’s handy to have one with a real personality; being in a 300-ish year old building is a bonus.
In a small city like Dublin, it’s relatively easy to rally local beer nerds with a little bit of novelty – news travels quickly amongst our cohort – and whether it’s a new pub or, in this case, a bit of a throwback experience, it will be thoroughly investigated within days.
And while there is no beer engine option here, there is a 1960s tap box on the bar, set up to dispense Guinness at something closer to room temperature. Naturally, we’ve all had to give it a go. So much of Guinness culture is the theatre around its presentation and serving – the two-part pour (don’t get us started on that, nor on Splitting the G, except as a parody concept), letting it settle, the branded glassware all play a part. And there’s a special glass involved here if you order a pint from the tap box – the extra gold on the lettering is a nice touch.
And does it taste markedly different from ‘cold’ Guinness? Well…perhaps a bit, though it’s also a similar experience if you’re slowly sipping, and the beer has warmed up while you’ve taken your time over it. But as a bit of a change from the standard Guinness pint (also, it should be noted, very much available here, along with Changing Times, though we’ve 
In one of the longest-awaited (or, for the more cynical among you, most-doubted-to-ever-happen) Dublin pub re-openings, 
Originally slated to open ‘for Paddy’s Day’ about 2 years ago, it’s finally been close enough to done to start getting customers in – just in time for the All-Ireland Final which saw Mayo 
So what we do see now is by no means the finished product, but as a local resident, it was Important to go check out what was on offer, once it was possible to do so. Quinn’s is a very large building by local standards, and the new owners have divided up what was the ground-floor bar into a café – opening during the day for coffees, etc, and as a wine bar in the evenings – with the other side maintaining a more traditionally ‘pubby’ feel. This is probably a very sensible approach, especially for out-of-season operations, but it does make that ‘pub’ side seem a bit small (if comfortably furnished). The theme is, of course, GAA, and there will also be hotel rooms upstairs, all decorated in different county colours, so that continues throughout.
Perhaps most surprisingly – and this is a pleasant surprise – there’s even a local independent beer on offer. This is not a given at most of the more ‘sporty’ pubs in Dublin, so it was great to see a Whiplash tap, even if it wasn’t up and running yet on our visit. The Carlsberg, however, tasted just as fresh as it does in Copenhagen, so clearly, considerable work has gone into completely reworking the tap lines (and plumbing in general – no smells!). There is Beamish as well as Guinness, so if Cork are playing, their fans will be well-catered to.
Is it a pub, or is it a bar?
This Dame Street spot was formerly home to Berlin Bar, which was 
And while it’s *slightly* confusing where you need to go to order your slice of Detroit-style pizza by Doom Slice as there is an indoor hatch that might or might not be serving, plus an outdoor one, it’s easily sorted out. It is quite a tasty slice, it must be said, and it’s one of the cheaper options for food and a pint in Dublin (without the Instagram-driven queue for Bambino – why stand outside when you can sit inside with your slice and beer)?
A quick entry, this week – perhaps fitting, as it’s a tiny pub, but one that’s right in the centre of things. Indeed, it would be hard for Peter’s Pub to be much more central – just off Stephen’s Green, and steps from the Gaiety Theatre, it occupies a busy corner-ish spot.
And there are some much-needed 
It’s finally here!
And while it’s a different situation here, it’s still effectively impossible for a brewery to simply open a taproom; there’s a good recent discussion of the local state of play with Friend of the Blog Sarah (now ex-of Rye River Brewing, and off to new adventures) and Galway Bay Brewing’s Marco on 
Most importantly, though, much of the 
It’s true we have a tendency to stick to pubs that are north of the Liffey, but we rarely venture out into the true suburbs – we are usually still within reasonable walking distance of Dublin city centre. This week, however, we take a longish bus ride out to the wilds of Kilbarrack to visit The Bayside Inn.
Indeed, The Bayside Inn is so ‘of this place’ that it sits in the car park in the shopping centre, next to the church – all of a thoroughly 1970s vintage. One gets the feeling that not much has changed in the internal décor since the doors opened in 1974 (per the painted gold letters on the half-glass doors. Some fairy lights have been added to the open rafters, and a taxidermied bear is observing proceedings from above, but beyond the TV screens, we doubt that much has been altered. It might not be a perfect time capsule from the 1970s, but it’s also not terribly far off. And while there may be very slight visual and architectural similarities to this particular vintage of ‘estate pubs’ on the Neighbouring Island, the feeling is still very much ‘neighbourhood Dublin pub’ – it doesn’t have a ‘locals only’ vibe, even if it does have plenty of regulars (which can, of course, be said of many estate pubs in Britain, even if that’s not the popular reputation).
And some things have changed with the times; there is good support for local independent beer here, with fresh selections from Hope, brewed under 2 km away at Howth Junction, on tap. Yes, there’s Guinness and all the other usual options, but it’s nice to see smaller local businesses giving each other a helping hand. We confess we’ve only made it up here when we’ve been visiting local friends (or doing a spot of cat-sitting), but we’ve always felt very welcome here, even as only occasional drop-ins.
This week, we make a trip not only south of the Liffey, but nearly into the heart of Dublin 4, with a visit to 
It’s very much a neighbourhood spot, welcoming local families, game day regulars and guests – you can even stay in the pub. And while its renovation of the past decade means it’s got a bit more polished wood and stained glass than many of its counterparts on the other side of the river, it never feels snobby. There are some lovely snugs – again, more stained glass – and various different spaces to spread out around this large pub. Local independent beers are well-represented (from Trouble and Wicklow Wolf on this most recent visit, though we’ve also seen Hope in the past), but this is another spot where the stout enthusiast can do the full Guinness–Beamish–Murphy’s taste test.
We will eventually do a ‘Best Pubs for the Aviva’ roundup to complement our ‘