It’s hard to beat The Liberties for a Dublin pub crawl, since there is a pub of absolutely every sort within a very small radius – everything from old-school Old Man Pubs to pricey tourist hotspots (several, in fact), with everything else in between. We have been remiss thus far in not mentioning this week’s pub, since it’s a classic of the dive bar genre – and so, to The Thomas House.
From the Sailor Jerry tattoo-inspired exterior decoration to the dark-but-welcoming interior stuffed full of music memorabilia, a step into The Thomas House is immediately an entry into something of an alternative universe: part music venue, part regulars’ pub, but a welcoming, inclusive space that seems to recognise that everyone has their own favourite obscure acts, and that sharing the love over some pints is a lot more fun than gatekeeping that kind of knowledge. And the pints are very affordable – any tourist still smarting after a trip to The Brazen Head should stop in for a much-more-wallet-friendly (and well-kept) Beamish or Ambush (there is, of course, Guinness as well, plus the lesser-spotted but more-frequently-appearing-of-late Kilkenny).
There are soft pretzels – as we’ve complained before, both here and elsewhere, a rarity around these parts – and while they aren’t as fancy as those at the nearby Guinness Open Gate, they are cheap and cheerful. Perhaps one of the most compelling sights at The Thomas House is the fish tank…there’s something oddly soothing about watching its inhabitants swim around in the near-darkness.
And although this is most definitely a nighttime spot – no afternoon pints here – it’s an ideal location to stop in for a more reasonably-priced pint before heading to a show at Vicar Street, or as part of a longer wander up or down Thomas Street. And there’s something of a nice sense of a continuous practice there: while the buildings in the vicinity are largely 19th century (with some surprising outliers), Thomas Street has been a busy commercial thoroughfare since at least the medieval period, and if you look around, you can still see some of that history in street layouts and names. There may not be a spurious claim to being an ancient hostelry at The Thomas House, but stopping in here for a few drinks is very much carrying on a centuries-long tradition for this area, so consider it something of an exercise in exploring the past through the present.
Finally, we’re left to ponder why it seems that Dublin’s dive bars (see also: Anseo) have more interesting beer selections than many of their more mainstream, city centre counterparts do nowadays…answers on a postcard!
Where: 86 Thomas St, The Liberties, Dublin
Access from the city centre: Buses C4, G1/G2, 13, 23, 24, 27, 56A, 73, 77A, 80, 150, 15ish minute walk
Food: Soft pretzels, crisps
Sport: Music >> sport here
TVs: Didn’t see any, but it *is* dark (just not Frank Ryan’s-level dark)
Music: Punk, rockabilly, reggae, ska, metal…you name it
Family-friendliness: Not for the small ones
Pub-crawl-ability: High – Dudley's, Arthur's, Swift, Love Tempo, Guinness Open Gate Brewery, The Christchurch Inn, 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: Fish ghosts?
Other notes: Keep an eye out for surprise music royalty of all descriptions
Socials: Instagram, Facebook
On our perambulations around Dublin this week, we visit what feels like a proper dive bar…that is, assuming proper dive bars all have a few good local taps and a killer playlist. If so, then Anseo is, indeed, in that category. But its slightly-scrubby-yet-cheerful interior doesn’t entirely hide the building’s history: this is a mid-18th century house, complete with a few extant interior features, that’s been repurposed as a pub since the mid-19th century. If you 
You are most likely to be visiting Anseo to catch a gig from an up-and-coming band or artist, or, perhaps, seeing some stand-up comedy upstairs; you may also be doing a 
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.’
But I love having an excuse to go to Arthur’s during the 
What, you might ask, is an early house? If you’re not a Dublin local, this may not be a familiar phrase, but this week, we’re heading to one of the city’s very few remaining such establishments – 
I’ve only done the (relatively) early-morning visit there a few times, and in both cases, it was For Science – once to scope out the best spot to record 
And it is the Guinness most seem to be coming for; there aren’t any craft options, but they have added both 0.0 and the Heineken 0.0 of late, so there are alcohol-free options for those who want to have that morning pint, but also a reasonably productive day. Slattery’s has a classic Irish pub interior, with lots of dark wood and deep colours, some snugs and various nooks and crannies, as well as tributes to local historical and musical figures throughout the bar. And it does draw both that curious tourist and a steady local crowd, so it’s always a lively mix.
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. 
