Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: The Christchurch

It’s finally here!

Yes, it’s been a long ‘two weeks’ since Dublin beer nerds were told The Christchurch would be opening, but at long last, it’s in business. There’s still a bit of work to be done – the kitchen isn’t yet up and running, and there are a few bits and pieces still being put in place – but the beers are pouring. Most are from Third Barrel, the local brewery who have taken over the pub, but like its predecessors in this spot, both The Christchurch Inn and The Beer Market, it’s not a taproom as such. This is both in terms of vibe – still very pubby – as well as on paper, For Reasons. There has been much recent attention on the licensing laws in the North, where Lidl has opened a pub to circumvent some of those restrictions, but it’s far from a ‘solved’ issue closer to home.

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 First Draught, the excellent new beer podcast from Elizabeth Townsend of Keroo Brewing. And so The Christchurch is a pub owned by Third Barrel that happens to pour (mostly) Third Barrel beer – just as Rascals is (mostly) Rascals, and Fidelity is (mostly) Whiplash.

So while there may not be an enormous range of breweries on tap, the selection of beers the Third Barrel crew spun up for launch is a good summery selection (barring the imperial brown – perhaps we’ll check back in on that one when it’s not so hot out): a range of IPAs (not just hazy!) and lagers, a nitro red and a stout, plus some of the usual core range like BOOM and Shut Up Juice, mixed in with a few guest taps.

Most importantly, though, much of the Underdog crew turned out for the soft launch; the gang was very much back together to support the new venture, and to cheer the return of Maura behind the bar. There’s been more than a lick of paint applied to the place, and the new colours are dark and soothing around the main bar, with more splashes of brighter hues toward the front upstairs and downstairs spaces – the always-odd layout remains, but it does seem a much better use of the space than in previous incarnations. A good time was had by all. For the near term, The Christchurch will be open Wednesday-Sunday, so plan accordingly – we’ll update this bit when the kitchen opens.

Finally (for now), calling one the new beers ‘Two More Weeks!‘ is absolute perfection. Well played. We’ll be back!

Where: 13 High St, Merchants Quay, Dublin 8, D08 K09
Access from the city centre: Buses 27, 77A, 150, 151, 11-ish minute walk
Food: Coming soon
Sport: Nah
TVs: Only the beer lineup onscreen at the moment
Music: Chill background tunes
Family-friendliness: Fine to pop in after Dublinia during the usual hours
Pub-crawl-ability: High – The Lord Edward, The Bull & Castle, Thomas Read’s/The Oak are all more or less in one direction, with The Thomas House, Guinness Open Gate, Swift, Lynott’s and other Liberties spots; The Brazen Head is also a short walk away
Haunted: Collaborative ghost story, anyone?
Local sites of note: Christchurch Cathedral, Dublinia, St Audoen’s Church, Dublin Castle, Guinness Storehouse, Vicar Street, Olympia Theatre
Other notes: One of a very few Dublin venues on Untappd
Socials: Instagram