Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
Post Info TOPIC: Quick Trip to Dublin


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 125
Date:
Quick Trip to Dublin


I took a very short visit to Dublin about a week ago.  My goal for this trip was to investigate and enjoy the resurgence in Irish craft beer that has occurred in the past decade and has really taken off in Dublin with numerous pubs now open that cater to beer lovers.  Of course we all think of Guinness when we think of Ireland and Dublin in particular but quite a few small, privately owned breweries have cropped up around the country in the past decade or so brewing a really nice variety of beers not to mention the old favorites of Irish stout and red ale.  So I took a 3 night trip to Dublin to check it out.  Here are some of the highlights:

 

1.  L. Mulligan Grocer - This pub in the Stoneybatter neighborhood on the north side of the river also has a sister pub W J Kavanagh on Dorset st (that I didn't manage to visit).  It is not only a great pub for the beer lover but also a place to have a fantastic meal.  I think the sunday roast chicken was just as good as what was on tap.  Here I had an IPA brewed by Mountain Man Brewing Company in County Cork - http://www.mountainmanbrewing.com/site/ that was excellent and a Pumpkin Ale from Trouble Brewing Company in Kildare http://troublebrewing.ie/  This pub is a nice reminder that it's not just the beer that has gotten better in Ireland but also the cuisine.  I remember being slightly horrified by the food in Ireland in 1990.  Now I look forward to the culinary experience when I visit.

2.  Cobblestones Pub - Not far away from L. Mulligan's is what I would have to say is THE place to go for traditional Irish music in Dublin.  This pub is right across the street from Smithfield Square also on the north side.  They do have a few good beers on tap as well.  Mainly I just listened to the music here and had a couple of pints of Crean's Lager which is from a small brewery just outside Dingle.  Basically an Irish lager similar to Harp but a bit er IMO.

3.  Porterhouse (Temple Bar and near Trinity College).  This place has been around for a while and originally.  It's not an onsite brewpub but they do have their own brewery and serve all their own beers.  It's a nice place if your in Temple Bar or near Trinity.  I recommend their Oyster Stout where yes they actually do use oysters somehow in the process of making this beer.  http://www.porterhousebrewco.com/  It was funny sitting at the bar of this place and while I was there at least 3 people came in off the street and asked for a Guinness and were politely told that they only serve their own beers and all three people stayed and had their porter instead.

4.  The Palace Bar - Overall maybe my favorite pub of the visit because it mixes the ambiance of an old, historical Dublin pub with the availability of some beer variety.  They had on cask the Dungarven Helvick Gold from Dungarvan brewing company in Waterford.  http://dungarvanbrewingcompany.com/  This might have been my favorite beer of the trip just because of how perfectly balance and easy drink it was off the cask.  One of those beers you can hang your hat on for the night and have multiple pints.

5.  Galway Bay Brewery:  This brewery has opened a few tied bars in Galway and Dublin as you can see from their website:  http://galwaybaybrewery.com/   I visited in Dublin 2 of the 3.  Against the Grain near St. Stephen's Green and The Black Sheep on the north side of the river.  Both nice, laid back places with a good variety of beers including those brewed by Galway Bay.

6.  Farrington's - honorable mention for this nice pub in Temple Bar where I got to drink the Ginger Stout that recently won a local homebrew competition and is now been commercially brewed and served on tap at Farrington's.  It's a lovely beer.

7.  Bull and Castle - I highly recommend this beer hall just across from Christchurch in the medieval district.  They are the first craft beer bar/gastropub to open up  in Dublin I think and their reputation is well deserved.  Good food and a nice place and probably the most variety of Irish beers you'll find on tap anywhere in the country.

So that's not all the pubs I visited but the ones that stuck out the most.  We stayed at the Trinity Capital Hotel and we liked it and would stay there again.  Everything mentioned was in walking distance of it including Stoneybatter.

My only complaint is that I could have used a couple of extra days because I think there is much more to see and do and drink in Dublin.  Maybe next time.  For now I'm just starting to plan my trip with daughters to the west of Ireland in early May.

 

 

 

 

 



__________________


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 125
Date:

Oh and lest anyone think that I neglected good old Guinness on my visit to Dublin think again. I settled into a nice session of Guinness pints at Mulligan's on Poolbeg st. to watch a couple of rugby matches with the locals. So I not only paid homage to that venerable old brewery but did so in perhaps the best place in the world to drink it.

Mark


__________________


Host

Status: Offline
Posts: 10692
Date:

Mark,

Welcome back from Dublin. What an interesting trip report about pub crawling through Dublin! Thank you for the various recommendations. I tried Tom Crean last time I was there. I will have to try some of the others you mentioned next time. Thank you for all the great tips.

Michele

__________________

"Ireland Expert"  Michele Erdvig

Click links for Michele's Book or Custom Ireland Itinerary

Visit Michele's Irish Shop for unique Irish gifts and beautiful photos of Ireland.



Veteran Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 69
Date:

Markan- Nice write-up. We were at the Porterhouse last year, as part of the 'City of 1000 Welcomes' tour. I highly recommend both.

Are your daughters of drinking age? I have a couple of college age girls and I'd like to hear how your May trip goes. I've been wanting to take all 3 girls over (my wife and I have been twice), but with 5 of us, and the smallish vehicles and twisty roads....I see very bad car sickness and grumpy girls.

__________________


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 1764
Date:

It might come as a surprise but 5 people in a mid sized Irish family car is quite normal and we manage quite well without any car sickness,, with 3 daughters, Grumpy Girls is a fact of life not confined to a car,, any one of my girls could happy fall out with herself in an empty football stadium.

__________________

Two rules for Ireland, Take your time & bring a sense of humour 



Veteran Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 69
Date:

Yes Tony, but do you have 5 sets of luggage with you? I know my parents use to fit 8 kids into a station wagon, but now w are spoiled in the states w/ big minivans. Although I have learned how hard it is to clean pancakes out a built in car seat. What a bizarre gross smell that was.


"any one of my girls could happy fall out with herself in an empty football stadium." Classic line, how true!




__________________


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 1764
Date:

Ford Galaxy should meet the requirements, (along with a lesson in compact packing,,as the one who always carried the bags that was a priority)

__________________

Two rules for Ireland, Take your time & bring a sense of humour 



Moderator

Status: Offline
Posts: 2167
Date:

bdokeefe:  I'm a little more sympathetic about the luggage requirements for 4 American women, I guess ...  biggrin biggrin

I think you would need a 9 passenger, in all reality, but given the rather exorbitant cost and the 'Grumpy Girl' scenario, It MIGHT be better to rent two compact cars (and BUY two, cheap, Tesco phones! biggrin) for the same, or LESS.

THAT way, the girls can 'rotate' front to rear and Mom to Dad. confuse

AND -- If they get REALLY grumpy -- Mom and Dad can take both sets of keys and drive off together.  Leaving the 'Grumpy Girls' time and space to 'work-out' their differences!

Just the THREAT of that COULD go a LONG way toward keeping the peace!  biggrin  biggrin  biggrin



__________________

Bob

Help Us to Help You.  The more you tell us about your plans (dates, interests, budget), the better we can tailor our advice to suit!



Veteran Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 69
Date:

Italian Chauffer- "Mom and Dad can take both sets of keys and drive off together. Leaving the 'Grumpy Girls' time and space to 'work-out' their differences!"

I did that once on a trip to DC. We were having lunch in Georgetown, about 3 miles from the hotel. One of the girls started getting snitty, then another. I put $40 on the table, told them that would cover a subway ride back to the hotel, or just walk this way and you'll hit the hotel. I was walking out and my wife calls out, 'can I come with you?' So my wife and I drove off, and the girls showed up at the hotel about 5 hours later. They had a blast wandering around. Afternoon saved.

BTW, when I say 'girls', the oldest was 20. I'm not letting a bunch of 12 year old wander around alone...like my folks use to be able to do when I was a kid!

__________________


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 125
Date:

bdokeefe, yeah my daughters are both drinking age (in Ireland that is). Oldest is 22 and youngest 19. I'm actually travelling this April/May with my oldest daughter and her best friend who is also over 21. This is my daughters graduation present for successfully graduating from Wentworth in Boston in under 5 years. She did good so now she gets to experience a nice tour of the west of Ireland from April 25th to May 5th. With it just being her and her friend (as opposed to the sister) I expect things will be very peaceful. If the sister we're coming along there would be at least one big meltdown between the two guaranteed. But I've got a very relaxing trip planned that includes stops in Westport, Clifden, Ballyvaughn, and Kinvara. Not too much driving, very little stress, and plenty of time to relax in some nice old pubs.

I'm also looking forward to trying the beers from this new County Mayo brewery and maybe even taking a ride out from Westport to visit them if possible. westmayobrewery.com/



__________________
Page 1 of 1  sorted by
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.

Tweet this page Post to Digg Post to Del.icio.us


Create your own FREE Forum
Report Abuse
Powered by ActiveBoard