Monday 29 August 2016

N0097 Beer House and August wrapup

Just the one new pub for me this past week - N0097 Beer House on Capel Street / North King Street. I had actually intended to go to the Black Sheep N0084 down the road to get food, but someone sat down at the table I was already sitting at just before I'd ordered and I didn't really feel like telling him to leave, so I left instead.

Food wise, there's only pizza available in Beer House but the beer selection is vast - its the first time I've seen Kinnegar Rustbucket on tap outside of a beer festival for one.

This brings to 7 the number of pubs I've been to for the first time in August - which is the same number as the net additions to the register for the month. Hopefully my guess that there will be fewer and fewer additions as the year continues will be true or else I'm never going to progress.

Thursday 18 August 2016

N3211 Gin Palace

On Wednesday I had intended to possibly do a repeat of last Friday's trip in to the city from work, this time to watch another football match in person at the "Dublin Arena" as it had become for UEFA sponsorship reasons - or the "VIV" as the remaining white seats spelled out.

However, it was pissing a rain. A bus was taken down North Strand and Amiens Street rather than walking and I still got drenched rushing over from Talbot Street to Henry Street to return something at Debenhams - surprisingly easily considering they're in examinership.

It was still pissing rain when that was done, so a quick dash was made to the nearest pub - N3211 the Gin Palace on Abbey Street - which luckily I'd not visited before. This was mainly for food rather than drink, and the food was decent enough. Didn't get to sample the gins on offer so a repeat visit at some point may be on offer.

Sunday 14 August 2016

S0787 Rochestown Lodge Hotel

(this post has been split from a former mega-post)

My Grandmother's 90th birthday was held in S0787 Rochestown Lodge Hotel on Saturday evening. Suburban hotels are probably going to be the hardest for me to tick off as they're rarely near another venue and with awkward public transport, so the small cluster around that area of the city I've knocked off over the years for family events is very useful.

N0105 The Deers Head

(this post has been split from a former mega-post)

This pub was run by a relation of mine - effectively my great-great-grandmother but via a remarriage - during the early part of the 20th Century. Her application for compensation for the breaking of her windows during the Rising has recently been made available as part of a new digitised National Archives collection which is well worth a browse for anyone interested in that period. There is quite a lot of 1916 related content on the walls - photos, memorials etc - and I did make the suggestion of adding a printout of her application to that.

N0049 The Brendan Behan

(this has been split from a former mega-post of an entire trip)

This was the Sunset House until earlier this year and gained - or maybe just enhanced - its notoriety when there was a gangland murder at the premises. It has reopened after being apparently done up but its not somewhere I ever intend to return. Still very run down and badly equipped, it is however, extremely cheap - €4.40 for a lager is almost unheard of this close to the city.

N0011 Clonliffe House

(this former mega-post has been split up in to seperate posts for each pub, this edited post sufficing for the first pub)

Traditional enough pub for the inner suburbs/edge of the city, with a large crowd watching the Olympic badminton - although not a match featuring Scott Evans who has progressed to the last 16 for the first time ever for an Irish athlete. As I didn't have a huge amount of time, this was a one pint visit.

Tuesday 9 August 2016

August 2016 Licence Changes

Yesterday saw the release of the August update to the licencing register that I'm using as my master list of pubs to visit. As always, there's a few additions. As far as I can tell, all of these are already open premises - bar the White Hart in Balbriggan which is currently closed. I'd guess it is likely to reopen if its licence has been resumed.

1009141 - Castleknock Golf Club
1011474 - White Hart Inn, Balbriggan
N0009 - Lloyds, Amiens Street
N0124 - The Roundabout, Artane
N2375 - Sin É, Ormond Quay
S0195 - Clonskeagh House, Clonskeagh
S1470 - Agnes Browne, Thomas Street
S1497 - The Old Harbour, Canal Place
S3217 - River House Hotel / The Mezz, Eustace Street

There's some removals also -

N1490 - Irish Life Mall. This was Floriditas which closed ages ago.
S1388 - The Clyde Court Hotel, which was demolished

Nine additions (8 definitely open), and 2 removals - neither of which I could even visit. If this is repeated indefinitely I'd never finish but I believe that based on renewal schedules that there will always be more additions towards the end of the year.

Tuesday 2 August 2016

Changing Names

A relatively quiet bank holiday weekend had me visit two of Dublins more frequently renamed pubs - with quite a lot of headscratching trying to remember what they'd been called before

N1939 Adelphi (in the Abbey Hotel, Middle Abbey Street) has previously been branded as the hotel bar, The Jolly Monk and as Bar 52. Now a mostly craft beer focused pub, it has received a lot of attention recently for its Donal Trump urinal. This is already looking a little worse for wear from the flush mechanism washing it down but I'd guess it might survive the election cycle. Pub was extremely quiet but it was mid afternoon on a Monday, so not really indicative. Would willingly return to try it when its busier.

S3103 The Beer Market on High Street opened last year as Galway Bays newest bar. It was previously Ryans, The Pale, Little Green and Molloys at various times and might have the record for the most different names a single pub has had in a short period of time.

Bar is the usual GBB setup - 20 taps, vast amount of bottles, decent food. It was uncomfortably warm considering the weather, however. For a Monday it was pretty busy so hopefully it lasts longer than the multiple previous occupants have.