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Wednesday, 16 August 2023

S1578 McEvoys / The Hatch

This pub has now adopted the name The Hatch, but until about ten years ago, this was the name of the former pub across the road; with this one possibly occasionally using the name The Workman - McEvoys would have been the more common name then, and is still used now.

Many people assume the canal is the county boundary; but despite some county boundaries being late Victorian inventions, this one doesn't follow the semi-logical path of the canal and instead leaves a small portion of land between it and the railway line in Dublin. 

This was the closest un-visited pub to my house - I live relatively close to Hazelhatch, but it remained rather complicated to get to until the latest stage of BusConnects provided the W61 route. It has been replaced in that role S1575 Annie Mays in Newcastle; which should have been served by the same BusConnects expansion, but this is delayed to allow the bridge at Hazelhatch to get modified.

I dropped in on only the second day of service of the W61, and it turned out I was not the first first-time customer that that route had dropped nearby, with the publican telling me that he had had a few others come in on the first day, as well as someone who had dropped in for soft drinks when driving a few weeks earlier and decided to return for pints.

It's the kind of pub that might well make you want to return, sitting as it does beside the Grand Canal and with substantial outdoor seating that would be very enjoyable on a nice day. Inside the pub is very traditional, including amongst the greebling in the bar an over-60-years-old Rings board branded for Cairnes Ale - defunct since 1959.

I would warn those of a taller build to watch out for the doorways in the gents, which are on the low side - there may be loftier facilities in the lounge! 

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