I've done a run-down of a now 17 years ago 100 Pubs listing - a Dubliner book rather than a newspaper article in that case - so going back twice as far should be of some interest anyway.
Interestingly, despite trawling the newspaper archives for pub related content, this never turned up in a search. I found a copy of the first page of it on a newspaper wall - the number 2 entry - during a recent visit and managed to eventually find the article based on phrases within it. I knew it had to be the Herald and had to be ~1988-1990 based on the price of a pint mentioned, which reduced the search window.
So, first on to our Top 20. I am going to list pubs as they are named in the article, with any further info as I see fit
1: Clarkes of Irishtown - this will be the original Clarkes, now S0160 the Merry Cobbler not the current S0158 Clarkes. Same operating family, however
2: S0397 Byrnes of Galloping Green - at the time of writing this, I have visited but not yet written up my trip to Byrnes. It certainly has plenty to recommend.
6: Kitty O'Sheas, Grand Canal Street - long demolished and replaced, but S0179 The Gasworks operates using its licence. The old pub was sort-of used for a template for copy and paste Irish bars across the globe, which I will eventually write about.
9: The Horse and Tram, Eden Quay - this was closed for many years and has reopened as 1018821 Meaghers
10: N0169 The Elphin, Baldoyle Road - the only extant pub in the top 20 that I have yet to visit
11: Kellys, Sir John Rogersons Quay - the first completely gone pub in the list
17: N1066 The Bachelor Inn, Bachelors Walk - this is the first extant but not trading premises on the list. I expect it will reopen
There's some odd clumping of premises here, and there's some that'd be nowhere near my personal top 20; if you tied me down and forced me to write one. But these are always subjective.
Now we get on to the un-ranked, 21-100 pubs; categorised in their odd ways
We have the "Just Trendy" pubs
* 1003271 Joxer Dalys, Dorset Street - this is not the first 80s article I have seen claiming this to be trendy. While still a good pub, this has really, really changed!
* S0243 Comans, Rathgar - sort of still trading via the Bottlers Bank element of the premises
* N1097 Conways, Parnell Street - licenced yet closed for decades
* 1007228 The Clock, Thomas Street - recently reopened as Love Tempo
* Vallence & McGrath, North Wall Quay - another odd entry here I'd think. Reopened some years ago as 1016228 The Bottle Boy
* 1017216 The Dockers, Sir John Rogersons Quay - reopened recently after a very lengthy closure.
* The Pier House, Howth - now N0772 O'Connells
* Smiths, Malahide - now N0315 Fowlers. This I believe is a typo from Smyths too.
Then we move on to "Trendy and Yuppie".
* O'Dwyers, Lower Mount Street - now the Leinster Hotel after a long time of being Howl at the Moon
* Larry Murphys, Baggot Street - now S0143 Thomas R Mahers
* S0061 Horseshoe Bar, Shelbourne Hotel, Stephens Green
* Bartley Dunnes, Lower Stephen Street - replaced by Bartley's bar in the Grafton Hotel, was Break for the Border
* Harrys Bar, Point Depot - gone since the 00s redevelopment. A replacement Harrys Bar ended up as a subterranean nightclub but has also been removed to allow construction of the Exo building and Glasshouse bar.
Then there's "Just yuppie". These are meant to be the authors favourite bars, so presumably he is defining himself as yuppie?
* S0304 McCormacks, Mounttown - this never struck me as yuppie when I was brought here in the 90s; and with the notorious Mounttown flats basically next door back then; I don't think it ever was!
* Scruffy Murphys, Powers Court - closed
* Bellamys, Ballsbridge - now 1011804 The Bridge 1859
* S0394 Horse and Hound, Cabinteely
* The Other Place, Lower Mount Street - now S0150 O'Connors
* The Magic Carpet, Cabinteely - now a Dunnes Stores
We now move past the mild prejudice and in to what are considered pubs "for drinking men".
* N0078 Kavanaghs, Glasnevin - The Gravediggers to most people
* Fingal House, Glasnevin - now a Tesco
* The Submarine, Walkinstown - now reopened in part as S1476 Rory O'Connors
* The Regal Inn, Hawkins Street - now S0023 Chaplins
* S0254 O'Dwyers, Kilmacud (visited but not yet written up)
* Eagle House, Dundrum - now S0250 Pye
* 1006700 County Bar, Ballyfermot
* The Long Miler, Long Mile Road - now N1119 Castle Inn
* Regans, Tara Street - most recently S0040 Ruin before being demolished
Some of these pubs have changed significantly in style since, but for the most part, these are correctly categorised
There is now a list of "Rugby pubs". This was not a brilliant period in Irish rugby history - we had won the Five Nations in 1985, but were in the doldrums by 1989 - but there's always rugby pubs
* S0172 Waterloo House, Baggot Street - yes, this has been listed twice
* Horgans, Baggot Street - I haven't got the vaguest idea what this is; and this is the only thing in the Newspaper Archives to mention it.
* S0184 Leeson Lounge, Leeson Street - currently closed after a period of being a wine off-licence
* S0163 Paddy Cullens, Ballsbridge (visited pre-blog)
The next category is "Institutions", which I would have thought was at least partially covered by the Drinking Mens Pubs, and while there's no crossovers there, there is a double entry with another category.
* N0245 The Wrens Nest, Chapelizod
* N0241 The Halfway House, Ashtown - apparently both an Institution and Trendy.
* S0336 Johnnie Foxes, Glencullen (visited pre-blog)
* The Four Seasons, Bolton Street - now N0097 Underdog. An institution to me, perhaps not the type they meant here.
A small category for "Literati" next
* Burkes, Hill Street - closed permanently, was N0096 Hill Street Sports Bar most recently. This entry seems out of place in this list
"Music Pubs" get an even smaller listing, oddly
* Mother Redcaps, Christchurch - newly opened at the time and long closed by now
* The Baggot Inn, Baggot Street - now S0004 Xico, rather different in its music sensibilities
The final category is almost like one I'd do - Paddy lists pubs that are already gone!
* The Princes Bar, Princes Street - closed ~1974
* The Pearl, Fleet Street - closed ~1973
* The White Swan, Burgh Quay - I have this recorded as the Silver Swan; closed in the 70s. Licence transferred to the ill-fated Stardust nightclub
* Rices, Stephens Green - had only recently closed
* Sinnotts, Stephens Green - original pub had only recently closed, replacement pub with this name in the redeveloped shopping centre
So, only a few of this top 100 are still outstanding for me - I must do another check on the Dublin 2007 listing, as it was written up a while ago and I've mopped up much of what is left since.
Interesting piece. I have visited a fair few of those over the years. Surprised Bruxelles or Nearys not mentioned.
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