Posted in Miscellaneous, Uncategorized, tagged Amy Winehouse, Rorys Fishing Shop, Temple Bar on February 20, 2010| 1 Comment »
Spotted in the window of Rorys Fishing Shop, Temple Bar.
How long is that there? I must walk past the place twice a week at least on the way to the Westmoreland Street bus-stop.
Still, not as bemusing as the restaurant a tiny bit further up with a sign in the window boasting of ( I swear) a €4.50 pint of Guinness. Bargain lads, bargain.
Posted in Miscellaneous, Pub Crawls, Reviews, tagged drink, dublin, food, pubs, sin e, the flowing tide, THe Peoples Kitchen on February 18, 2010| 6 Comments »
“Come on; stall down here, we’ll get cans in, head to a pub, and then hit Dancehall Styles,” I say. “Grand, but meet me up in The Flowing Tide for one first” he says. Do we make it to Dancehall Styles? Not a chance. The Flowing Tide on Abbey Street has the ability to put the goo on you for a night on a bar stool. It’s a great spot, just off O’Connell Street but it somehow manages to avoid the majority of the ‘five-around-one-pint-of-stout” tourists that places like The Oval and Murrays seem to attract in abundance. Pints at a nice price too, at €4.15, unusual considering. The barman is a gent too, though I remind myself not to get on his bad side.
The Flowing Tide, by Sarahjoh, from Flickr
I was here one afternoon with my brother, ingesting a couple of quiet ones before we legged it down to Connolly to catch the train home. There was just the two of us and the barman, swapping small talk and watching the wrestling on telly, laughing and cracking jokes about it, when all of a sudden, two thirty-something blokes, straight from the office, and pretty hoi-polloi, strode hurriedly in. Without looking at the barman, one nasally whined “Hoi, stick on two Heino and the last race at Cheltenham, good man.” Christ. The barman, without taking his eyes off the telly said “Nah, lad, we’re watching the wrestling.” The two “Heinos” didn’t know where to look, eventually said “you can cancel the Heinos,” turned heal and left. I didn’t know where to look either, I nearly spilled my drink with laughter. So, moral of the story, don’t cross the barman with the moustache…
Anyways, great little spot; with the theatre across the road, you often get well known faces dropping in- Mick Lally (Miley from Glenroe) is a regular, though he’s a little worse for wear these days to be honest. But he wasn’t there tonight, just myself, jaycarax and a few locals. A couple of pints later and it was obvious that neither of us would have the energy to make it to see our friends in Worries Outernational. What we could do is get the grub in and head for another couple of quiet ones elsewhere.
Sin É, from properpint.com
So, after a quick stop off in the Peoples Kitchen on Capel Street (worth an article in itself- good asian food at half the price,) we headed as far as Sin É on Ormond Quay, pleasantly surprised to find that on Sundays, they do €3 pints of Guinness. I was hoping there wasn’t a reason for the pints being €3, but other than them being served in non-branded glasses (a bit of a pet hate,) you couldn’t complain.
Sin É: I really don’t know what to make of it. It tries to attract an “in” crowd, but bars like that are generally, well, a bit crap to be honest, but this place does well in that the staff are proper spot-on, the music is always good, and the punters are sound too. It’s frequented by Irish and non-Irish alike, a lot of backpacker types, alongside a couple of locals propping up the bar. Nice place it has to be said I guess. We stayed for a couple of their nice €3 pints before I realized the night was getting on and I had work bright and breezy in the morning. A right pain in the arse as we had just settled ourselves into some nice seats just inside the door. Ah well; not a bad evening, nice and cheap, not to be scoffed at in these times, the pints and the food came to less than €30. Well worth a try again sometime!
Posted in Dublin History, Events, Miscellaneous, Social History, Uncategorized, tagged 1916 Rising, Dublin History on February 14, 2010| 3 Comments »
Citizen Army men and women gathered at Liberty Hall on Easter Sunday for the final mobilisation before the Rising. Here Connolly gave each a last opportunity of drawing back. No one availed themselves of this chance. ‘I never doubted ye!’ Connolly told them, his face shining
R.M Fox- From ‘Dublins Fighting Story’
This may well be of interest to many of our readers.
I inherited the 1916 bug from my father, without a doubt. Even today, only hours before writing this, I was standing on Northumberland Road like a Japanese tourist only moments in Times Square. I’m still amazed that for such a short historical event, there seems to be an endless amount of research and new finds related to Easter Week 1916.
The week is one of personalities. Like Winifred Carney, the suffragette and secretary to James Connolly, who would find her place in Irish history as the ‘Typist with a Webley’. Returning to Northumberland Road, perhaps no man on the republican side was to leave such a deadly mark on the week as Michael Malone, hiding out with a small group of men (and a moveable store dummy too!) in 25 Northumberland Road. Ultimately he and one other man, James Grace, would hold the spot. Who could forget to mention Sean Connolly of the Irish Citizen Army? An Abbey actor of great reknown, who had taken the lead role only a week previously in ‘Under Which Flag?’,a play penned by none other than James Connolly. Siblings of Sean, both male and female, would join him in the insurrection.
Michael Malone, killed in action at 25 Northumberland Road
The week is also one of great tragedy. There is the heartbreaking story of one of the Sherwood Foresters being taken aback to see his own family in Dublin, having fled Britain for fear of Zeppelin raids. He would never make it past 25 Northumberland Road.
Members of the Irish Citizen Army drill.
One must really see the sites to appreciate them. Even today, I learned this to be most true. When you look from Clanwilliam House down the street towards number 25, you get a clear sense of the Volunteers line of fire. Likewise, I can remember as a young lad being taken to see the Royal College of Surgeons and being amazed by the bulletholes still littering the front of the building.
This tour is one I’ve been told often enough to get myself along to. Carried out by the authors of one of my favourite studies of the week, for €12 you’re promised about two hours worth of a wander around some of the keysites of the 1916 Rising.
Of coure, one can not take everything in in two hours, for instance some of the Sackville Street lancers who fell under fire are buried at Grangegorman cemetry. The Rising has left us with historical sites all over Dublin worthy of visiting.
As a city centre tour however, the reputation of this one is one that, to me, renders Saturday morning worthy of an alarm clock.
….if you know me at all, that’s a huge achievement.
Saturday 20th February 2010
Meeting at 10 am at the International Bar, 23 Wicklow Street.
€12
Facebook page for the 1916 Walking Tours
Eamon Ceannt, Commandant of the 4th Battalion of the Irish Volunteers at the South Dublin Union, 1916
Posted in Miscellaneous, Pub Crawls, Reviews, Social History, tagged dublin, grace's, guinness, mother reilly's, pub crawl, rathmines, rody boland's, slattery's, toast on February 9, 2010| 7 Comments »
Now; it was in my head beforehand that this months pub crawl was going to be a rare treat; We were all to be taking our pints in five pubs we hadn’t set foot in before, a rare occurrence when you consider we once tried naming every pub we’ve drank in Dublin before, and ended up giving ourselves migraines. And I wasn’t to be disappointed. This Sunday, our territory had been marked out in advance by fellow pub-crawler JFlood; we were out of the town centre, away from our comfort zone and up into his neck of the woods- this week, CHTM would hit Rathmines.
Rathmines, last week.
Now it’s odd, I’ve been in Dublin for nine years now, and have been drinking for the majority of those, but I’ve never crossed either of the canals for a pint; unless you count the student bar in UCD that is, or of course Croke Park, the odd time my home county made it there. So there’s a wealth of pubs that I’ve yet to experience, many roads to walk and chippers to drunkenly stumble into afterwards… So, still feeling the after-effects of a bit of a mad one on Saturday night, but looking forward to more-of-the-same, I met with the usual heads at Portobello plaza, and we were joined by another connoisseur in Soundtracksforthem veteran DMcHugh. Crossing the bridge into flatland, we were given a heads up on a bit of local history from jaycarax, who told a tale of the first bridge to cross the canal at Portobello, and a horse drawn carriage that plunged into the lock from it, taking the lives of its six inhabitants. This led to a tradition which was followed for many years of superstitious people disembarking from their transport at the Rathmines side of the bridge and walking across, only to take it up again on the far side.
Toast, by Turgidson, from Flickr
So, enlightened by that gem, we made our way to our first port-of-call, Toast, on Lower Rathmines Road. According to John, this is the bar that the yuppies and monied classes of Rathmines drink in; A self-styled Café Bar, it’s the sort of place you’d have your “hummus pannini and skinny latté” types alongside seasoned Guinness drinkers. Deceiving from the outside, the bar stretches well back more than its exterior would suggest, and seating is a mix of high stools around tables and comfy looking sofas around low tables. Unfortunately the latter were all occupied so we had to make do with the former. Nice looking on the inside too, this place, recently redecorated by the looks of it. At €4.35, it wasn’t a bad pint, but not a great one either; Something I noticed on this pub crawl was that, while we didn’t get any terrible pubs for pints, we got two lovely ones, two mediocre ones, and one that just didn’t go down right. And this was one of the mediocre ones to be honest. But still, we were happy enough here, we had plenty of space, and the bar-staff even brought us down our pints. This is one of those pubs in which Diageo is running its “Pour your own pint” initiative; We stayed well clear, though there’s a couple of barmen/ex-barmen in the group, we said we’d leave it to the staff… It is their job after all! I liked this place to be honest; It’s the kind of place you might stop by for a pint and the spuds on a Sunday and a read of the paper.
Slatterys, by Mark Waldron, from Flickr
Having settled in comfortably and taken in as much of the atmosphere as we could in a short time, we upped and headed out. As I said, JFlood picked out the route this week and he didn’t disappoint; Next stop was to be MB Slattery’s, JFlood giving us a nice spiel on the history of Rathmines Town Hall on the way. As soon as we walked into this pub, I knew straight away we were onto a winner. For those of you who have never been before, Slattery’s is one in a line of pubs we are losing in Dublin bit by bit- Think of Mulligan’s crossed with Grogan’s, minus the journos and failed writers and you’ve got something close. Unfortunately the little snug inside the door was occupied so we had to make do with a few stools down the back. No matter, lots of ledges and tables to rest the pints on and plenty of space to make ourselves comfortable in. At €4.30, this was one of the lovely pints- You could tell the difference between a good pint and a mediocre one- that after a round of “Sláintes” and a mouthful taken apiece, a certain satisfaction creeps into us all; just lovely. It’s this kind of boozer we’re running out of in this city, as they get shunted out and replaced by pretentious café bars, and the culture and social history that go along with them find it harder and harder to keep on. Obviously the gaffer is sport mad, the walls are bedecked with Irish flags, while a Munster flag and a couple of sporting wall-planners hang on the wall down the back, it pleased me to see that as soon as the football was over, the telly was turned off. No having to spend your quality pub time spoiled by the annoying drawls of Dunphy, Giles and co. I come to pubs for pints and conversation, not to hear those twats! Nice spot from DFallon, copping that while there was no mirrors in the jacks, there was a St. Pauli sticker on the condom machine- We all had a smile at that one.
Graces, not the night we were there though! By Professor Michael Johson, from Flickr
It was with a heavy heart we left this place, for a number of reasons, and we made our way around the corner to Graces/ The Loft. Now, while airs and graces weren’t required in Slattery’s, they certainly weren’t required here. This is definitely a locals bar, as the shouts and laughter indicated as we entered- no, they weren’t in our direction, just between regulars whose main topic of conversation was to rip the piss out of each other. I don’t blame the barman for eyeing us somewhat suspiciously but he, along with the regulars soon lightened up and we had a chat about the rugby while waiting for the pints to settle. The cheapest pint of the night here, at €4.10, but I’m sad to say it was one of the mediocre ones; maybe it’s just that the drink in Slattery’s was so good, but the pints here just didn’t go down as well. That said, it’s a nice little boozer, maybe not one you’d take a lady friend to on a first date, I’d pick Toast for that accolade, but alright as a “waiting for me mate so I might as well get a quick one into me” sort of place, it reminded me of the Metro on Parnell Street to be honest, plain and not a whole lot going on, but not the worst place around either. Plenty of space in the place divided into restaurant style booths, but with comfy seats; Not one I’d rush to go back to but I wouldn’t mind ending up there either. Looking for pictures for this piece I see they do music, I’d like to try it on a night like that and I might be more enamoured!
Mother Reillys, by Infomatique, from Flickr
Next up on the list was Mother Reilly’s and lord, was I happy we found this place. As inviting as Slattery’s was, Mother Reilly’s is my kind of place and one I’ll definitely be back to. The place oozes character, with flagstone floors, oak beams, candles and cubby holes; It has the feel of a lovely pub, with two (gas powered) open fires that the friendly bar-staff had no problems with us pulling our stools up around. An absolutely cracking pint to beat all that too, great value at €4.15 (or €3.50 with a student card.) I think we all agreed this was the top pub of the night, for look, character and musically too (piped music at a low volume, but good piped music, and that makes all the difference!) DFallon had a Christie Moore songbook with him for some reason, and it was very tempting to bang out a few of the tunes within; You get the feeling they couldn’t care less in this place if you did- I’m sure the regular that happened on our conversation about Moving Hearts might have even joined in. A large beer garden/ smoking area out the back looked as though it might have served us well, had it been closer to the month of June or July, but the February cold drove us closer to the fire, and all the better for it. We took in a couple more pints, such was the welcome in this place, and a props to jaycarax and H for sticking with the black stuff; Usually by the forth pub they’ve switched to the lager- shocking stuff I know, but I think we’ve finally got them hooked. About time and all. I think this joins a list of maybe three or four pubs out of the 25 we’ve visited so far that I’d have no problem recommending to anyone. I’ll be back for a Random Drop Inn anyways.
Rody Bolands, by Professor Michael Johnson, from Flickr
With the night getting on, we decided a pit-stop for soakage was in order so we took a detour up to Burdocks. Fast becoming a staple with us here, their 2-for-1 deal on Haddock and chips (€4.60 a piece between two, sure you’d spend that on a pint.) It went down a treat anyways, and we didn’t stay long as we were due to hit one more pub before the long trek home. I was skeptical enough about the last pub on our list, as the locals in Graces laughed while telling us most of our number wouldn’t get in what with their Dublin accents… We soon realized what the joke was about when we headed into Rody Bolands and saw that every wall was bedecked in Tipperary garb, pictures, old hurls and the kind of tat you’d see in any Irish pub anywhere in the world. We just couldn’t take to this place at all- Why have a beautiful, old bar like this banging out the worst kind of 80’s pop at such a high volume? Where Mother Reillys was a joy to behold, this place was the opposite, the pint of plain tasted a bit sour here, and the music was a complete turn-off. We were unfortunate in that trad sessions run here on a Sunday nights from six, but JFlood wasn’t informed when he was talking to the barman earlier in the week that they ended at eight. Again, what’s the point in that- Surely people are only getting warmed up at that stage? Maybe if we were all a few years younger, and on the pull for someone from Cork, Clare or Tipperary we’d have enojoyed it but… It just wasn’t for us; another night, maybe it would have been fine but. The pint, as I said, wasn’t the may west, and as far as I recall, came to €4.30. Service was prompt, and there were plenty of floor staff around, collecting glasses and cleaning tables. That, I liked, as well as the old shop counter up at the back, which I thought was a nice touch.
So that was that, with a long walk back into town, we all went our separate ways, happy out after a good evening on the tear. Two great finds in Slattery’s and Mother Reilly’s, two grand pubs in Graces and Toast, and an alright one in Rody Bolands. It has to be said, great work from JFlood, it’s only a pity he wasn’t able to do the write-up too. Next months pubs are on me, and we’re back into town for this one!
–
February’s five pubs were:
1. Toast, Lower Rathmines Road.
2. MB Slattery’s, Lower Rathmines Road.
3. Graces, Rathgar Road.
4. Mother Reillys, Upper Rathmines Road .
5. Rody Bolands, Upper Rathmines Road.
Posted in Dublin History, Miscellaneous, Social History, Uncategorized, tagged Antiques, Arthur Guinness and Sons Fire Brigade, Blackrock Market, dublin, guinness on February 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »
A recent post on the Guinness Fire Brigade was, as far as I am aware, the only study on the Brigade online. Bar a passing reference on the Irish Times 1916 special website, there seems to be a complete shortage of information when it comes to the ‘Arthur Guinness and Sons’ fire service.
So, what were the odds of this:
Picked up at the Blackrock Market, for an unbeatable €10.
A nice welcome addition in the search for information, pictures and more on the Guinness Brewery Fire Service.
Posted in Miscellaneous, tagged dublin bombers, folk, irish traditional, swedish on February 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Do you want to see a video of six middle aged Swedish dentists known as the ‘Dublin Bombers’ playing Irish folk songs at a concert on the island of Öland in the summer of 2008? Thought so.
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Click on the book for more.
Click on the book for more.
Donal
Ciarán
Come Here To Me! 