You don't need to fly overseas for a citybreak. AMY LAUGHINGHOUSEsees what Dublin offers – and if it lives up to its name as Europe's pub capital
‘WELL, FOR Dublin, it’s really only the pubs.” That’s the swift and unequivocal response of one of my English friends when I ask him for suggestions about things to see and do in the capital.
It’s hardly surprising, considering that Dublin has long been known as a destination for stag nights and hen dos. In the early noughties the aptly-named Temple Bar district in particular was the stuff of legend in Britain. There were tales of cobbled streets that ran with a river of Guinness and girls who would as soon lift their tops as shake your hand. In the days of strong sterling, a relatively weak euro and cheap flights, it was Mardi Gras every weekend.
But given the economic situation, how is Dublin faring today? Is Temple Bar still the hotbed of hormones it once was, and what, in their more sober moments, is there for tourists to do elsewhere around the city? It’s my enviable task as an outsider – an American living in London – to take a fresh look.
For an introduction to the city my friend Shareen and I opt for the Rock’n’Roll Writers Bus Tour. We find the bus parked on Westmoreland Street, opposite the Westin Hotel – not that it’s hard to spot, emblazoned with images of guitar-wielding musicians.
Our guide, Andrew O’Toole, is himself a musician – “a singer, although I also play guitar really badly” – who comes equipped with the requisite tattoos and slicked-back hair.
“So are the drugs included?” Shareen asks cheekily as we board our coach. “Everybody asks that question,” O’Toole grins, adding: “They probably should be. In these recessionary times everybody wants a bit of cheer.”
In fact the illicit substances are the only things missing from this rock’n’roll experience. The coach is a tour bus imported from Nashville, Tennessee, complete with leather banquette seats, four televisions, a wet bar and a pair of chrome poles that seem perfectly suited to the slithering bodies of lithe, bleached-blond groupies. “Those are handrails, by the way,” O’Toole insists. “Although they get their fair share of use,” he adds cryptically.
For the next 75 minutes, as videos of some of Ireland's most famous musicians, including U2, Thin Lizzy, The Dubliners, and The Clancy Brothers, play on the plasma screens overhead, we motor past sites such as the graffiti-covered fan wall outside U2's former recording studio on Windmill Lane; the Brazen Head pub, which was founded in 1192, garnered a mentioned in James Joyce's Ulyssesand hosted Van Morrison's first performance of Brown-Eyed Girl; and St Stephen's Green, where U2 were given the freedom of the city and the right to graze sheep in 2000.
O’Toole equates the honour to a knighthood, explaining that “when the city is under attack they have to protect it”. (Rock stars, after all, are renowned for their ability to wield guitars, and the occasional hotel-room television set, as weapons.)
Throughout the tour our guide deftly weaves together the city’s legacies of music, literature and history. Oscar Wilde, whose suggestively reclining statue presides over the northwestern corner of leafy Merrion Square, is by O’Toole’s estimation, at least, a forerunner to the modern rock star. “He said moderation is a fatal thing, because nothing exceeds quite like excess. Now that’s rock’n’roll. He was living that lifestyle,” O’Toole enthuses, pointing out that, by strange coincidence, Wilde and The Doors’ Jim Morrison both lived out some of their last days in the same Parisian hotel, and both lie buried in Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.
As we motor along O'Connell Street, attracting gawking stares from passers-by wondering who might be aboard (how disappointed they would be if they knew), O'Toole launches into a brief account of the Easter Rising. Video of the aftermath, which left this broad boulevard a heap of smoking rubble, plays on the plasma screen to a soundtrack of Sinéad O'Connor singing The Foggy Dew.
“I call this the rock’n’roll of 1916, because these songs were outlawed; they were rebel songs,” explains O’Toole. “If the music is forgotten there are elements of culture that are forgotten.”
Afterwards we offer to revive our guide’s parched throat with a pint at the pub of his choosing, and with O’Connor’s voice still ringing in our ears O’Toole leads us to the Foggy Dew, our first introduction to the pub scene of Temple Bar. Framed gold and platinum records line the wood-panelled walls, football plays on a TV in the corner and folks from all walks of life – tourists, musicians and language students by O’Toole’s estimation – shout to be heard above the likes of The Pogues emanating from the speakers.
We shoulder our way through the crowd to a narrow table next to three men enthusiastically rolling dice out of a cup, practising, they say, for the Yahtzee world championships. “The Old Dubliner was better,” the Dutch trio insist when I ask how they like the pub. “The air here is a bit stale; it affects our throw,” one says with a sniff. “You can’t concentrate,” adds another.
This is perhaps not the kind of conversation that Dermot McLaughlin of Temple Bar Cultural Trust would hope to overhear, I learn, sitting down with him the next day over heaping plates at the Queen of Tarts, a bustling cafe on Cow’s Lane. In a city where half the population is under 35, Temple Bar continues to satiate a seemingly unquenchable thirst, but McLaughlin is anxious to bury its bawdy reputation.
“To be honest the stag nights and hen dos have moved on,” insists McLaughlin, who doesn’t seem unhappy to have seen the back of them. “That was only a tiny part of tourism – 6 per cent – but it repelled a lot of business.” Now the focus of his organisation, which helped to transform the once-derelict quarter into a thriving area for tourism, small businesses and residential properties, is attracting families and folks over 55 with festivals, street theatre, cultural nights and a variety of weekend markets.
For those interested in retail therapy there’s Grafton Street, with its typical high-street retailers, but a stroll east up Nassau Street will lead you to more traditional items, such as hand-woven Irish tweed, at Kevin Howlin, which has occupied the same long, narrow space for 33 years. Head west along Suffolk Street and you’ll find Avoca, which has mills in Co Wicklow.
With its pastel chandeliers, Astroturf-draped tables laden with giftware, and housewares ranging from rickrack-trimmed egg cosies to a rainbow-patterned broom and dustpan, Avoca has a feminine, Martha Stewart aesthetic. My biggest regret is having passed up a dainty flask emblazoned with a 1950s image of a rosy-cheeked housewife and the saying “She was one cocktail away from proving his mother right.”
Not that you’re likely to go thirsty in Dublin. Despite the decline in bachelor and bachelorette parties, there are still plenty of punters to support a bar on practically every corner, and half the storefronts in between – often with the strains of a live band echoing from within. You can also make a pilgrimage to the Old Jameson Distillery and Guinness Storehouse, Ireland’s top fee-paying attraction.
This is a particularly big year for Guinness, whose founder, Arthur, signed a 9,000-year lease for the site 250 years ago. This has grown to 22 hectares of sprawling brick buildings and stainless-steel vats. The generous lease also granted him free water, which is now transformed, with the help of barley, hops and yeast, into three million pints of Guinness a day.
Visitors to Guinness Storehouse are greeted by high-tech audio-visual presentations explaining the brewing process and two-storey screens depicting bubbling ambrosia that makes you feel as though you’re inside the pint itself. Which I certainly hope to be before the end of the tour, and I’m not disappointed.
My first chance to sample Dublin’s famous brew is in a laboratory-style room where a video explains how to properly taste a pint of Guinness. I thought I was fairly experienced in this area, but I discover a thing or two about listening for the hiss of the gases (a mix of nitrogen and carbon dioxide), feeling that it’s at the proper temperature (between six and seven degrees) and, finally, washing it over my palette using a complicated “retro-nasal breathing” process that I resolve to practise until I get it right.
Next we learn to pour the perfect pint, tilting the glass at a 45-degree angle, waiting for it to settle and topping it off with a rather wobbly three-leaf clover. Then it’s onwards and upwards to the Gravity Bar, located on the top floor of this seven-story building – one of the first “skyscrapers” in Ireland and still the third-tallest in the country. Here we pause to savour one of the freshest pints in the world and the panoramic views of the city as our spirits lift alongside the clouds.
Just the place to practise my retro-nasal breathing process.
** Amy Laughinghouse was a guest of Visitdublin.com, 01-6057700
Where to stay, where to eat and where to go in the capital
5 places to stay
The Clarence. 6-8 Wellington Quay, Dublin 2, 01-4070800, theclarence.ie. With owners like Bono and the Edge, you can’t beat the Clarence’s rock’n’roll pedigree. Located in the heart of Temple Bar, this is the place to experience the best of Dublin’s nightlife. The wood-panelled Octagon Bar is renowned for its cocktails. For the ultimate rock-star experience, book the penthouse, which has extensive balconies, a baby grand piano, a bar, a peat-burning stove and an outdoor hot tub. Rooms from €179.
The Merrion Hotel. 21-24 Upper Merrion Street, Dublin 2, 01-6030600, merrionhotel.com. This five-star establishment joins four Georgian town houses and the contemporary Garden Wing just steps from Merrion Square. Rooms from €475.
Trinity Lodge. 12 South Frederick Street, Dublin 2, 01-6170900, trinitylodge.com. This “four-diamond” Georgian guest house has en-suite rooms and a convenient location near Trinity College. BB from €79.
Number 31. 31 Leeson Close, Dublin 2, 01-6765011, number31.ie. With a sunken lounge, peat-burning fireplace and a garden, this 21-bedroom guest house is only a stroll from St Stephen’s Green. From €75 per person, including breakfast.
Dylan Hotel. Eastmoreland Place, Dublin 4, 01-6603000, dylan.ie. Voted the best boutique hotel by Hospitality Ireland in 2008, the 44-room Dylan offers five-star accommodation at reasonable prices. Doubles from €190, including breakfast.
5 places to eat
Ely CHQ. Custom House Quay (facing George’s Dock), Dublin 1, 01-6720010, elywinebar.ie. With extensive outdoor seating, a glass- enclosed ground floor and a candlelit cellar, this organic restaurant, in a historic 19th-century dockside warehouse, caters to every mood. The beef, pork and lamb come from the owners’ farm in Co Clare, and an extensive wine list offers 450 wines from around the world, including nearly 100 served by the glass.
Fallon & Byrne. 11-17 Exchequer Street, Dublin 2, 01-4721000, fallon andbyrne.com. Grab gourmet picnic supplies from the ground-floor grocery, enjoy a romantic meal in the wine cellar or ensconce yourself upstairs on one of the plush red banquettes and dig into hearty meals such as steak-and-kidney pie or potato gnocchi.
Queen of Tarts. Cow’s Lane, Temple Bar, Dublin 2, 01-6334681, and Dame Street, Dublin 2, 01-6707499, queenoftarts.ie. Generous portions of dishes such as tarts, casseroles and frittatas, plus fresh-baked desserts and pastries.
L’Gueuleton. 1 Fade Street, Dublin 2, 01-6753708, lgueuleton.com. This popular French bistro doesn’t take reservations, so make sure to get there early.
Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud. 21 Upper Merrion Street, Dublin 2, 01-6764192, restaurantpatrickguilbaud.ie. Ireland’s only two-star Michelin restaurant serves “modern classic cuisine”.
5 places to go
Rock’n’Roll Writers Bus Tour. Westmoreland Street, opposite the Westin Hotel, Dublin 2, 01-6203929, dublinrocktour.ie. €350 for group bookings (up to 30 passengers) all year. Reopens for individual bookings (€15 per person) next spring.
Guinness Storehouse. St James’s Gate, Dublin 8, 01-4084800, guinness-storehouse.com. Adults €15, seniors and students over 18 €11, students under 18 €9, children 6-12 €5, family (two adults, four children) €34.
Old Jameson Distillery. Bow Street Distillery, Smithfield, Dublin 7, 01-8072355, jameson whiskey.com. Learn about the whiskey-making process and the history of the brand. Adults €13.50, seniors €10, student over 18 €10, children under 18 €8, family (two adults, three children) €30.
Kilmainham Gaol. Inchicore Road, Kilmainham, Dublin 8, 01-4535984, heritage ireland.ie/en/Dublin/ KilmainhamGaol. The scene of some of the seminal moments in Ireland’s history, from the 1780s to the 1920s. Adults €6, senior/group rate €4, child/student €2, family €14.
Book of Kells. Trinity College Library, College Street, Dublin 2, 01-8961661, tcd.ie. Written circa 800, this beautifully illustrated manuscript of the four Gospels is displayed a few pages at a time in a dimly lit room in Trinity College’s Old Library. Adults €9, student/senior €8, family (two adults, four children) €18, children under 12 free.
Shop spot
Avoca. 11-13 Suffolk Street, Dublin 2, 01-6774215. avoca.ie. This unique Irish store is as pretty as a picture and chokka with gorgeous items that have varying degrees of usefulness.
Hot spot
Temple Bar. 01-6772255, templebar.ie. It’s not just about the bars any more. Temple Bar Square Book Market, Saturday and Sunday 11am-6pm. Meeting House Square Food Market, Saturday 10am-4.30pm. Cow’s Lane Designer Mart, Saturday 10am-5pm, March-December.