This new and puny little pew, formerly an off-license, is dwarfed by its enormous neighbouring branch Whelan’s (into which one can slip through a side door if so desired, and evade the asshole bouncers at the main entrance). It’s at its limit when seating about seven and is usually bursting with craft beer drinkers sampling the latest stew. However, Guinness is served, so that’s something - unlike Against the Grain over the road who try so horribly hard to be different and hipster and trendy. The decor is calculated to look 'Ye Olde Irish' and to convey a tourist's idea of the genuine vintage country pub – the pipe-smoking and moustachio'd Dmitri, of O'Connell's fame, has also been known to visit in the later hours of the night (after the Portobello rejected him) [1].

FOOTNOTE

[1] On the occasion of his sighting, he hailed Sam Coll with some friendliness (never subsequently followed up), and engaged in an interesting quasi-political discussion. He was adamant in his belief that Ireland would never be subject to a terrorist attack, for according to those practitioners he had spoken to (be they from Taliban or Isis or otherwise), the Emerald Isle was still perceived as a former victim of a colonial power, and thus very much a nation to be left alone. Given what we subsequently learned of Dmitri's own sketchy I.R.A. History, one can better understand his affinity with 'freedom fighters'.

DISCLAIMER: The contents of this blog represent personal opinions and perspectives only. Read more.