We were recently refused a drink in Tom Barry’s pub on Barrack Street for no reason what so ever. It was very embarassing for the four of us that went in. We have never been refused from anywhere before. I had high expectations of this pub but was utterly dismayed by the manner in which we were treated. Full story to come soon.
Archive for December, 2005
Merry Christmas from Munster Pubs. Have a good one. Don’t drink too much!!
Update May 2006: This pub is gone and has been replaced by another. I passed by in my car the other day and noticed it.
Its most certainly not a regular name for a Cork pub but we headed to Bialo Czerwoni recently. It is the first Polish pub that i have ever visited in Cork If i am being honest it is in an area of the city that i would not normally venture to. I had read about a pub of the same name opening on Henry street in Limerick. I am not sure if both pubs are under the same ownership. The name translates into English as white and red. These were the predominant colours in this particular bar as you would expect. The pub itself is long and narrow. I noticed some interesting pictures on the walls. I had a pint of Guinness and one of our group had a pint of Polish beer and he enjoyed it. The guy serving us who i presume was Polish was very pleasant. There wasn’t too many people in here but there was a few. The pint of Guinness was alright, not great but ok. There are a good few televisions scattered around the bar. It was a grand pub for one drink but i wouldn’t head out here specifically. It is a good walk from the city center.
The toilets here were disappointing. They are small and the smell in them was revolting. It was a very different and interesting experience visiting this pub and i am glad that we went in. I don’t know the name of the street that it is on but it is near the marina road out to Pairc Ui Chaoimh.
Toilet rating: 3/10
Pint rating: 5/10
Overall rating: 5.5/10
Final comment: This pub was grand for one visit but i won’t be too worried if i don’t head back again.
And so it came to pass that I attended another karaoke evening; albeit this time an entirely organised, professional affair in this pub on the way out to the Old Head of Kinsale. It’s an isolated spot, populated by (I can only presume) mostly regulars and locals. The pub itself is far larger than I had imagined, so I suppose that set it off on the right foot. The staff are very pleasant and accomodating, possibly no different than you’d expect from a rural establishment.
The building itself houses a small diagonal bar, running parallel to the door as you walk in. Through some curtains there is a slightly larger conservatory area with an adjoining pool room. That’s pool table, not swimming pool. I don’t want anyone getting their hopes up too much.
Both the service and the pints are of the highly recommendable type, in fact I’d go as far as saying if you were passing or nearby you should make it your business to call in. Apparently they also do a mean Sunday lunch. Something I just may have to test out on one carefree weekend early next year.
As I was waffling on about, I was brought by karaoke and on arriving, wondered who was going to sing. There were, with no exaggeration, about 5 people present. No sooner had I make a sarcastic remark than the door flew open and in poured a bus load of drunk bloody teenagers. Students too! I can’t fault the pub for this, it really is an interesting find and one to explore more in the very near future.
We decided on a spur of the moment to have a few drinks and Cissie Youngs is where we chose. It’s a pub on the Bandon Road on the outskirts of Cork city center. It is most certainly renouned as a student bar. We headed in there for the purposes of a review and all our group found it to be an extremely relaxing and comfortable pub. It is very modern and caters for all tastes from what i noticed. There was a good mixture of people present when we were there. The bar staff were efficient and friendly. I had a pint of Murphy’s and i enjoyed it. It was a decent pint of stout. We noticed how ultra modern things have gone now that you can recharge your phone while you are in the pub. This facility is available in Cissies. It is quite a big bar and there are plenty of nice seating areas available.
The toilets were in good condition when i checked them. I noticed they have a smoking area out the back which is a common sight in most pubs these days. All in all a very decent pub with a very good reputation and to top it off the stout isn’t bad.
Toilet rating: 7/10
Pint rating: 7.5/10
Overall rating: 7.5/10
Final comment: Cissie Young’s is a place to enjoy a few decent pints in a comfortable, modern setting. Check it out.
We continued our night out at The Classic Bar on Castle Street. Formerly known as Rosie O’ Gradys, it has been recently renovated and now appears to be one of the places to be seen in the city. One of the most impressive and striking features is the complete glass front to the bar. It can make for very enjoyable people watching while enjoying a drink. There were two bouncers on duty and we did not encounter any problems. One of them opened the door when you were going in and coming out which was nice to see. The pub was packed when we went in and we stood near the front. It is all one open space and is a very airy pub. The music that was playing was good and not too loud. I had a mineral but everyone else said that they enjoyed their drinks.
I used the toilets in the pub and they were fine to be honest. This pub has changed its design a lot especially from the days when it was Rosie O’ Gradys. I would recommend a visit to this pub as it appears to be very lively and modern and one of the new trendy spots in the city.
Toilet rating: 7/10
Overall rating: 7/10
Final comment: The Classic Bar is worth a visit. Even though it was busy when we were there, there was still room to move with comfort.
Following a very enjoyable dinner at the liberty grill we headed to The Long Island Bar on Washington Street.. I had heard a lot of people talking about this pub in the past year and had a look for myself. This place is first and foremost, a cocktail bar. I was driving as i was a bit under the weather and decided on a non alcoholic cocktail. It cost around 4.50 but i was waiting at the bar for 15 minutes for it. All the rest of the group were long enjoying their drinks and i was still waiting. The bar staff looked to be under a lot of pressure and were running around trying to serve everybody. It is a very modern establishment that has an apppeal to certain types of drinkers. I personally am not a lover of cocktails but mine was fine. The music being played was very loud and we had to raise our voices to the verge of shouting to hear each other. There is a nice looking smoking area out the back and that appeared to be quite busy. The thing i enjoyed most about this pub was seeing Bosco on their plasma tv. It brought back many fond memories!!
I didn’t check out the toilets but the girls with us reported long queues to get to the ladies. It appears to be a very popular pub enjoying a very central location and has an extensive number of cocktails and other drinks available. It is not the type of pub that i go for but it is most certainly catering for its target drinkers.
Cocktail rating: 6/10
Overall rating: 6/10
Final comment: The Long Island Bar is a modern bar catering for those whose tastes are that bit different to the traditional pint.
We went up for the Cork City game in Lansdowne Road at the weekend. The stadium was buzzing but the city team put in a poor performance. We stopped on the way up and down in Urlingford, Co Kilkenny. Butlers was the pub we headed into. We stopped there for our breakfast on the way up and our dinner on the way down. It is a bar and restaurant from what i could make out. The breakfast and dinner were fine, nothing to write home about but fine. The food we got was reasonably priced to be fair. I took a walk through the pub and i noticed their smokers area down the back near the toilets. Laura went to the bar to get two minerals and she said that the staff took a long time to serve her. The pub itself is old fashioned. There was a few people enjoying a sunday night drink when we came in for dinner.
The gents toilets were not in great condition when i saw them. The handwashing facilities are in through the first door and the urinals and cubicle are in through the next one. They are quite small. I can honestly say that i won’t be heading back to this pub again if i am in Urlingford. I am sure that it has its appeal to the regulars that frequent it. Most of Bus Eireann’s Cork to Dublin buses stop in Urlingford so call into Butlers if you are interested.
Toilet rating: 5/10
Food rating: 7/10
Overall rating: 6/10
Final comment: Butlers serve food all day.
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