Pub restaurants in Ireland
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Teach Ósta
The island's perfect pub hums on summer evenings (grab a table outside for the views) and supplies snacks, sandwiches, soups and seafood platters. Though the pub often keeps going until the wee hours, food service generally stops around 7pm and may not be available in the winter months.
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Linnane's
Irish standards like smoked sal- mon and more are fully honoured here. Peat fires warm the almost bare interior; nary a frill in sight. There's trad music many nights in summer.
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An Seanachaí
The rough-hewn walls of the 'Old Storyteller' could certainly tell a few stories of their own. Parts of this thatched-roof pub date back to the 14th century from its earliest incarnation as a farm. It's an atmospheric spot for a pint, a meal (try the house-speciality fish pie) or regular live music. On the grounds, a dozen self-catering cottages are available for multi-day rentals.
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McCarthy's
A classic that deserves national acclaim and preservation, McCarthy's proclaims itself as pub, restaurant and undertaker – and not necessarily in that order. This timeless joint has closely spaced wooden booths and tables amid a thicket of treasures dating back to 1840, and the locals are only too happy to chat. And yes, it is an efficient set-up for wakes.
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Vaughan's Pub
Seafood, traditional foods and local produce feature on the Vaughan's appealing menu. The pub has a big reputation in Irish music circles. There's music in the bar every night during the summer and on many nights the rest of the year. The adjacent barn is the scene of terrific set-dancing sessions on Thursday and Sunday nights. Have a pint under the big tree out front.
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John Hewitt Bar & Restaurant
Named for the Belfast poet and socialist, this is a modern pub with a traditional atmosphere and a well-earned reputation for excellent food. The menu changes weekly, but includes inventive dishes such as pork and black pepper sausages with buttery mash and red wine gravy, and butterbean and vegetable fritters. It's also a great place for a drink.
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Cassidy's
Cassidy's serves up a good range of pub dishes, several with witty names reflecting the establishment's previous incarnation as a British Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) station, and then as a garda (police) barracks. Enjoy trad music and dancing some weekends. The views from the terrace are as intoxicating as the drink.
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Mary McBride's Pub
The original bar here (on the left as you go in) is the smallest in Ireland (2.7m by 1.5m) but there's plenty of elbow-bending room in the rest of the pub. The food – standard pub grub – is good and there's Guinness on tap, as well as occasional live music at weekends.
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Durty Nelly's
Thronging with tourists all summer long, Nelly's manages to provide some charm amid the hubbub, right across from the castle. Meals are better than you'd expect, although the pub is more enjoyable than the restaurant upstairs. There are trad sessions many nights.
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Roadside Tavern
Down by the river, this pub is pure craic. Third-generation owner Peter Curtin knows every story worth telling. There are trad sessions daily in summer and during the weekends in winter. Imbibing musicians can be found here anytime. The trad fun extends to the kitchen, which turns out creamy seafood chowders etc. Anything with smoked fish is good as they also run the nearby Burren Smokehouse.
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Snug Bar
The aptly named Snug is a cocoon of interesting nooks and crannies, with enamel advertising signs on the walls and one table wrapped around a full-grown tree inside. Simple bar meals (soups, lasagne and the like) are served at lunch with more ambitious seafood and steaks on the menu at night.
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Hawthorne Bar
This agreeable pub may not have changed in about 40 years. Its dining room, the Rainbow Restaurant, serves the same menu in a more formal setting. Sitting on the streetside benches and tucking into Bantry Bay mussels or seafood chowder with soda bread is a fine way to spend a sunny evening.
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Dufferin Arms
This comfortably old-fashioned pub (and the larger Stables Bar downstairs) serves decent pub grub, while the cosy, candle- lit Kitchen Restaurant offers a more intimate atmosphere. Bands play on Friday and Saturday nights from 9pm, with folk and bluegrass sessions on Saturday afternoons from 4pm.
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Lennon's Café Bar
Trendy and stylish, Lennon's is sure sign that the times may be a-changin' in Carlow. Liam and Sinéad Byrne run a pub that's really an excuse to serve healthy fresh food at great prices. Sandwiches, salads, hot mains and the creative dinners avoid the predictable.
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Lowry's Bar
A time-worn local, Lowry's has traditional pleasures, ranging from the age-old, unadorned look of the place to its céilidh sessions, which take place at least a couple of nights a week. The food is 'unpretentious Irish' (eg bangers and mash).
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McHugh’s Bar and Restaurant
This restored pub has a traditional feel with its old wooden booths and benches, and boasts one of the city’s best bar-restaurants, serving traditional pub grub downstairs (till 7pm) and fancier dishes in the mezzanine restaurant upstairs (from 5pm).
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Kelly's
Sunny Kelly's is filled with sociable punters day and night. The pub's two rooms are decked out with pew-style seating, chunky wooden furniture, a wood-burning stove and, curiously, a stag's head. Seating outside is good for a pint and a sandwich.
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Morning Star
Morning Star is famed for its all-you-can-eat lunch buffet (£6; served noon to 4pm).
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Liam O'Riains
At this grizzled, stone-faced old veteran, you're greeted by a cow-eyed, 12kg pike mounted on a wall near the entrance – he's an ugly mother. Everything else here, however, is lovely. Candles glow softly and windows overlook the river below.
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Keough's
This friendly local, where you'll often hear Irish spoken, serves up a fresh battered cod; specials are more ambitious and allow the kitchen to show off its considerable talents. Traditional music sessions take place on Mondays and Thursdays, while Saturday nights swing with old-time dancing.
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Paddy Gonzales
This pub, which looks more like an American diner with its seating booths, is overpriced but a good option if you're travelling with children. It offers breakfasts, a carvery and, Wednesday to Saturday nights, Mexican food.
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PF McCarthy's
Proudly boasting 'no fried food', this mannered spot serves meals well above the pub-grub norm.
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Ashe’s
Owned by a distant relation of Gregory Peck (really, aren’t we all?), this elegantly fronted gastropub serves modern takes on seafood in old-fashioned surrounds. The tempura of pollack with coriander aioli is mighty fine.
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Muddy Mahers
The big bar meals here are good and tasty. The menu includes plenty of meat dishes, veggie options, a great ocean chowder, an even better fish pie and well-filled sandwiches, including the Holy Cow! steak special.
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Brogan's
The peas at this popular old pub are always well cooked, and the supply of spuds never-ending. Standards like roasts get top billing along with steaks and an imposing beer-battered cod. The seafood chowder is loaded with smoked fish.
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