It turned out to be a lot easier than envisioned by concentrating on the older and more notable pubs. Not that every writer had a favorite pub, but rather that every pub proudly had its list of writer and patrons ready at hand. Writing is a lonely craft and most writers, in Ireland anyway, appear to have needed the comfort and companionship, not to mention the inspiration of an overheated, often noisy pub from time to time.

Consider the pool of talent in the relatively small country ofIreland. With a little more than four million people, the country has produced the likes of: Jonathan Swift, George Bernard Shaw, James Joyce, Sean O’Casey, John Millington Synge, Oscar Wilde, W.B. Yeats, Samuel Beckett, J.P. Donleavy, Liam O’Brian, and Brendan Behan.

In addition to fabled writers, many of the pubs proudly recount the time of the “troubles” when the Irish republic was being created (l919 – 1921) and rebels hid their weapons, and sometimes themselves, in the nooks ofDublin’s public houses to escape the wrath of the English soldiers.

The pub tradition in Ireland dates back to the Middle Ages when water was so polluted as to be dangerous to one’s health. A tradition of brewing beer from barley goes back over 800 years and was the preferred drink. Women made beer at home and the reputation of one home’s beer over another caused many visitations from friends. This tradition became an extension of the home brewery to a more formal retail setting. 

Monasteries in and around Dublin brewed beer for the monks’ use. The Guinness brewery sits on the site of a famous monastery that not only brewed their own beer but sold extra to the local pubs that sprung up throughout the city.

Whiskey, called usice beatha or water of life in Gaelic, arrived on the scene at an equally early date; however, since the primary need was for a drink with meals, beer prevailed. Beer was also considered good for your health, especially against cholera. Saint Patrick, the patron saint ofIreland, had a personal brewer as did Brigid of Kildare.

There were 2,300 pubs in Dublin in l750. To be fair, the population was twice what it is today. They quickly became the center of social intercourse and often the place to find work. The clientele tended to congregate by industry at certain pubs such as The Dockers, The Ferryman and The Gravediggers.

I can’t for the life of me find a pub that set out to be a literary hub. More likely it was proximity that determined where a writer went “to have a pint,” meet with his peers and discuss the issues of the day. In some cases actual writing took place as documented in the writings of Brendan Behan.

For generations, pubs were the province of men; you did notice that all of the major writers in Ireland fell into this category. As late as the l990s women were not allowed in the main part of the pub. They were restricted to the “snug,” a specific section set aside for the ladies. Many of these “snuggies” survive today and are cozy spots to camp in.

Ladies of the evening acquired patrons therein. The playwright Sean O’Casey shocked the nation when his controversial character Rosie Redmond in his play “The Plough and The Stars,” sits at the bar and bemoans the lack of interest in a “girl’s garters” when customers turn to the holy business of politics.

TOP 10 Literary Pubs in Dublin

One of the classics of Irish literature, Ulysses by James Joyce, details one day in the life of Leopold Bloom, punctuated by stops at many of the oldest and more renowned pubs in the city. Our pub crawl is one where you can actually walk to most of the selected pubs. To some, however, the “pub crawl” implies imbibing a bit as you go from pub to pub. Simple moderation is suggested in counterpoint to what was perhaps the first pub crawl on record. As far back as the 1700s, students of Trinity College in Dublin romped through town, and then somehow “crawled” back to their dorms.

THE DUKE - 9 DUKE STREET - DUBLIN2

Both before and after World War II student writers and newspapermen hob-knobbed with editors who frequented the The Duke to get their work into print. Housed in an eighteenth-century building just steps away from Grafton Street, The Duke was one of Michael Collins “safe houses.” He moved from one to the other throughout the city as he fought the British for Irish independence. This is a full-throttle drinking emporium with warm-wooden walls and a reputation for superior pub food. Should you be here on rugby weekend, where the six nations compete, avoid the upstairs bar where the giant television screen fills the room along with hoards of avid, nay possessed, Irish rugby fans.

THE BAILEY - 2 DUKE STREET - DUBLIN 2

A shadow of its former self when writers and politicians flocked here in the l850s, The Bailey at that time advertised the culinary delights of joints of beef and oyster sauce for a mere shilling. A take-out service to anywhere in the city of Dublin was also available. Undoubtedly the most important man to quaff here was the first leader of the The House of Commons of the new Irish Republic, Charles Stuart Parnell. He was so powerful as to be called “the uncrowned king of Ireland.” Poets Padraig Colum and Arthur Griffith, the founder of the political group Sinn Fein, stopped in as well. Winston Churchill once remarked upon meeting Griffith, that he was “a unique figure...a silent Irishman.” In l957 poet, painter, and publisher John Ryan hosted many famous literati evenings in Dublin. Brendan Behan, who famously once described himself as “a drinker with a writing problem,” worked on J.P. Dunleavy’s play “The Ginger Man” in the back of the pub. Many of Behan’s margin notes made it into the final text. Containing some racy material, the book had to be privately published in Paris by a not-too-reputable house which also published Lolita. It took 30 years before the play was staged in Ireland to universal acclaim.

NEARY’S - 1 CHATHAM STREET - DUBLIN 2

The rear door of Neary’s nicely backs into the stage door of the Victorian Gaity Theatre and as the natty bartender confided, “Many’s the well-known who popped in for one between the acts.” The pub has been around since l871 and well-known and wanabee thespians as well as entertainment types can be found at its polished bar. Beautiful l860s cast-iron muscled arms hold lanterns to guide you to their doors. One of the spiritual homes of several Irish writers, who often relate the pubs to religious themes, Neary’s was a second home to writer Flann O’Brian when he was not at McDaid’s or The Bailey. He did get around.

PALACE BAR - 21 FLEET STREET - DUBLIN 2

Pass through the portal of the Palace Bar and you arrive in another time. Along with Ryans of Parkgate Street, it is one of the best preserved pubs in the city. Fleet Street, like its English counterpart, meant that the Guardians of the Fouth Estate, namely the newspapermen, gathered. Bertie Smyllie, editor of the Irish Times, printed the paper locally until 2006 and absolutely ruled the roost. He made room for new writers to get published even when the newspaper was down to four pages during World War II. Poets, painters and writers mingle with civil servants here. The well-preserved snug can be locked for private parties. Brian O’Nolan, Patrick Kavanagh, Brendan Behan and Flann O’Brian spent some time at this revered classic pub.

MCDAID’S - 3 HARRY STREET - DUBLIN 2

Another pub off Grafton Street was the headquarters of a generation of writers after WorldWar II who formed a “literary circle.” Writer Brendan Behan, who appears to have attempted to visit all the pubs in Dublin, is remembered as having enthralled a crowd in a 17-hour drinking and talking session after his latest incarceration for taking part in a foiled bomb plot in Liverpool. Patrick Kavanagh, an enormous man from County Monaghan lived nearby McDaid’s. Racing form in hand, he held forth on all manner of subjects. Poet Michael Longley, then a student at Trinity College, tried to get Kavanagh to give him a proper interview. The only way he could get it was over pints and chasers which resulted in several rollicking hours in the pub. Gainor Chrisit, who became the inspiration for Sebastian Dangerfield in J.P Dunleavy’s “The Ginger Man,” was a regular. Like many other pubs, the founding fathers of the Provisional Irish Government met here, including Arthur Griffith, First President of the new state.

DAVY BYRNES - 21 DUKE STREET - DUBLIN 2

The most famous pub in Dublin stands off Grafton Street just across from The Duke. The “moral pub” as it was referred to in James Joyce’s “Ulysses”, has gone through a bit of modernization since Leopold Bloom, the lead character in his novel ordered the “gorgonzola cheese sandwich and a glass of burgundy.” Joyce himself favored “DB’s” as it was called; it was a lighter, airier pub with many deco touches. Samuel Beckett lived upstairs for a time, in the same space where, during the turbulent years, the outlawed provisional government of the new Irish Free State secretly met. Cecil Salkeld, Brendan Behan’s father, was commissioned to paint the mural on the right side of the main bar. He used well-known faces from Dublin in the 1940s including the former owner Davy Byrnes.

KENNEDYS - 31-32 WESTLAND ROW - DUBLIN 2

In l870, Kenney’s (the current owner claims the “d” fell off the sign and he was thinking of fixing it one day soon) as it is called in the present day began life as a grocery store. Oscar Wilde worked there as a young clerk since he lived just a short walk away at Merrion Square. Oak-paneled and warm, Samuel Beckett made it a regular stop on his night time crawls as did George Bernard Shaw. It was apparently a tradition as they came from the National Gallery. Some of the modern luminaries, including Seamus Heaney, have imbibed here. And, of course, Stephen Daedalus in Ulysses passes by on his in-town jaunt.

THE OLD STAND - 37 EXCHEQUER STREET - DUBLIN 2

Entering this packed, active pub sandwiched on the corner of two streets I noticed the basketball player Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics. I said hello and he waved — just another patron enjoying some friendly conversation in the crowded, hip setting. Named for the demolished stand at Ireland’s famous rugby stadium, Lansdowne Road, its most famous visitor undoubtedly was Michael Collins, the man who created theIrish Free State. Renowned for his disguises, he passed in and out of the pub without being apprehended by the British authorities. The pub is run by the Dolan brothers, a family of publicans.

KEHOE’S - 9 SOUTH ANN STREET - DUBLIN 2

Kehoe’s is just across the street from what was the Adelphi Hotel. James Joyce mentions that hotel in A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. The wooden drawers behind the bar are exactly as they were in the early part of the century when people came to purchase teas and coffee. In 1812, Percy Bysshe Shelly stayed around the corner. Some contend that he scribbled his “Address to The Irish People” in a dimly lit corner of Kehoe’s. You will find one of the most beautiful ladies’ snugs here.

THE BRAZEN HEAD - 20 BRIDGE STREET - DUBLIN 8

With a license that dates back to the restoration of King Charles II in l668, “The Brazen” lays claim to the title of oldest pub inDublin. Just next to the pub is a reconstructed part of the old City wall, a reminder that in Norman times, a bevy of pubs sprang up outside the city walls to accommodate those travelers who did not get into the city before the gates were closed for the night. The Brazen Head is one of two pubs surviving from that time. For many years the writing table of insurrectionist Robert Emmet had a prominent place. Flann O’Brian stopped in often to continue his arguments with members of the nearby law courts among the nooks, crannies and creaking floorboards. A sign reads: “Only Traditional Irish Music Allowed Here.”

ANOTHER OPTION…

When in Dublin, ask at the Duke pub for the literary pub crawl given by leprechaun-like Colm Quilligan and his partner. They combine a bit of theatre with visits to three or four of the top pubs. Happily, their presentation begins with a smashing rendition of Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” where characters Didi and Gogo come to life. Much of the information for this article was gleaned from their tour and book: Dublin Literary Pub Crawl.