5 Dublin pubs with Anthony Bourdain

Ronnie Drew reflecting on Dublin pub culture in 1990. Some lovely observations here about conversation, characters and the social life of Dublin pubs.

Liffey Street market, 1983. I was always fascinated by these traders as a kid. They had a spiel for everything they sold. Masters at their trade. Clips from 'Dublin A Personal View', filmed in 1983.

Then & Now: Patrick Street market (Rag Fair), 1903 & 2026 In 1903, this stretch of Patrick Street was home to the famous Rag Fair, a busy open air market where second hand clothes and household goods were bought and sold, often laid out directly on the street. Hundreds of traders worked here daily in the Liberties. 📷 National Library of Ireland

Early house pub, Cork City, 1980 Pubs opening at 7am. Early houses were an old tradition, a place for dockers and market traders to gather for an early morning drink. Footage: RTÉ Archives

Peter O’Toole outside Toner’s, Baggot Street, 1976. 📸 Bryan Wharton

Ronnie Drew talking about how The Dubliners got their name thanks to Luke Kelly, followed by a walk through Moore Street in 1988.

Some Dublin street lamps have been lighting these streets for over 100 years. Quiet survivors of another Dublin. They’ve outlived generations and are still working away every night.

6am, Dingle - Ireland's earliest St Patrick's Day parade. The pre-dawn tradition dates back to the Land War of the 1870s when British authorities outlawed public gatherings between sunrise and sunset. The people of Dingle found a way...

Selling Shamrock, St Patrick's Day, 1916

All Set For Saint Patrick's Day, 1982 Sales of flags and shamrock on Moore Street market are brisk and in the Cat and Cage pub in Drumcondra customers are queuing up to experience the latest St Patricks Day novelty all the way from America - green beer. A large number of Americans with Irish ancestry choose to come to Ireland for Saint Patrick's Day. One American visitor explains why he is in Ireland. An RTÉ News report broadcast, 1982

Shane MacGowan and The Pogues with an impromptu pub session. Singing one of Kirsty MacColl's dad's songs. November 1986

“A pint of plain is your only man.” 🍺 Written by Flann O'Brien in the 1940s and later turned into a pub classic by The Dubliners. A tongue-in-cheek piece of Dublin pub philosophy suggesting that when things go wrong, the answer might simply be a pint of stout.

Lets visit infamous this post pub oasis of yesteryear. The site at 23 Harcourt Road had form even before The Manhattan Café. In the 1940s, it was Tony’s Café, run by Anthony Tighe, who made the courts more than once for dodgy practices. For example he was accused in 1941 of selling porter late at night without a licence (he swore he was only “treating” customers), and sued again in 1952 by the Performing Rights Society for letting unlicensed music be played. Shocking stuff! The Woods family took over in 1954, rebranding it The Manhattan. Under the iron rule of May Woods, known to all as Aunty May, the café became legendary. By all accounts I could find May was part doorman, part matriarch. You couldnt just stroll in , you had to “pass muster.” Regulars knew that if you acted the maggot, you’d be barred from food, which was the ultimate punishment. Staff like Bernie, who worked there for decades, became fixtures as much as the faded wallpaper and lethal stairwell to the toilets. The menu was classic post pub delicious junk. The Works (sausages, bacon, eggs, chips, fried liver, baked beans), mixed grills, toasties, and endless tea poured from heavy pots. Rumours persisted of late-night wine served under old licensing loopholes, but a pint of milk in a glass bottle was more likely. Prices were cheap, portions enormous. And its clientelle, apart from gee-eyed locals, was stellar. U2 dropped by in the 1980s, Bon Jovi’s band too. Acts finishing in JJ Smyth’s or the Baggot Inn often wound down here. Bibi Baskin, Mick Lally, Richard Harris, Joe Dolan, Ulick O’Connor, even Dickie Rock. Personally after a few jars if I bumped in to that lot I`d probably shag them all but leave Bibi wanting. A young Charles Haughey was spotted there, long before his diet consisted solely of champaign drank out of the skulls of county council estate children. Niall Quinn met his wife Gillian in The Manhattan at half-three in the morning. He knew she was the one when she shared a scrap of “hairy bacon” from the floor. By the 1990s, The Manhattan was one of the last true all-night eateries in the city, sharing the twilight trade with places like The Gigs Place and Topo Gigio. But stricter licensing laws, changing habits, and the slow creep of gentrification spelled its doom. The café finally closed in the late 2000s, likely around 2009. The building went derelict, and in 2019 Dublin City Council blocked a €1.4m sale for office development, citing its cultural heritage. Some councillors even called for the famous “M” sign to be preserved in the Little Museum of Dublin. By 2024, the site was demolished, probably to make way for offices or student housing. Thanks to @neilbodl and @RareIrishStuff who inspired this a while ago 🍻 SOURCES Irish Independent: “When stars ended Dublin nights with fine wine or baked beans” independent.ie/life/food-dri… Come Here To Me!: “The Manhattan and other late night eateries” comeheretome.com/2012/09/11/…

Dublin in the 70s & 80s. Linenhall Street near Smithfield. Everyday life in Dublin beautifully captured by Éamonn Mac Thomáis. You can find his documentaries on RTE Archives and YouTube.

Fairytale of New York LIVE, 1988 The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl

90 5mins: 🇭🇺 2-3 🇮🇪 Ireland holds its breath, on the last throw of the dice... Hattrick for Parrott 😮😮😮😮😮😮😮 📺 @rte2 @rteplayer shorturl.at/X2pcP 📻 @rteradio1 shorturl.at/gi0y8 📱Updates: shorturl.at/BX36M

Most people dont notice them.. but the angels on the O’Connell monument, and O’Connell himself, still bear the scars of 1916, silent witnesses to the battle that once raged through Dublin. The bullet holes from the Easter Rising crossfire were never repaired...