Dun Laoghaire pub famine

Boulevardier

My friends and I were dismayed when we looked for a place in central Dun Laoghaire on Saturday for a drink and some pub food.

The Port house, which used to do very nice pub food, has packed up and allowed itself to be replaced by a fast-food chicken joint (still under construction). The Forty-foot was also closed. We found no new pubs in the area.

I am quite shocked that the 2 most accessible pubs near the seafront have both gone.

Tabnabs

Purty Kitchen has reopened and is doing good food and craft beers.

Larbre34

Is the 40 ft closed altogether or just that time of day?

Walters does nice food to go with a pint, I know its a few mins walk down the town though. You can get beer and wine in Maos but its not a place you would stay all afternoon

frash

Gilbert & Wrights up the other end is a good pub & you can bring over a take-away from Camille

matt-dublin

Buck Henry's in the shopping centre is quite good and serves good food too.

Gilbert and Writes, Walters, and i think two or three others towards the hospital.

I think Gilbert and Writes killed the 40ft, they said they were closing for renovations but its been gone a good while now. Sure the place was always empty on a Friday and Saturday. Lacked atmosphere and they stopped providing a food service in the latter months.

We were there on a Friday night after work, about 30 of us and they had no chef. They wouldn't allow us to order pizzas in so we left. We were pretty much the only people there.

Tis a pity because its a great location and has amazing potential.

Fratton Fred

There's Hardy's bar at the royal marine hotel as well.

Boulevardier

This was at about 6.30-7 on a bright and sunny Saturday evening, but I recall being on the Port House on a rainy day last summer and it was doing good business.

If they can't fill a pub with a sea-view such as the forty-foot, something is very seriously wrong.

Dunphy's near the cinema is not bad, but a group of very loud auld-ones have driven everyone else away on both occasions when I was in.

The busiest pub on the night was Baker's Corner. Packed.

Dun Laoghaire as a town really has died a death in general and because of that pubs have closed. I was shocked to see Weirs not there any more a week ago.

ted1

Lovely beer garden in front of Oliveto,

And the yacht clubs serves good pints

matt-dublin

ted1 wrote: »

Lovely beer garden in front of Oliveto,

And the yacht clubs serves good pints

Oliveto'a been closed for a couple of years now? It's the hen house now I think

ted1

It's also being reopened In a new premises for a few years, they've taking over one of the ground floor of the Kingston hotel

Directly across from the east pier

http://www.oliveto.ie/

uberalles

matt-dublin wrote: »

Buck Henry's in the shopping centre is quite good and serves good food too.

Gilbert and Writes, Walters, and i think two or three others towards the hospital.

I think Gilbert and Writes killed the 40ft, they said they were closing for renovations but its been gone a good while now. Sure the place was always empty on a Friday and Saturday. Lacked atmosphere and they stopped providing a food service in the latter months.

We were there on a Friday night after work, about 30 of us and they had no chef. They wouldn't allow us to order pizzas in so we left. We were pretty much the only people there.

Tis a pity because its a great location and has amazing potential.

Clever management

zagmund

Olivetos didn't do themselves any favours with that move. Well, they did and they didn't - the new location is great & the dining area is much nicer. Our kids used to love it in the old location and then one day they weren't there any more, so we assumed they had gone out of business. Only later did it transpire that they had moved to the Kingston Hotel.

They must have lost a fair bit of passing trade with that move - we've eaten there since, but I'm sure there are plenty of others who didn't find it.

z

Funkstard

zagmund wrote: »

Olivetos didn't do themselves any favours with that move. Well, they did and they didn't - the new location is great & the dining area is much nicer. Our kids used to love it in the old location and then one day they weren't there any more, so we assumed they had gone out of business. Only later did it transpire that they had moved to the Kingston Hotel.

They must have lost a fair bit of passing trade with that move - we've eaten there since, but I'm sure there are plenty of others who didn't find it.

z

Don't assume it was their choice to up sticks!

ted1

Funkstard wrote: »

Don't assume it was their choice to up sticks!

I know for a fact that it wasn't their choice, their land lord treated them
Very badly.

Larbre34

Dun Laoghaire is a peculiar one, apart from the general recessionary feel its fine to expect big crowds out enjoying sunshine and al fresco dining and pints on the deck when the weather is suitable, but thats not enough to sustain a business the other 340 days a year, so some places off the beaten track will suffer badly

However, failing to do good all round business in the 40 Foot is just negligence, its expensive, pretentious and soulless. Its opposite a DART and bus station and as has been mentioned has great views, even on a stormy day! It needs an old fashioned landlord to get into it and simplify it, furnish it comfortably, reduce the prices to something less than Stephens Green level, and provide a simple all day menu and promote the hell out of it with some incentives. Get a better cross section of drinker and put the focus on the customer

uberalles

Dun Laoghaire is a disaster for parking. I read they made 7 million in parking fines/fees in one year.

Min fee 2 euro by the boat to drop someone off. 2 euro for 2 mins or 59 mins OTT. And it 7 days parking fees in some places.

Go one minute over in the old SC and you could be looking at a huge increase aft 3 hours I think it is. I got scalded there once.

To me DunLaoghaire = OTT parking fees and I avoid it.

matt-dublin

well between the excessive parking costs and dundrum that's why the town is dead.

sure the top floor of the shopping centre only has 5 open units
main floor and basement also have 5-10 empty units too!

uberalles

matt-dublin wrote: »

well between the excessive parking costs and dundrum that's why the town is dead.

sure the top floor of the shopping centre only has 5 open units
main floor and basement also have 5-10 empty units too!

The council must be happy with their 7 million parking fees while the businesses get strangled from people going else where.

Ive a feeling Sunday is good for some businesses / market. Difficult to make 100% turnover in one day though for a lot of them.

joeguevara

Deleted User wrote: »

Dun Laoghaire as a town really has died a death in general and because of that pubs have closed. I was shocked to see Weirs not there any more a week ago.

Weirs has changed ownership and is now 'The Pier Inn'. George who owns Walter's, Noggin Inn, Ramblers and Scotts owns it. Great Pint in there and they have a great bar menu. Also do really well for carvery. Bit quiet at night but getting busier each week.

Cracking looking bar girls as well.

uch

uberalles wrote: »

Dun Laoghaire is a disaster for parking. I read they made 7 million in parking fines/fees in one year.

Min fee 2 euro by the boat to drop someone off. 2 euro for 2 mins or 59 mins OTT. And it 7 days parking fees in some places.

Go one minute over in the old SC and you could be looking at a huge increase aft 3 hours I think it is. I got scalded there once.

To me DunLaoghaire = OTT parking fees and I avoid it.

That's Dún laoghaire Harbour Co. parking, not DLRCOCO

ted1

uch wrote: »

That's Dún laoghaire Harbour Co. parking, not DLRCOCO

irrelevant.

Oliveto/Kingston Hotel is my choice at the moment when the weather is dry, could sit outside looking at the view with a pint all day.

Used to love Gilbert and Wrights but getting a bit sick of it now just because I over did it probably

policarp

Boulevardier wrote: »

My friends and I were dismayed when we looked for a place in central Dun Laoghaire on Saturday for a drink and some pub food.

The Port house, which used to do very nice pub food, has packed up and allowed itself to be replaced by a fast-food chicken joint (still under construction). The Forty-foot was also closed. We found no new pubs in the area.

I am quite shocked that the 2 most accessible pubs near the seafront have both gone.

The amount of pubs,hotels and clubs that have closed in the Dun Laoghaire vicinity in my lifetime amazes me. . .

grimm2005

matt-dublin wrote: »

well between the excessive parking costs and dundrum that's why the town is dead.

sure the top floor of the shopping centre only has 5 open units
main floor and basement also have 5-10 empty units too!

and that's even before you look on the main street where there are more "to let" signs then open businesses! It's sad really, Dun Laoghaire could be a great local alternative to a night out in town but anytime we're out there we always end up in Walters because it's the only bar that stays open late on a weekend!

zagmund

[deleted]

frash

grimm2005 wrote: »

and that's even before you look on the main street where there are more "to let" signs then open businesses! It's sad really, Dun Laoghaire could be a great local alternative to a night out in town but anytime we're out there we always end up in Walters because it's the only bar that stays open late on a weekend!

Gilbert & Wright's does too

uch

ted1 wrote: »

irrelevant.

How can it be irrelevant when they are two separate enteties ?

zagmund

uch wrote: »

How can it be irrelevant when they are two separate enteties ?

It's irrelevant to the public who just know they have to pay "the man" to park their car. They don't care who they have to pay.

From the point of view of the council, rates payers & the harbour company it's relevant, but most people here aren't in that grouping.

z

patrickbrophy18

Walters, Gilbert & Wrights and nearby Purty Kitchen appear to be doing well. However, the more prominent venues such as 40 Foot and Scott's don't seem to be doing so well while Paparazzi's (Paps, Party House or Platinum) has been gone for well over a year. I'm not too sure about Hardy's Bar. Then again, it is owned by the Royal Marine Hotel. In this particular instance, I wouldn't tie this down to poor or overly priced parking as people are generally discouraged from driving with ANY alcohol in their system:eek:.

In the case of 40 Foot and Paparazzi's, both venues where a rip off in terms of admissions fees charging upwards of €10 per person for entry and the price of a pint being north of €6. I don't even think they were full pints given that they were served in those plastic glasses. Not to mention the fact that Paparazzi's made you put your coat into the cloak room regardless of the temperature outside. In this particular instance, I wasn't even in the main part of the nightclub and I was already down €15 (non-refundable:mad:).

The rather rough and rowdy clientele in some of Dun Laoghaire's pub's are certainly a big turn off for anyone who intends on having a semi decent night out. Then again, this applies to any place with some semblance of a nocturnal atmosphere. Anyway, that's just my opinion!

matt-dublin

Pint of heino was always €5 in the 40 foot.

I don't think you would even break 5.70 in town so you're exaggerating a bit on the pint price.

40ft only charged entry into the club, not the pub. The food used to be decent and reasonably priced.

Slaps was a sh1thole and has probably been closed 2-3 years now. It closed purely because it was a sh1thole