105) Slattery's of Lower Rathmines Road, D6

Cosy and distinguished old-style place with a very fine authentic snug and some laughably low counters, marred by prohibitive costliness in recent years. Buyer Beware: cash only. Saunders and Stephens were once caught out here after their stouts had already been poured. They searched every pocket trying to make up the cash - and when they came up €1.60 short the barman said ‘I’ll let yea away with it provided yea be honest lads and drop it in the next time.’ They were happily dishonest in this case and never gave the pub another penny.

Has seemingly formed a chain of pubs, for another (inferior) Slattery's, with identical typeface and painted lettering on the sign, can be found on the way to Sandymount. One barman (in the Rathmines original) resembles John Lennon (if he'd lived) and has an off-puttingly supercilious manner. In 2008 the upstairs room played a key role in the short-lived and fairly atrocious (and rapidly cancelled) RTE offering called The Roaring Twenties.

The pub is also of interest for hosting the last surviving example of a Dublin 'shawlie' – a dark little extra side room, usually furnished by no more than a bare bench, entered via another door distinct to the main entrance, where in days of yore the womenfolk (forbidden access to the central body of the bar by the laws of the time) could sidle in surreptitiously and be served a lesser porter through a small hole, the delights of a superior Guinness being similarly denied them.

An aul wan in quest of a shawlie

DISCLAIMER: The contents of this blog represent personal opinions and perspectives only. Read more.