McSorley's

1 Sandford Road,
Ranelagh,
Dublin 6.

I personally believe Ranelagh has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to pubs and McSorley's is no exception. On entering the bar I was struck by a lovely sense of warmth. There were just the right number of people at the bar; enough to give the place proper ambience but not so many that you can't order your drink. The lighting and the chatter were just what the doctor ordered, and it was especially nice considering the cold September evening I left outside.

McSorley's is a tale of two pubs. It has a bar and a lounge and both are very different animals. The bar itself is perfect; good size, good lighting, good crowd. An ideal place spend an evening with company. I ordered my pint and admired the place but unfortunately for me all the seats and tables were occupied, so I took my pint around to the lounge (pictured above) which had a substantially different vibe to it. It is far bigger than the bar, as you'd expect, but the peculiar layout of the furniture makes it feel empty, even if it's not. In fact there were a lot of people in there, but because there are large parts of it with no tables or chairs it lacked a certain je ne sais quoi.

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