Emily C.
Yelp
Hmmmm. I feel a little curmudgeonly giving this place a four star rating. Reason being that it genuinely used to be my pub of choice in Dublin, the one place I absolutely adored going to. It felt like a little slice of the wesht country right smack bang in the middle of South William St.
Flann O'Brien, one of Ireland's great novelists, mentions this pub in his novel At-Swim-Two-Birds, when one of his characters says; "That same afternoon I was sitting on a bar stool in an intoxicated condition in Grogan's licensed premises." Grogans is indeed a bar unaltered for decades, unaffected by the Celtic Tiger and the mess left in it's wake. It's not uncommon to see lone patrons set up for the day in here, book or pen and paper in hand, no doubt soothed by the comfortable mellow surroundings.
As many reviews before me have mentioned, they do a great ham sandwich, serve the pints fast and well, it's the cosiest of cosy pubs, and it's right in the heart of Dublin. They also support local artists by displaying their art on the walls which is quite a cool touch.
The seating area outside are the icing on the cake for this old school boozer. Come rain or shine, these tables & chairs will generally be filled up by the young trendies that seem to be taking over this place.
And herein lies my gripe. It really isn't the fault of the pub, but lately, it seems to have become a victim of it's own success. After my last visit, I thought about giving it a three star rating, disappointed as I was with the changed ambiance in the place. But, no that wouldn't have been fair, as they haven't changed a screeb, and have been doing the same thing for years. It's just that too many people have cottoned onto it. (Read: Hipsters!) Somewhere in the last year or two; shiny newness has become considerably 'out', and old-fashioned, 'vintage', rough around the edges, has become considerably 'in'. You will not get a seat in here anytime after 4pm unless you're very lucky, and if you do, you may need to bag yourself some thick rimmed glasses or a copy of Ulysses to fit in.
Curmudgeonly? Me??