Top 10 pubs to visit in Cork City

If you’re heading down South to the country’s “real capital," or just heading to Ireland in general, you simply have to step inside a traditional Irish pub. Despite the smoking ban, and a fairly hefty tax-rate on liquor sales, the Irish pub scene continues to thrive and features as largely as ever in modern Irish life.

Without further a-do then here are the top ten pubs in the city that you simply have to visit during your stay Southside, or vow to visit next time you find yourself down that part of the country.

The Franciscan Well, 14 North Mall

Famous among Corkonians for its delicious home-brewed beer, this place was voted Ireland’s Best Microbrewery in 2009, and for a country of beer-lovers, that’s a pretty big honor.

They make their own stout (Shandon Stout), ale (Rebel Red), and wheat beer (Friar Weisse) and regularly host club and society events in the summer. The covered outdoor patio is an ideal place to while away a summer’s evening, drinking your quaintly-titled Shandon Stout and enjoying the beginnings of your bar-hop through the city.

The Bodega, The Coal Quay

Since undergoing major renovations in 2009, this city-centre pub boasts of a new vibrancy and elegance that makes it one of the most popular late-night spots for the late-20s crowd in the city.

A varied and tasty lunch-menu is served at a reasonable price, and the place turns into a bustling nightclub at the weekends.
Salsa nights contribute to its slightly exotic feel. This is one of the city most bohemian-feeling venues.

Reardens, 26 Washington Street

Despite the often lengthy queues to get in, few leave Reardens either regretting the wait or as sober as they did when they got in the door. The place is teeming with life, pints (naturally) and music, making it one of the city’s most popular venues.

The place has a slightly old-school feel, but isn’t rooted in the past. A gig guide and upcoming events listings is also posted on the site, and many of the tribute bands are shockingly good.

The Castle Inn, North Main Street

This is a place that even most Corkonians wouldn’t recommend you set foot in, but is as integral a part of the city’s pub-life as college haunt An Brog.

Stepping inside the doors of The Castle Inn is like travelling back in time. Men who could have been pulled straight from the set of “The Field” populate the small room, snuff is still for sale (please try it), and customers are known on a first-name basis.

It’s one of only a handful of places within the city bounds that manage to feel and smell like a true country pub, which is as just about as wholesome and satisfying an experience as it is possible to get in Ireland.

Scotts on Caroline Street

Similar in respects to The Bodega, this is another sleek modern pub that is popular with the late-20s crowd.

During the October Jazz Weekend the place feels truly snazzy, with the eye-catching glass displays and gleaming polished counters adding a very Chicago-like feel to the haunt.

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