Few bars left open in Blessington but Murphy’s keeps the flag flying with €5.60 pints

ALTHOUGH we paid a brief passing visit to the town of Blessington in 2017, it was just over ten years since the pub-mobile rolled into town with a car full of thirsty stout drinkers with the intention of doing “The Day” as they say.

It only took 45 minutes to arrive from HQ and after one loop of the town we found a parking spot on the Main Street.

What really struck us as soon as we arrived was the lack of pubs open in the area, even though it was late in the evening.

Regardless of what it was, one thing is for sure after last week’s budget. The Government simply doesn’t care about pubs in this country, or the cost of running one or the cost of visiting one.

They have once again ignored the elephant in the room and they’ll ignore it again and again in the years to come.

One boozer that was open was Murphy’s pub and the Old Commando informed us he had been here for a very brief visit in 2013 and suggested we check it out.

“I had a look at my notes before we left Dublin and I paid €3.90 for a pint in Blessington in 2013, not this pub mind you, but one nearby. I wonder what it’ll cost today,” the Old Commando continued.

“You’d be lucky to get a glass of Guinness for €3.90 now,” the Young Commando replied.

An experienced blonde barmaid, who we think was named Linda, was working alone when we arrived, and even though the bar was quite busy she was well able to handle it by herself.

In fact, she was the life and soul of the front bar, engaging with all the customers and keeping the conversations flowing from one end of the counter to the other.

The creamy pints of stout set us back a whopping €5.60, almost 45 per cent of an increase over the course of the past decade, while they also had Island’s Edge, Peroni, Hop House 13 and both Rockshores available on draught. The Old Commando enjoyed the pint but he did have a moan about the cost.

The front bar is very small but it was cosy and warm with the help of a radiator at the end of the counter which was keeping our legs and toes thawed out.

The timber flooring was well worn and it’s likely it was laid some time in the last century as it certainly looks 25 or 30 years old at this stage.

The red leather barstools were in decent condition and despite the size of the area there are three TVs and a betting odds TV located here.

We noticed a dartboard in the corner and it had every appearance that the Young Commando had been practicing at it — it’s well ‘hacked’ out of it at this stage.

“The locals must be as handy at throwing darts as you are” our designated driver sneered to the Young Commando.

A framed Celtic jersey hangs proudly in the hallway near the entrance to the lounge and we took a quick peek inside on our way to the toilet.

The lounge is huge and very fancy, and they were also serving food here during our stay.

A price list here suggests a pint of Guinness in the lounge will cost you twenty cent extra at €5.80. Luckily for us, we’re bar drinkers.

Similar to the rest of the pub, the toilets were clean and had a ‘checked hourly’ timesheet on display where you could see the inspections were being carried out.

We returned to the bar and to our round of drinks and enjoyed the company of some locals.

There was a very good atmosphere and the porter, despite the price, was well received by our Commandos.

Hopefully it won’t be another ten years before we visit Blessington.

Hopefully there’ll be more pubs open by then, and hopefully the pint won’t be costing over €8!

Rating: Three pints out of Five

One for the road…

Hennessy’s – Blessington

THERE was a fantastic atmosphere in Hennessy’s pub when our team called for a quick pint recently.

The majority of the clientele were young to middle-aged males enjoying the live sports on TV and there was plenty of banter around the counter area.

Tuborg and Fosters are available on draught but it was mostly stout and Heineken drinkers in Hennessy’s and the Old Commando was more than happy to keep the flow of Guinness moving along nicely.

The tiled and timber flooring was swept clean and the yellow brick on the upper section of the walls are a nice feature.

We’ve been to this boozer before and we always like to visit when we’re in the Blessington area.

We noticed they’d upgraded from the roller hand towel to a powerful hand dryer in the toilets since our previous visit in 2017 and the blue exterior was in excellent condition.

We’d recommend it if you’re in the area.

Rating: Three pints out of Five