It’s St. Patrick’s Day and if you feel like having a celebratory pint of Guinness or just an orange juice then here is a list of some of the best Irish pubs,bars and restaurants that we could find, if you know of any absolute gems that need to be added on our list please feel free to Tweet, Facebook or comment to let us know.
This particular Porterhouse is on Maiden Lane on Covent Garden. It’s a very big venue with regular live music every weekend and has been/will be showing all of the 6 Nations. On the weekend this place gets extremely busy, especially during times when the bands are playing – that’s something to consider when visiting… Could be worth reserving a table.
The front door does have many steps inside but apparently they have a side door that has flat access from the street. Once inside they have a disabled toilet but you may be limited to the ground floor due to the amount of steps and lack of lifts in the pub – if you do go along you’ll see the whole place is basically designed to cause confusion… After a few pints it’s always a struggle to find your friends… We give the Porterhouse 2 BBS Ticks.
Hunter’s Hotel & Restaurant, Wicklow
We first heard about Hunter’s through a reader of Blue Badge Style who has “been many times and it is so nice”. The Irish Times described it as “Old-school fare in wicklow….Hunter’s is not about the food. It’s about calling lunch luncheon and handwriting the receipt…..nostalgia smothered with a hearty gravy”.
The access in the restaurant is pretty good, you can get in to the restaurant no problem and there is a disabled toilet in there too. Unfortunately, the hotel doesn’t have any disabled rooms, however there is a room on the ground floor but it hasn’t been adapted to cater for those who might need extra assistance. We have given Hunter’s Hotel 2 BBS Ticks.
The massive Waxy O’Connor’s pub, located at The Printworks, in the heart of Manchester city centre, loves all things Irish. Running through the middle of the pub is a 250 year old decorative tree, imported from the Emerald Isle. The rest of the pub has a rustic design, with a lot of decorative wooden panelling.
St Patrick’s Day will obviously be a pretty big deal at Waxy’s.
The description, on their website, of the pub as “a labyrinth of 3 bars covering 4 levels and 9 separate areas that are linked together by a maze of staircases and passages” does not make Waxy O’Connors sound like the most accessible place in the world. In fact it makes it sound like a bit of a nightmare – for the less able and able bodied alike, you feel a little bit lost just reading it. But apparently the access is really rather good!
The entrance to the building is flat. Inside there is a lift to all of the floors and there is a disabled toilet. There are some steps to get into the side room but the main bar areas are spacious and step free. Waxy O’Connors get a 2 provisional BBS Ticks.
The Bell Inn is a historic pub, laying claim to being the oldest in Nottingham. It is, as they say there, a real pub. A proper pub with ale on tap, good food and no gimmicks.
They normally have live music on Sundays so presumably they will just keep this going for Patrick’s Day. It’s hard to tell from the website but again there are mentions of Irish stew and session music…
There is a disabled toilet but apparently it “isn’t the most practical” because there is a ramp to get to it and a rolling door, rather than a usual opening one. The entrance to the building is flat though and, although there is one step to main bar, apparently people always help disabled people to get over it. We gave them a provisional 2.5 BBS Ticks.
This cool pub and restaurant, near Paddington Station, specialises in oysters and Guinness. For £14.00 you can get the, very Irish, ‘Cow Special’ – a pint of Guinness and a half dozen rock oysters. It tends to attract a variety of actors and musicians – Madonna used to be a regular. So if that’s your sort of scene this could be the place to go for St Patrick’s.
View London says: “The Cow is always busy, the seafood is fabulous and the Guinness is some of the best kept in town. Definitely worth a visit.” On the other hand, Black Book Magazine was slightly less kind.
There are three steps to get into the restaurant and quite a few more to get to the toilets. If you do get down them to the loos, there isn’t a disabled toilet anyway. Which is far from ideal. But it is generally OK to get around when you’re inside.
The access isn’t great but it has to be one of the coolest places in London to visit for a pint of the black stuff. We gave it 1.5 BBS Ticks, which is sort of a recommendation but mixed with a warning about the toilet situation. (I’ve been there many times and it’s worth it as long as you get help to get in and have an iron bladder. There are steps down to the toilets but there is a bannister to grab hold of if you’re using sticks!! ….Editor FJ)
The Octagon is famous for having been so popular with Bono and other members of U2 that they decided to buy the Clarence hotel, where the Bar is in situ. This trendy bar is set in the middle of a dome and is, as you might guess, octagonal. It’s quite a sophisticated bar and features on the World’s Best Bars website but it’s not too fancy. You can still go in there to just relax and have one of the best pints of Guinness in Dublin in traditional surroundings.
We included The Octagon as part of our review of The Clarence which we gave a provisional 2.5 BBS Ticks. The access seemed to be pretty good, with flat floors and a disabled toilet on the ground floor.
A well known name in Fermanagh and the surrounding counties is the Bush Bar and Grill in Townhall St Enniskillen. It is famous for its quality food and a great selection of drinks.
They’ve had lots going on over the weekend, last night that had a ‘Paddy’s Day Eve’ event, so tonight there must be something going on… So if you’re in Fermanagh go check it out!
The access all seems very good and there is a disabled toilet in the bar. We gave them a non audited 2 BBS Ticks.
Have a craicing St. Patrick’s Day!!