Waltons music shop on South Great George's Street features in several key scenes in the film 'Once'. The most important of course is when Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova sit down at one of the pianos and perform 'Falling Slowly' for the first time. Staff at Waltons regularly receive requests to allow fans of the film to recreate the famous scene.
Waltons was founded in the early 1920's and is a music school as well as a musical instrument shop. Although you may not be able to drag a piano all the way home, a tin whistle from Waltons makes for a quirky little musical souvenir.

www.newschool.ie/
69 South Great Georges St, Dublin 2
+353 (0)1 475 0661
Google map: bit.ly/XNX8BL


* Fiona is our Been there local for Dublin. You can follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/FionaHilliard and read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/trails/been-there-locals.jsp. She also has her own blog: www.traveledits.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Situated right in the heart of literary Dublin (within a stone’s throw of Trinity College’s Lincoln Place entrance), Sweny’s Pharmacy is known to James Joyce experts as the chemist where Leopold Bloom from Ulysses goes to have a special lotion made, takes a look around the products displayed on the shelves and buys a bar of lemon soap. The shop welcomed its first customers in 1853 and was still up and running until 2009 when it was forced to face the prospect of closure. Thankfully, a group of volunteers decided to breathe new life into the premises and these days it doubles as a small bookshop, a venue for cultural events – most prominently for readings of Joyce’s works, as well as a place where you can browse and buy vintage jewellery and the famous soap, as mentioned in Ulysses:
“Mr. Bloom raised a cake to his nostrils. Sweet lemony wax. I’ll take this one, he said.”
The lemon soap has a zesty scent and makes for an unusual souvenir.
The book collection includes mainly second-hand books as well as Irish literature, history and politics. The shop has been preserved to look exactly as it did on Bloomsday in 1904 and is open late on Thursdays for readings.

www.sweny.ie/
1 Lincoln Place, Dublin 2
+ 353 (0)86 050 7995
Google map: bit.ly/PUav5q

* Fiona is our Been there local for Dublin. You can follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/FionaHilliard and read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/trails/been-there-locals.jsp. She also has her own blog: www.traveledits.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

The name is not a reference to the gutter press, but refers instead to that uplifting Oscar Wilde quote “we are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” The Gutter Bookshop is an independent bookshop situated in the Cow’s Lane area of Dublin’s popular Temple Bar. The owners of The Gutter have set out to offer something a little bit different than you’ll find in the bigger bookshop chains and they even run a book club that promises many lively discussions. Those buying for younger readers will find the childrens’ section is especially well-stocked.

www.gutterbookshop.com
Cow’s Lane, Temple Bar, Dublin
+353 (0) 1 6799206
Google map: bit.ly/RcoMVz

* Fiona is our Been there local for Dublin. You can follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/FionaHilliard and read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/trails/been-there-locals.jsp. She also has her own blog: www.traveledits.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

The Winding Stair may be famous for being one of Dublin’s best restaurants, but the bookshelves downstairs are by no means a novelty feature. Out front, this bookshop sells new titles while the smaller part at the back is home to second-hand books. It takes its name from a collection of poems by William Butler Yeats as well as the slightly crooked staircase that leads to some of Dublin's best cuisine. The bookshop's location is as Dublin as it gets, overlooking the Liffey with picture postcard views of the Ha'penny Bridge. Since the 1970s and 1980s it has been a meeting place for writers, musicians and artists and a backdrop for poetry, films and stories.
It is also home to a wide selection of books and also hard-to-find titles that are not normally stocked in the larger chains.
Tea and coffee are served in the window overlooking the Liffey. If you're in no rush to leave, you can even treat yourself to a glass of wine and enjoy a leisurely read.

www.winding-stair.com/
40 Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin 1, Ireland.
(+ 353) 1 8726576
Google map: bit.ly/OgjxF6

* Fiona is our Been there local for Dublin. You can follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/FionaHilliard and read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/trails/been-there-locals.jsp. She also has her own blog: www.traveledits.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Buzzing and really cool flea market, packed with stalls with gorgeous vintage and second-hand clothes, chilled atmosphere, bands playing on stage, lovely food stalls and cafe area and wholefoods from the Dublin Food Co-op. Last Sunday every month.

The Co-op, Newmarket, Dublin
www.dublinflea.ie

Google map: tinyurl.com/y8hy8pb

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

An indoor gourmet organic food market in Newmarket in Dublin with a wonderful clubby atmosphere, amazing hot food stalls, organic fruit and veg, friendly cafe, chat, organic and fair trade clothes, etc. Open Thursdays 2-8pm and (best day) Saturdays 9.30am-4.30pm.

Newmarket, Dublin 8
See www.dublinfood.coop

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

It's an hilarious Dublin guide filled with serious tips.

www.hidden-dublin.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Fun, fresh and boho. Cool shops, cafes and people. So cute.

George Street, South City parallel to Grafton St - few over.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Huge bookshop with a vast, if slightly populist, selection and decent discounts. Certainly one of the best in town for scale and economy, there's a decent if slightly overpriced second hand section as well.

Parnell Street, North of the river

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

A smattering throw back to Dublin's hippy scene, which has been nearly totally decimated. This is really only a shadow of some of Dublin's great markets. Still it has a nice feel to it and there are stalls for second hand books, fresh olives, old records and new Japanese and Chinese fashion. There's Simons Place cafe - a real stalwart, and there's a chipper in one of the stalls. Plus there's an entrance to the excellent Market Bar - with its own entrance for when the arcade is closed. It's a fun wee refuge from the occasional rain. A bit over priced in places tho'

George Street

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

The Amnesty International café, right in the heart of Temple Bar, is an oasis of calm (not to mention intellect and compassion) in an area dominated by overpriced restaurants and “pubs” stuffed with stag nights and rugby fans. Good strong and cheap coffee, tasty food, great reading material and much more besides, this place sticks out like a sane thumb.

Address: 48 Fleet Street, Dublin 2.
Telephone: (353-1)6776361
Website: www.amnesty.ie
Email: info@amnesty.ie
Opening hours: Monday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

This is a lovely place to wander around. Here’s a few places to look out for:

Castle Market: La Maison des Gourmets for cakes and Costume for posh frocks. On Drury Street: Jenny Vander for vintage clothes and a few other small fashion shops. More small shops and stalls (food, clothes, secondhand books) in George's Street Arcade, as well as the grubby but charming cafe, Simon's Place. On South William Street, sit outside Ba Mizu on a (rare) sunny day, or try Dakota (sometimes cool, sometimes tries too hard).

Between Grafton Street and George's Street, Dublin 2

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Clothes, jewellery, bags and pots by Irish designers at the Kilkenny Design shop.

6 Nassau Street; Tel: 00 353 1 677 7066.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends