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Large tapas bar in the heart of the city centre, hidden in behind the George Street Arcade. Decent portions, though not particularly cheap.
Its a massive space with exposed brick and palms. The service is iffy, but the atmosphere is great and mercifully there isn't any music, a rarity these days.
George Street Arcade
There are plenty of sidrerias (cider bars) in Madrid, but this one in the gay-friendly Chueca district is a huge stand-out for the quality and, especially, the quantity of the complimentary tapas. 1.50 a 'caña' isn't cheap, but you'll get a steaming pile of piggy, bready delights along with it, and that's every time you take a drink.
Also a great place for vast filled 'bocadillos' (baguette sandwiches), and various other tasty 'raciones'. Just watch out for complimentary paella - myself and others have been laid low by food poisoning for some time after a visit. The fact that I'm still recommending the place tells you just how good it is.
One final thing - get there early if you have any kind of designs on a table.
c/ Infantas, metro Chueca
Raffles Hotel is the home of the 'singapore sling' or 'gin sling'. If you are visiting Singapore then going to Raffles and sipping one of these in the Bar & Billiard or the Long Bar is simply a 'must do'.
Even though I don't usually like Gin they were so delicious I had to have two.
1 Beach Road, Singapore
singapore-raffles@raffles.com
Temple Bar is where every drunken eejit and plastered hen/stag party will end up. Avoid it like the plague on St Patrick's, last year the place ran with piss and vomit. Horror.
Instead go to Camden Street, still city centre, which is full of decent bars, most have live music and DJs organized for the night and where I'll be, in Anseo.
Camden Street
Fabulous food, great staff, well stocked bar and spotless kitchens!
We enjoyed many a night here in February this year. Try the duck or kebabs. Tell them Caroline and Paul sent you, they assure us you will get a free drink!
Opposite Meridian Hotel, next to Murphys Irish bar. Passport Office Street.
Although under renovation, this hostel is an excellent place to stay in the centre of town.
The rooms for two offer ensuite facilities and are impeccably clean if basic.
If a couple of chairs were provided they would be even better!
The price might seem expensive for some (70 euros a night for two if booked over the net) but try to find better at a seven minutes walk from the Spire.
There is a kitchen and a minimalist breakfast is included if you want to share it with the school groups.
There is a Thai restaurant across the street and the pub on the corner's public bar (Molloy's) will take you straight back to pre-tourism Dublin - especially at the 11am rush.
A couple of caffs just round the corner on Talbot St offer all-day breakfasts at a very good prices if you can face the cholesterol, yum.
Talbot Place.
The Smallest Pub in Dublin (officially known as the Dawson Lounge) can be found on Dawson Street, just past Grafton Street in the City Centre.
Go there at around 8 o'clock so you can guarantee yourself a place and avoid the herds of late-night workers coming for happy hour afterwards (they even have backrests on the walls to accommodate those without seats). Though really small (the area of the whole pub must be around ten metres squared), the pub is very cozy and serves the best Guinness I ever tasted, for a reasonable bargain of €3.80.
Definitely a good option, especially if you're with a big group of friends and feel like starting the night out with some drinks and good laughter.
Dawson Lounge, Dawson Street
Telephone: (+ 353) 1 671 0311
Email: dawsonlounge@thomasread.ie
www.dawsonlounge.ie/
Mon - Thurs 12.30 to 11.30
Fri-Sat 12.30-12.30 Sunday 4-11.00
FOOD Mon-sat 12-4.30
The Chester Beatty Library.
Dublin Castle,
Dublin 2,
Ireland
Tel: (+353 1) 407 0750
Fax: (+353 1) 407 0760
Email: info@cbl.ie
www.cbl.ie/
After a hard day swimming, drinking caipirinhas and watching the beautiful people, come off the gay area of Ipanema beach and head directly up Farme de Amoeda to the Bofetada.
This is a little historic bar that's great for people watching and enjoying an ice cold beer. No need to dress up. Just turn up in your trunks like the local boys do!
Rua Farme de Amoeda
Ipanema
A great place to see live entertainment. Most nights it's free to get in and the resident bands are really good.
On the corner of Abbott Street and Aplin Street, Cairns.
Google map: tinyurl.com/mtgdbs
At last a decent pub in Vilnius!! Great food and atmosphere. Not your typical dark walled Irish pub, pleasant pastel shades and a proper beer garden.
Dominikonu 6
A small bar just tucked away off Buchanan Street, behind Princes Square. Great beer, brilliant service and laid back tone. Do a mean cocktail if you ask nicely. Also - a beer garden in the city centre. What more could you need for Glasgow's tropical climate (unbrellas and heaters too).
26 Springfield Court, Glasgow, G1
Monorail is an incredibly cool, independent record shop, with a loads of vinyl alongside the racks of hard-to-find CDs. Especially good for underground Japanese music and European jazz, it stocks a really varied range of music plus magazines/fanzines. The shop is situated within vegan bar/restaurant Mono, which also hosts live music and album launches etc in conjunction with the record shop.
Monorail Music,
12 Kings Court, King Street, Glasgow, G1 5RB, UK
Tel: 0141 552 9458
Independent music venue, bar & vegetarian & vegan cafe. Chilled out atmosphere, friendly staff, great place to check out new bands. Best jukebox in town, DJs upsatirs at weekends. Food is well tasty and good value for money.
50-60 King Street, Glasgow G1 5QT www.13thnote.co.uk
This is a cracking real ale pub at the top of the slope leading down to the South Shields ferry. Excellent beers are always on offer and you can often get a quick taster to help you make your mind up. It's friendly, cosy and inviting and you can't beat grabbing a berth in one of the pub's two bay windows for unsurpassed views across the Tyne to North Shields.
River Drive, South Shields, Tyne and Wear, NE33 1JR. Nearest Metro station: South Shields (or you can pile off the Shields ferry and head up the bank)
Funk, soul, disco & northern soul club hidden away from the neon student filled barns on Sauciehall Street. Always has a fantastic atmosphere with a very diverse clientele and is just the right side of sleazy for a great night, not sure about the tartan carpet mind!
Down Bath Lane (142), just off Bath Street
www.thebuffclub.com
0141 248 1777
This is a five minute crossing of the River Tyne between North and South Shields which presents a panorama of cranes on the banks of the mighty Tyne. They stand like giant preying mantis etched on the western sky, looking bereft. The ships which were once their prey are gone, now made in warmer climes where the workers can be paid less. The lovely wee ferry provides a glimpse, an echo, of more heroic times when a worker took pride in wages earned by real skills.
And to the east lies the North Sea, as cold and uninviting as it sounds. Yet still the trawlers venture out of the mouth of the Tyne in search of the mighty cod, and Norway beckons, inviting the Geordie to embark on a yet more arduous ferry journey to frigid fjords where they can languish on the latitude of an Arctic circle.
Take the metro from the centre of Newcastle to North Shields then follow the Pedestrian Ferry signs to the River Tyne. Upon disembarking take the metro from South Shields back to Newcastle. The Day Saver ticket on the metro covers the cost of the ferry.
Children love this adventure, and a great pint of ale can be had at the Alum pub by the ferry at South Shields.
A bar specialising in beer - but not the usual fare from large brewers or multinationals. Yes, it does offer these brands but its speciality is more obscure (in the UK at least) beers form smaller foreign brewers - Kolsch, eastern European, etc. Friendly atmosphere, spacious inside, and nice views of the world going by. Try!
Candleriggs, Merchant City, Glasgow G1
A relatively tourist-free little cafe by day, it turns into a hipster hangout by night, complete with great indie music, awesome barstaff, and pretty much just cool, laid back Riga kids. I definitely recommend it, but only if you don't act like a tourist when you visit - that would totally ruin what an awesome place it is!
I went to Riga last year, and this was one of my favourite bars, not just in the city but ever. A really cool alternative atmosphere, combined with chilled-out indie kids prove that Riga is a young, hip, cool city.
Cosy pub on steep and curvy Cockburn Street. Loads of whiskys (they have a 20 page printed list with taste notes and prices) and good selection of ales. It gets the tourists right enough, but has a good crowd of regulars and enough randoms to ensure an entertaining time. Get a booth at the window and watch the world go by.
11-15 Cockburn St
Right up the road from Waverley Station.
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