20 years later: Tracing through Anthony Bourdain’s Dublin 

It’s been almost 20 years since the late great Anthony Bourdain first walked the streets of Dublin in 2006 to film an episode for the third season of his series No Reservations.  

During his time here, he explored all Dublin had to offer culturally and culinarily. Six years later, in 2012, he returned to the Big Smoke to film an episode of his final series, The Layover.  

Bourdain packed in a massive amount of drinking, dining and discovering during his time here. If Bourdain visited or even mentioned a restaurant, pub, or shop, his followers saw it as the gold standard. But do these recommendations stand the test of time, almost twenty years later? 

These days, you can’t talk about a good pint of Guinness without Harvard referencing John Kavanagh’s Gravediggers in Glasnevin. So, of course, the first stop on Bourdain’s list was to see what all the hype was about.  

Expectations were met, pints were drunk, and coddle was eaten, but the strangest thing was the serving of pigs’ feet, which arrived as an encore to the coddle.  

After I asked about the pig feet, the staff gave me a weird look. Not all tourists seem as brave as Bourdain, and the dish has been off the menu for some time now.  

The pub’s ambience is still like stepping back in time, and the dedication to maintaining the Victorian structure and feel of the place, with no music or televisions, has rightfully earned this pub the hype it receives.  

Being the highly trained chief that Bourdain was, you’d expect he’d be eating breakfast at Shelbourne and staying till afternoon tea. 

But of course, that was never going to be the case as Bourdain’s man-of-the-people attitude led him to Slattery’s on Chapel Street for a full Irish breakfast.  

The iconic early bar used to open at 7 AM to serve local fishermen breakfast and a well-deserved pint after a hard day’s work. Nowadays, it’s open from a more respectable 9 AM until midnight.  

The breakfast is nothing really to scream about, and in fact, Bourdain doesn’t really praise it that much. Probably since he was hungover at work.  

The portion size is standard, but for €13.50, you get a hearty breakfast and a cup of tea or coffee—an easy hangover fix at a good price. I opted for the breakfast sandwich instead.  

After, in his own words, “clogging our arteries,” at Breakfast, Bourdain seemed hungry for history. As an established writer, he stopped into Cathach Books, now Ulysses Rare Books on Duke Street.  

While quoting Yeats and Beckett, he perused the display of high-priced antique books.  

To this day, Ulysses Rare Books seems to have cemented itself into the city of Dublin after opening its doors in 1969. 

For lunch, Bourdain was joined by restaurant owner Joe Macken at his then successful steak house, Bear on South William Street.   

Macken famously ran multiple restaurants in Dublin during the early 2010s, such as Skinflint, Crack Bird, and Joe Burger.  

Bear, part-owned by former Irish international rugby player Jamie Heaslip, was a steak restaurant that focused on serving up some of the more forgotten and cheaper cuts of meat. 

The Pair shared a Popeye and a rosary steak and conversed about the expanding food scene in Ireland.  

Unfortunately, today, the Bear has been replaced by the Pink Restaurant. The Pink Restaurant serves a signature afternoon tea special, Brunch, Lunch and Dinner.  

Perhaps the food scene didn’t expand as much as Macken wanted. There is no doubt that Bourdain would have preferred the hip, foodie-driven Bear for lunch over the 10-plus-person group brunch special at the Pink Restaurant.   

The Chop House in Sandy Mount was Bourdain’s choice of dinner. The award-winning gastro pub was opened in 2009 and focuses on producing high-quality dishes using the best of Irish produce. 

At the time of Bourdain’s visit, he called it “the best f**king meal I’ve had in Dublin.” And rightly so, seeing as it was prepared by a former Michelin-star chef and owner, Kevin Arundel. 

While sitting with Arundel and his wife, talking about the rising costs of running a restaurant to this standard, the table shared an Irish-inspired charcuterie board, followed by a porterhouse steak and pan-seared Prawns.  

This restaurant was perfectly situated beside the Aviva Stadium, grabbing sports fans’ attention for a quick pint or two. The mind-blowing food complemented the great atmosphere created around the place.  

Unfortunately, the restaurant closed down last year due to rising costs. Arundel took to Instagram to say, “We have tried to keep our business going, but the constantly rising costs have finally made it impossible to keep our doors open!” 

Another restaurant has been added to the hit list as Dublin restaurants continue to be unable to keep up, as we see more and more closures each year.  

The Chop House Sandyford location is now called The Cow. It’s serving a slightly similar menu but lacks the energy and passion that once had the power to shock Bourdain. As a result, it falls short of winning the awards it once did.  

Bourdain lives life in the fast lane. One of his most famous quotes is, “Your body’s not a temple, it’s an amusement park, enjoy the ride.” His ride of choice in Dublin was drinking in the iconic The Long Hall pub on George’s Street.  

Here, he took in the lively atmosphere while sipping whiskey, which he chased with a few pints of Guinness.  

The Long Hall is still one of the best spots in Dublin to enjoy a pint and people-watch from the barrels outside.  

For a change of pace after Bourdain had washed down his whiskey, he headed across the road to the late bar Hogans. Back then, Hogans had the privilege of staying open until 2 AM seven days a week, which is not the case today. 

As nightlife in Dublin continues to take hit after hit, with nightclubs closing down and bars closing earlier, Hogan’s currently only opens as late as 2 AM on Saturdays.  

The vibe of Hogans is still amazing, even early in the day, as the Dury Street crowd filters into the place to sit on the benches outside and enjoy the hustle and bustle of George’s Street.  

It’s the only place in Dublin where you can order a pint and buy a bouquet of flowers.  

After taking three random Dubliners who happened to have been sitting on the stool next to him under his wing for the night, they gave him a suggestion which he would soon regret. Chipper anyone? 

Bourdain wasn’t given any option and ended his night in the ROMA II takeaway on Wexford Street. Here, he and his newly found drinking buddies shared a selection of Irish delicacies such as the spice burger and taco chips, all soaked in curry sauce.  

Looking back on Bourdain’s time in Dublin, it’s clear how much has changed. Although the food scene is still improving each year, the price of ruining a restaurant has skyrocketed, and more are closing each year.  

A study by the Give Us The Night campaign found that over 25% of nightclubs have closed in the last five years, decreasing young people’s options for socialising and letting loose.  

Dublin has changed a lot since Bourdain was here, and it seems that his lifestyle wouldn’t have much room to flourish in today’s Dublin.