Blarney Stone
Kiss the Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle, and legend goes you'll be endowed with the gift of gab. Down a couple drinks at the Blarney Stone (1505 Dorchester Avenue, Dorchester, 617.436.8223), and we're guessing your results will be the same. The first American bar to serve draft Guinness, the pub recently underwent a face-lift and now boasts a hip lounge, an upscale menu, and a landscaped patio perfect for warm afternoons. Drawn by the pub's new look and its schedule of trivia nights, a pool league, and weekend music and dancing, the crowd no longer comes only from surrounding streets. Friends from all around the city are meeting here, as are the neighborhood's new residents: downtown transplants in search of affordable housing. Since your conversation with that cute stranger might lead to a date, good thing you're such a talker.
The Boyne
Go ahead and bring the car: both on- and off-street parking are easy to find at the Boyne (458 Western Avenue, Brighton, 617.782.2418), making it an especially opportune place to stop in for a drink. And thanks to its location near many of Brighton's other great establishments, it makes a fine addition to any local pub crawl (of course, leave the car at home for that). The bar's name comes, not surprisingly, straight from the homeland, where the River Boyne flows 70 miles past some of the country's historical sites, then empties into the Irish Sea at the medieval city of Drogheda. You won't find many relics of the river and its surrounding valley at its Brighton namesake, but should the urge to swim strike, fear not: the Charles isn't far.
The Burren
Open since 1996, the Burren (247 Elm Street, Somerville, 617.776.6896) has a history of attracting Tufts students and Somerville residents with its 40-plus beers, draft and bottled cider, and affordably priced food. But it's not only the pub grub and convivial atmosphere that keep customers coming back. Live Irish music every night of the week both charms the local clientele and lures fans from across the river to this Davis Square location. So what do jam sessions and Ireland's Burren have in common? A 116-square-mile expanse in northwest County Clare, the real Burren is one of the most unique landscapes in the world, with numerous archeological treasures and a peculiar environment that sprouts both Mediterranean and Alpine plants. Perhaps the connection comes from the fact that our Burren supports an equally diverse blend of inhabitants: stop by for Sunday's singer/songwriter series, and you'll likely find aging Irish expats happily chatting away with twentysomething students. In our book, that makes for a pretty exceptional place.
The Burren
Open since 1996, the Burren (247 Elm Street, Somerville, 617.776.6896) has a history of attracting Tufts students and Somerville residents with its 40-plus beers, draft and bottled cider, and affordably priced food. But it's not only the pub grub and convivial atmosphere that keep customers coming back. Live Irish music every night of the week both charms the local clientele and lures fans from across the river to this Davis Square location. So what do jam sessions and Ireland's Burren have in common? A 116-square-mile expanse in northwest County Clare, the real Burren is one of the most unique landscapes in the world, with numerous archeological treasures and a peculiar environment that sprouts both Mediterranean and Alpine plants. Perhaps the connection comes from the fact that our Burren supports an equally diverse blend of inhabitants: stop by for Sunday's singer/songwriter series, and you'll likely find aging Irish expats happily chatting away with twentysomething students. In our book, that makes for a pretty exceptional place.
The Corrib
Brighton's oldest Irish pub, the Corrib (396 Market Street, Brighton, 617.787.0882), opened in 1969 and has been keeping customers sauced and satiated with its home cooking and well-stocked bar ever since. Like its sister establishments in Brookline (201 Harvard Street, 617.232.8787) and West Roxbury (2030 Centre Street, 617.469.4177), this is a great place for catching up with friends over drinks. Sure, they've got televisions over the bar, but you won't find any of the live music or DJs that have become de rigueur in many of the city's other Irish establishments. The pubs' name comes from famed Lough Corrib. One of the country's largest lakes, the lough covers approximately 200 square kilometers in County Galway and is a popular destination for fishing and boating among its 360 islands. Both at the tavern and on the water, though, the peaceful atmosphere doesn't mean you can't throw a great party : just be sure you bring your more interesting buddies and leave the bad conversationalists at home.
Grafton Street Pub
Mass Ave may not have much in common with Dublin's Grafton Street, that city's main shopping artery, but we do get the connection to Harvard Square's Grafton Street Pub (1230 Mass Ave, Cambridge, 617.497.0400). Dublin's pedestrian paradise winds past Trinity College, while our pub sits opposite Harvard University. In Dublin, friends often choose to meet at the statue of fabled fishmonger Molly Malone on Grafton Street; in Harvard Square, the bar is practically a monument to social gatherings. We particularly like the scene once Friday arrives, when finding a date for next weekend is almost as easy as picking up a new outfit at Dublin's Marks & Spencer.
