Pub for mid afternoon break in Dublin

You can hear music all day at the Temple Bar and pubs near there. I would not recommend eating there, and a pint of Guinness at 10 euro is a bit off putting. However, the crowded atmosphere is fun and the music decent.

As for variety of local beers, that is hard, most pubs only have the Guinness lineup plus Heineken and Coors Light.

As for a decent suggestion, on the edge of the Temple Bar, near Christchurch, is Darkey Kelly's. They serve a variety of beers, including a line-up they have brewed for them. So lots of variety, a nice pub, they do not have music usually until evening, but check. The food though is very good, they actually partner with a nearby restaurant for their food, the fish and chips is better than most, and they serve a good range of dishes.

Closer to Temple Bar is The Porterhouse, they were one of the first brewpubs in Ireland, and made their name with their Oyster Stout. They serve a range of their own beers, plus craft beers from around Ireland, so a good variety. The food is respectable, but again, no music until later, again, check their website and socials.

I would add Devits pub Maybe a 5 minute walk from temple bar area w traditional music 7 nights a week and the best Guinness stew in Dublin

We took a taxi to the Cobblestone Pub in the late afternoon, and were treated to music from locals who all just happened to stop in with their instruments for a drink and to play a while. Some came and some went, and others showed up. That was clearly a regular situation at The Cobblestone. PBS had a show on Dublin in the past year that included an interview with the owner, and they talked about the history and reputation of the music at that pub, which brought back fond memories of our visit. I’m not sure that there’s much food available, but some kind of snack should certainly be available to go with the drinks.

Cyn, looks like Cobblestone Pub is just a 13 minute walk from 14 Henrietta Street museum which we plan to visit, though from the map it looks like it may not be a great walk, along a highway, maybe.
rongedde and Paul, some great suggestions, thank you

RangeDDE, I'm boggled to hear what you said about Devitts. It's my very favorite pub in Dublin. My great-great grandfather was Patrick Devitt, lived not far. So in my optomistic little mind, it's gotta be his pub. I choose to believe that. Anyway, I've been there in 2024 and 2026, the bartender even gave me another Devitts hat, and I've already got the t-shirt. As you said, they do have the best Guinness stew, I've had it several times and loved it. The live music is upstairs and we sure enjoyed what we heard there., but probably just in the evenings. To get there, it's just a 10 minute walk south on Camden Street.

We also liked the Brazen Head, good pub food, and such an interesting, ancient pub. Actually, we toured the Guinness Storehouse, then took a horse-drawn carriage to the Brazen Head for lunch.

Closer to Temple Bar, on College Green, is "The Bank on College Green". Definitely not a pub, more of a nice bar/restaurant, but it used to be an incredibly ornate bank. You could get a snack there and just enjoy looking the place over. Walk in, make a left, and sit at the far table by the space heater if it's cold out. And there's a replica of the Book Of Kells by the door.

Jules, we’d been at the Kilmanhaim Gaol, and used the taxi to reach the Cobblestone from there. Didn’t really spend time exploring the neighborhood around the pub, or the streets to get there or back to our rented apartment, so I can’t offer any knowledge of how walking would be. We were one table away from the music, though, couldn’t get better than that!

The Cobblestone has music from noon on. It's actually more organized than it looks, with flutes on Monday, slow players on Tuesday, fiddlers etc. (Not the actual days in the last sentence). I don't think they have food.

The Brazen Head has a Sunday session at 3pm.

Most of the music you'll hear in Temple Bar (the area, including the Temple Bar) is duos singing "favorites". Sessions are rare. Temple Bar is trying to clean up its act, but IMHO, it has a long way to go. You can view the interior of The Temple Bar on
https://www.earthcam.com/world/ireland/dublin/?cam=dublinpub for a taste.

When you know what days you're there, plug that into thesession.org although it's not a complete inventory by any stretch.

jjgurley Very helpful! I will plug in my dates!