Palmerstown’s Silver Granite needs a facelift but €5.50 pints still went down well

Time is flying and there’s nothing any of us can do about it. When the Young Commando suggested a trip to Palmerstown this past week some of our troops dismissed the notion, insisting we were only there recently.

Curiosity got the better of yours truly as the Commandos argued where to go and I began to delve through our files and see when exactly we had been in this area.

“April 2014,” I announced to the squabbling Commandos.

“Oh, right,” the Young Commando replied. “That’s recent enough alright, only nine years ago,” he said with a smug grin as he threw the car keys to our designated driver and told us he’d meet us downstairs at the pub-mobile.

Yes, a long time had passed since we last set foot in The Silver Granite pub, and as we approached it earlier this week we actually thought it was closed.

We parked the pub-mobile outside the local bookies and the Old Commando spotted that the bar door was, in fact, open so we ploughed ahead with our plan, following a quick inspection of the exterior.

It was disappointing to see the nameplate in such poor condition with some of the gold lettering missing and the timber section torn in parts and in general disrepair.

The grass growing on the ledge definitely doesn’t help the appearance either and there’s no doubt the exterior could do with a facelift.

We were hoping this wouldn’t be a sign of things to come as we thoroughly enjoyed our previous visit in 2014.

We’re glad to report that the bar was in good condition and very clean. It was very busy when we arrived with just one barman on duty at the time.

We didn’t catch his name but he wore glasses, had grey hair and struck us as a seasoned professional. He served us promptly with creamy pints of Guinness costing us €5.50, an increase of €1.10 from 2014.

“That price isn’t too bad for Dublin, seeing as we paid the same in Tullamore last week,” the Young Commando said.

There is an array of drinks available on draught such as Harp, Tuborg, Orchard Thieves, Rockshore cider and lager and Coors.

Neat dress is essential, a sign at the front door told us, and it also insists on no tracksuits after 8pm.

“I agree with that rule,” the Old Commando stated. “In fact, I’d change it to no tracksuits ever if I owned a pub,” he said jokingly.

There are at least four TVs in the bar with some of the customers taking a particular interest in the horse racing.

The timber flooring is quite worn but it was clean, while the brown leather bench seating was also worn in parts but it was comfortable.

There are two framed and signed Dublin GAA jerseys hanging across from the counter from the 2013 campaign of both their senior hurlers and footballers and we spotted some gaming machines near the rear of the bar.

The Young Commando took it upon himself to inspect the toilets and unfortunately it was a similar story to the exterior — they were in need of some attention.

Both cubicles required a deep clean with the walls in particular marked by red stains. A cleaning and a coat of paint would go a long way to improving their appearance.

We enjoyed our few pints in The Silver Granite and the locals and the barman were all friendly and welcoming, but there are some areas that need to be addressed.

We’ll be back again some day, but hopefully it won’t take us nine years this time.

Rating: Three pints out of Five

One for the road…

The Deadman’s Inn – Lucan, Co. Dublin

IT was extremely busy when we called to The Deadman’s Inn at the Liffey Valley exit with a mixed clientele of all ages.

They were serving food during our visit and this is what the majority of the customers were here for, but there were a handful of barflies perched at the counter too.

We decided to join them.

A young red haired barmaid served us and we found her warm and welcoming. Harp, Tuborg, Birra Moretti and Orchard Thieves are all available on draught and the counter area was sparkling clean.

The red brick fireplace and surrounding wall is a lovely feature and the solid fuel stove had a roaring fire to keep the patrons cosy.

A framed Dublin GAA jersey from 2016 is on display alongside numerous photos of the glorious Six in a Row for the Metropolitans.

The toilets were clean with two cubicles, three urinals and hot water was provided too.

Rating: Three pints out of Five