Streets Ahead

FROM OUR lucky vantage point upstairs at number 13, Hot Press has witnessed the transformation of Trinity Street and the adjoining area over recent years.
With its location making it a key gateway connecting Grafton Street, the new Dublin Tourism Offices on Andrew Street and, on the other side of Dame Street, Temple Bar, Trinity Street has been transformed from an almost forgotten sidestreet into a bustling thoroughfare bristling with stylish cafes, pubs, shops, hairdressers and, of course, Ireland s coolest publication.
Among the most popular pubs in the area are The Bankers and The Stag s Head. The Bankers (16 Trinity Street, Tel: 6793697) is triple-decked, incoporating a fine street-level bar, downstairs the Bankers Vault and upstairs The Trinity Lounge. Although the Thursday dance night attracts a youngish crowd to the upstairs lounge, the Bankers is increasingly popular with a wide-ranging clinetele including the Dublin branch of the Arsenal Supporters Club who hold all their meetings there. The option of good food as well as drink, and the availability of a private function room on request, means that under the progressive proprietorship of Ned Cremins and manager Bryan Foley, this attractive pub is moving with the times but without sacrificing a forty year-old tradition of hospitality that insists: You may arrive as a stranger but will leave as a friend .
The Stag s Head (2 Dame Court, Tel: 6793701) is one of Dublin s best-known and best-loved hostelries. It s also one of the city s oldest, having opened for business on October 5 1895 in a building that actually dates from 1780. The pub has been in the Shaffrey family for nearly 30 years but Philip Shaffrey reports that the ghost of the original owner, a Mrs Tyson, is said to pass though the premises on an inspection tour on the fifth of every month.
Still boasting timber work that is at least 100 years old, it s not surprising that the Stag s Head has an almost theatrical atmosphere that has made it a favoured shot location for the movie business A Man Of No Importance, The Treaty, December Bride and Michael Collins all filmed scenes there as well as a favourite watering hole with the movie-makers themselves, including such illustrious names as Liam Neeson, Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley, Quentin Tartentino, Patrick Bergin, Jim Sheridan and the late Donal McCann.
As if providing drink in inspiring surroundings and serving food that comes highly recommended by the top guides wasn t enough, the Stag s Head is busily planning for the next millennium including the opening of a no-smoking bar upstairs, traditional music downstairs and the reversion of the main entrance to its old location. But always conscious of its great history, the owners are keen to hear from anyone who might be in possession of photographs of the pub in olden times. Ring Philip at (01) 6793701 if you can help.
Dublin s unofficial hairdresser to the world of football is a title that could justifably be bestowed on Damien Ferguson, the hands-on owner of The Trinity Barber (9a Trinity Street, Tel: 6793595). A former Manchester United player whose promising career was prematurely ended by injury in the early 70s, Damien turned a teenage apprenticeship to good effect by finally opening his own barber shop on Trinity Street in 1983. Since then, the business has expanded to take on five full-time staff, supply good old-fashioned facial shaves and occupy two levels at number 9a.
Popular with politicians, business people, media folk and, of course, the footballing set (Paul McGrath and Liam Brady, to name but two, often drop in), The Trinity Barber has also featured in tv s Head To Toe, Gerry Ryan s Secrets and as the location for the hair-cutting scene in the Guinness twins series of commercials. Presenting an attractive face to the outside world, inside it s a bit of a shrine to football, with the walls liberally adorned with photos of Damien in the company of footballing greats, many of whom he knows through his active membership of Manchester United s past players association. And, as if all that wasn t recommendation enough, The Trinity Barber (open Mon-Sat 8am-6-30pm; late opening to 8pm on Thursdays) is the only place in town which this magazine s Deputy Editor entrusts with his luxurious locks.
Environmental protection and information is the vital business carried out just around the corner by the good people of ENFO, The Environmental Information Service (17 Andrew Street, Tel: 6793144).
Established in 1990, the service provides easy public access to wide-ranging, authoritative and up to date information on the environment, with the aim of protecting and enhancing same and encouraging individuals and communities in their efforts to better appreciate the wonders of the world around us.
The Information Centre on Andrew Street is especially suited to individual callers and visiting groups and can offer a wide range of information in the form of books, publications, videos, inter-active computer games, computerised listings, the Internet and more. School-children are especially welcome, but the centre can also be of great benefit to third-level students as well as professionals such as journalists, researchers, consultants and environmentalists.
ENFO also hosts regular exhibitions. Currently, artist Gerard Dowling is showing work derived from recycled materials while forthcoming attractions include: Hey Everything s Working , an exhibition for children in association with Energy Awareness Week (starting Sep 8); Get The Power , a thirty minute show for children on the subject of energy (Sep 20-Oct 1); Fruit And Nuts , an exhibition for children celebrating the harvest season (Oct-Dec); and Millennium Project Eco , an exhbition for children celebrating the new millennium.
Booking is essential for groups and ENFO can be contacted in the following ways: by dropping into reception at 17 Andrew Street (Mon-Sat, 10am to 5pm); tel: 1890 200 191 or 6793144; Fax: (01) 6795204; Email: [email protected] and Website: www.enfo.ie
Finally, coming back closer to home (literally), we find one of Dublin s hippest clothes stores located directly beneath the Hot Press offices. Offering one of the most arresting shopfronts in the city, CUBA (13 Trinity St, Tel: 6727849) was opened in December 1998 by Andy Sharkey (a founder of the streetwear store HOBO just across the road) and Hilary Ross-Murphy.
CUBA quickly established itself as Dublin s most progressive designer casualwear store and now boasts a clientele which includes many international and Irish-based celebrities. The style of the shop itself has also helped make it a big hit with customers: loosely based on a New York loft/gallery, it mixes anitique chairs, tables and leather sofas with contemporary styled raw materials like the concrete counter and mahogany wood floor. The spacious fitting rooms at CUBA are similarly furnished for ultimate shopping comfort.
While the rest of us are making the most of what passes for the Irish summer, trailblazers CUBA have already announced plans for their Autumn/Winter range. Among the coming season s highlights will be: 6876, Copperwheat Blundell, Daryl K, Evisu, Levi s Limited Editions, Nigel Hall, Severin Riach, YMC and Creed Perfumes (exclusively in Ireland).
CUBA also showcases Irish designer OPTIX and jewellery designer Aoife Sweeney. And September will see the eagerly awaited launch of Danny Kearn s first menswear collection.
All of which brings us back to where these words are being penned in an office high up on Trinity Street, overlooking one of Dublin s most attractive shopping, strolling, relaxing and, yes, working precincts. Drop in and see us all some time! n