Whelan's

Whelan's was an ok bar, I only cane here because my lady wanted to check it out because she saw it in a movie.
Other than that it was basically a dive bar with just live music in the back.

Really busy bar where a lot of locals go. The movie "PS I Love You" was filmed here so we had to come. (So probably a mix of locals and tourists.) they have live music and a couple different bar areas here. Good drink specials. Only downside is it might be hard to get a drink if busy, my husband waited at the bar for about 20 minutes and no one helped him.

This is my second time visiting Dublin but my first time visiting Whelan's. Initially I would have said this bar is a top rated night-life bar with great music, but unfortunately I had a very negative experience with the staff toward the end of a Thursday night.

I had gone to the bar with five other friends, and we sang and enjoyed the music. At some point four of these friends decided they wanted to get food across the street and so left the bar. Me and the final friend left to see them across but ultimately decided to head back into the bar. This was fine for me but my friend did not have an easy time. They said he was too drunk to come in, despite having just walked out less than two minutes prior, and us both only having had a few drinks for the night.

After I had discussed this with him, another friend had mentioned that a bouncer came up to him in the bar and reprimanded him for not being Irish (a very Italian looking man). After some deliberation it seemed likely that this was the problem with the first friend, since he was also Italian-German. From this night it appeared to be a clear pattern of disrespect toward non-locals. Although I was not directly affected this left a sour taste - I would not recommend this bar to non-locals. Otherwise, come in for solid music and drinks.

I honestly came here just because if PS I Love You and it wasn't far from where we were staying.

This was the last place we visited/drank at before we headed back to the States.

Didn't get to hear any live music but I can't wait to get back to Dublin and come back here.

Happened across Whelan's on the way back to my hotel after a long journey around town.

Big draw was the perfect music pouring out onto the street from the opened windows.

Walked in and kept there by the perfect music from this quartet (I'd put the video on here if Yelp had that option).

I'll always stop in here on every Dublin visit.

landed in Ireland and found out where the cool kids are... follow the music to Whelan's! Pub music right inside then we danced our arses off upstairs w a DJ & made some new friends, great location, people everywhere. Tourist who? I can dig the entire block all night long. Of course, Drink drink drink. then burgers across the way. DUBLIN ROCKS.

I stopped in Whelans to check out a beer and burger event, hoping to also catch some live music. After all, when you Google "best live music in Dublin", Whelans pops up as one of the main venues. It also pops up when you type in "traditional Irish music." Although it was early when I arrived--around 6:45 pm, the only music there was the radio, playing rather old American hits. But, I got my beer (they were out of the free burgers) and hung out for awhile. There was going to be live music later in the evening, but it wasn't a line up of traditional music, so I finished my beer and left.

Bottom line: Standard bar. Fine for going out, but not for that uniquely Irish experience.

Whelan's was a great night out in Dublin! Temple district is expensive and quite touristy, so this quieter area was a fun place to meet locals and have a good time. There are great drink deals like 3 beers for £10.
There is normally live music until later then DJ music begins playing. The live artists are very good and quite a few people performed here before becoming famous, like Ed Sheeran and Adele!

We saw a show here and the venue was so cool! It was much smaller than venues for bigger bands than you see in the US which made it that much cooler. I'd recommend seeing any show here- it was a great experience!

I'm new to Dublin, but enjoy going to gigs in the United States. I saw Father John Misty was playing here, and decided to go with a friend. I wasn't sure what to expect but the experience, compared to most gig experiences in the states was phenomenal.
It was an intimate place. No one was rowdy, all had a good time.
The show did start a little late, so arriving about 20 minutes after the doors opened was enough time to get a drink and a relatively good spot up front without waiting. About 45 minutes after doors opened it did start to get packed, however I never felt my space was invaded, which is rare back home. So kudos to that! The list of gigs that go on there is quality. I definitely recommend Whelans for a gig to a music lover in Dublin.