I wish I liked The Dubliner. I would like to like The Dubliner. But I don't.
In the past I would have given the establishment two or three stars. I've been there a few times and there's nothing remarkable, but nothing horrible either. They have live music regularly and that's always a plus.
But it's also crowded (even when there aren't many people there - layout is weird), and very loud. And the food is mediocre. If you're hungry, sure, go for it - but you'd be better off choosing something at Kungshallen. Not even the fish and chips is that satisfying.
But what really brought it down for me, what stole additional stars and prompted me to write this review, was my experience at a recent pub quiz.
It was actually my first pub quiz experience, and all of my horrified friends assure me that this was not the norm. It started late, but that's not a big deal.
The pub quiz, which was three rounds, lasted 3 hours. The hosts were slow as could be, would draw out the questions and make bad jokes, and then have long pauses so they could go get shots or more beer.
But it was their attitude, and the questions, which were absolutely terrible.
One of the questions was "What is a Norwegian Steam Roller", and as the two men read the appalling multiple choices, they couldn't stop laughing. The answers, by the way, were very demeaning to women - involving rolling up a woman's neck in a car window so she can't escape and duct-taping a lit cigarette to her mouth. They seemed to think it was absolutely hilarious, despite the awkward silence from the audience.
Another question was relating to the film American Psycho, and they showed a clip - a clip where a girl is being chased down the stairs and a man drops a chainsaw on her. The men were still laughing. And after the clip one of them said something along the lines of, "If you need to get rid of a hoe, that's the way to do it."
Not OK. Seriously. The evening continued like this, with the two rude, tipsy old men making derogatory comment after comment.
I will not be returning to The Dubliner. I don't know if that 'humour' is accepted in other places, but I find it absolutely appalling and extremely disappointing. read more