Do your shop and have a drop in Padraic Horkan’s of Swinford with pints at just €5.20

IT’S a long way to travel when we’re going from HQ to County Mayo and our commandos are never overly excited at the prospect of a six-hour round trip.

However, there’s just something unique about Mayo that makes that journey a little bit more tolerable for us all. We rarely, if ever, have a bad experience when we visit the area and we were hoping our good run of luck would continue when we arrived in Swinford town recently.

The Old Commando was responsible for picking the pub this week and, although he claims it was random, we’d swear he knew exactly where he was taking us.

Padraic Horkan’s bar was like taking a step back in time and it’s exactly the type of boozer the Old Commando loves, but he was adamant that he’d never been here before.

As we walked through the front door of the pub we found ourselves in the middle of the greengrocers and we looked at each other wondering if we’d misread the signs outside.

There was no trace of a bar stool or a counter to be seen and the front window was decorated with packets of toilet paper.

It was only after a quick check that the Young Commando spotted a passageway behind the fridges which lead to the pub section, and quite a large pub section at that.

We were very surprised how spacious the pub itself is, given how hidden it is, but we quickly adapted to our new surroundings and pulled up stools at the counter.

The barmaid arrived after a few moments as she was busy serving customers in the grocery, but once she did arrive she made us feel welcome and engaged with the Old Commando about all the latest topical events and of course the Irish weather, a very important subject.

The pints of Guinness cost us €5.20 and the Old Commando in particular was very happy with them. He kept the barmaid on her toes moving from the grocery to the pub every few minutes to top him up.

“I hope she’s wearing her Fitbit today, she’s definitely getting the steps in,” the Young Commando joked.

There was an all-male clientele in the pub, which didn’t surprise us, but there was a good atmosphere too as the locals discussed the recent senior football club championship final between neighbours Knockmore and Ballina Stephenites.

The Old Commando was in his element as the pints flowed and the GAA chat grew louder and louder. With the TVs all switched off and nobody availing of the dartboard the banter between the locals became the focal point of our visit and we really enjoyed the back-and-forth that ensued.

There was an attempt to shift the conversation to the upcoming election but it was quickly shot down when one local barfly stated outright that “nothing is going to change because there’s no bloody alternative”.

Despite the bar area being long and narrow we did notice there is a spacious spot just off the main bar area where there are plenty of tables and chairs and some nice bench seating, an additional TV and a fireplace.

It was very cosy.

The blue leather barstools were perfectly upholstered despite probably being older than they looked, although the tiled floor was in need of a wash.

Our country’s tricolour was hanging proudly from the ceiling in the midst of the Mayo bunting and fairy lights draped around the counter.

In a rather unusual move, we noticed that all the TV remotes in the pub are heavily wrapped in cling film.

The toilets are far more modern than the rest of the building and they contained three urinals, one cubicle and a powerful hand dryer.

We really enjoyed our few pints in Horkan’s pub. It almost resembles an old shebeen and you have this feeling like ‘I really shouldn’t be here’ but we’re glad we discovered it.

Rating: Three pints out of Five

One for the road:

Walsh’s Public Bar – Charlestown

THERE was a good atmosphere in the front bar of Walsh’s pub and the barmaid on duty was ever so welcoming to us all.

The only problem we encountered was that we Dubs could barely understand their thick western accents.

The solid-fuel stove was lit and keeping the place nice and warm while there are two TVs and a dartboard in the bar also.

The brown leather barstools were in good condition and the brown-coloured floor tiles were clean. We noticed there are multiple sockets at the counter, presumably to allow people charge their mobile phones, and the walls are full of GAA memorabilia including many photos and tributes to their former player, Detective Colm Horkan.

As expected the toilets were clean with four urinals, one cubicle and there was hot water provided. We didn’t stay too long but we did like what we saw.

We’ll be sure to call again some day.

Rating: Three pints out of Five