I've enjoyed drinking at The Lion just off Bhfstrasse, for over a year now so arranged with a dozen or so mates to go to the Lion in an effort to watch all three games of rugby yesterday.

For two main reasons:

Wrong beer served - in itself not the end of the world but when I pointed out to the barman that he brought me something I hadn't ordered he insisted that he hadn't made a mistake, which then became a bit of a confrontation as I pointed out the obvious difference between Hackers and Schneider Weiss.. I know this barman and have always got on with him so the reason I add this to the list of issues is the quite simple inability to handle the stress of a busy evening.

Volume so low I could hear the guy next to me - Which is kinda fine, but I certainly couldn't hear the commentary which personally, I prefer. I and several others asked for the volume to go up but that was refused, in my case by the bar manager who said no, like I was asking to sleep with his daughter and walked off with no further chat. I accept that The Lion isn't a sports bar and many Swiss people had been wondering in for a quiet beer but never-the-less, if you are going to show the Rugby which is nearly always a serious national contest of some kind, then its a little niave not to expect some loud noise and so on.

So my after match report on the ground is that The Lion is shite for Rugby and I won't be watching it there again... Off to the Nelson for the world cup I guess.

It has it's place in the 'expat pub list', but yeah maybe the last day of the 6 nations isn't it. Actually the way it is now is a huge improvement on a year or so ago, before it was renovated. You just have to remember it's a wine bar disguised as a pub now.

Not sure the Nelson's your best bet for rugby. My memory may be playing tricks on me but I think I was there on the first day of the 6 nations (was that the same day as Liverpool-ManU?), and they didn't even show the England-Scotland game. In my experience, if you want to watch rugby in athmospheric conditions, go to the Oliver Twist. I know I don't even try to go there to watch football when there's rugby on at the same time...

The problem with the Twist is that you have to get there well before the start of the match in order to get a decent space. If you can snag a table, you're set. Otherwise, you're stuck battling the masses.

The Twist can have a fantastic atmosphere, but if you can't get to the bar for a drink, it kind of loses it's charm.

The Nelson has Staropamen on draught, the Lions has it in bottles. All other concerns are nurgatory. Oh, and the Twist is crap, and always stinks of cooking fat.

dave

Well if it's atmosphere you want, then the Twist is definately tops! Anyone who was there on Paddy's Day will certainly agree...

You don't have to stand at the kitchen door all night.

The Twist esp. gets my vote in summer when you can have an ice cold brew in the beer garden, braai (BBQ, Grill) going in the background, some good rugger on the box outside, and absolutely smashing company ...

Unfortunately its omnipresent, and the kitchen is located right between the two bar areas.

Its not like the old days

dav

Funny you mention that but at halftime I popped out of the The Lion to do a bit of Mothers Day Shopping (doomed) and popped into the Nelson for a jimmy riddle and it was (a) not that busy and (b) showing a football game. I assumed that it was a only because of half-time but based on your post I am a little concerned…