Our Story
The Old Royal Oak was established 187 years ago in 1839. It’s situated on a quiet lane opposite IMMA in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham and a few minutes walk from Kilmainham Gaol.
We are an authentic country pub in the heart of historic Dublin.
The pub opened 6 years before the Great Famine. It has witnessed and served the pensioners who lived in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham until it closed in 1927, the prison guards and staff who worked in Kilmainham Gaol, the soldiers who were stationed in the Islandbridge Barracks (now Clancy Quay) and Richmond Barracks.
The pub is located on the High Road so called because the lane sloops downhill metres from the pub and we are situated above the Camac River thats flows into the River Liffey.
The pub was sold in 1972 by the Fortune Family to John and Della Costello. The only son of the Fortune Family became a priest and served in John’s Lane Church in Thomas Street so upon retirement, the pub was sold. The Costellos opened the pub on the 8th December 1972 which marks the official start of the Christmas season (Feast of the Immaculate Conception) and the traditional shopping day for country people to come to Dublin.
We are family run for over fifty years by the Costello family. We are renowned for our creamy pints of Guinness and toasties. A warm and friendly atmosphere is guaranteed.