Guinness.

‘nuff said.

You don’t hear lyrics like

"As I went home on Saturday night as drunk as drunk could be
I saw two hands upon her breasts where me two hands should be"

in Swiss pubs.

I agree, there is something to the difference of the Irish pub, but only when compared to countries that boast different aspects of their cultures. The Irish just happen to be a lively, beer guzzling bunch, so they focused this into the quaint pub with live music every night. But, as the pub, explicitly in Ireland, is the only place where you will be served a guiness that you’ve long known to have a pretty significant reputation, all you people who see redundancy in the state of Irish pubs are just going to have get used to it. I certainly did.
Irish pubs outside of Ireland should be seen as nothing other than that, just remember that the quality of guinness may be compromised when it is shipped elsewhere from Dublin.

Let’s see, Guinness – and usually people who can pour it well, regular people who give you respect and the occasional lock in, what delfrio said and usually the music is quiet enough so you can have a conversation.

And they are a damn good place to meet people when you are travelling.

Look at the Pygmallion in Luxembourg City – thats a wicked, wicked bar.