A second Pret a Manger has hit Dublin.
My fellow ageing millennials will remember Crawdaddy fondly - a spot where that special category of Dubliners whose lives were centred around the 10% Topshop/Topman discount, menthols and the
Skins soundtrack could dance the night away in their skinnier than skinny jeans, leaving the smoking area only to make sure that their immaculately straightened fringe, sitting underneath a nest of backcombed layers, was still in tact.
A venue so specific to its time (2004 - 2012), Crawdaddy was, as many will remember, *
the* place to be. Especially if you were on a quest to accidentally-on-purpose bump into that lad in a windbreaker claiming to be a DJ you'd seen around college and were too nervous to talk to sober. No? Just me? Fair enough, I'll let myself out.
Anyway, what I'm here to tell you is that our beloved Crawdaddy has been officially taken over. Sure, it's lain vacant for ten years at this stage, but the fact that it's going to be a
Pret is still tough to take.
https://twitter.com/SwimmersJackson/status/1581781818709155840?s=20&t=CGjUZDCzDS12ivANTqZiiw
When Tír Deli opened at the former site of
Crawdaddy's older cousin, Tripod, it was a huge transition but we were still on board. Wee wannabe indie kids often grow up to be sourdough aficionados, in fairness, so it made sense. But this feels different.
What once was an underground (literally) spot where Dubliners would flock to hear new indie music and take solace in the fact that they were Not Like The Other Guys is now going to house one of the most mainstream franchises on the planet. It feels strange. It feels wrong. But it's definitely a sign of the times.
Will you be popping in for a croissant? Or perhaps protesting outside in your k
effiyeh scarf and Converse you've had since 2006?
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