Lavelle’s Seaside House
Established in 1952 Lavelle’s Seaside House & Mickey’s Bar, is situated in the picturesque seaside village of Dooega on the Wild Atlantic Way, cradled between the Atlantic Ocean and Knockmore and Minaun hills with stunning sea views across the Atlantic to Clare Island, Inishboffin and Inishturk and just a 5 minutes’ walk from one of Achill’s many Blue Flag beaches. It is also home of Colaiste Acla, an activity based Irish language school.
On a calm evening the turf smoke rises skyward and scents the air just as it did in Paul Henry’s time almost a century ago. Go for a walk along one of our headlands or stroll down to the jetty to meet the fishing boats coming in. Then it’s time to relax in our comfortable residents lounge with an open fire or maybe head next door to Mickey’s Bar to exchange stories about the day – to hear about the various walks, the rocks you can fish from, the fish you can catch, the sights still to be seen and listen to stories of days that are long gone.
The public bar, or “Mickey’s” as the locals call it, is where everybody meets. It’s your typical small village / country pub, with a great pint, where locals and visitors mingle, people make arrangements for tomorrow and discuss the real issues of the day like the weather, the day’s fishing, the hay, the turf and football. And occasionally it’s rounded off with an impromptu singsong.
You don’t often find an appreciation for art in small rural pubs – but you will in Mickey’s. While Achill is synonymous with Paul Henry and Robert Henri, who painted portraits of local people, Dooega has, in modern times, been the home of numerous artists.