The Irish Pub of Kabul was a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

; it opened on

Saint Patrick's Day Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick ( ga, Lá Fhéile Pádraig, lit=the Day of the Festival of Patrick), is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patr ...

, 2003. Owner Sean Martin McQuade received approval of a local mullah by promising to repair the road adjacent to the club and assist in relocating a nearby school to a larger site. The pub is licensed by the Afghan government, with the caveat that it not sell alcohol to Afghans. When interviewed a staff member of the bar commented, "Our families know what we do, but we tell other people we just work in a restaurant or a guesthouse selling food and soft drinks." Within 2 months of opening it received warnings of a possible attack and temporarily closed. By September of the next year the bar had moved into a Kabul hotel.

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