Sneaky punters spotted a loophole over the weekend to enjoy tasty pints despite the Level 5 lockdown and a Taoiseach warning on takeaway pints.
Taoiseach Micheal Martin warned earlier in the year that people should "forget about takeaway pints" but there is one flaw to the unofficial rule.
A legal loophole has allowed Dublin pint lovers to still get takeaway drinks if they adhere to one rule while drinking them.
Even thought the warning about takeaway pints was issued in January, no measures were signed into law to restrict the sale of takeaway alcohol and it is not illegal meaning gardai cannot stop pubs from selling them.
In order to drink your takeaway pints outside and in parks legally however, the porter must be sipped on more than 100 metres from the place it was pulled.
A garda spokesman told Dublin Live: "The sale of take away alcohol from licensed premises is not currently a penal regulation and therefore not an offence.
"In respect of regulations, which are declared to be Penal Regulations under the Health Act 1947 as amended, An Garda Síochána continue to adopt the approach of the Four Es which see Gardaí engage, explain, encourage, and as a last resort, enforce."
A spokeswoman for the Department of Health previously told Dublin Live in February: “Under current Covid-19 restrictions, cafes, bars, restaurants, and pubs may only sell food or drink, including intoxicating liquor, for takeaway. This is set out in SI 701 of 2020.”
Liquor licensing laws at the moment require that the consumption of takeaway alcohol must take place 100 metres from the public from which the drink was bought.
This means that drinking takeaway pints outside and in parks is legal, subject to local county and city bye-laws, once consumption takes place more than 100 metres from pubs.
Gardai can act though on public order incidents if they arise among people drinking takeaway alcohol and they can act on other breaches such as mass gatherings among those who have bought takeaway alcohol.
Mr Martin previously said: "Forget about takeaway pints, takeaway alcohol. No publican should be selling takeaway pints.
"This is a very serious situation that we’re in. It leads to congregation, it leads to gathering of people which can spread the disease and the virus.
"That’s a very, very clear message from me and Government."
