All pubs will be allowed reopen from September 21st, the Government has confirmed.
Cabinet Ministers met earlier to discuss the impact of opening pubs in two weeks' time.
It will be subject to any local restrictions or lockdowns that might be in place.
And there is particular concern over the spread of the coronavirus in Dublin and Limerick over the next week.
Govt sources saying Dublin and Limerick looking at further restrictions unless there's a change in the coming days. Lots of concern over Dublin
— Seán Defoe (@SeanDefoe) September 8, 2020
Minister Simon Harris has said he believes they have made the right decision to open the pubs following clear advice from NPHET.
He said: "The risk from a public health point of view in such pubs now is no greater than in another setting, like a pub with food or like a restaurant.
"What we're not proposing to do on 21st September is reopen packed bars and crowded places: we're talking about allowing a pub to reopen with table service, and not having to serve chicken goujons to justify it."
Dublin and Limerick
One senior source said Dublin and Limerick were on a knife edge when it comes to further restrictions being needed.
Another played that down - but said there is a high risk of more restrictive measures if the spread of the virus in Dublin in particular continues to rise.
A full lockdown is unlikely, but more strict measures may be looked at.
Ministers will review the situation later in the week, when the current nationwide restrictions on gatherings and sporting events will also be looked at ahead of their planned expiry on Sunday.
The Government is also continuing to work on a more long-term plan for living alongside the virus, which will be published next week.
Pubs reopening date
Earlier Tipperary TD Mattie McGrath said the pub sector was being "dangled on a string" around the re-opening date.
He told Newstalk Breakfast: "The pubs are the only sector of society that I know that have to get a re-licence in the courts annually, September, and they're being scapegoated here.
"It hasn't been proven that there are any outbreaks in relation to pubs".
"If your car was locked in the garage Ciara for the last six and a half months and your insurance company decided to penalise you, would you accept it?
"Or the Government decided to penalise you for some road incidence and you weren't on the road at all - this doesn't stand up.
"And the publicans now, in Tipperary certainly, are threatening to go to the European Court because every lot of pubs in other European countries - all of them and any - are open".
On the proposed guidelines, Deputy McGrath said they were "impossible, impossible to work them".
"What has gone wrong with Fáilte Ireland? NPHET have admitted clearly that they never looked for the menu or a meal or any food or any of this nonsense.
"Fáilte Ireland came up with this, so are Fáilte Ireland trying to drive a wedge... because it's for the bigger pubs really and the food pubs that they got open.
"I don't see the logic"
While TCD immunology professor Dr Tomás Ryan said he could not understand why pubs are being allowed re-open.
He told Pat Kenny: "I can't understand why we're opening the pubs so soon after opening all the schools and at the same time as opening all of the colleges and universities.
"It's an awful lot of things to be doing at the same time, when cases are steadily increasing.
"It does make sense that we're being asked to reduce contacts - because asking us to reduce contacts is one way to reduce the overall 'R' number.
"It's not clear that it's going to be effective - and because there are many things going on at the same time, it's going to be very difficult to know what things are having an effect - if any".
"I don't see the logic of opening up pubs at the same time as schools, at the same time as universities.
"Why didn't we just open up everything in June/July? The reason we didn't is because we wanted to see in June and July could we keep things under control, we wanted to learn.
"We have since then learned that we're not keeping things under control - and the reaction to that seems to be, from many elements of Government and lobby groups, 'well then just open everything up anyway'".
