Credit Review ruling lets bar expand its brand after banks refused to lend

Matt the Threshers, of Birdhill, Co Limerick, was one of the beneficiaries of the Credit Review Office’s judgments allowing the pub to expand into Dublin.

The business has been in operation in Birdhill for over 25 years and saw an opportunity in Dublin for a gastro pub trading on the company’s strong brand name. A premises became available in what was formerly the Pembroke bar in Dublin 2, but the banks weren’t willing to lend. The promoter, Jimmy Lyons, said the banks were not interested in the hospitality sector.

“The bank did not want to lend to pubs or restaurants. However, we believed there was a gap in the market in Dublin 2 for a bar specialising in the very freshest Irish seafood and shellfish. We would not have got the business started without the help of the Credit Review Office.