Meet the men transforming Cork's restaurant scene
IF you’re looking for a barometer of the economy, try getting a restaurant table in Cork City any time Thursday through Sunday. Unless you reserve, you’ll be met with a fully-booked scenario as the city’s restaurant scene throbs to the beat of a new gastronomic dawn.
Nobody’s saying the bad days are over; it’s more a case of people wanting to live a little again. Around every corner and side street over the past year, there has been a quiet transformation, as a variety of new eateries has opened, ranging from gourmet takeaways to vegetarian cafes — and all reporting brisk business.
Where a previous generation might have turned to the comfort of the pub in difficult times, today’s customers soothe their troubles over a plate of carpaccio and a glass of Merlot. Money might still be too tight to mention, but the simple pleasure of bathing in the theatre of a buzzy restaurant for a few hours is a gift Corkonians are increasingly keen to bestow on themselves.
As one veteran restaurateur said: “Customers come for a connection with a place, an experience. It’s still about good food and service, but there’s also that sense of theatre you simply won’t find anywhere else.”
Here are the restaurateurs changing the face of the city.
Opened just five months, the Perry Street Market Café didn’t take long to bring the crowds to a previously quiet corner of the city centre. A former furniture store transformed into a bright, airy room and conversational hum, this brainchild of owners Brian Drinan and Paul Coffey found an audience well ahead of their expectations.
“We didn’t have a business plan or any real idea of what kind of customer we might attract,” says Brian. “But we knew there was a need out there for a new place, somewhere a little bit different, with the kind of menu people wanted.
“We were also clear about wanting to build a business on our own terms, without the restrictions of bank debt,” he says. Carefully plotting everything, from the location to the furniture to the food sources, the idea gestated two years ahead of the opening.
“We put everything we have into this place,” says Paul. “And, in a way, that was part of why it worked. We only had so much money to spend, and that dictated every detail of its finish.
“When you’re playing with your own money, it makes you more inventive, it forces you to marry ideas that you otherwise might not consider if there was a blank cheque there to do what you wanted.”
As in every new venture, both have maintained a 24/7 schedule with the café, but force themselves to stand back from the buzz at regular intervals. “You need total passion to make a restaurant work, no question,” says Brian. “But you also need to be savvy enough to stay aware of what’s out there, where people are going, what new foods are attracting them. Running a restaurant will consume you, but you have to step outside your front door regularly to see what’s happening all around you.”
Secret ingredient: “Good staff are key to everything. The personality of the restaurant is expressed through them, and we are lucky to have committed people both in the kitchen and front-of-house.”
The theatrical experience is immediately evident on entering Deep South, with seats rescued from the Everyman Playhouse a working part of this new venture from Stephen McGlynn and Victor Coughlan.
Owners of the House Café at Cork Opera House, this latest string to the pair’s bow opened quietly over the Christmas period at the busy junction of Grand Parade and the South Mall. Stephen and Victor run House and Deep South in partnership with Rory O’Connell and Michael Droney, of The Bowery and The Sextant respectively — two other Cork establishments already well established on the city’s social radar. Chef Eoin O’Reilly is also a partner in the enterprise.
“The ferris wheel was right outside our door over Christmas, and that helped bring us an unexpected audience from the off,” says Victor. Flooded with natural light through ceiling windows, and atmospherically draped with an old marble counter, frosted glass booths and the memorabilia of old bank interiors, this latest addition to the Cork restaurant scene has been enjoying an early welcome from curious patrons.
Had a great night @DeepSouthCork - drinks, good food and lots of memories with old friends. pic.twitter.com/Ux38nIyjRR
— Colin Jonathan Ryan (@colinjonryan) March 2, 2014
“There is a difference in Cork, compared to other places, in that the restaurants opening now are much more considered, with the food styles growing here very much their own,” says Stephen.
“Most importantly, these new places, which range from quirky cafes to vegetarian places to large restaurants, are all staying open and finding a very solid support from the public. People clearly have an appetite for new, different and interesting things, and responding to that need was part of what led us to open Deep South.” The name links not just to its obvious geographical location, but also to the southern ethos driving both the menu and the atmosphere.
Best thing about sliders for lunch....you get two! (wine optional) pic.twitter.com/X0renPFC5T
— Deep South (@DeepSouthCork) February 24, 2014
“The name is about the building’s past as the Grand Parade Hotel, but also about its new guise in the Cork of 2014,” Stephen says. Having traded successfully through the last few years at House Café, Stephen and Victor are quietly confident about the new venture — albeit still in its very early days.
“Having created one successful place does give you a certain amount of confidence, as well as knowing how to take the baby steps before you walk with something new,” says Victor.
Secret ingredient: “Making the experience interesting every time for customers, not just in the menu, but also the atmosphere of the restaurant. It’s all about looking after them and making the visit memorable.”
Well-established, Electric, on the South Mall, keeps itself in the public eye with regular additions and inventions. The latest asset in owner Ernest Cantillon’s centrepiece is the Fish Bar, an open room utilising to the max its stunning views across this city of steeples and spires.
Inspired by the waterside fish taverns of San Sebastian and Lisbon, the atmosphere of open-plan kitchen-and-counter dining manages the tricky task of combining fresh food in a casual, relaxed setting. Ernest is in the final stages of opening his first Dublin venture — Sober Lane, a sister of the well-known Cork venue, located between Sandymount and Irishtown — a well-calculated assault on the capital market.
@ElectricCork fab meal and service in the fish bar this evening. Crab cakes were divine! Thanks!
— Marion Kennefick (@MKennefi) March 7, 2014
“Many of our Cork customers are now in Dublin, and so we decided to bring Mohammed to the mountain, so to speak,” he says. “It’s a great location for us, just around the back of Lansdowne Road, which plays well to our rugby connections. It’s the same basic package as the Sober Lane, here in Cork, right down to the menu. We’re also putting in a number of staff from Cork to get it up and running.”
Ernest has noted an increased traffic over recent months, as a new confidence returns to Main Street.
“Cork people are out on a Wednesday night for the first time in a long time. It may just be for bar food and a glass of wine, but they are starting to do it more regularly.”
Household budgets may still be tight, but the simple joy of a bite out is becoming the norm again. “The city experienced difficult times over the past five years, but restaurants largely held their own,” he says. “It’s just not realistic to compare 2014 to 2007 — which was the best year ever. But if you ask people to compare where we are now with 2002, they’ll generally agree that it’s about on a par. People who’ve managed to survive the past few years are ‘recession babies’ — they will go on to better things from here.”
Secret ingredient: “Being consistent in service and food at all times. Whether someone is in for just a glass of wine and a starter, or for a major anniversary, it’s crucial they are happy heading home.”
