Watch: Mince-pies by the thousands and a hopeful future at Ringaskiddy's Perry Street Café
Ringaskiddy's Perry Street Café: newly-refurbished, and ready for the Christmas season
A popular Cork restaurant has reopened its doors after flood damage from Storm Babet threw its future into question.
The Ringaskiddy premises of the Perry Street Café was among the Cork businesses affected by particularly bad weather — which saw the equivalent of a month's rain falling overnight, devastating businesses in affected areas throughout the county.
The restaurant's front-of-house section was destroyed, with seating, refrigeration, equipment, and furnishings all under several feet of floodwater, prompting proprietors to announce the outlet's indefinite closure, and speculate on its future given the cost of works.
But this past weekend, following ongoing renovation works, the popular eatery was back in business.
"We got there, and people were great," observes co-owner Brian Drinan, on the phone after a busy Monday lunchtime. "It was a mad, last-minute dash to get reopened for the day we said we would — [people have been coming in], and we're getting a lot of bookings for Christmas, so we're very happy with that."
"We did our absolute best to keep our staff, even though we were closed, and most of them came back, and our kitchen team all came back. They've been working on the menu, in the last few weeks, to get it right.
"We'll have some usuals — roast turkey all through December, a Perry Street Christmas smash-burger, which is really popular — and our mince pies — we're making them by the thousands, literally."
It was no mean feat to get back open in such a short period of time — resources and tradesmen were scarce in the immediate aftermath of the weather events, but the premises, near Haulbowline, have received a complete fit-out.
"We've done a lot of work on [floods in the area], and the [County] Council helped, but they've stopped helping, saying there's no more they can do. For us, it's a drainage issue, and we can't do anything.
"[It's not the first time we've seen this kind of] event; and the worry is now, that there will be more and bigger events. There was a lot of damage done, all the counters, refrigeration, furniture, etc."
As with other areas affected by flooding in Cork county, the nearby community pulled together to help each other and deal with the immediate aftermath together — and after the extent of the damage dealt to houses and businesses by Storm Babet, Drinan and crew intend to play their part in the local effort.
"Anytime there's been issues, or flooding, all the houses near and around us come out to help — and the houses have been affected as well. There's a very, very good community there, and they've always been very supportive."
"We are going to get together in the coming weeks, because we can't let it happen again, and the council have said, 'we can't do anymore', which makes us sad, because there are so many services on the road.
"But we're very excited for Ringaskiddy, with beautiful walks around Haulbowline, and lovely beaches, and lots of parking — and new public realm works starting — so there's a lot of activity, and it is going to get better."
