Synthetic Irish bars may be thriving around the world, but in Ireland the real thing is in danger of extinction.
One of the best-loved rural pubs has long been The Old Mill Bar and Restaurant, a picturesque ivy-clad tavern with red-washed walls and vintage tobacco signs. It is situated in the center of O’Briensbridge, a one-street village on the banks of the River Shannon in County Clare.
This delightful two-centuries-old roadhouse was judged the Best Country Pub in Ireland in the Licensing World Bar Awards of 2008. Business was booming then, and it employed 20 people.
But when I went there for lunch last week, hoping to enjoy a bite and talk to the owner about the fate of Irish pubs, I found it closed.
Above the door was a large sign with the words “FOR SALE” and the telephone number of an auctioneer.
I tried the two other listed pubs in the village (population 213): Ryan Darby’s and Betty Boner’s. Ryan Darby’s was closed until evening time and the doors were locked. So too was Bonner’s, a quaint old-style country pub which doubles as a grocery store.
Local Margaret Keogh was, however, tending Bonner’s tiny shop counter.
“The daytime trade has gone,” she lamented. “The older people who would come in during the afternoon and sit over a pint of Guinness have all died, and the younger people don’t drink during the day. They haven’t the money.”
Besides, she said, alcohol is sold so cheaply in the supermarkets these days that people are drinking more at home.
What is happening in O’Briensbridge is symptomatic of the fate of one of Ireland’s main tourist attractions, the quaint pub with local characters, like Pat Cohan’s bar in Cong, County Mayo. It was made famous by the film “The Quiet Man” starring John Wayne, though that interior was constructed on a movie set in Hollywood.
In addition to The Old Mill, thirty pubs closed in County Clare in the last year, according to reporter Dan Danaher of the Clare Champion newspaper. By comparison, only six drink licenses were lost in the previous two years.
Danaher blames cheap supermarket prices for alcohol, a fall in disposable income and a changing culture.
“You can go to the supermarket and get 20 bottles of Budweiser for 15 euro [$20.50] but in the pub you would pay 4 euro [$5.50] for one bottle,” he explained. “Also people are becoming more independent, they are looking for different things. It’s unusual to see people in a pub in the afternoon, though they will go to see matches on television.”
The decline started with a smoking ban in 2004, followed by stricter drunk driving laws [2]. More recently, unemployment, renewed emigration [3] and an increase in taxes [4] because of the financial crisis have hampered pub business.
Things will only get worse. All Irish workers, starting this month, have to surrender up to 10 percent of their wages to fund Ireland’s international bailout [5].
Dan Danaher was in The Old Mill Bar on the night it closed, Nov. 5, 2010. By then the staff had dwindled to five as trade had fallen off. He said that as a few people shed tears that night, owner Kathleen Sciascia said, “People can’t afford to go out and eat and drink as much as before. If we kept going it would have got worse.”
Village community chairman Mick Murtagh described it as the end of an era.
“The survival of villages like O’Briensbridge is a big issue,” he warned.
“People are bypassing local shops to buy cheaper goods in large supermarkets in Limerick. It’s something that we are all guilty of.”
In the city of Limerick 9 miles to the south, Gordon Kearney, director of Rooney auctioneers, which is handling the sale of The Old Mill, agreed that in all pubs “trade has diminished somewhat.”
The firm once handled the sale of 20-30 pubs a year, he said, but sold only three last year, partly because the banks are not making loans to prospective buyers.
In the traditional Irish pub, one could find farmers nursing a pint of Guinness at the bar while discussing sports and the weather, and young people in wood-paneled booths enjoying craic, or good conversation, over glasses of beer.
The loss of the traditional low-key pub now threatens Irish identity, writes American author Bill Barich in his 2010 book, “A Pint of Plain.”
Now a resident of Ireland, Barich complains that many pubs are lifeless museum pieces or sports bars broadcasting television commentary all day.
While the number of bar licenses in the Republic of Ireland has fallen from 8,922 to 7,616 since 2005, the Irish are not drinking less, according to the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland. Sales of alcohol increased by 6 percent in the first half of last year but sales over the bar counter fell by 15 percent.
Below-cost selling by supermarkets is chiefly to blame, said Gerry Mellett, president of the Vintners Federation of Ireland in the Irish Times.
“It is no exaggeration,” he said, “to say that the closure of rural pubs in particular is having a devastating effect on the fabric of life in rural Ireland.”
Anyone who visits O’Briensbridge today will see that he is not exaggerating.
*This article first appeared in Globalpost.com
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.bogsidebunny | Feb 25, 2011, 02:22 AM EST
I agree 100% rosks304, It's CHEAPER to give the rapists, murders and other dangerous thugs the "Probation Act" and let them back to prey on the innocent public than to put them in jail. And in Ireland CHEAP talks especially when it comes to government spending on the public. Politician's personal junkets have NO taxpayer funed monetary limit, but you daren't spend a Euro on schools, jails or hospitals. Sligo: There's a state of the art radiotherapy machine in Sligo General Hospital. It's used to treat breast cancer and other types of cancer. It's been sitting there 5-years gathering dust because the Health Service Exectutive will not hire staff to man it. Machines, it seems, are a ONE-OFF expense, but staff salaries go on forever. It's the same with jailers (warders) and teachers. Their salaries go on forever so that spendings a No-No!....................Enjoy your Paddy's day junkets to New York, Chicago, San francisco, Sidney, etc. you crook politicians whiole the workers of the country collect the dole or work to pay the taxman 55% of their meagre salary!
Liamkeyes | Feb 24, 2011, 10:53 AM EST
I dare to say that not many people have any sympathy for the Publicans. They should all be awarded a Masters Degree in "RI-POFFOLOGY" That goes for this side of the Ocean also. Just wait and see what they charge people for a drink on St. Patrick's Day.
rosks304 | Feb 23, 2011, 01:35 PM EST
I agree take the Drunken Drivers off the road but what about the Murderers and the Rapists? be nice to put them out of business.
rosks304 | Feb 23, 2011, 01:08 PM EST
You have to understand that most Policos are not capable of handling real issues,like Real Crime etc. so they are forced to go after the Law-Abiding so they get their "MOONEY" at month end.
seagreen | Feb 23, 2011, 09:38 AM EST
It is unanimous that blithering drunk drivers should be removed from the road for the safety of all. That is a good thing! What is happening in most of the New England states, is not exctly that! Police stops are now for revenue enhancement in many cases. In one Vermont ski town, the police cruise the parking lots of restaurans and bars taking down license numbers. When thr vehicles enter the road, they are stopped. They do have a weekly quota, in this town it is 4 per week. Each DUI nets the town $2860.00. A 59 year old grandmother was handcuffed and processed after having 2 glasses of wine at a restaurant. As a result of this, most people are off the road by 8;30 pm and several restaurants and bars have closed. This has resulted in a drop of DUI convictions. Now that that has happened, they now have road blocks at 5:45 in the evening to catch a businessman that has had a martini, or some concrete truck driver that worked 12 hrs. and had two beers after work. I'm sure Ireland is learning from America. One cop said that these bars are places where people get together and talk about the government, that is where trouble starts? I guess if you are looking for good conversation, we might all gather at the supermarket, and meet at the frozen food section
ballyhip | Feb 22, 2011, 11:08 AM EST
I once closed and opened a pub in Sligo in another time with the companionship of my friend the barman and a social worker from Dublin. We didn't solve all the world's problems but decided to leave some of them for a younger generation. I will remember it fondly despite the false wisdom of too many pints.
tcenname | Feb 21, 2011, 07:09 PM EST
Good to see the end of the Irish pub in Ireland and the Irish bar in the U.S. It will be good when the Irish and alcohol association perish from the earth. It will be good never to see another bar with a shamrock placard in the window selling booze. A lot of people like to see the Irish drunk and drinking;they can claim that is the reason for the countries failure instead of centuries of imperial colonistic abuse. Alcohol for the Irish was a way out for psychic pain and a way to control them by England. Similar ro the Roman "Drink Goth Drink".
Bailey2000 | Feb 21, 2011, 02:53 PM EST
Deaths on Irish roads have fallen from 640 in 1972 to 239 in 2009. Traffic has quadrupled. Young Irish people no longer drink and drive and guess what pubs decline and fewer people die. Its a change but maybe not for the worse!
seagreen | Feb 21, 2011, 10:47 AM EST
Getting blithering drunks that are a menace to society off the road is a priority. In the US, instead of concentrating on that, the police have become the revenue enhancers for cities, town, and villages, across America. In a northcentral Vermont ski town, the police cruise the parking lots of bars and restaurants taking down license numbers, then stop the vehicles when they enter the road. If you had two glasses of wine , you can be handcuffed and processed for DUI. This town has a quota of four DUI's a week (nobody gets off) For each conviction, the town receives $2800.00. As a rsult of this , much fewer people are out after 9;00pm, and several restaurants and bars have closed. Now that fewer people are out , and are not drinking, or using a nondrinking driver, the difficulty of makeing the quota is more difficult. Now the police are having road blocks at 6pm to catch businessmen that have had a martini, or concrete truck drivers that have had two beers after working a twelve hour day. The government we have in America is so paraniod, that they do not want any amount of people gathering in one place discussing issues and politics, this is where terrorists are created, and eliminating bars is one way to do it The Irish have listened to Americans that have told of this bonanza. Soon the supermarket will be the only place to buy beer. So look forward to some great conversation at the frozen food section of the supermarket
odonnell521 | Feb 21, 2011, 07:35 AM EST
In Northeast Wisconsin, I grew up through a time when the corner tavern (our equivalent of the village pub) went from being a center of neighborhood life for multiple generations to the occaisional haunt of old men and women. Trying to make a living running a tavern is difficult unless the mortgage was paid for a long time ago. Buying one is impossible, given how much the owner needs to sell it for to retire and finding a bank for a loan was always difficult and now can be impossible. Is change hard, sure but it happens.
Hawaiibobbee | Feb 21, 2011, 01:39 AM EST
Wow! Can see how this is happening, but what a blow to those of us who really enjoy the Irish pub experience ... Hawaii bobbee
Liamkeyes | Feb 20, 2011, 05:52 PM EST
In Temple Bar in Dublin's inner city, it is a tourist trap, a pint of Guinness is 6 euro 50p, that's about $10, the publicans will have to change their tune, two blocks up from Temple Bar their is a Pub that charges 3 euros and it gets all the locals. Peadar Kearney's on Dame Street just around the corner charges 3 Euro 50p until 7.30 at night then it goes up to 5Euro 50p. Dicey Reilly's charges 2 euro on Mondays, 2 Euro 50p on Tuesdays, 3Euro on Wednesdays, 3.50 on Thursdays, 4Euro on Fridaya and 5 Euro Sat & Sun. Not perfect but good during the week. Nobody has any sympathy for the Publicans. What goes around comes around.
Dublinjas | Feb 20, 2011, 03:23 PM EST
"Below-cost selling by supermarkets is chiefly to blame, said Gerry Mellett, president of the Vintners Federation of Ireland in the Irish Times." Hmm it wouldn't happen to be 'Above reasonable cost selling in the pubs that would be the trouble Would It, The licensed trade like the aul farmers have always a moan to be heard, and its always someone Else's fault that the sky is falling, there was hardly a witter out of them in the heady days of the 90s and 2000s as they busily gouged all comers large and small, My Mother, God rest her, use to always say "I cannot understand young people working all hard all week and then to sit and throw their hard earned money over the counter to a publican", Well Ma they've finally caught on, You'll be waiting a long time to get any sympathy for this bunch of braggarts from me, Gotta run now I hear Bud is on special at Tesco.
IrishLass127 | Feb 20, 2011, 02:56 PM EST
Saints Begorrah! It breaks my heart to read this. I'm hoping to make it to Ireland this year for the first time and although I'm sure some pubs have survived it sounds like the change is coming. It all makes sense in terms of the reasons... no smoking in bars and the fact that liquor can be purchased elsewhere at a much cheaper cost. However, it is a tradition that I hope will never completely go by the way side. My grandfather, a full blooded Irishman whose father came from County Cork always said, "It's God, Whiskey and Women, in that order." I'm sure the whiskey reference was about the pubs of Ireland.
Fiddlecat | Feb 20, 2011, 02:54 PM EST
I'm sorry to here about the pub plight. I live in Central Florida. We have some really nice Irish pubs. We have Trad Irish Sessions at them and that seems to bring in business. I never understood why pubs have TV's going all the time in bars anyway. Maybe a big screen of a good sport, but, in my humble opionion, pubs are for gatherings, socializing, music, maybe a game of Darts over a fine Guiness. A good meal is even better. Anyone can drink beer and watch TV at home. It is the community that pubs should focus on. It's the social aspect which also is dying in the land of Ipods, Ipads, video games and texting. I hope the pubs in Ireland reivent themselves, as a community gathering place and not just a bar. Here in Orlando, we have microbrew pubs, that make "beer right here", allow dogs, and host Traditional Irish Music, and other social awarness functions. In a world of turmoil, we should preserve these sanctuaries for our sanity. And you don't even have to consume alcohol to attend.
cappamore | Feb 20, 2011, 02:17 PM EST
I just don't get the difference in price ---.75 versus 4.0, supermarket / pub. Maybe the pubs ought to buy at the market and reduce the markup. Or the pubs unite and get bigger discounts by banding together.
homefarm | Feb 20, 2011, 01:54 PM EST
I do miss the conversation and a good pint more than anything else. However lets be truthful, changing social patterns were a warning signal that most pub owners in Ireland ignored. I believe the millennium was a watershed for the pub industry when pub owners tried to impose a cover charge for the right to charge exorbitant prices. Young Irish men and women balked and discovered the advantages of a party at home hitherto an American phenomenon. Pub owners could have competed, offered specials or made a concerted effort to save the pub scene but no they blame the cigatette laws, the supermarkets and union labour for their downfall. There are many fine family owned pubs in Ireland and long may they survive but you will not find much sympathy in Ireland among regular drinkers for pub-owners who made a federal case out of giving regulars a free Christmas drink. The only thing more laughable in Ireland than the bank bail-out was publicand appeal for a bail-out.
haikued2 | Feb 20, 2011, 01:15 PM EST
Change is sometimes not as good as some would have us believe, but it is inevitable...like the rising of the sun. Personally I will miss being able to drive into a small Irish town, sitting down at the bar of the local pub, having a pint and something to eat, and talking to the local people.
RobinOCork | Feb 20, 2011, 12:55 PM EST
Alcohol consumption needn't be the hallmark for which the Irish are known and joked about worldwide. Much as I enjoy a good conversation with strangers I may assault with my ideas, it needn't be lubricated with alcohol. Ever have a good conversation with a drunk? Let these merchants do what change-beset merchants have done for millennia! Improvise, adapt, overcome! (Even if that is the motto of the U.S. Marine Corps.) Nostalgia and the public owe them no living. They owe their families and their pride the income stream that will come from serving their publics' changing needs. Don't mourn. Create a new morn!
FastEddy | Feb 20, 2011, 12:12 PM EST
A solution: *Higher taxes for government employees, lower taxes on private sector workers. This would take some financial pressure off of taxpayers and transfer it to taxsuckers.
carrickcourt | Feb 20, 2011, 11:55 AM EST
Looks like I should of spent the time and visited Gartlan's Pub on the main street of Kingscourt, Co. Cavan when I was in Ireland in Oct 2010. I was in Kingscourt and noted that the thatched roof of Gartlan's needed repair. I have fond memories of spending a wonderful evening at Gartlan's with three Irish cousins.
Irishjule | Feb 20, 2011, 11:14 AM EST
I think it's sad. I have been to Ireland twice and visited many of the pubs for meals. I never saw anyone drunk, just people enjoying the music and each other's company. I don't agree with luxefaire about marjuana or other drugs. They can be addictive. Alcohol can too, but people should drink responsibly. What harm is there in a Guiness or a glass of wine with dinner?
luxefaire | Feb 20, 2011, 10:27 AM EST
Less drinking is good...alcoholism is a killer and a social detriment...Ireland should take the opportunity to open more coffee shops as are in Amsterdam...it will increase revenues gigantically, not least of which being tourism...marijuana and hashish are less harmful than drinking by a long shot, it is harm reduction and revenue, a win-win...but all the politicals are owned across the world, and the bankers do not like marijuana because it is a substance of peace, and does not make work for the police like alcohol does.
Redryan | Feb 20, 2011, 10:01 AM EST
Hi Everyone, All too true and too sad! Maybe you can help at least one publican out: If you are ever in Tipperary town visit my brother. Mick Ryan's pub, called, TC Ryan's, it is on Main street and he's a great, welcoming, giant of a man. Redryan
CitizenWhy | Feb 20, 2011, 09:51 AM EST
Almost everyone I know who are children or grandchildren of Irish immigrants in the US do not drink, except occasionally, and do not go to pubs except for those who serve good sit-down meals. The pub/bar no longer serves as a social gathering place for married or older people (singles still prowl in them). Everyone would rather spend what extra time they have at home or with neighbors. ... Last time I was in Ireland the rural pub was most crowded after closing time, when people had enjoyed being with family for the previous hours and now looked to socialize and relax outside of family. We just came in the back door, the front door being locked as the law dictated. After hours was the only time I spent in pubs.