Rural pubs have to reinvent themselves as food halls to survive
It’s one of the most striking changes to occur in rural Ireland over the past decade – the demise of the traditional rural village pub – but now food is replacing the ‘pint of plain’ in many establishments.
Some rural villages across the West of Ireland now have no ‘local’ left to call into, but in many other places, necessity really has turned out to be the mother of invention.
The introduction of the smoking ban back in 2004 . . . changing attitudes to drinking and driving . . . as well as a trend with younger couples to dine out more regularly, are all regarded as contributory factors to ‘the change’ in rural Ireland.
Former Buccaneers and Connacht rugby prop, Jimmy Screene – along with his partner and head-chef Becky Gavin – could not have set themselves up in a more rural part of Galway to establish their pub restaurant business.
The former Harry Mellody’s pub in Guilka – nestled in a country heartland between Skehana, Moylough and Abbeyknockmoy – has now established itself as a thriving rural business, bucking the trend of small shops and pubs closing down in country areas.
It's Jimmy Screene’s second coming in Guilka, but for the last eight years, himself, Becky and a staff complement of eight to twelve people, have been flat out in their pub restaurant. In addition, he now runs the Woodfield Hotel in Clifden, employing up to 35 people on a full-time and part-time basis.
“I suppose we did see the change coming. Small rural pubs were closing down . . . the turnover just wasn’t there to keep them going . . . but we also saw an opening for people of all age groups who wanted to dine out without necessarily going into the nearest town or city.
“Our main catchment area in Guilka is from within a 15-mile radius and of course in a country area almost everyone has to drive anymore.
“There are also many young couples who like to dine out as a treat after working all week. That’s the market we’ve tapped into,” Jimmy Screene told the Connacht Tribune.
It's a trend that’s been replicated in many villages across the county with thriving local pub restaurants springing up in places like Craughwell, Corrandulla, Kiltulla and Barnaderg.
At the same time, villages like Moylough – which once had five or more pubs in business but is now just down to one – and in many of those rural focal points, the traditional pub only opens from Thursday through to Sunday.
“The whole way of life has changed in terms of people going out in country areas over the weekend and in driving too and from the pub. People either go out for a meal or organise lifts home if they are having a few pints: things have really changed.
“I’m lucky too in that my partner Becky is our head chef, but like businesses in the hospitality sector all over the country, it really is difficult to secure staff to work what are unsociable hours in the evenings and at weekends.
“Make no mistake about it – the food and restaurant business is hard work – but it’s tremendously satisfying too when we see the support from the local communities for miles around. A lot of people really do like to dine out and have a drink locally,” said Jimmy Screene.
The quality of food and service has to be good for any rural pub-restaurant to survive as has the pricing structure of the menu.
“We are a rural restaurant . . . we cannot be charging city prices . . . we have to be competitive and give value for money . . . but once we can achieve that mix of quality and value, the customers do come rolling in. Last weekend, for example, we served over 1,500 dinners,” said Jimmy Screene.
Food has been the making of Screene’s of Guilka with convenience also a big motivation for people who are returning from work in the evenings.
“Takeaway dinners are also a big part of our evening business. People who have been working in Galway all day, will every so often, opt to pick up a takeaway dinner rather than preparing an evening meal – this has been another big change in rural Ireland,” said Jimmy Screene.