Out & About

We had another great loss last week, Frank McCloskey husband of Jean McCloskey of Tourism Ireland. Frank died very suddenly last Tuesday week. Frank was very well known in the Irish community and we would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the entire McCloskey family.

The Pope arrived in New York last week to huge fanfare and what an impact he made to all New Yorkers from St. Patrick's Cathedral all the way to the cathedral that is Yankee Stadium - everywhere he was met with an unbelievable reception.

Congratulations to SideTracks Restaurant and Lounge on Queens Blvd. Sunnyside, NY on their 20 year anniversary. Sidetracks is owned and operated by none other than Dermot Kelly and Bernard Reilly and your host, who is a great friend of ours, Mary Flannery - what a job she does, the best. She is a hostess that meets and greets everybody that walks in the door and somehow she knows everyone's name - good on you Mary.

Fitzpatrick's Hotel on Lexington Avenue has just remodeled its bar and restaurant named 'The Fitz'. This new addition to the fine eateries of New York has a very nice cozy lounge just off the bar called 'The Library'. Serving up the drinks and cocktails when we visited was Brian Callan from County Meath doing a great job in a very relaxed atmosphere... John Fitzpatrick has done it again!

Touring around the city we stopped at Papillon restaurant and bar on 54th street between Madison and 5th Avenues where Reise will greet you at the bar for a cocktail and talk to you about Liverpool who are hoping to win the Champions league (we all know that cannot happen as with Manchester United the leading contender to win it all!). Carol the manager of the restaurant is doing a superb job in running the establishment as Tommy and Frank are busy taking care of the business side of things to make it such a success, good on you boys.

We had a very nice luncheon at the Intercontinental Hotel on Friday that was sponsored and promoted by Tourism Ireland on behalf of the hotel industry in Ireland. This promotion was offering vacations in the leading hotels on the Emerald Isle - Ashford Castle, Galway; Dromoland Castle, Clare; The Maryborough, Cork and Adare Manor, Mayo are just a few of the vacation spots to remember. Joe Byrne the Executive Vice President of Tourism Ireland gave a great presentation to the invited guests encouraging us all to travel to Ireland this year. Among the guests were: Chris Accomando of Sceptre Tours; Joy Anderson of Freelance Travel; Kiela Bennett, Tourism Ireland and Chris Meehan, Shannon Development along with invited journalists.

The Irish Repertory Theatre will have a 20th Anniversary Celebration Gala Dinner on June 9th if you have not got your ticket yet hurry up and call (212) 255-0270 this should be the night of nights.

Last Thursday night was the opening night of the Druid Theatre Company's 'The Walworth Farce' running at St. Ann's Warehouse at 38 Water Street, Dumbo, Brooklyn. This is a show NOT to be missed and it promises to have a great run. For tickets call (718) 834-8794.

At the Galway Hooker every Tuesday night you have live entertainment with Irish Trad and acoustic music, call in and say hello to Anna.

The Irish pub on 7th Avenue is a very busy place for sports and a good pint... talking about pints! Mustang Harry's down by Madison Square Gardens on Seventh Avenue is a spot you can not miss for its friendly atmosphere and great menu served up by very dedicated staff, Talking about staff, Niall Conroy the owner is always there to greet you and to make your stay very comfortable in a pleasant surroundings...

See you all next week