Out & About

It is great to see Eamonn Maher, the proprietor of         Eamonn's Bar and Grill and P.J. Moran's  in midtown Mahattan is making a fantastic recovery after his recent illness that had us all worried.

I went in to see him at Eamonn's last week and there he was, meeting and greeting his customers as they arrived for lunch and he was looking like a million dollars, and he'slost a little bit of weight too.

So to all those who were concerned, call in and give him a hug as I know he will be around for a very long time.

When I was there I noticed the manager, Noel Donavan, had a swollen lip and, of course, I had to find out what happened as Noel has more accidents that anybody I know in this business.

He told me he visited a very well known establishment in the city for a New Year's Eve after-work celebration and "something" hit him; well a least he did not fall down as in most of his other accidents he had if you believe that.

Well it did not hamper his mouth as it is hard for this man to keep quiet... just kidding Noel, I hope you get your good looks back soon and your lip.

We visited the Downtown Galway Hooker and, low and behold, who was sitting at the counter - the owner Niamh Conroy, yes Niamh did I get the name right? It's hard to pin her down as she is always busy moving around with her other bars and restaurants.

The reason I was able to catch up with her was that she's nursing a sprained ankle that happened over the Christmas holidays and, from what I had heard, it was the footpath that got in the way... no, it wasn't that she was out celebrating as you would expect, though I don't blame her for that as she is entitled to let loose every now and then right?

I left the Galway Hooker and headed up to Fiddlesticks to meet Debra Fox who is one of the busiest insurance brokers in the city as she must insure nearly every Irish bar and restaurant in New York.

We did have a couple of cocktails in Fiddlesticks and got to meet the manager Sam Bates who is very pleasant to chat with and he was telling us that they had a very nice New Year's Eve party; not sure how we missed that one.

Paid a visit downtown to see a lot of friends in Stone and Pearl Streets in the Wall Street area and who was the first person that we met? None other than Noel McDermott who is partners  with Ronan Downs in Beckett's and The Dubliner. Let me tell you, these establishments were packed to capacity with their after-work patrons.

We also visited A.J. Kelly's on Stone Street (just off Broadway), The Stone Street Tavern, Killarney Rose and the Mercantile Grill (both on Pearl Street), Ulysses (next door to Beckett's) and then moved next door to Mad Dog and Beans on Pearl Street which also has an entrance on Stone Street. I know what you're saying, what was he doing there? Well it's owned by Tom Ryan from Ireland. I love this area, it's just buzzing from one end to the other.

Would you believe it, but who did we bump into? Only the 'Coffee Man' himself Pete Scalley.

Also on our travels we found was Bruce Caulfield and Pat O'Brien, who are from Tracks Raw Bar And Grill in Penn Station, having a pint in the Dubliner. They must have been checking out the flavor of the downtown business or perhaps they were just taking a break from their own place as it is always very busy.

Culture Ireland are over from Ireland to showcase and promote Irish music, dance and theatre for a week and I meet up with them on Friday morning in City Hall as guests of New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and what away to start off the day it was - only with a song.

Christine Quinn introduced the Chief Executive of Culture Ireland Eugene Downes and the Consul General of Ireland Niall Burgess, who is a close collaborator in promoting Irish arts and culture and together with The Irish Arts Center and The Irish Repertory Theatre this is the perfect place in New York to showcase Irish culture like this.

Yes it's all happening again as it is that time of the year where a lot starts happening... Our own John Duddy ('The Derry Destroyer') will be fighting in Madison Square Garden on Saturday January 23.

Tickets are now on sale and for more information you should call Greg McIntyre on (917) 528-7379 or Barney Moore at (917) 559-8467.

Talking about Tracks in Penn Station, who do you think I would meet? Only John Browne, past President of the Cork Association and owner of the Grand Stand bar and restaurant in Queens. He was telling me that Ireland's Heart Throb  Donnie Carroll is the next Corkman of the Year and well deserved too (and a great friend). More on tickets for the dinner next week.

See you all next week.