Seven decades of fine service at iconic Corkery’s
IF you have ever gone for a night out in Killarney or sought out a great place to eat or attended a big match in Fitzgerald Stadium, then there’s a very good chance you have called into Corkery’s. It’s that type of bar. Every town has one. The iconic pub that everyone knows, from far and near.
The pub has been in the Corkery family for 66 years, ever since Jerome, his brother Tadhg and sister Mary’s grandfather, also Jerome, purchased the premises just after the Second World War. In the intervening almost seven decades, Corkery’s has undergone tremendous change. Expansion and refurbishment were undertaken on occasion, however one thing has remained constant and that’s the atmosphere of welcome the owners have for their customers.
As Jerome recounted the pub’s history, he pointed out that Corkery’s has physically changed a lot over the years.
“The pub was bought by my grandfather, old Jerome in 1946, He was a coach- builder by trade here in Killarney. My dad Tadhg (senior) took over then in 1967 when he married to my mother,
Corkery’s Bar on Killarney’s High Street has been in the Corkery family for almost seven decades. The iconic pub prides itself on a warm welcome, a topclass pint and super food. Over the years the bar has established itself as a must-visit premises for people socialising, dining, or in town for an event. Brendan Mccarthy spoke with Jerome Corkery, the third generation of the family behind the bar
Joan, a Tralee woman. So it’s been in the family for 66 years,” he said.
“It was a small premises in the beginning, we added on over the years. There’s actually four different properties here, beginning with Corkery’s itself, and three others.
“The original bar was at the front. The shop was put in in the front in the late eighties. My mother wanted a shop and it was a good use of the extra room; the pub could be brought into the back,” remarked Jerome.
Now Tadhg (senior) and Joan have retired and the shop is no more. However, the pub is now back to where it was originally, at the front of the building. And, next door, in what was formerly Ó Riain’s, The Silver Fox restaurant has been opened, where Jerome’s brother Tadhg is head chef.
Jerome himself remembered that he has been almost 20 years behind the bar, but in truth his apprenticeship began long before that. As he explained: “We all helped out in the pub from a young age, collecting glasses and that. So, I suppose it was a natural transition when I came to work here!”
In those 20 years in the heart of Killarney, Corkery’s has witnessed a generation of customers grow up in tandem with the town itself. That Celtic Tiger generation has, as Jerome explained, ‘grown up’. Many have family responsibilities, many unfortunately have emigrated in search of work.
“When I came back here to work with my father in about 1993, we were just hitting the good years and there was a very good young population in Killarney. They were good years. We expanded our trade as Killarney expanded too. A lot of the younger population have settled down or have emigrated. Over the last three years people don’t have the same amount of cash to spend as they used to do,” he said.
And while Corkery’s may have changed over the years, the pub retains what it always has had and has thrived on – it’s character. And it’s that intangible element that keeps bringing people back, day after day, week after week, year after year. Big events, like Munster finals, bring customers to the counter that may not have been in since the previous year. And, the Corkery’s are always delighted to see old friends return, wherever their county loyalties lie!
“We get the same people that come back every year. The same people from North Kerry call in and the same people from Cork will call in. It’s nice to meet them as we get to know them over the years.
“People from up the country who come to Killarney for a holiday will always call in too. They might be in to eat or drink, but they will always start their evening here,” Jerome explained.
As the interview draws to a close, Jerome points out a customer, a local man, James Horan.
“See James there, he has been coming in here since we opened and had drinks poured by my grandfather.”
Proof, if ever it was needed, that Corkery’s has that enduring appeal.