‘A pint of how’s your father, a small gold watch and a jack frost, mush’.
Understandably, 17-year-old Tomàs Leydon’s immediate reaction to this, his first order over the bar at the Auld Shillelagh, was to considerhightailing it back to his native Roscommon, where at least he knew what people were talking about.
However, he and his older brother Aonghus persevered with the linguistic difficulties and, on the weekend of 19-22 October, they are about tocelebrate their fifteenth anniversary as proprietors of one of the most popular and innovative bars in North London.
In 1991, the brothers took over the Horse and Groom (locally known as the Jerry House), a small, dingy boozer on Church Street with, shall wesay, a raffish, degenerate clientele and with a pronounced but ageing Irish emphasis. Having weeded out some of the more undesirable elements,their hard work, commitment and implementation of a ‘firm but fair’ policy, have today transformed the old pub into a buzzing, cosmopolitanbar, where serious drinkers rub shoulders with twenty-something bohemians and intellectuals; where fans watch the football and Gaelic sportson the large screen while kids cavort in the garden (‘we allow kids in until 7pm if they can keep their parents under control’, says Tomàs); andwhere groups of young women gather to drink and chat without fear of harassment and unwanted attention as the eclectic music plays in thebackground. A drinkers’pub, certainly, but far more than that.
The long, narrow dimensions of the pub assist in creating the intimacy you immediately sense on entering the place. It’s difficult to avoid beingdrawn into the ‘craic’, even if you value solitude, and you’ll soon find yourself talking to people about something you never thought you knewabout in order to keep the conversation, and the Guinness, flowing. Yes, the Guinness: possibly the finest in London and brought to your tableby the professionally-trained, friendly bar staff, many of whom have met their partners through working in the pub.
 On a particularly popular night, it’s almost impossible to get in to the place, never mind move about. But the crush adds to the atmosphere,particularly on one of the pub’s themed evenings (created and produced by impresario David Knight) or when there is live music in the bar or inthe ‘Mediterranean’ garden, opened five years ago when the pub was refurbished and lengthened to accommodate local demand.
Characters abound in this place, including 83-year-old ‘Pops’ who catches two buses to get to the bar every day, in his suit and tie, stopping onlyto place his bet at nearby Ladbroke’s, a favoured haunt for the afternoon drinkers who are tended to by the efficient and friendly figure of Verabehind the bar. Everyone here has a story to tell and, after a few pints, will insist on doing so, and it’s difficult not to listen in. Sometimes the pubfeels like a North London version of Soho’s fabled Colony Room, and its appeal is such that it has been reviewed by the Observer, Guardian,Metro and a variety of other media.For their anniversary, Tomàs and Aonghus are planning a special weekend (for details see box above).
They have asked N16 to thank, on their behalf, all their customers over the years, and hope to see them grace the establishment not only overthe anniversary weekend but also in the years to come.
Caud mìle fàilte, as they say in these parts.
105 Church Street, N16, 020 7249 5951 |
