I’m a bus driver who opened a tapas bar in Cork city

BEING 1,178 kilometres from his home town of Porto in Portugal has never bothered Ricardo Pereira.

“I came to Dublin over 10 years ago to meet friends of mine who had tickets for a soccer match,” explains Ricardo, 45.

“We had a great time in the capital city and afterwards I visited friends in Cork who I have known for 24 years. I fell in love with Cork, and I stayed here!”

The dashing Portuguese man could well be a racing driver on the Grand Prix circuit. Ricardo finds this very amusing.

“Well, I got a job driving buses, which I still do part-time,” he says.

“It was always a childhood dream of mine to drive a bus in the towns and out the country; the bigger the better. 

I got my licence here and I got to know the streets of Cork. I took passengers from Ballincollig to Mayfield, to Carrigaline and all points in between.

“I find the people very friendly, and I got to know a lot of them driving the various bus routes. I love the routine of it.”

Ricardo had another dream when the recession hit and he had to think about his future and that of his son, Daniel, aged six, who is on the autism spectrum. It involved owning his own eaterie.

Now he has realised his dream, taking over Vikki’s Tapas and Wine Bar on the Sundays Well Road.

His new venture is called Tugas Tapas and Wine Bar Bar, serving Portuguese and dishes, with a mix of Irish cuisine too.

Daniel is a great asset to Ricardo’s new business.

“He likes shopping, and he likes the money! He helps me in the business getting in the supplies for instance. He wants to go to the restaurant all the time!”

What originally brought Ricardo to Cork, apart from catching up with old friends?

“I was in the pub and restaurant trade in Porto,” he says. “It was a very busy place, and we were doing good business until the recession hit.

I had to look to going somewhere else to make a living and my ultimate goal was to open a place of my own in Cork.

Ricardo, who lives in Gurranabraher, isn’t afraid of hard work.

“I worked in the Radisson Hotel as a manager,” he says. “My friend helped me get the position and I liked it there very much.”

But the dream he had as a young boy often surfaced.

“I got to know the streets of Cork well,” says Ricardo. “And I applied to Bus Eireann when I got my licence. I love driving and that’s why I kept the job on after I opened Tugas Tapas Bar.”

How did that come about?

“Because I know the pub and restaurant business well and my dream was to open a Portuguese-style tapas bar in my adopted city of Cork. I looked around for a long time for a suitable premises, and I found it on Sundays Well Road.”

Ricardo’s Leeside friends were there to lend a helping hand.

“My friend knew the landlord and he arranged for me to meet him,” says Ricardo. “We met and I called to see the premises. There was a bit of work to do to get it up and running; but I had lots of help. After three months, we were in a position to open the doors.”

Ricardo likes his neighbours.

“The neighbourhood is nice, and the people are very friendly and supportive,” he says. “We have our regulars already!”

What do they like to eat and drink?

“Portuguese tapas options like Moelas, and Camarao that can be washed down with a vinho verde wine or a Super Bock Beer; there is something on the menu that appeals to everyone.

Ricardo doesn’t do things by halves. “In the beginning I found it hard to get a chef,” he says. 

Now I have three! And six other staff. I need all hands on deck because we are so busy.

Doing what he knows best, Ricardo is excited to be back in the restaurant business. “It’s in my blood,” he says. “I’ve always wanted to open my own restaurant here and I’m very excited to bring Portuguese food and drinks to Cork.

“We want Tugas to be a friendly, welcoming restaurant with relaxed ambience, where people can enjoy their morning coffee or perhaps a few tapas and a glass of wine.”

Ricardo has big plans for his new venture.

“Here on the inside, there is a cosy Portuguese-like environment where we are hoping to have live music whenever we can,” says Ricardo.

“On the outside we have built a beer garden where there’s covered space if people want to enjoy their meal outside whenever they like.”

We might not enjoy the same climate as Porto to indulge eating out in the great outdoors?

“But when the sun shines here, there is no better place to be!” says Ricardo laughing.

He intends to make his dream a reality with all the frills. And he’s still double jobbing.

“I am driving the buses five days a week in the mornings, doing my roster,” says Ricardo. 

“Then, in the evenings, I get ready and prepared to go into work at Tugas Tapas Bar. I like doing both jobs.”

He has another reason to practice a good work ethic.

“Even though my son Daniel is getting help in school, he still needs a lot of extra supports,” says Ricardo. 

“They are quite expensive, so I have to work hard to support him and help him reach his full potential.”

Realising two of his dreams, he always had potential; to be a businessman and a people person welcoming his customers.

“Coming to Cork was a great thing to do,” says Ricardo,who generously offers his Bus Eireann colleagues a 15% discount as well as front-line workers.

The sun always shines for Ricardo.

“I love it here.”

Tugas Tapas and Wine Bar, 85A Sundays Well Road. Open until 11pm. Phone 021 201 2639.