The Village Pubs of Cork: Running a rural pub is hard... you’d want to believe in what you do

The only pub in the parish, O’Donoghue’s stands out in Knockraha, a small village, high up in the landscape, about 13km north-east of Cork city.

There is no shop, no café, and no other licensed premises nearby, which has made the pub the main place in the surrounding community.

“It’s always been the one constant here,” says owner John O’Donoghue. “You’ve the school and the church, and then you’ve this. That’s it.”

The pub has been in the family for generations. John’s grandfather took it over in 1949, having acquired it from the previous owners, the Cavanagh family, whose connection to the premises stretched back to the early decades of the 20th century.

“My grandfather would have got it in the late 1940s and I took it over myself in 1997,” said John.

“I didn’t change much, I just tidied it up, did up the toilets and a storeroom out the back. It was getting busy at the time.”

That busyness, John’s brother Benji recalls, was in part due to a higher volume of mass-goers than exists today.

In the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, the village was a regular stop-off for people travelling out from the north side of Cork city, particularly on Sunday mornings after Mass.

“You’d open after Mass and the place would fill. People would come in for tea, sandwiches, soup,” said Benji.

“You’d have locals, farmers, fellas in from town, everyone knew everyone. You’d open at ten and go straight through.”

Benj says that attendance after Mass has dwindled, reflecting broader changes in habits and lifestyle.

“It’s different now. When I was younger, you could tell who wasn’t at Mass by who was in here. You can’t say that any more. Times have changed.”

John took over the pub during what he describes as a particularly strong period. He provided live music most Saturday nights and had three staff behind the bar at peak times.

The downturn came in 2008, which lasted until around 2017, he says. The pub enjoyed a few years of a plateau in business before covid hit in 2020.

“The first year back after that was tough,” said John. “Then 2022, 2023 and 2024 were good. This year has been okay, but you can feel things tightening again.

On first glance upon entering O’Donoghue’s, the space seems tight and contained, but you soon notice the extension leading back.

Originally, the counter faced the entrance, with a fireplace to the left of that. After John took it over, he repositioned the bar to accommodate the extra space, yet it still retains the feel of a pub of that vintage.

The brothers grew up over the pub, unfazed by the noise of the busy bar below.

“When ‘twas quiet, you’d nearly hear a pin drop, But when it was busy, you hear nothing. ‘Twas strange, But that’s the way it was,” Benji recalled.

O’Donoghue’s remains open six nights a week, with a small team of staff, many of whom are family members or have long-standing connections to the pub.

John is candid about the pressures facing rural publicans, from rising overheads to shifting demographics.

“It’s just harder to make it work,” he says, “Between costs, insurance, tax, everything adds up.

“You’d want to be doing it because you believe in it,” he says

Despite that, the pub continues to be a vital lifeline in Knockraha, particularly around Christmas, and during local events and sporting occasions.

O’Donoghue’s sponsors local teams and opens its doors as a meeting place when the community needs it.

“At Christmas, this place is packed. People home from everywhere. It’s still important that way,” John says

That importance is perhaps most clearly seen through the eyes of the younger generation, including John’s cousin Aoibhinn O’Donoghue, who is 19 and works behind the bar while studying engineering in college.

“For me, I love places like this. I hate crowds. I hate shouting over music. I like being able to talk to people,” she explains.

Aoibhinn holds a different perspective on the future of the rural pub, one less pessimistic, and rooted in the idea that village pubs may evolve rather than disappear.

“A lot of people my age don’t go out drinking that often,” she says. “But when we do, a place like this is actually ideal. You can have a conversation. You can relax.”

While many of her friends gravitate towards Cork city or larger towns, Aoibhinn says she sees a quiet appreciation for smaller, more intimate pubs among her peer group.

“You’d be surprised how many people just want somewhere calm. Somewhere you don’t feel stressed. Somewhere you’re comfortable. Recently, a crowd of guys came over from Glanmire and they said they just wanted a place that was quiet, where they could chat. So people definitely want a quieter place as well.”

On the whole, travel to and from rural pubs remains limited for people of Aobhinn’s generation, it’s often family members who provide transportation.

She also points to improved public transport, making villages like Knockraha more accessible than they were even a few years ago.

“The buses are definitely better now. That helps. It makes a difference,” she says

For Aoibhinn, working in the pub has been as much about social connection as employment.

“You get to know everyone. You talk to people of all ages. You hear their stories. It actually gives you confidence.”

John acknowledges that perspective, even if he remains cautious about what lies ahead.

And while he worries about the long-term survival of rural pubs, Aoibhinn remains hopeful.

“I think there’s always going to be a place for pubs like this. They’re homely. They’re human. And people still need that.”