Reidy's, Bull McCabes, The Wilton, and The Grange lead wave of Cork pub sales

A wave of high-profile pub sales in Cork City sees landmark venues Reidy’s Vault Bar and Bull McCabes change hands, while the sale of The Grange bar is expected to close shortly for well in excess of its €1m guide price.

Separately, an offer of €1.9m has been accepted by the vendors of pub/restaurant Paddy the Farmers, while advanced talks are under way with a Dublin-based restaurant operator in relation to Tequila Jack’s, a popular Mexican restaurant and tequila bar on Lapps Quay, guiding at €1.3m.

The notable uptick in pub disposals follows on from a strong start to the hospitality investment market in 2026, starting with the sale of The Wilton bar for more than €3m to well-known Cork-based publican Paul Montgomery, who owns and operates multiple venues in the city.

The latest sales will see established restaurant operators take over Reidy’s, with plans to open their second city restaurant at the 15 Lancaster Quay/Western Rd venue before the end of the year. A former bonded warehouse, it had operated as a bar for several decades, run by the Reidy family, who have a long involvement in the city’s licensed trade, and who continue to own and operate the popular Le Chateau bar on St Patrick’s Street.

Rob Coughlan, of Cohalan Downing, oversaw the Reidy’s deal and he said the distinctive premises — halfway between UCC and the Grand Parade — sold for “just shy” of its €600,000 guide price. The bar had initially come to market with two adjoining properties with an overall guide of €1.4m but the other two properties were withdrawn from sale about a year ago.

Mr Coughlan also oversaw the sale of Bull McCabes on Kinsale Rd, and he said the new owners are planning “a residential conversion”. The buyers are local developers, a husband-and-wife team with a track record of converting former licensed premises into residential units. “They have done similar schemes over the years,” the agent said.

HILLSIDE SITE

Bull McCabes sold for €730,000, a chunk above the €650,000 guide price. On a 0.4a site, the 3,800sq ft venue had traded for 25 years at the hillside site close to Cork Airport before the operating company, Activebundles Ltd, went into liquidation in September 2023.

The sale of The Grange bar, by tender, also via Cohalan Downing, is expected to close shortly at a price substantially in excess of the €1m guide. The long-established premises, on a 0.54a (0.22ha) site on Grange Rd, has been run by the O’Neill family for about four decades and continues to trade.

Meanwhile, the tender deadline was yesterday for The Viaduct bar and restaurant, which is on the market with a guide price of €1.6m.

The 7,000sq ft Bandon Rd premises — owned by Cliste Hospitality — is a turn-key premises which dates to the 1990s and is an established hospitality venue.

Mr Coughlan — who previously negotiated the off-market sale of city centre bar Electric in 2024 for €2m — said tenders for The Viaduct are “being reviewed”.

Separately, Ger O’Callaghan, of Lisney Commercial, confirmed that the vendors of Paddy the Farmers have accepted an offer of the €1.9m asking price. The Old Blackrock Rd/Summerhill South premises, along with nine overhead apartments, is being sold by the Seán McCarthy-led local hospitality group, who disposed of Soho bar/restaurant on Grand Parade in 2023 in a multimillion-euro sale.

The group is also selling waterfront premises Tequila Jack’s, via Lisney CRE.

Tequila Jack’s and Paddy the Farmers, which are both being sold as going concerns, enjoy strong trading profiles and have been continually enhanced by the current owners.

The flurry of activity in pub sales follows on from the record-setting price achieved last year after the sale of the Flying Enterprise complex near South Gate bridge, when longstanding owners Finbarr and Dolly O’Shea sold it for more than €5m to a local buyer with international backing.

The complex includes multiple buildings and a central courtyard on a 0.5a city-centre site.