We know this victory is going to be particularly sweet for anyone engaging in the ‘most pubs in Ireland’ debate.
Despite having ranked higher as one of the Gin Capitals of the World, Cork has just got revenge on Dublin by being crowned the county with the most pubs.
They didn’t just win by a slim margin either.
The Rebel county has, in total, a staggering 955 pubs to runner-up Dublin’s 772, while the remainder of the top 5 are down in the 400s with Galway clocking in at 475, Kerry at 435 and Tipperary at 422.
On the other side of the table are Offaly and Laois with 126 and 123 respectively.
If ever there was a time for Cork to secede from Ireland in order to become the People’s Republic of Cork, we would probably be one All-Ireland hurling championship away, given this result on top of the recent rave review they received in the New York Times.
If you’re down south this weekend and you happen to see the red and white flags flying particularly high, there’s a good reason for it.
Here it is:
1. Cork – 955 pubs
2. Dublin – 772
3. Galway – 475
4. Kerry – 435
5. Tipperary – 422
6. Mayo – 373
7. Donegal – 365
8. Limerick – 360
9. Cavan/ Monaghan – 296
10. Clare – 291
11. Carlow/ Kilkenny – 288
12. Wexford – 265
13. Longford/ Westmeath – 259
14. Sligo/Leitrim – 254
15. Waterford – 220
16. Roscommon – 203
17. Meath – 195
18. Kildare – 183
19. Louth – 182
20. Wicklow – 151
21. Offaly – 126
22. Laois – 123
The Pubs Outlook report looks at the general state of the pub industry nationwide, and found that Mayo is officially the county with the most number of pubs-per-person in Ireland with one for every 323 people.
Coming in second place to Mayo was Co. Kerry with one pub for every 344 people, followed Tipperary with 350 and Clare with 383. On the opposite end of the chart was Dublin with one pub for every 1,649 people.
The report went on to highlight issues in the industry, saying that while there is “stability and demand” for pubs in counties such as Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick, rural pubs are facing much greater challenges at present.
The report also found that Dublin has been the quickest county to recover from the economic downturn, followed by other cities nationwide. Despite this fact, both rural and urban pubs continue to face an uphill struggle, according to Tony Morrissey, the managing director of pub specialist auctioneering firm Morrissey’s Auctioneers.
Commented on the report, he said: “If a pub is not turning over €8,000-€9,000 a week in rural areas, then it’s going to be very difficult to survive. The same is true of Dublin and if a pub is not turning over between €12,000 and €13,000 a week, it’s in trouble.
“Although the craft beer market still only represents 4% of the overall market for beer, it’s growing and many pubs now have to offer a number of craft beers to their customers who clearly favour them over the traditional brands,” he went on to state, while adding that the same is often the case for spirits.
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