Stubbornness, thy name is Jay Bourke. Battered and bruised, bloody but unbowed, and with several enemies as well as friends in Dublin's bar and restaurant trade after some bitter financial disputes, you've got to hand it to the former star of RTE's The Mentor – Bourke's cojones could prop up a house.
Nede, formerly Bourke's acclaimed Eden restaurant in Temple Bar (it's the old name backwards, geddit?), is set to expand just a few months after its spring relaunch, his former companies' litany of creditors will be delighted to learn.
Bourke no longer owns Nede, which is inspired by the moss-serving Danish restaurant Noma. “I’m a consultant,” he yelled at me yesterday.
A what, Jay? I can’t hear you. “A CON-SULT-ANT. Sorry, it’s the wind. I’m cycling my bike.”
Quicker bites
Bourke is negotiating on behalf of Nede to take over the Charlie's II takeaway, so beloved of starving revellers, next door.
The lease is available for €60,000, which seems a snip for such substantial road frontage onto Essex Street, one of the busiest in Temple Bar.
The expanded part of Nede will serve tapas and quicker bites than the more formal eaterie next door.
Tapas is on a roll in the Dublin restaurant scene at the moment, with new joints opening up all over the place.
There has been a definite lightening of the mood amongst the city centre’s bar owners and restaurateurs in the last six months. Paddy McKillen and his son, for example, are opening new premises at a rate of knots.
Bourke reckons his empire-building days are behind him. He was hit hard during the bust. But he hasn’t gone away, you know.
