A consortium of private investors has acquired the well-known pub, The Dalkey Duck, from its long-standing owner, veteran publican, actor and entertainer Gary Whelan. While the value of the deal has not been disclosed, the property is understood to have secured in the region of the €2.5 million price which had been guided by the joint selling agents, BDM Property and JP Younge Auctioneers.
Quite apart from his starring roles over the years in TV series EastEnders, The Bill and Ballykissangel, the pub’s outgoing owner, Whelan, is arguably best known for establishing Whelan’s of Wexford Street as a live music venue.
The Dalkey Duck’s new owners meanwhile include the publican Alan Hughes, son of Paul Hughes from The Grange licensed premises in nearby Deansgrange. The same consortium already owns and operates Boland’s of Stillorgan. It is understood the investor group intend to fully refurbish and rebrand The Dalkey Duck with a view to maximising its large trading footprint.
The Dalkey Duck occupies a prime location at the entrance to Dalkey village at the intersection of Castle Street, Ulverton Road and Barnhill Road.
RM Block
The property comprises a two-storey licensed premises fitted out in a traditional “olde-worlde” style, with feature fireplaces, a rustic bar and backbar, a snug and individual nooks and crannies. Outside to the rear, there is a large, partly covered patio and a beer garden. Overhead, there is an apartment comprising a large livingroom with feature fireplace, kitchen/diningroom and two double en suite bedrooms. The kitchen has French doors to a south-facing patio at the entrance to the apartment, which is accessed from the rear yard.
John Ryan of BDM Property said the sale of The Dalkey Duck had attracted “a number of publicans from diverse parts of the city”.
Joint agent John Younge said the pub sale offered an “excellent opportunity to acquire a property of scale in a pivotal south Dublin trading location”.
