The first McGettigan’s pub opened its doors just over four years ago in Jumeirah Lakes Towers. We spoke to its founder Dennis McGettigan on the eve of its birthday to find out what’s next for the Irish brand
Why did you decide to open McGettigan’s in Dubai?
My parents bought a piece of land in 2005 in JLT and then we put up the Bonnington Hotel. I came over here in 2009 and I had a year to look at all the different offerings, so far as the bars and clubs. There was a huge gap because I felt there were a lot of five-star beautiful wine bars — and then at the other end there was terrible stuff. I saw a nice gap in the middle for a really good, very cool bar, doing good food, service, and entertainment. I wanted to get away from the whole stereotypical ‘Ireland in the 50s’ bar.
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And do you think you succeeded?
Yes, the reaction was phenomenal, it really was. I won’t go into figures but I remember saying to our head chef and bar manager at the time that if we can do XYZ, that would be absolutely phenomenal. In the first year we doubled what I was hoping to do. We probably got a better reaction than what we wanted.
What challenges did you face in terms of running a successful bar in this region?
Trying to stay on top of everything. This region is quite transient; we’ve been lucky with staff retention but sometimes from the kitchen point of view, trying to get the produce that we want has been challenging from time to time. On the opposite side, when you’re dealing with entertainment, people just start adding zeroes because they have this perception that there’s so much money. Competition is certainly increasing, although I don’t see that as a challenge, I see that as a further demand and further footfall will come to us.
When it comes to competition, do you find a lot more casual bars and pubs coming up?
For sure. There have been a lot more casual bars and that’s what I saw as an open market in 2010. I think a lot of people have now gotten into that space — particularly new Dubai. Old Dubai has always had a couple of places, which I don’t equate myself to. But I’m saying the market was catered for down there.
Interview continues on next page...
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