Renowned chef Conrad Gallagher orders a second restaurant

8th September 2010, 12:09pm

Ireland’s most colourful and controversial chef, Conrad Gallagher, is defying the recession with plans to open his second restaurant in the Republic in less than a year.

The 39-year-old, long dubbed the enfant terrible of the Irish trade, who ran his own restaurant on London's Shaftesbury Avenue some years ago, aims to have Conrad's Kitchen open for business in Sligo, in the west of Ireland, by the end of this month (Sept).

Earlier this year, he launched a new Dublin eaterie, Salon des Saveurs, in the city's Aungier Street.

With the confidence of a man who won two Michelin stars while in his 20s, he dismissed suggestions he was taking a risk expanding at this time, given the current slump in the Irish trade, with some high-profile closures. He already had "hundreds of bookings" for Conrad's Kitchen, and felt Sligo had fewer restaurants than it merited.

"This will be a local restaurant for local people," he said. "As well as signature dishes, we will offer appetisers from €6 and main courses from €14. One thing I have learned from running a restaurant in Dublin is that, whatever the state of the economy, people find a way to eat out, though they have a set figure of what they want to spend.

"The days of fine dining are over. But whether people spend a little or a lot of money, they will be treated the same way. I'm not after a niche market – I want everyone in my restaurants."

A native of Donegal, a neighbouring county to Sligo, Gallagher has worked in some of the world's top restaurants, including New York's Waldorf Astoria and Cafe de Paris in Monte Carlo, and at one stage was running two high-profile eateries in Dublin while providing consultancy services to others.

However, controversy has dogged his career. First, his London venture collapsed, then he was extradited from the US to face charges that he had stolen and sold paintings from the Peacock Alley restaurant that he ran in Dublin's Fitzwilliam Hotel. He was cleared – and shortly afterwards emigated to South Africa, setting up a restaurant business in Cape Town.

That business also collapsed and last year he returned to Dublin, with his wife and two sons, hoping to make another fresh start.

Related Articles:

• 24 Jan 2011 - Restaurant Warned: No More Rare Burgers
• 25 Oct 2010 - Irish restaurant trade 'showing signs of recovery' after horrendous year

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