They came from far and wide to claim their own piece of old Galway from what has long been one of the city's best-loved eateries.
Nimmos in the Spanish Arch is getting a makeover, but rather than throwing out the eclectic collection of prints, candlesticks and old tea sets, the new leasee, Aoibheann MacNamara, invited the public to take them home.
In exchange for a donation to the Beirut Farmers Market Fund, once-loyal customers filled the stone building over the weekend, trading stories while leafing through old cook books, student sketches and cutlery.
"We had a bidding thing going over the Nimmos sign with the duck. One guy said he had been coming here for 15 years and another guy said he was a customer for five years so we had to give it to the guy coming longer," said Ms MacNamara.
"This place meant a lot to so many people. I met one couple who used to come every night one summer when they were so in love. I wanted people to have things from here."
The owner of the popular Ard Bia restaurant on Quay Street, as well as an art gallery on William Street, Ms MacNamara plans to retain the furniture that gave Nimmos a certain old-world ambience but wants to make the interior fresher.
The food at Nimmos, under the direction of chef Jessica Murphy, will be "an eclectic mix of New Zealand, Middle Eastern and contemporary Irish".
The upstairs will be used as a venue for raw food cookery classes and various cultural events.
After being closed for six months, the restaurant will reopen next weekend.
The building's owner, Leonie Finn, is delighted Nimmos is being taken over by someone with an artistic streak. It started off as an arts studio and gallery 15 years ago and then became a wine bar and restaurant, where artists, musicians and a lot of professional people would always go, recalled Ms Finn.
"It was totally unposh and unpretentious but there was always a great pizzaz about it and you'd always meet someone you know," she said.
"My heart and soul is in that building. A lot of the prints came from my life drawing classes, other stuff was done by friends.
"When my husband, Alec, was travelling with De Danann, he picked up a lot of the lamps and mirrors in junk yards. We also used to visit Vincent de Paul quite a bit."
Ms MacNamara's involvement at Nimmos has come full circle. Twelve years ago she was fired from her job as a waitress there.
The remaining memorabilia will be on sale throughout the week.