A rally next week will indicate the extent of public support for the last-minute campaign to save Bewley's cafés, writes Frank McNally
Bewley's has seen a "huge" upsurge in business at its flagship cafés since announcing they would close at the end of this month. Management also reports branded crockery and cutlery "walking out the door" of the Westmoreland Street branch in recent days, as customers help themselves to souvenirs as well as nostalgia.
But even as the public flocks to the bedside of a much-loved elderly business in the final throes of a terminal illness, others are still plotting to save it. At a meeting hosted by the Lord Mayor of Dublin on Wednesday, a dozen individuals angered at the cafés' demise decided someone should shout stop. The same 12 angry people will gather in the Mansion House again tonight to discuss the options.
Next Wednesday, the public will get a chance to lend its support with a rally outside the Grafton Street café and the launch of BOSCA, the Bewley's Oriental - Saved - Cafés Alliance. Dublin architect Paul Quilligan, a prime mover in the campaign, says the awkward title was not dictated solely by the need for a catchy acronym. Rescuing Bewley's lovers from the fatalism and sticky-bun nostalgia into which most of them have sunk was also a factor.
"We wanted the word 'saved' in the title to send out the message that the cafés are not gone," he says. The cafés are very nearly gone. The closure announcement started a momentum, and with 10 days left, many skilled staff have already departed - snapped up by other employers in a caffeine-hungry city. Redundancy negotiations are continuing, and with the restaurants accounting for only 5 per cent of the Campbell Bewley Group's business, there are plenty of opportunities for redeployment. The many foreign staff on work visas or permits will be guaranteed jobs elsewhere, the company says.
There are mixed feelings among employees about the launch of a rescue campaign, not so much at the 11th hour as at five to 12. When Campbell Bewley flagged the possible closures last February, nobody shouted anything. Even so, Patrick Campbell - distraught when announcing the final decision to staff - is said to still have an open mind about anything that would preserve Bewley's.
There is much uncertainty about the effect of the listed-building status in the event that the premises become clothes shops. Although the Grafton Street building was sold to (and leased back from) Treasury Holdings to finance the refurbishment work that followed the last rescue, Campbell Bewley still owns the famous Harry Clarke windows. If the closure proceeds, these will probably be taken out and displayed in a museum.
But one of the first moves of the campaign group this week was to table an amendment to the Dublin City draft development plan, which would extend the protection of conservation listing beyond mere bricks and mortar to the usage of a building. The next step is to find strategic business partners who could help make the two sites viable. This is the hard bit. Campbell Bewley broached something similar with other restaurateurs who "had a look and walked away", according to a spokeswoman.
On the other hand, in Quilligan's proposal, a new business plan would be supported by initial grant aid and tax designation. Green TD Ciaran Cuffe, who also attended Wednesday's meeting, hopes to bring an all-party motion to the Dáil.
Special treatment is justified, the campaigners say, because it's a special case. Michael Conaghan lent the weight of his lord mayor's chain to the effort after receiving numerous phone calls: "People were ringing from Belfast and England saying: 'We only go to Grafton Street because of Bewley's.' "
Michael James Ford, artistic director of Bewley's Café Theatre, and another member of the rescue team, puts it like this: "Bewley's is mentioned in every guide book about Ireland. As a tourist feature, it pays its way."
The Grafton Street café may have to close temporarily this afternoon, as it did last Saturday, when the queues of nostalgic customers became too long. But whatever happens in the next 10 days, the café's doors will be closed with permanent intent on November 30th - a point underlined again yesterday in a company statement. They will stay closed on December 1st (although the shop will continue to trade until Christmas) and whether they ever open again is doubtful.
Quilligan doesn't disagree. "I know it's a long shot," he says. "But Dublin has lost so much already. Bewley's is too valuable to let go without a fight."