emme ane's book

"You know the film, The Commitments? Rob Strong's son is a actor in it," says the shy lady who owns the Cool totally International and Cosmopolitan Bar named The Field Pub in Kilkenny, Ireland. Her name is Sally Ann and her husband is John. The have a New York and Kilkenny connection and have such a cool collection of Sports and Movie paraphernalia in their Pub it is amazing. "Rob Strong" is the resident musician here on Tuesday nights. I say, really? O wow that is cool. I loved that movie the commitments. "Here is Babe Ruth's transfer papers from 1919 when he left the Boston Red Sox and signed the contract for 25,000.00 American Dollars which was incredible in this period." she says as she shows me the weathered letter on the wall. The entire Pub has floor to ceiling Micheal Jordans and Hurling Champions combined. "And we have the largest Hurley hanging over the Bartenders!" she says! The Field Bar & Restaurant Sports & Live Music Kilkenny Logo

http://www.thefieldkilkenny.com/

Sally introduces me to her husband who tells me a little bit about the famous ghost that haunts the Pub. "She is said to have been poisoned when the Queen learned of her husband's mistress living above the Pub secretly. The King James lived in the castle and used to visit her upstairs in the Pub and when the Queen learned about his mistress she had a local lady named Jane Pennyfeather poison her. Two months later Jane Pennyfeather was found dead in the alley late at night. When the Queen didn't like you you didn't live long in these days." he said.

"In addition to the great ghosts, we have wonderful music everyday from 18:00pm to 20:30pm everynight called the Wrong Direction Band. And we have starting on Wednesday live music everyday from 3:00pm til we close. WE are definitely the Music Pub in the town." he says. Located right on HighStreet across from Rive Gauche, 056-7 70 27 63

Her two little twins run in with Hurley sticks and they join in the tour around the Pub. It is definitely a family pub! Ian and Scott is the twin's names. Their favorite sports figures? "TJ ried and DJ Carey." they write in my book and I say that I hope they become famous and I can say I have their autographs in about 20 years!

"Late at night she haunts the Pub. One night me and some guests were sitting here drinking with the bartender. All of a sudden four glasses raised from the shelf, suspended in the air and fell onto the floor. All of us saw that and just stared in awe at what was happening. It wasn't like they tipped over and fell off the shelf...they literally lifted up and fell onto the floor. Another night the back door opened and we ran outside after whoever and saw a lady in lilac dress, which the haunted lady used to wear, drifting down the alley and around the corner.She had long black hair floating around her back." he says. The bartender James says, "That happens all the time. The guests say when they walk up the stairs you can feel a hand on your arm as if grabbing you. Many times the guests tell us that. Come tonight and see if something happens. We have the paranormal people asking if they can come and see if a ghost's presence is here." he says. And of course me who loves ghosts is coming. The staff and team are wonderful and remembered my name and what I had as a pint the night before...um! That is both a wonderful thing and a bad thing! Please come meet these wonderful people, have some pints, eat the great Irish food, visit the upstairs Medieval Castle Dining rooms, and maybe have a surprise free dinner theater named Finnegan's Wake while you eat. Yes...free!

The cool sports memorabilia on the walls of The Field, Kilkenny

Bollards Pub in Kilkenny 32 ST. Kierans, Kilkenny

http://visitkilkenny.ie/bollards_bar Bollards Bar and Bistro Kilkenny

The Cool Laidback Funky Bar named Bollards has been in the family since 1904, and the 3rd generation says, "I have a wonderful life, a happy wife who works in the kitchen here sometimes, 5 young children and have traveled the world. Yet it is a hard life and I don't know if I would want my children coming into the Pub life. It is my choice in 1973 to do that kind of life and I have great fun meeting 50% tourists from everywhere in the world everyday and seeing my friends. Yet is is long hours to own a Pub. And Yes I do have great bands on Fridays." he says when I tell him that my international hostel in the city has his name "Bollards" on the live music suggestion for Fridays. #32 St. Kierans at reservations 05 67 7613 19

Situated in the heart of Kilkenny's shopping area. Bollard's pub has been in the Bollard family since 1904. - See more at: http://visitkilkenny.ie/bollards_bar#sthash.9v77R0I9.dpuf

"Nowadays I can relax and enjoy life a little more. I can come and go as I please. When you first start a Pub or you are the next generation of a Publican you work many hours, maybe 80 hrs. a week. You have to put your life into a Pub. As I get older, I enjoy life more!" says Mr. Bollard.

Situated in the heart of Kilkenny's shopping area. Bollard's pub has been in the Bollard family since 1904. - See more at: http://visitkilkenny.ie/bollards_bar#sthash.9v77R0I9.dpuf

"I've been to Malta recently, and me and my wife visit the children in Dublin which is very accessible, and next year Mexico. San Francisco is one of my favorite cities too. You know Kilkenny is special. It is a little village with a big heart. Tourists love it, but it is the real Ireland. You have to be nice to the people for the Irish people to be nice to you. Maybe if the tourists would visit more of the country of Ireland they would see what we're really about." says the much more cosmopolitan owner than I would of imagined coming from the country. I agree. The wild Ireland is pretty cool and pretty crazy too. Beware, it isn't finishing school!

Bollards is a comfortable tradtional Irish Pub with little hidden nooks and crannies as we like to call em in America. You can come in and find yourself sitting in about 3 different snugs where you can have a bunch of friends such as 10 sit around and laugh and have a couple pints each and reminisce about the olden days or that very day depending on your age! That is the kind of lovely Pub it is. All brass and class. Beautiful and Cozy. It was my first pub of my 5 days in Kilkenny and I went in and say hi to Mr. Bollard the very first day. He is that kind of older distinguished gentleman that you see as the Principal of a prep school and I only ever knew him as Mr. Bollard. Yet he is friendly and talkative and approachable once you say hi. Definitely Old School and Real. Love it.

photo of Cafe SOL courtesy of Patryk Witkowski

With a menu of seared Hake or Salmon and baby potatoes presented in a fine dining beautiful way...wonderful to see and to eat! "People think of Irish food as Beef and Guinness Pie, Lamb Pie, Potatoes and beer and more beer. Yet we do have the same ingredients maybe with a different way to prepare these with the sauces and the expertise of the chefs. Although they have been different as the restaurant matures, the highest quality that the original owners strived for remains. That is my challenge to keep the original intent. It is difficult and some days I think why in the world am I doing this again? I long for the financial world at times." Noel jokes.

The Charming owner of Cafe SOL is Noel! as in the lovely innotation that you remember around Christmas...the first Noel is a lovely song. The man who owns the Fine dining Bistro is a lovely person. When I enter I ask if it is a French Restaurant and if he is French to which he isn't too keen on yet says graciously that it is to come to a fine dining Irish Restaurant that has been here 20 years and the original owners are graduates from the famous cooking school Ballymaloe in Cork. "High Quality and Friendly Attentive Service I believe is the reason that people have come back year after year since its been opened. I've personally owned the restaurant the last 10 years since 2005. I was originally in finance and took a chance with my first restaurant here. While it is fun it is much more challenging than at first thought. It is much harder to run a real high quality restaurant than it is to succeed in finance. Here I try to combine the both. I try to succeed with my guests, to succeed with the highest quality food, to succeed with keeping my team happy and finally to succeed financially in order to do all of that." he says laughing. "The food is 100% Irish, yet it is fine dining Irish. All the products come from Ireland. I loved the city of Kilkenny and wanted to introduce to the world to the Irish culture with the presentation of the finest Irish cooking."

    The original owners of the wonderful restaurant come from the amazing cooking school that is famous round the world...the Ballymaloe in 1983 in the city of Cork...world famous.
   http://www.cookingisfun.ie/ballymaloe-cookery-school/lecturers/rory-oconnell

Below the famous Cafe Sol in Kilkenny has fine dining that has ebbed and flowed with the years yet the original high quality concept remains. Located at Kilkenny William St. 05 67 76 49 87.
                                               http://www.restaurantskilkenny.com/ https://www.facebook.com/cafesolbistro/timeline

Below the Amazingly Beautiful RIVE GAUCHE in Kilkenny, a 4 level wonder of beauty, bars, cocktail lounges, outdoor Jimmy Buffet Style tiki Bars, and a Nightclub on the top level on Saturdays. "It is just too big to open the upstairs except on Saturdays," says the wonderfully friendly Peter who manages RIVE GAUCHE.

http://www.rivegauchekk.com/

With Glitzy Atmosphere, Swanky Deep Dark Rooms and Fashion Shoots, "RIVE GAUCHE is the Place to be in Ireland on a Friday and Saturday," says Peter, "Tourists come yet you would be amazed how many people from Ireland come here from everywhere to party at RIVE GAUCHE." he says.

Yum yum and yes we love it. Ciao

"The menu is inspired by food that’s foraged, farmed and fished from the rugged coast of Ireland and includes a wide selection of dishes where the emphasis is on fresh produce while focusing on the seasons. " says their website. "Me personally I find it very French." says Peter.

The bartending team tells me the cocktails are the best in Kilkenny! I believe the team.

"We love the tour groups that come in during the lunch hours yet we seriously need more tourists coming here to have dinner and cocktails at night. For instance the weekend of June 3 to June 5 we have the world's largest Comedy Festival named the CAT Laughs! You should definitely let the readers know about that. Every place is booked and every venue that allows live music has the shows. We are probably going to be crazily insanely full on these days. It is a good time for the tourists to come and meet elbow to elbow the Irish people and to mix each other's humor!" he says laughing.

The Parade, Kilkenny (056) 7 7 7 5604