Post by sader1970 on Jun 27, 2022 15:07:56 GMT -5
Worcester institution O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar to be sold; name will remain same
Rick Eggleston
Telegram & Gazette
WORCESTER — After more than three decades behind the bar and in the kitchen, Brendan and Claire O'Connor announced Sunday they are selling their beloved West Boylston Street institution O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar.
The couple, who've been involved in the hospitality industry for decades, have decided to retire, and are selling the 1160 West Boylston St. establishment to restauranteurs Dennis and Jennifer Maxwell, and their son, Kyle, according to a press release issued by the restaurant late Sunday.
“Claire and I came over from Ireland over 30 years ago with a dream of establishing an Irish restaurant and bar in America. We had never been to Massachusetts and knew nothing of Worcester," O'Connor's founder and co-owner Brendan O'Connor, 67, said. "Here we are 34 years later, and to say we found our home is an understatement. The Worcester community embraced us and our establishment, and we could not be more grateful.”
The couple has owned and operated O'Connor's in the city since 1989.
The city License Commission is expected to approve the transfer of the liquor license from the O’Connors to the Maxwells at Thursday's scheduled meeting. The move will formally begin the transition of ownership, which will be then have to be approved by the state.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed and closing date is anticipated for early August, the release said.
According to O'Connor, the Maxwell family will continue running the restaurant as O’Connor’s Restaurant & Bar, and existing restaurant management and staff will remain.
“O’Connor’s is a beloved institution in Worcester and we are excited to build upon its legacy,” Kyle Maxwell said in the release. “Worcester is a special place with a solid sense of community and we are delighted to become a more integral part of it and continue the grand welcoming tradition of O’Connor’s.”
Restaurateur O'Connor recalls path from Ireland to Worcester
Nicole Shih
Telegram & Gazette
WORCESTER — During the 1980s worldwide recession, Ireland had one of the bleakest times in its history, with about 25% of its population unemployed.
In 1987, Brendan D. O'Connor, who co-owns O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar on 1160 West Boylston St. with his wife, Claire, partly owned three wine bars in London with his college roommates, but thereafter sold them and opened a small hotel in Ireland.
But the recession brought about failure of his new business.
"When you're that young, and I don't think we'd have been as successful here if we hadn't had such a failure in the hotel," O'Connor said. "We didn't make any money, and it made me think about the next one (that) has to be the right one."
Bombing attacks in London stir anti-Irish sentiment
Though the economy was the biggest factor that drove O'Connor to America, he recalled a time when Irish people were oppressed and anti-Irish sentiments rose.
When a car bomb planted by members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army exploded outside the Harrods department store in London in December 1983, O'Connor worked at a hotel as a house manager near the store.
O'Connor recalled the injuries, destruction and panic after the blast, which killed three police officers and three civilians and injured 90 people.
Back then in England, O'Connor said, it wasn't nice to be Irish. Several more bombing attacks occurred in the region, and that spurred his exodus from Ireland, he said.
"I think that would be one of the crucial decisions, but I'm not proud of that," he said.
O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar opened in 1989
O'Connor and his wife met in college and married in Ireland. They later moved to London for work. Thanks to his wife's American citizenship, O'Connor, then 29, immigrated to the U.S. in 1988 with Claire and their 1-year-old son, Rory, from their hometown of Limerick, Ireland. The couple also have another son, Eamon.
Before moving to the U.S., the couple had a wide international experience working in England, Scotland, France, Switzerland and Germany, as well as other countries.
O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar, 1160 West Boylston St., Worcester.
The family first landed outside Boston in Norwood, where they had family and friends in the region. They moved to Worcester in November 1988 and opened O'Connor's in 1989 — a yearlong endeavor that saw them assess some 120 locations around Greater Boston and New York before deciding that Worcester offered the best economic value for their business.
In the 1980s, O'Connor said Worcester's population was around 40% ethnic Irish origin. Though Boston or New York might have more Irish people, the high percentage of people in Worcester County claimed some parts of Irish heritage, he said. It was another reason why they decided to settle and open a business here.
Plus, there wasn't any Irish restaurant in the area at the time, and that became a good fit for them, O'Connor said.
"We were trying to get a business that we could run ourselves, own a business, meaning owning the real estate in the business, and have a family life as well as a business," he said. "But you own a restaurant, you live with it, it's part of a family."
O'Connor said his mother baked a lot when he was little, which helped inspire his passion for food and opening a restaurant. His mother baked 50 to 100 loaves of bread a day in a small oven, waking up at 4 a.m. O'Connor said he will always remember the smell.
According to O'Connor, it's quite different operating a restaurant in Ireland as opposed to the U.S., though the essentials are the same — providing decent food and services with a unique personality. In Ireland, events never ended, one after another — baptisms, bridal showers, rehearsal dinners and weddings, and funerals. It's the cycle of life, O'Connor said.
"And it's kind of buzzy here (in the U.S.) and to just come out for dinner with your friends," he said.
Being Irish-American
O'Connor was always interested in the restaurant business and has been a part of it since he was 14. Whether as a busboy, a chef or even taking a semester abroad at Cornell University to major in hotel management, O'Connor said he was well prepared to start his own business.
"I had that dream that I could make it here because I believe that hard work would make it," he said. "I wasn't sure that you could do that in Ireland or England, (and) in fact, once it started rolling, I was surprised not how easy but how fast the ball rolled for us.
"(Often said) you fail before you succeed. You should lose the Super Bowl before you win it, so I really believe that in business, too, and nobody's going to (always) get home runs."
Due to Ireland's small population of around 5 million, O'Connor saw Central Massachusetts had a bigger market along with the Massachusetts Miracle — the booming economic growth in Massachusetts during the 1980s.
"I thought we could make a good living. I thought we could have enjoyed it. We liked the vibe. I certainly liked the vibe of Massachusetts," he said, recalling what he likes about America.
Of course, however, there were some obstacles, such as finding a bank to back them up.
"Sometimes you're better off not knowing what you're getting yourself into because you wouldn't do it in the first place," he said, adding that they did have some capital when they sold the hotel in Ireland and some wine bar investments.
Known to many as "himself" and Claire as "herself" — a real Irish expression, O'Connor said — he feels like he's Irish-American more after spending decades in the country.
"When I go to Limerick, I really feel love from an American," he said. "I like both (countries) equally. I feel safe (here). I love my neighbors." He added that he lives down the street near the restaurant in the same house he bought 34 years ago.
Though being two different breeds of Irish in Massachusetts and in New York, he said, where New York is closer to the coast of their motherland, O'Connor is proud to be Irish and in a city where he feels he belongs to.
"I'm so proud of the fact that I am Irish. I'm from Limerick, but I'm also very proud to be a Worcester resident," he said.
Rick Eggleston
Telegram & Gazette
WORCESTER — After more than three decades behind the bar and in the kitchen, Brendan and Claire O'Connor announced Sunday they are selling their beloved West Boylston Street institution O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar.
The couple, who've been involved in the hospitality industry for decades, have decided to retire, and are selling the 1160 West Boylston St. establishment to restauranteurs Dennis and Jennifer Maxwell, and their son, Kyle, according to a press release issued by the restaurant late Sunday.
“Claire and I came over from Ireland over 30 years ago with a dream of establishing an Irish restaurant and bar in America. We had never been to Massachusetts and knew nothing of Worcester," O'Connor's founder and co-owner Brendan O'Connor, 67, said. "Here we are 34 years later, and to say we found our home is an understatement. The Worcester community embraced us and our establishment, and we could not be more grateful.”
The couple has owned and operated O'Connor's in the city since 1989.
The city License Commission is expected to approve the transfer of the liquor license from the O’Connors to the Maxwells at Thursday's scheduled meeting. The move will formally begin the transition of ownership, which will be then have to be approved by the state.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed and closing date is anticipated for early August, the release said.
According to O'Connor, the Maxwell family will continue running the restaurant as O’Connor’s Restaurant & Bar, and existing restaurant management and staff will remain.
“O’Connor’s is a beloved institution in Worcester and we are excited to build upon its legacy,” Kyle Maxwell said in the release. “Worcester is a special place with a solid sense of community and we are delighted to become a more integral part of it and continue the grand welcoming tradition of O’Connor’s.”
Restaurateur O'Connor recalls path from Ireland to Worcester
Nicole Shih
Telegram & Gazette
WORCESTER — During the 1980s worldwide recession, Ireland had one of the bleakest times in its history, with about 25% of its population unemployed.
In 1987, Brendan D. O'Connor, who co-owns O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar on 1160 West Boylston St. with his wife, Claire, partly owned three wine bars in London with his college roommates, but thereafter sold them and opened a small hotel in Ireland.
But the recession brought about failure of his new business.
"When you're that young, and I don't think we'd have been as successful here if we hadn't had such a failure in the hotel," O'Connor said. "We didn't make any money, and it made me think about the next one (that) has to be the right one."
Bombing attacks in London stir anti-Irish sentiment
Though the economy was the biggest factor that drove O'Connor to America, he recalled a time when Irish people were oppressed and anti-Irish sentiments rose.
When a car bomb planted by members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army exploded outside the Harrods department store in London in December 1983, O'Connor worked at a hotel as a house manager near the store.
O'Connor recalled the injuries, destruction and panic after the blast, which killed three police officers and three civilians and injured 90 people.
Back then in England, O'Connor said, it wasn't nice to be Irish. Several more bombing attacks occurred in the region, and that spurred his exodus from Ireland, he said.
"I think that would be one of the crucial decisions, but I'm not proud of that," he said.
O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar opened in 1989
O'Connor and his wife met in college and married in Ireland. They later moved to London for work. Thanks to his wife's American citizenship, O'Connor, then 29, immigrated to the U.S. in 1988 with Claire and their 1-year-old son, Rory, from their hometown of Limerick, Ireland. The couple also have another son, Eamon.
Before moving to the U.S., the couple had a wide international experience working in England, Scotland, France, Switzerland and Germany, as well as other countries.
O'Connor's Restaurant & Bar, 1160 West Boylston St., Worcester.
The family first landed outside Boston in Norwood, where they had family and friends in the region. They moved to Worcester in November 1988 and opened O'Connor's in 1989 — a yearlong endeavor that saw them assess some 120 locations around Greater Boston and New York before deciding that Worcester offered the best economic value for their business.
In the 1980s, O'Connor said Worcester's population was around 40% ethnic Irish origin. Though Boston or New York might have more Irish people, the high percentage of people in Worcester County claimed some parts of Irish heritage, he said. It was another reason why they decided to settle and open a business here.
Plus, there wasn't any Irish restaurant in the area at the time, and that became a good fit for them, O'Connor said.
"We were trying to get a business that we could run ourselves, own a business, meaning owning the real estate in the business, and have a family life as well as a business," he said. "But you own a restaurant, you live with it, it's part of a family."
O'Connor said his mother baked a lot when he was little, which helped inspire his passion for food and opening a restaurant. His mother baked 50 to 100 loaves of bread a day in a small oven, waking up at 4 a.m. O'Connor said he will always remember the smell.
According to O'Connor, it's quite different operating a restaurant in Ireland as opposed to the U.S., though the essentials are the same — providing decent food and services with a unique personality. In Ireland, events never ended, one after another — baptisms, bridal showers, rehearsal dinners and weddings, and funerals. It's the cycle of life, O'Connor said.
"And it's kind of buzzy here (in the U.S.) and to just come out for dinner with your friends," he said.
Being Irish-American
O'Connor was always interested in the restaurant business and has been a part of it since he was 14. Whether as a busboy, a chef or even taking a semester abroad at Cornell University to major in hotel management, O'Connor said he was well prepared to start his own business.
"I had that dream that I could make it here because I believe that hard work would make it," he said. "I wasn't sure that you could do that in Ireland or England, (and) in fact, once it started rolling, I was surprised not how easy but how fast the ball rolled for us.
"(Often said) you fail before you succeed. You should lose the Super Bowl before you win it, so I really believe that in business, too, and nobody's going to (always) get home runs."
Due to Ireland's small population of around 5 million, O'Connor saw Central Massachusetts had a bigger market along with the Massachusetts Miracle — the booming economic growth in Massachusetts during the 1980s.
"I thought we could make a good living. I thought we could have enjoyed it. We liked the vibe. I certainly liked the vibe of Massachusetts," he said, recalling what he likes about America.
Of course, however, there were some obstacles, such as finding a bank to back them up.
"Sometimes you're better off not knowing what you're getting yourself into because you wouldn't do it in the first place," he said, adding that they did have some capital when they sold the hotel in Ireland and some wine bar investments.
Known to many as "himself" and Claire as "herself" — a real Irish expression, O'Connor said — he feels like he's Irish-American more after spending decades in the country.
"When I go to Limerick, I really feel love from an American," he said. "I like both (countries) equally. I feel safe (here). I love my neighbors." He added that he lives down the street near the restaurant in the same house he bought 34 years ago.
Though being two different breeds of Irish in Massachusetts and in New York, he said, where New York is closer to the coast of their motherland, O'Connor is proud to be Irish and in a city where he feels he belongs to.
"I'm so proud of the fact that I am Irish. I'm from Limerick, but I'm also very proud to be a Worcester resident," he said.
