- 5 minutes ago
Alan Clancy, the Hospitality Entrepreneur behind DÍON, has developed and operated bars, restaurants and late-night venues in Ireland. His approach combines ambitious design with close attention to the customer journey, from transforming a rooftop above Dublin’s former Central Bank building to reconsidering the weight of the front door.
Watch now to learn how Clancy transformed a rooftop above Dublin’s former Central Bank building, why he asked other hospitality leaders for guidance and how small details shape the customer experience.
Restaurant Influencers is sponsored by:
• Toast All-In-1 Restaurant POS: https://entm.ag/ToastRI
• PepsiCo Foodservice: https://entm.ag/RIPepsico
Watch now to learn how Clancy transformed a rooftop above Dublin’s former Central Bank building, why he asked other hospitality leaders for guidance and how small details shape the customer experience.
Restaurant Influencers is sponsored by:
• Toast All-In-1 Restaurant POS: https://entm.ag/ToastRI
• PepsiCo Foodservice: https://entm.ag/RIPepsico
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NewsTranscript
00:00What are we without customers? Yeah, you know what I mean? We're empty. We're out of business. We're nobody, you
00:05know what I mean?
00:06And like, if you don't, if you don't engage and enjoy them and want to be part with them, I
00:12don't think this business is for you.
00:21Welcome to Restaurant Influencers, presented by Entrepreneur. I'm your host, Sean Walchef.
00:25This is a Cali BBQ Media production. In life, in the restaurant business, in the menu creator economy, we learn
00:32through lessons and stories.
00:34I'm sitting in the center of Dublin on the most historic building with Alan Clancy, the man behind Dion Rooftop
00:46Restaurant.
00:47So many venues, a legendary hospitality professional here in Ireland.
00:51I started this podcast. I own restaurants in San Diego. 18 years we've been in business.
00:56I've got a team running our Cali BBQ restaurants right now.
00:58I built a media company on top of it with a belief in storytelling, technology, and hospitality that connects all
01:06of us around the globe.
01:07To be honest with you, I never thought that it would bring me to magical places like Dublin to be
01:12in.
01:12This might be one of the most beautiful restaurants I've ever stepped foot in.
01:16The attention to detail is immaculate. We will show behind-the-scenes footage of all the incredible, intricate details from
01:24how you get into this restaurant to, obviously, what Dublin looks like on a beautiful day.
01:30Alan, welcome to the show.
01:31Good to have you here, Sean.
01:33I really, really appreciate the opportunity to sit down with you. I know how busy your schedule is.
01:38Can you bring me back? This is a storytelling podcast. Can you bring me back to when this was just
01:44a building and there was no Dion here?
01:47Oh, yeah. So it's going back to about 2016.
01:53When you talk about this building being a famous building, it was the central bank of Ireland.
01:58That's where it was. So this is where all the fun stuff happened on the floors below.
02:04And historically, in 2008, the world crashed and this was the epicentre of it for Ireland, you know, the central
02:12bank and all the dealings took place on the floors below us.
02:17And in 2014, they decided to move down to a premises down by the water on the north side of
02:25the docks.
02:27They relocated at Central Bank and then it was the whole development was sold to a company called Heinz and
02:35they came up with a plan to redevelop.
02:38And then they had they had some concept ideas and a few different a few different ideas for the whole
02:46building and the managing director called me and said, would I have a look at it?
02:52I had a brief look at it. I wasn't as much into restaurants at that time.
02:57It was more bars and late night bars and, you know, just getting I knew the tide was turning into
03:02the food business.
03:03It was very important for our for our world, you know what I mean, especially daytime drinking was like getting
03:08less and less.
03:09And the health was coming in a little bit then. And, you know, health is really, you know, took a
03:14big part of it now.
03:15But food was a huge part of develop making use of my premises all day, you know, so that was
03:21where I seen it.
03:21And then I I looked at it with a colleague of mine, Laura, and we came over here and the
03:29lift only went to floor eight.
03:33And the idea was to put two more floors on the building.
03:36We got out onto the roof, you know, small step ladder, had a look around.
03:44Couldn't ideally see the vision, you know, I mean, but like there was so much going on up here.
03:48I said like that, oh, that's going to that's going to take a lot of money and a lot of
03:52time, a lot of effort.
03:55But fast forward then, like I went to the market in 2019, the tendered for it.
04:01And I didn't win the tender. I was nowhere.
04:04I was nowhere. But my concept, because my concept at the presentation, the tender time,
04:11was that I wanted to create something Irish.
04:14I wanted to, you know, I've seen the big international brands coming into town, you know,
04:21and I'm thinking like, you know, it's hard for me to sit back and, you know, say these are all
04:26better.
04:26Everybody's better. You know, I'm thinking, why can't someone from Ireland do this?
04:31Why can't, you know, but I didn't have it together at the time.
04:35So I went in low, but they liked my concept.
04:39They went with somebody else, which was, which was not a good idea.
04:45Yeah.
04:45But anyway, I sat back, COVID comes along.
04:49And I kind of have to reinvent myself after COVID because we closed.
04:54One of my bars, one of my main bars in the city at 37 Dawson Street,
05:00was closed for nearly two years, you know, so to come back out of that was hard.
05:05But one of my other bars that I created in 2000, I created in 2013 called House.
05:11It had a big garden. It had, you know, really good late night business.
05:16And we brought food back into that, into there.
05:18And we went with the food ourselves and we created a lovely restaurant.
05:22And it really, really took off. And the garden outside was very popular.
05:27And as it happens, there was a rugby match in Dublin and it was big.
05:33We were busy. And the managing director of Heinz at the time, same guy, came along and says,
05:39oh, you're disappointed you didn't take the roof.
05:41I said, oh, well, listen, you know, these things, some things hit you, some things miss you.
05:46And I said, but you know, if I was looking at it again, I'd look with different eyes.
05:50And he said, would you ever look at it again?
05:52And I says, absolutely.
05:54You know, he says, he says, I don't know how we're getting on with the other guys,
05:58but would you come back and have a chat with me?
06:00Yeah.
06:01So I said, absolutely, why not?
06:03And he, at this stage, this frame was put on the roof.
06:07The glass frame was 90% on the, on the building.
06:11So I said, come over, seen a whole different landscape, you know,
06:15seen a completely different, seen their ideas and felt that, yeah,
06:20I would have another go at it.
06:21You know what I mean?
06:22So I went out and spent a few bob on developing concept,
06:26traveled a bit to see what I would do.
06:29So my biggest influence on here is Sushi Samba in Dubai.
06:34Okay.
06:34You know, 78 floors up and a lot of structure in the way as well,
06:40but the design is really well around, you know, and got, got a good buzz over there.
06:46Then did a little bit in Miami, did a little bit then in Vegas.
06:50Delilah had just come on the scene in Vegas.
06:53So when I was in Vegas, I went to see Delilah.
06:55I really liked to, went up to see the one in New York, in Los Angeles as well.
07:00And that whole concept, dining, entertainment, and like a one-stop kind of night out,
07:07which hasn't happened really that much in Dublin.
07:09I felt that that was the biggest influence I was having.
07:12So Sushi Samba, Delilah, and then I enjoyed Miami more so for like Sexy Fish had done a really nice
07:20job.
07:21Carbone had done an amazing job in Miami.
07:24Komodo and a couple of others had all done like really, really good deliveries on what they were doing
07:31because they had gone with the design, the entertainment, and the food, you know what I mean?
07:36So, and the restaurant world was changing.
07:39You could see it changing into being very drink influenced, which is part of, which is my background.
07:45But I'd never felt that we'd be able to deliver something that we have, you know,
07:51but they are my influence to get to where I am.
07:55And I've, I've met with some guys along the way and, and a guy behind Sushi Samba, Omar.
07:59I've met Omar and he like, he gave me guidance.
08:02And I appreciated that.
08:04I met a couple of guys, Tony LaPena, who's with Delilah, with the Delilah guys, helped me as well.
08:10So I, I reached out to people and said, listen, this is what I'm thinking of doing.
08:14And so that was the start.
08:16That's how I ended up here and, you know.
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09:37One of the things that we talk about on this show is hospitality professionals, restaurateurs, pubs.
09:46One of the things that's really hard for us to learn how to do is to ask for help.
09:50Yeah.
09:51How did you learn how to ask for help?
09:52Well, this was like something that hasn't been done before in Ireland.
09:58And, you know, I don't think I'd be humble enough to know I'm not that good.
10:02You know what I mean?
10:03Like that I needed a lot of guidance.
10:06It was more than help.
10:07You know what I mean?
10:08It was like, where were your mistakes?
10:09Where were your pitfalls?
10:10You know what I mean?
10:12That's the help we need.
10:13Yeah.
10:13Yeah.
10:13Tell me where you fell down so that I don't fall in my face.
10:16And then good things like, you know, I'm sure you know, technology has played a huge part in our business.
10:24Like, you know, and I spoke to them about technology and they were embracing all I was embracing at that
10:31time.
10:31So, um, the guys in Toast, the guys in Seven Rooms, you know, there are new concepts to Dublin.
10:38And so I embrace both of those.
10:40We've, we've, local guys have developed a really good app for procurement over here and timekeeping and all that called
10:47Nori.
10:47They're developing that out.
10:49We engage with all those to make sure that we could make it as easy on the back of house
10:53as possible.
10:54Because as you know, you can get caught in the office and like, I've yet to see a restaurant who
10:59makes money in the office.
11:00Do you know what I mean?
11:01Like, the most expensive table in the building is generally in the office.
11:06So true.
11:07You know, so.
11:08Tell us a little bit about the, how you embrace technology.
11:12Because in a fine dining concept like this, I can see hesitation to bringing technology like Toast into a restaurant.
11:20It was, it's an incredible part of what we do, you know, because, um, you're only as good, obviously,
11:27as the information you put into these, these, uh, these systems, you know.
11:33And, but, but I found Toast made it very easy to, to input, to export.
11:38You know, like the app on my phone is second to none.
11:42You know what I mean?
11:43Like, it's.
11:43I can check right now and see how my stores are doing.
11:45In San Diego.
11:46We're in the time.
11:47Yeah.
11:47And like, that is probably, for me, who, who's moving through a number of premises.
11:53Yeah.
11:53That's the one I find the easiest, easy access.
11:56Tells me, tells me what I want to know.
11:59It's got all the information.
12:00There's no doubt about it.
12:01But it tells me what I want to know.
12:03And I, I have it for what I, my KPIs might be different than yours.
12:07You know, I'm looking at certain things at a certain time.
12:10Obviously wages are the biggest KPI we have out there.
12:13But I, I, I really like studying that.
12:17Do you know what I mean?
12:17And seeing, like, I call, I call it miles per hour.
12:20You probably know the name for many staff are on for the hours of doing versus turnover.
12:24And like, that's all, that's monitoring that all the time.
12:27You can never switch off on that in our business, unfortunately, because.
12:31You know, you can't, you can't, you know, use up the hours this week.
12:35They're gone.
12:36You know, you've spent the money.
12:38There was no getting back on them.
12:39You know what I mean?
12:40Like you still need the same staff again next week.
12:42And if you don't use the hours properly, it can be a real waste of money and talent.
12:47You know what I mean?
12:47Because there's no point in having the guys on, the good guys on.
12:50Correct.
12:51When you don't need them, you know?
12:52Did you know that Toast powers over 140,000 restaurants across the United States, Canada,
12:58and UK?
12:59It's an incredible company.
13:01I'm on the Toast customer advisory board.
13:03They are proud sponsors of this show, Restaurant Influencers.
13:06We couldn't do it without their support.
13:08They power our barbecue restaurants in San Diego.
13:11If you have questions about Toast, if you're thinking about bringing Toast on to be your
13:15primary technology partner at your restaurants, please reach out to me.
13:19I'm happy to get a local Toast representative to take care of you.
13:23You can reach me at Sean P. Welchef on Instagram.
13:26Once again, thank you to Toast for believing in the power of technology, the power of storytelling,
13:31the power of hospitality.
13:33Back to the show.
13:34How long did it take for ideation to opening the doors?
13:39And when did we open it?
13:40Bring me to the opening.
13:42So I kind of agreed with the guys here in early 2021.
13:49Okay.
13:52And negotiations, legals, all that took about six to eight months.
13:56But in that time then, I had done a little bit of research and I knew that
14:04who I'd like to design it?
14:05No.
14:07And my colleague, we thought we wouldn't get them.
14:09But my colleague, Laura, reached out to them at the time.
14:13And, you know, they showed a genuine interest because we had a drone of the building, which
14:18was a great pitch, you know, great pitch.
14:21Visual pitch.
14:21Yeah, it was the visual pitch.
14:23Drone of the building.
14:24Storytelling always plays a part.
14:26Yeah, yeah.
14:28So we spoke to Greg Markell in iCrave in New York, who had designed Sushi Samba in Dubai.
14:38Yeah.
14:40And Greg's a really good guy.
14:45And he engaged with us, like, very positively, you know what I mean?
14:49But, like, did outline at the beginning, like, you know what I mean?
14:52We've never done anything in Europe.
14:53We don't go to Europe.
14:54It's not on our hit list, you know what I mean?
14:58And he explained, listen, you know, would you like a trip to Ireland for a weekend?
15:04That's, you know, that's the least I can do for you.
15:06So myself and Laura engaged with them, got on really well with them.
15:13But the most important part was getting them here.
15:15Yeah.
15:16You know, getting them here.
15:17So the guys come over for three days, four days.
15:22We've seen all of the competition we had.
15:25We've seen the venue.
15:27We've seen all that sort of stuff.
15:29And we all got on really well.
15:32And I think that's an important part for me when I'm designing.
15:35Because I'm very much into design.
15:38That is, like, yeah, my level of detail is, kills me personally, you know what I mean?
15:45Because, like, I just won't let that bone go, you know what I mean?
15:49And I'm still at it today.
15:50And people walk in here and see it's perfect.
15:52And I'm saying, no, no, when you do this, when you do that, you know what I mean?
15:55Like, the front door is too heavy at the moment.
15:58I have a real gripe over that.
16:00It's just like, when you pull it, it's just too heavy.
16:02And I like, yeah.
16:04And it's the customer journey.
16:05Like, what are we without customers?
16:07Yeah.
16:08We're empty.
16:09We're out of business.
16:11We're nobody, you know what I mean?
16:12And, like, if you don't engage and enjoy them and want to be part with them,
16:18I don't think this business is for you.
16:20There is the finance end to it, and there's people to do that, and they're great at it.
16:24But if you're not hospitality-driven, you know what I mean?
16:28I don't know what it is.
16:30It's not a qualification, because there's no qualifications, you know what I mean?
16:33It's just the thing that was in me.
16:34It's DNA.
16:35It's your blood type.
16:36Yeah, it is.
16:36It has to be something like that.
16:39So, got on really well with the guys.
16:42They enjoyed it.
16:43They enjoyed us.
16:45And they said, listen, we'll put a quote together for you guys.
16:50And we'll do a concept quote, and then we'll do a design quote, you know what I mean?
16:54And, like, they couldn't make it any easier, you know what I mean?
16:57And they took everything I wanted.
16:59So, I want to be Irish.
17:01I want to be accessible.
17:02I wanted to be for everybody.
17:06I wanted to be a special occasion, but I wanted to be every occasion.
17:12You know what I mean?
17:12So, I didn't want to feel that nobody came in here and had to dress up to the nines.
17:18You know what I mean?
17:19But I didn't want to be used once every six months.
17:22I wanted to be, you can come in here for lunch.
17:25You know, you can feel comfortable here and you can feel that you're an experience.
17:30And that's, we have delivered that really well, you know, that you, it's casual, but it's
17:35it's very enjoyable and very professional.
17:38The guys here are very professional.
17:39The waiters, the staff from top to bottom, like really professional.
17:43And like, you know, I always rate when I speak to anybody, number one is the customers.
17:47Number two is the staff, you know what I mean?
17:49They don't, we don't get anywhere, you know?
17:50So, got a good team, developing it all the time.
17:54Not everybody worked out, but that's life, you know what I mean?
17:56And like, good people didn't work out.
17:58And like, that happens too, you know what I mean?
18:00But when you, when you pick a football team, you know what I mean?
18:04Maybe the striker's not playing well, you know what I mean?
18:06You have to make a change.
18:07That's, that's, that's what happens, you know what I mean?
18:10So we, 2021 into 22, then we kind of got designs mid 23,
18:19got them out to a few, uh, tendered them out.
18:22And it's a big premise.
18:24It's 18,000 square feet.
18:26Yeah.
18:26So like, it's a lot of fitting out in that.
18:28Yeah.
18:28Yeah.
18:29Yeah.
18:30So, so that wasn't the start of the, the joy.
18:34It was, it was the journey, but it wasn't the joy.
18:37It wasn't the joy.
18:38No.
18:38That is, that is the, that is the part of the entrepreneurship.
18:41People come and they see this and they go, wow, this is amazing.
18:44But they're not there for the dark hours when the things don't work out
18:47and the quotes are not what you expected them to be.
18:50That's right.
18:50The team doesn't show up.
18:51Yeah.
18:51And the permits haven't come through.
18:53Yeah.
18:54Yeah.
18:55And, and previous to the design or just after design coming through,
18:58then I, I, I put together a presentation.
19:01Yeah.
19:01To try and finance this to make sure I could get a few people.
19:06Get a few pennies together.
19:07And it's a half penny bridge, right?
19:09Yeah, it is.
19:09Yeah.
19:09The half penny bridge.
19:10Yeah.
19:10Yeah.
19:10Yeah.
19:11That's right.
19:11Yeah.
19:12To build this.
19:12Right.
19:12So that journey then I had spoken to about six to eight people for a, for a lower investment
19:19figure, just to have a small partner.
19:21And then I met, I was working on something else with a, with a really good guy.
19:27And he came up, I showed him my idea.
19:30And then he, he went to Sushi Samba in Dubai and completely got my idea.
19:35Uh, you know, and then he called me one evening and he says, have you got the other investors
19:42lined up?
19:43I says, I do have, I forward out of six.
19:45I wonder for a seven.
19:47I want.
19:47And he says, well, he says, if you're willing to, to, to not go with the guys, I'd be willing
19:53to do.
19:54Wow.
19:54Fully.
19:55Which was like.
19:56He bought in.
19:56He bought fully in.
19:57Wow.
19:58I bought fully in and like brought so much more with him, with him.
20:02He brought a team behind him.
20:03He brought people with him.
20:06Uh, we have a fantastic financial, uh, director works with us all the time.
20:11Um, but like it, it was a phenomenal backing.
20:16Do you know what I mean?
20:17And like, wouldn't be here today without him.
20:19You know what I mean?
20:20Phenomenal backing doesn't happen without a great vision, but a story to execute.
20:24Yeah.
20:24Yeah.
20:25And, but like, not everybody gets it when you're at a development phase.
20:29You know what I mean?
20:30People don't understand why I have a media company on restaurants.
20:32It makes no sense to anyone.
20:34It made sense to me.
20:35Yeah.
20:35And thank God my wife backed me to go, yes, you can keep podcasting even though this
20:40isn't making us any money.
20:41Yeah.
20:41Yeah.
20:42But here we are on top of the most beautiful, beautiful restaurant.
20:45Yeah.
20:45In all of Ireland.
20:46Sitting down with you.
20:48Yeah.
20:49And it's part of the reason why we dream big dreams.
20:52Absolutely.
20:53And it was incredible that, that he, he seen it for what I wanted and backed me.
20:59And, you know, I'd be forever indebted to him.
21:01You know what I mean?
21:02And he, he remains private.
21:04He enjoys the restaurant.
21:05Yes.
21:05And, and I work with one of his team on a daily basis.
21:09And, but, but I can't say I work with one of his team works with us.
21:13You know what I mean?
21:14In helping us get better.
21:15Yeah.
21:16You know what I mean?
21:16So he doesn't put any, there's no obstructions in our way.
21:19There's nothing like that.
21:20There's pure help all the time.
21:21And you know what?
21:22When it got hot and heavy here in the last few weeks of opening, he was unbelievable.
21:27He was like in there.
21:29He was helping where he could, you know, just to make sure we got over the line.
21:34And like that, very few people do that.
21:37And, and, and he's, he's one in a million.
21:39Do you know what I mean?
21:39That's amazing.
21:40There's no doubt about that.
21:41Can you share a little bit about the obsession with details?
21:44I went through, let's just talk about one of example of many that are all over
21:49literally every corner of this restaurant, but the cocktail book.
21:53Yeah.
21:54Every single cocktail is a signature cocktail with a latitude.
21:58Yes.
21:59So you get an indication of why I picked that cocktail.
22:03Magical.
22:04Can you just share one of the stories with us?
22:06I, I, there's, there is, oh, it's a book of cocktails.
22:10So you have to come and actually experience it.
22:12So at this stage, I'm going to give away one of my secrets.
22:15I've never had a drink.
22:17Oh, never taken the drink.
22:18Amazing.
22:19An Irishman that's never taken a drink.
22:21Never, never in my life.
22:22I've been, I've never taken a drink.
22:24I had an alcoholic drink.
22:25Yeah.
22:25So I, that's where I rely on other people who have a better taste sense than me.
22:30But the concept was mine because I wanted you to feel that you're in it and you could
22:35see something and you engage you.
22:37And then in fairness to the guys at the time, they came together and what about this?
22:42And what about this?
22:42And what about that?
22:43And, and, and there's so many great parts of Dublin you can see from here.
22:47Yes.
22:48It was actually difficult to pick which one, you know what I mean?
22:51So, um, we enjoyed pulling, pulling that all together.
22:55And then they were trying to influence it with where the whiskeys were made in Dublin and where,
23:01where everything was developed.
23:02And, you know, we worked with Diageo on this and like we're now, we can see the storehouse looks down
23:08on us.
23:09The Guinness storehouse, which, which is just behind us.
23:12Yeah.
23:12And, but then Diageo scene we were trying to do and they understood the spirit end of where I was
23:18coming from.
23:19And engaged 1942, Don Julio, you couldn't get a better brand to partner with, you know what I mean?
23:25So we worked off a lot of influence around Dublin.
23:30And then we worked off the Diageo and their influence in Dublin as well, you know what I mean?
23:34And we tried to, we tried to bring people on a journey here where they, where they,
23:41there's history behind everything we do.
23:43Yeah.
23:43It's not just a, it's not just another brainwave.
23:46It's just a sort of concept.
23:47This is all, there's something behind everything we do here.
23:51And it's like, you know, going, going back to the name.
23:55So maybe I should have started the name.
23:57Yeah.
23:58So the name is, is Dien, which is D-I-F-O-N, which that's a Gaelic word for roof.
24:06Dien.
24:06Yeah.
24:07Did you know, I, I spent my career, my media career, actually as a restaurateur,
24:12my thing was filming on the roof of my restaurant.
24:15I had to get out of my restaurant to tell a bigger story.
24:18Yeah.
24:18And I always went on top of the restaurant to tell whether it was Facebook or Instagram
24:22or YouTube.
24:22It was me on the roof saying, I'm the crazy restaurant owner on the roof.
24:26And look at where I am.
24:28You're with the other crazy restaurant.
24:29I'm with the other crazy roof restaurant.
24:32Yeah.
24:32And the top of Ireland.
24:33You never want to be a restaurateur.
24:36You know, I'm here by accident.
24:38Come on, let's go.
24:40So Dien is, everybody calls it Dien, but Dien is the Gaelic word for it.
24:45And it means roof, shelter.
24:47I have goosebumps.
24:48Yeah.
24:48This is magical.
24:49Yeah.
24:50And then the, that's where it started.
24:54And I, that was the very first thing I did on this whole thing.
24:57That was the very first thing.
24:57I named it.
24:58And like, nobody changed it.
25:00And no one challenged to change it.
25:01No one questioned it.
25:02It was like, boom, we are there.
25:04Which, which is, you know, a restaurant.
25:06Everyone has an opinion.
25:07Oh yeah.
25:08This is what you should do.
25:09I have an idea.
25:10Yes, yes.
25:10Let me tell you what you should do.
25:11I love the person who comes in.
25:13I love the person who's into your restaurant when you've just decorated, spent a couple of million quid,
25:17not this one.
25:18You know what you should have done here?
25:20Exactly.
25:20Yeah.
25:20You know what you should have done?
25:21You should have spent a two million quid and you could do what you wanted.
25:23And then I could come and give you an appointment.
25:26Yeah, yeah.
25:28And, you know, outside the roof has got diamonds on it.
25:32It's made of glass diamonds and some of them overreach the buildings.
25:36This is one of the diamonds here.
25:37Wow.
25:38I see it.
25:38You see it coming through right the whole place.
25:39And that's where this comes from.
25:42This is it.
25:43The attention to detail.
25:44So this is the diamond of the glass on the roof.
25:48Six, nine pieces.
25:49And it's in the carpet.
25:50It's everywhere you see.
25:52It's everywhere you can ever get.
25:54And just on the beer mat, to help our waiters and waitresses, and I'm giving this one away.
26:03This side is for still water.
26:06And this side is for sparkling water.
26:09So here.
26:10Decaf regular.
26:11Yeah.
26:11Still sparkling.
26:12Yes.
26:12Simple.
26:14Flags.
26:14Yeah.
26:15This is the magic of hospitality.
26:17Subtle.
26:17Yeah.
26:17So subtle.
26:18You wonder how it happens.
26:19But it does.
26:20It does.
26:20Someone's put a bit of thought into it, you know?
26:22It does.
26:22There's a thought.
26:22Yeah.
26:23So Dion is the name it comes from.
26:28It's called an Irish word for roof.
26:30And I felt that's where I started with my Irish.
26:33The green and the gold is in the carpet.
26:35You know, I used the colors of Ireland wherever I could.
26:39And then I embraced everything else.
26:41So I kind of tracked it back to being Irish as much as possible.
26:43We've got a whiskey wall there with Row & Co.
26:46It's a beautiful whiskey wall.
26:47I will develop that out.
26:49I'm actually currently developing our own Row & Co. and Dion blend.
26:54You know what I mean?
26:55So that'll be in the next little while we develop that.
26:58And developing a journey.
27:00So I really was trying to build a brand.
27:02Yes.
27:03While the manager here at the time, and this is, we're building a restaurant.
27:07That's really what I was trying to do.
27:09So I was thinking, this is something that I want to last a long time.
27:13And then when, you know, just like your hat there with toast.
27:17I know that means toast.
27:18Yes.
27:19Like I want in five years' time.
27:21They want that brand to be Apple.
27:22Yeah.
27:23I want that to be, I want that to be Dion when you see it somewhere else.
27:26You know what I mean?
27:26So that's kind of where I'm going.
27:27You'll see it, you'll see it through the building.
27:30The wood still has it in the ceiling.
27:31Magical.
27:32The wood that's actually aluminium.
27:34Really?
27:35Yeah.
27:35No way.
27:35So there are, there are cable trays.
27:37Wow.
27:38Yeah.
27:39So simple.
27:40So I would be remiss if I didn't ask you about Dublin history.
27:45Speaking of future visions, we went to Guinness and I learned the story of Guinness that this
27:52man had the vision to sign a 9,000 year lease.
27:57Yeah.
27:589,000 years.
27:59Yeah.
28:01I don't know how a human, I mean, we know, we know many impressive entrepreneurs that
28:06we read about the Jeffrey Bezos, the Elon Musks, the, you name, you name it, Steve Jobs.
28:12I don't think any of them would be crazy enough.
28:15Yeah.
28:15To put a 9,000 year lease.
28:18Yeah.
28:18Rope around your neck.
28:19Yeah.
28:19Yeah.
28:20That's unbelievable.
28:21It was phenomenal at the time.
28:23You know what I mean?
28:23But like, you know, you know, when you're in something, the belief you have.
28:27Deep belief.
28:28Yeah.
28:29Like this guy had it.
28:30A filtered belief.
28:31And he's only 250 or 256 or eight, 10 years into it now at this stage, you know?
28:37So they're like, what's your vision?
28:40So what is your 9,000 year lease?
28:42Oh, I wouldn't do this again.
28:44This was hard.
28:45This was hard.
28:46There's no replication.
28:47There's no more roofs.
28:48Right, right, right now.
28:49No, no, no.
28:51I just have to mind my business.
28:53I had a very troubled time last year.
28:56I had to restructure a lot of my business.
29:00It was actually an overlap from COVID.
29:03Yeah.
29:04It was just like we didn't, you know, looking back, I didn't play the closures of the premises
29:11well enough.
29:12You know what I mean?
29:12I probably opened up some afterwards that I shouldn't have.
29:15I should have left them be or moved on.
29:18You know what I mean?
29:18So I've spent the last six or eight months, 12 months probably now tidying all that up
29:24while trying to do this and I was looking all onto this as well.
29:28But that's the life of a restaurateur, a robot bar, all that business, hospitality business.
29:34It's never easy.
29:35You can never be sure.
29:36You know what I mean?
29:37That's why you get up every day to make sure you're sure, you know?
29:41That's a goal.
29:43You get up to be sure you're sure.
29:45Yeah.
29:46Just making sure we were sure yesterday.
29:47Yeah.
29:48Yeah.
29:50So, you know, I like you're judged on a daily basis.
29:52So it's quite difficult business.
29:54You know what I mean?
29:54You read the Z, read at the end of the night and like your app, your toast app or whatever
29:59the case may be.
30:00And like, you know, you can't do anything about that day.
30:03Yes.
30:03You know what I mean?
30:04It's in the bag.
30:05It's in the can, you know?
30:06So that's the hard part of this business.
30:08And like, if you were expecting a good Friday night and it doesn't happen, you can't make
30:12it up Saturday and Sunday.
30:12It's gone.
30:13You know what I mean?
30:13And like, I compare, always compare this week to last week, this day to last week.
30:17You know, or this day to last year, same week last year.
30:20Why?
30:21What happened?
30:21You know, I do, I do, you know, take influence from what's happening around the city, what's
30:26going on and can we be part of it?
30:29Where can we get into it?
30:30Where can we look after people?
30:32Who's coming into town?
30:34What?
30:34What?
30:34We've got big games in the city.
30:37How can I get an influence off them?
30:39The big concerts in the city, you know?
30:42So over the years, I've been very lucky to, to get to know people who can guide me in
30:47in the right direction to make connection.
30:51I've had great, great people visit some of my bars.
30:54I've been very lucky.
30:57But it's, it's about being, you know, it's, it's sometimes better to be lucky than good,
31:02but you have to be in the good place to collect the luck.
31:05You know what I mean?
31:06Yeah, absolutely.
31:06The luck falls, you have to be there to collect this.
31:08You just can't be at home in bed waiting for it.
31:10I'm right here.
31:10Yeah.
31:11I'm right, I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.
31:12Yeah.
31:13That's only because we're willing to put in the dark.
31:15There's no sunshine if you're not willing to work in the dark.
31:18That's right.
31:18That's right.
31:19And like, every day, you know, you get lucky because you connect, you get, talk to people,
31:23and they're willing to give you a turn because you've looked after them.
31:26Correct.
31:27And I always believe that looking after people is a huge part of it.
31:30And anybody who comes to Dublin, anybody who's come to Ireland,
31:32you mightn't text me for 10 years, but I'm in Dublin next weekend.
31:35Are you here?
31:36Yes, I am.
31:36Come along.
31:37I look after you.
31:38You know what I mean?
31:39Like, and I've had, you know, probably the best story I have, probably the best story I have is,
31:46Lord rest them, Coolio.
31:48Oh, Coolio.
31:49Coolio was a, was a phenomenal person, you know, and he came to Dublin in 2016.
31:54I had a bar across town called Zico.
31:57The manager at the time, Jack, he's a great guy, but he says to me,
32:01I have some rapper coming in tonight, I never heard of him, called Coolio.
32:05I says, what?
32:07Coolio?
32:07I says, you know what?
32:08I don't generally stay.
32:09We've had Bieber there, Christine Aguilera,
32:13Macklemore.
32:14We've had them all there, you know, all of them.
32:15I said, I'm waiting around.
32:16I didn't wait around for them.
32:17I'm waiting around for Coolio.
32:18Stop it.
32:19I said, this, he's my generation.
32:20He's my guy.
32:21Yeah, so anyway, I'm waiting around 12,
32:24o'clock, he hasn't arrived.
32:25I'm thinking like, he's not going to come.
32:26Anyway, I get in my car.
32:28I'm going home.
32:29I get the phone call, Coolio's here, but he wants a mic.
32:33I said, no way.
32:34I go get him the mic.
32:37We're in the bar.
32:38Come on.
32:38And we put on a song and he does the song fully,
32:43fully sings, brings the place down Monday night in Dublin.
32:46No way.
32:47He takes over.
32:48He has just taken over.
32:50And you know what?
32:51He was so privileged to get such attention.
32:55And like, I had the bottle out for him and the mixers,
32:57and he was thinking like, this has not happened to me anymore.
33:00And I felt a real kind of sorry for him,
33:04because he wasn't getting the attention in the U.S.
33:06or wherever he was anymore.
33:07But we gave it to him because I felt he was a star of my day.
33:10You know what I mean?
33:11It was a star of my day.
33:12Yeah.
33:12And like, you know, you're meeting some guy who's been in your ear.
33:15Yeah.
33:16For 25 years.
33:17You know what I mean?
33:18So, looked after him that night.
33:20And he came back a year and a half later, came back to us.
33:23A year and a half later, came back again.
33:25And then he called.
33:28His guy called me.
33:29He was over here.
33:30What year did he die?
33:31Three years ago?
33:32Two or three years ago?
33:33Called to say he's playing in the Three Arena as a guest.
33:36And he wants to come back to the bar.
33:38And I said, that bar is not open on a Sunday night.
33:40But of another bar.
33:41He goes on live and says, I'm not in Zico.
33:44I'm in 37 Dawson Street.
33:46Come and see me.
33:46You know what I mean?
33:47Comes up, dances on the counter.
33:49Sings the song again for everybody in the whole place.
33:52It's on TikTok.
33:53You can see it everywhere.
33:54Amazing.
33:55And he's gone two months later, three months later.
33:57It was like, I think like, oh my God.
34:01You know what I mean?
34:01He was just, he seeked us out.
34:04He loved the attention in Ireland.
34:06He was just a good guy.
34:08Yes.
34:09Although he had his troubles.
34:11But you're like, who doesn't?
34:12Who doesn't?
34:13We all have troubles.
34:14You know, but he was great.
34:14And then I did Coldplay's couple of parties for them last year.
34:17A couple of years ago, they were over here.
34:19I've done a lot.
34:20Drake had his after party with me.
34:22You know, so like a lot of good people.
34:24And like, if you treat them well, they'll tell the next person.
34:28Correct.
34:28And the next person.
34:29And the next person.
34:30And that's how it happens.
34:31You know what I mean?
34:32That's just.
34:32That's the magic of possibility.
34:33Yeah.
34:33So you're not trying to get into them.
34:34Somebody just went on social media.
34:36That's absolutely fine.
34:37Yeah.
34:37I won't tell that story.
34:38Some people don't want to be out.
34:40That's okay too.
34:41You know what I mean?
34:41Sorry.
34:41You know, you tell me what, how you like it.
34:44Yeah.
34:44You know, I won't, I won't overstep the mark.
34:46Or neither, neither will my staff.
34:48Yeah.
34:49It's amazing.
34:49You know, if we have somebody here who's, who's a real VIP and they don't want to be
34:53no, no one will disturb them.
34:55You know, you can sit here.
34:56I've had, I've had real VIPs here.
34:59So Alan, I've only been in Dublin for three days.
35:03I fell in love with the city.
35:04I fell in love with the hospitality.
35:06The storytellers are amazing.
35:08I'm honored to spend this time with you.
35:10I, I only have one request and that's, will we, can, can we do this again?
35:15Absolutely.
35:15Absolutely.
35:16You have to come back.
35:17I thoroughly enjoyed it.
35:18And you come back and see my Dublin sometime.
35:20I would love to see your Dublin.
35:21Yeah, absolutely.
35:22I would love, I would be honored to see your Dublin.
35:25Two fiddlers on the roof.
35:26Absolutely.
35:27We both.
35:27On DM.
35:28On DM.
35:28Two fiddlers on DM.
35:30Yeah.
35:30If you guys want to reach out to me, I'm weirdly available at Sean P. Walchef.
35:34Instagram and LinkedIn are the fastest, but all the platforms, please come to
35:40this magical place.
35:41Um, Alan, I am just honestly grateful, grateful for the opportunity.
35:46Great to meet you.
35:47Thank you very much indeed.
35:53Thank you for listening.
35:53If you've made it this long, you are part of the community.
35:56You're part of the tribe.
35:57We can't do this alone.
35:59We started, no one was listening.
36:00Now we have a community of digital hospitality leaders all over the globe.
36:04Please check out our new series called Restaurant Technology Substack.
36:09It's a Substack newsletter.
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36:14Also go to YouTube and subscribe to Cali BBQ Media.
36:18Cali BBQ Media on YouTube.
36:20We've been putting out a lot of new original content.
36:22Hopefully you guys like that content.
36:24If you want to work with us, go to BeTheShow.media.
36:27We show up all over the United States, some international countries.
36:31We would love to work with you and your growing brand on digital storytelling.
36:35You can reach out to me anytime at Sean P. Welchef on Instagram.
36:38I'm weirdly available.
36:40Stay curious, get involved, and don't be afraid to ask for help.
36:43We'll catch you next episode.
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