The new Irish Pub and Restaurant which is backed by Thai and expatriate investors has targeted Thais, foreigners and tourists who want to experience an up-market pub, with food in the authentic Irish tradition, in the heart of Bangkok.

Commenting, Mr. Stuart Dawson Montgomery, Managing Director for O'Reillys says "The Irish Pub is a unique institution, admired and imitated wherever emigrants from Ireland have settled. Walk into O'Reillys in Bangkok and you will experience a piece of Ireland as though you were in any typical pub in Dublin, Belfast or Cork. O'Reillys believes that this is an opportune time in view of the desire of many Thai people to undertake new culinary and social experiences, as well as pleasing the large expatriate population who have been waiting for a genuine Irish Pub and Restaurant for years."

O'Reillys worked in association with the Irish Pub Company, a Dublin-based design company specialising in designing authentic pubs. The designs produced were then given to a local contractor Jujak Construction Ltd., under the project management supervision of SGS Construction Cost Consultants Ltd., and the pub was built using all Thai materials. The Irish Pub Company was originally commissioned by brewing giant Guinness to create Irish Pubs throughout the world; it designs around one pub every three weeks. Traditional Irish Pubs can already be found in the USA, Australia, Russia and across Europe.

The formula is successful the world over because the Irish staff employed in each establishment reflect the unique ability of the Irish to pass the time of day.

As Mr. Montgomery explains, "The Irish are interested in other people. They have a sense of humour which is infectious; it brings out the best in people."

O'Reillys Bangkok has been painstakingly created in a traditional Victorian style with a striking combination of rich polished dark woods and chunky, lighter teak woods, sand-blasted to age the finish. The pub is on two floors. The ground floor contains a camera shop display with dozens of valuable antique cameras adoring the walls; the first floor features a more traditional Irish family dinning area, which is often booked for parties and private functions.

Authentic design details include stained and polished glass, gunmetal ironwork, and the very graphic black and white tiled floor. The focal point is a long curved bar on the ground floor, complemented with generous standing areas and surrounded by traditional snugs (a semi-height partitioned area seating from four to twelve people) which together provide the main activities of the Irish Pub - drinking, chatting and unwinding.

Making its virtual debut in Bangkok will be Thailand's first imported draught beers Guinness and Kilkenny. Previously, almost only available here in bottled or canned form these uniquely brewed barmen expert in the famous "double pour" will pour creamy beers. Our Irish General Manager, Sean Bailey Moore will be available to teach novice Guinness drinkers how to gulp rather than sip the creamy tipple to maximise the subtle flavours. Other Irish beverages will also be sold including Irish Whiskeys (remember that the Irish invented Whiskey 400 years before the Scots ever heard of it), real Irish Coffees, liqueurs and spirits together with a full range of beers from around the world, including draught Carlsberg and Heineken on tap.

For the culinary interested an appealing menu has been developed, packed with straightforward, home-style classics like Irish stew, smoked salmon and beef and Guinness pie. Of course potatoes will feature widely with dishes like champ, (a mountain of creamy mashed potatoes and scallions with a well of melting butter in the middle), and chaps (thin, pan-fried slices of potato). A very good value for money set-lunch is offered Monday to Friday at Baht 145 which includes a starter, a main course, and tea or coffee.