Paul to pull his last pint as John Mac's closes

The hospitality trade in Mullingar is set to take another hit as John Mac's Cafe Bar on Castle Street closes its doors this Bank Holiday weekend because the owner has admitted the current hard times mean it's difficult to keep up with the rent.Paul McNulty who runs John Mac's, which is known as Mullingar's "trendy pub", employs a total of twelve full and part-time bar and catering staff.With its cosy couches and great coffee, John Mac's did a roaring lunch trade, and was well known for supporting local bands and musicians by providing a platform to showcase their music.But Paul, who will pull his last pint in the bar on Bank Holiday Sunday night, says he is unable to keep up with the rent:"In this current climate, it is difficult for publicans to pay the rent, because while things may be going great at the weekend, the fact is it is difficult to get people into bars and pubs during the week," said Paul, who is originally from Dublin, and who first moved to Mullingar to manage another Mullingar hot spot, Danny Byrne's, turning it into a successful business.Paul says the reality that his dream of running his own pub is over, is very disappointing indeed:"John Mac's, which was McCarthy's initially, was closed for six months before I took it over. I wanted to bring a pub to Mullingar that would be of the standard of anywhere in Dublin or New York, and that's what I did, and it was very successful," said Paul."I'm very down over it all because in a sense this has been a double blow for me. The fact is John Mac's is doing a good trade but it's just not enough to pay the rent," he continued."It's very sad for Mullingar and the response I've been getting from people is very genuine and I think they are honestly gutted that they will have no-where equal to go."I'm also sad for myself because I'm here in Mullingar six years now, I've made a lot of friends here and I don't know what is around the corner for me: the fact is I won't even be able to claim the dole," he finished.A report published last week showed that Ireland's per capita alcohol consumption fell by 9.6 per cent last year.Some 15,000 jobs have been lost in the last year alone and the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland has warned of a further five per cent fall in volume sales this year, with a further knock-on effect for jobs.