Two popular Mayo food businesses to shut due to rising costs

Two popular Mayo businesses have announced closures this month.

The Pantry and Corkscrew restaurant in Westport, and Cake my Day in Castlebar both shared that they will be closing in the coming weeks.

Westport’s restaurant woe

The Pantry and Corkscrew has been nestled on Lower Peter Street just off Westport's famous Octagon since 2010, serving up delicious meals to locals and visitors alike.

Since opening 14 years ago, the restaurant has always prided itself in serving ethically sourced, quality local produce.

Husband and wife, Dermott Flynn & Janice O’Rourke, who have been the dynamic duo behind the cosy eatery, announced they will be closing in a Facebook statement yesterday. 

They said they have ‘soul searched and grappled with this decision over the last year, but feel the time is right for a change with continuing increases in costs across the board which have been well published to date.’

The couple behind the award-winning restaurant, thanked all their customers for their support, and described their journey as an ‘incredible and exciting’ journey, and said they had ‘reached heights [they] never thought possible’. 

The restaurant will shut its doors one last time on February 18, but the couple don’t seem to have finished their act just yet, sharing in the statement that they have been ‘working on a new project’ in the food area, from the same location, and look forward to sharing more details in ‘the coming months’.

Bakery blues

Cake my Day, an innovative, artisan bakery owned and operated by Brian and Bernie Campbell, will close their doors on Hopkins Rd this weekend.

After 12 years of ‘baking joy in Castlebar’, the couple announced their closure in a Facebook statement. They said the decision did not come ‘lightly’ but ‘it comes in the face of challenges that many small businesses are facing, the main one being rising costs of electricity and supplies. They said the obstacle this has created is ‘insurmountable’.

The business owners expressed their ‘deepest gratitude’ to their customers for all their support shown to the business over the last decade, and invited them to join them in ‘bidding farewell’ this Saturday.

‘Our shelves will be stocked with all your favourite cakes and breads throughout the week, and we’d love to see you one last time’.