TASTE!

café is a tribute to Gallagher

annetklass


Klass & Annet Spijker
with Tony Moore




by Paul Dromey from
                                                                                          the Cork Evening Echo
"It's like a dream come true....almost as if Rory Gallagher himself were organising things."

Klass Spijker was reflecting on the extraordinary series of coincidences, beginning with his own 25 year old love affair with the music of Rory Gallagher, and now culminating in TASTE! - a new Cork café and joint Dutch/ Irish venture which brings a flavour of Holland to the late Gallagher's hometown.

The story began in 1997, when the then Meeting Place Midleton proprietor and Midleton Folk Club organiser, Tony Moore, opened The Rory Gallagher Bar, in memory of one of Cork's most famous musical sons, containing various pieces of Gallagher memorabilia donated by family, friends and fans alike.

That memorabilia collection will now be found in TASTE!

The official opening of the café, at Union Quay, in Cork yesterday, coincided with the launch of a special weekend of Rory Gallagher music in Cork and Midleton, timed to coincide with Rory's anniversary, June 14.

The weekend has become an annual event, a pilgrimage for musicians and Gallagher fans.

The 9th Rory Gallagher Anniversary Weekend 2004 takes place from June 10 to June 13.

In 1998, long-time Rory Gallagher Dutch fans Annet  and Klass Spijker traveled to Midleton for the second Anniversary weekend.

Tony Moore and the music package he had put together made a huge impression on the couple - so much so that they immediately resolved to organise something similar in Holland.

In 1999, they presented the inaugural Leeuwarden Rory Gallagher Weekend.

As with its Midleton equivalent, it has become an annual event attracting audiences from all over Europe- including a regular Irish contingent led by Tony Moore.

In the intervening years, Klass and Annet have become regular visitors to Ireland.

"It's not just Rory's music, Klass explains, "it's also the country and the people, we have come to really love it here."

In March of this year, just a week after organising the 6th Leeuwarden Rory Gallagher Weekend, the couple packed up their belongings and moved permanently to Ireland, having rented a small farmhouse in Macroom.

Shortly after the move, they met up with old friend, Tony Moore.

Klass was looking to put his carpentry skills to use in Ireland.

But Tony had another idea.

"In Leeuwarden this year, Klass and Annet mentioned that one possible idea they had was to run a small café in Ireland, " Tony said.

"Monica, my wife, works for Waterman Engineering, the company that owns 4 Union Quay. They had advertised the ground floor, and although someone had expressed interest in it as a café, the deal has not gone through. The Union Quay premises had literally become available just a day or two previously, so that morning we arranged to meet in Macroom."

"Within two hours, we had shook hands on the partnership. The common denominator from start to finish has been Rory gallagher, so it seemed obvious to call our café TASTE! - after the famous trio he first founded in Cork."
*TASTE! is open Monday to Friday from 8 am to 4 pm.

Back to RoryTravel page
 Back to main RoryON!! page

Thanks to John Harrington from Cork for passing this along!