press release
Crawford & Co Host Pop-Up Pizzeria
The Prodigal Sons Return From Rita's Of Ranelagh
Strict order and collection system in place
Three years after moving to Dublin to set-up foodies’ favourite Rita’s of Ranelagh, Corkonians Ciarán O’Regan and Diarmuid Connolly are bringing their famous dough back home to Cork! During these uncertain times Covid19 saw many Irish people travel home to isolate with parents or other family members. One reunion that the people of Cork are savouring is that of Rita’s of Ranelagh and Crawford & Co., as they announce their mouth-watering pop-up.
After establishing their successful restaurant in Dublin, high on Ciarán’s to-do list was to bring his flavour back to his home city. The arrival of the Coronavirus brought with it the temporary closing of this Ranelagh based pizzeria, and while others would see this as a huge set-back, Ciarán saw it as an opportunity. Picking up the phone to long-time friend and owner of popular gastro bar Crawford & Co, Michael Droney, this entrepreneurial pair quickly cooked up a plan to get Ciarán home to Cork with his Rita’s recipes, while business partner held down the fort at Rita’s Ranelagh branch which opened back up for business at the start of May for collection.
With Michael providing the space, the rustic open-air courtyard at Crawford & Co, and the Cork food community coming together offering lots of help and support, the Rita’s of Crawford & Co pop-up was born. Now at a time when the Cork community really need a tasty pick-me-up, pizza lovers can indulge in Rita’s favourites such as The Vincent Van Goat, N’Duja Think You Are or The La Di Da, all using freshly sourced ingredients to create taste sensations.
Commenting on the new Rita’s pop-up at Crawford & Co. owner and chef Ciarán O’Regan was blown away by the support he has received, ‘Albert Einstein had it right when he said ‘in the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity’. For me Cork is where I started out and where I always wanted to come home to. My career started out on the pub scene, but my taste buds got the better of me and I diverged onto the culinary path, studying in Ballymaloe Cookery School before heading to the big smoke to put my stamp on the food scene.
‘When my Ranelagh premises was temporarily closed, I was chatting to my friend Michael who was going through the same thing as me, with his bar Crawford & Co closed. The wheels began turning and the idea just popped-up...pardon the pun! I was straight on the road back home, and have been blown away by the support fellow chefs and business owners have offered me and this venture. Simone Crotty provided us with the use of their Rocketman mixer, other equipment came from Dave Halpin of Eco’s Douglas, Karl from Aldi, the lads in Joe’s + Bros have been amazing in getting this project up off the ground, as have countless others.’
Rita’s pop-up at Crawford & Co. is open for orders Thursday to Sunday, 4pm to 10pm. To ensure the safety of staff and customers Michael and Ciarán have put a strict order and collection system in place. Orders must be phoned in to 083 3646088, with lines opening at 4pm on days of service. Hungry customers will get a collection time upon order confirmation, ensuring a seamless and safe collection process.
‘We are so excited to once again be able to provide tasty options to our customers, and are thrilled to partner with Rita’s to do so.’ commented Michael Droney, owner of Crawford & Co. ‘It is a very stressful time for bars and restaurants across Ireland, who have had to close their doors with no definite timeline or guidelines to reopening. As a nation Irish people are extremely resilient, and we hope that our endeavour will inspire others to think outside the box to create alternative ways in which they can deliver their offering to consumers. We can’t wait to see some familiar faces back in the courtyard collecting their tasty lunches and dinners, and would like to thank everyone for their support.’ added Droney.
For the full mouth-watering Rita’s pop-up menu visit www.ritas.ie or www.crawfordandco.ie For more information on the ordering and collection process check out instagram.com/crawfordco_cork or Facebook/crawfordandcocork. Rita’s of Ranelagh is now also reopened for order and collection only, see ritas.ie for details.
