Lishh Café in Cork is celebrating 10 years of business.
Details
Ten years ago this week, Jonathan Sheehan opened a café in Turner's Cross.
Today, there are 18 employees and Lishh Café is now situated in a significantly larger premises at Dosco Business Park on South Douglas Road.
The company has also further expanded recently with the opening of another side venture at the weekend called The Egg Café, which was in the Black Market but has now relocated to Cork's Marina Market.
Statements By Jonathan Sheehan
Sheehan said, "I could not have done any of this without my partner Patrick, he is always by my side, he has been a rock for me and our families have also been an unwavering support to us throughout both the highs and the lows.
"We have also been so fortunate with our staff and our customers over the years, and I am incredibly lucky to have the team I have. I recently promoted two of my staff - Rita and Kathriona - to both kitchen supervisor and restaurant supervisor and they have both flourished so much in their roles. Because of this I have been able to side-step a little to develop The Egg Bar. I never have to worry because I know that my staff all support me and support each other.
"Because there is such a small team of us, we really have become family. I see them like part of my family now and we are all a part of each other’s lives now outside of Lishh, from births, to weddings, to funerals, and anniversaries.
"We always try to support and nurture staff to help them to grow both personally and professionally and recently one of my younger staff who joined Lishh when he was fifteen, doing the washing up, has gone on to MTU to study to be a chef. Watching and being a part of his journey has been amazing."
Speaking about pivoting through the pandemic, Sheehan said, "Keeping the brand going throughout the pandemic was challenging but our customers were incredible, and we would not be here without all of their support over the years. I would just like to say a heartfelt thank you to all of them.
"It took us three days to set up our online web shop which allowed us to start doing home delivery services. We could also see how much some of our elderly customers appreciated seeing us, and seeing their faces light up was so heart-warming. This is something that we will always strive for - just make someone’s day a little bit brighter or make their lives easier with some tasty food and a warm smile.
Sheehan added, "We're very Irish in the sense that we feel that a nice sweet treat and a cup of tea or coffee can help make a bad day better and that’s all we want to do, just have a positive impact on someone’s day with our food and our hospitality - it's our job to help them along the way and give them a bit of joy.
"We are extremely excited for the future of Lishh, the opening of The Egg Bar at Marina, and meeting new and old faces in the near future and beyond."
