Moran's Oyster Cottage is a seafood restaurant

Restaurant

A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...

 and pub

Public house

A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...

 located at The Weir, Kilcolgan

Kilcolgan

Kilcolgan , is a village on the mouth of the Kilcolgan River at Dunkellin Bay in County Galway, Ireland. The N18 passes through the settlement. There are also two public houses, Donoghue's and Raftery's Rest...

, in County Galway

County Galway

County Galway is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the city of Galway. Galway County Council is the local authority for the county. There are several strongly Irish-speaking areas in the west of the county...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, five minutes from the village of Clarenbridge, and ten miles south of Galway City

Galway

Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...

.

It has hosted presidents, prime ministers and film stars, as well as tourists and locals, due to the quality of its seafood, particularly oysters and smoked salmon, combined with its tranquil setting by the weir.

History and location

Located on an inlet of Galway Bay, the traditional thatched cottage with a peat

Peat

Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...

 fire in the hearth

Hearth

In common historic and modern usage, a hearth is a brick- or stone-lined fireplace or oven often used for cooking and/or heating. For centuries, the hearth was considered an integral part of a home, often its central or most important feature...

 has been owned by the Moran family for six generations.

Daniel Moran, who arrived in the area in the 1760s, obtained a liquor license and began his business which has continued for six generations. His wife's family, who owned the wier

Fishing weir

A fishing weir, or fish weir, is an obstruction placed in tidal waters or wholly or partially across a river, which is designed to hinder the passage of fish. Traditionally they were built from wood or stones. They can be used to trap fish...

, may have been serving food and drink even prior to that.

In the 1800s, when Kilcolgan was a busy port, the cottage did a thriving business. In modern times, it has hosted many notables and celebrities, including Julia Roberts

Julia Roberts

Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...

, Pierce Brosnan

Pierce Brosnan

Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...

, Roger Moore

Roger Moore

Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...

, Woody Allen

Woody Allen

Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...

 and the Emperor and Empress of Japan.

It has also produced international and world champions in oyster shucking competitions: Vincent Graham, Willie Moran, Gerry Grealish and Michael Moran.

Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney

Seamus Heaney

Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...

's poem, Oysters, was inspired by a memorable meal at Moran's.

Today the cottage is one of the oldest and most famous pubs in Ireland.

Awards

• Bord Failte Award of Excellence for Restaurants, 1983
• Award of Excellence–BIM Seafood Pub of the Year, 1999
• Gilbeys Gold Medal for Excellence, 2001
• BIM Seafood Circle Award, 2006