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Nathan: We are interviewing John Cooke, one of the owners of Raglan Road. Welcome to the show, John.

John: Thank you. It’s a pleasure to be here.

Nathan: I just want to start out by saying that Raglan Road is the newest restaurant and bar located in Downtown Disney. As many of you know from the show it’s one of my favorite places to eat, and also from our listener feedback it is one of our listeners’ favorite places to eat. Raglan Road is owned and operated by The Great Irish Pubs, Incorporated, the Irish owned company that previously created Nine Fine Irishmen in the New York, New York Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Tell us how the idea came to basically come to Walt Disney World.

John: Well, as you mentioned, we had created a large Irish pub/restaurant over in New York, New York, and we did it to very high standards. Disney came across it in it’s very early days and liked what we did, and felt it would be an interesting and beneficial addition to the offerings at Walt Disney World. So, over a period of a number of trips back and forward to Orlando and various discussions, we kind of got together and managed to put something together commercially that made sense, found a location that worked for us, which is over at Downtown Disney, and effectively got to work on site here last January to put this thing together. The origins of it are born out of Ireland, via Nevada, and then to Florida.

Nathan: (chuckles) That’s great. There’s actually a real Raglan Road pub in Ireland, is that correct?

John: Yeah, there’s a Raglan Road pub in Ireland, and there is also Raglan Road, which is a well-known residential address in South Dublin.

Nathan: And since basically October twenty-first of last year there has been tons of buzz about Raglan Road.

John: Yeah. It’s been, I suppose to us there are no surprises, because we have found that the Irish hospitality, when you take it to a location abroad and you put it together in a way that is authentic, and you put it together with the kind of great care and attention to detail as we have done here, it is very well received by people. For us, really, we try to grow our business organically, or as you say through the buzz. It’s really through referrals, word of mouth, by people coming in having a great experience and making a connection with the pub, and then either coming back or passing it on to their friends, or if they’ve got friends coming in to town on vacation making a recommendation. So, we’ve been thrilled so far, the response has been great, and it’s kind of growing week on week.

Nathan: Oh, definitely! I mean, every time I’m up here I bring a new friend in here. I have to eat here every single trip I come to Disney World.

John: We’re always delighted to see you, and as we say at home, don’t be a stranger any time you’re in our part of the world.

Nathan: (chuckles) This used to be the Pleasure Island Jazz Company.

John: Yes.

Nathan: For the life of me, I still can’t figure out how... I don’t believe the Jazz Company was ever this big. This place is enormous! How many people does Raglan Road sit?

John: We took on board the original Jazz Company, and we got some additional space from Disney, and then we also constructed about four times the square feet of additional space. So, overall, we have about, between our front of house space, our patios, and our back of house space, we have about 20,000 square feet. Internally our occupancy inside is about 700, and then including the two outdoor patios we’re nearly at about 925 - 940 as our host occupancy. So, it’s a big pub.

Nathan: It definitely is! And for instance if people don’t even want to sit down to eat, you have a little fast food take out also, which actually is not really fast food its actually the same exact food, the fish and chips that’s cooked for the restaurant?

John: Yes. Yeah, it is. We have what I guess you would call a quick-service aspect to the business. It’s called Cookes of Dublin. My own family history is in the food, going way back to the early nineteen thirties with a fish and chips business in Dublin. My great-grandfather had a fish and chips shop in Dublin in the thirties through the fifties. So we felt that since fish and chips are such a popular item within the pub, we would offer a very similar option but in kind of a quick-service format. So, if people haven’t got the time, or they are on their way somewhere else, or it’s lunchtime, or they’re going over to see a show at Cirque du Soleil, they can pop in and get something fresh and high quality to eat without necessarily giving up an hour of their time.

Nathan: The fish and chips here, is that a family recipe? Because that is actually my favorite fish and chips. That’s what I usually get when I come here.

John: It’s a couple of things. It’s a closely guarded family recipe, so if I told you that we’d have to take you out to the Everglades somewhere. But it’s also the care and attention to detail. We bring our fish in daily from Boston. It’s mostly coming out of the Georges Bank, which is a very fertile fishing ground off the coast. So, we try to get it, I suppose, from ocean to table in as short a time frame as possible. That adds to the underlying kind of quality of the experience.

Nathan: I also love the fact that it comes in basically almost a newspaper, to serve it to the table, which is basically authentic....

John: Yeah, that’s the way it would have been served in most fish and chip shops in Dublin. Still today, fish and chips are served out of newsprint or out of paper. It’s almost addictive.

Nathan: Yep. It sure is. Now, we’re actually sitting here at one of the four bars inside the restaurant.

John: Yes.

Nathan: This bar, can you tell us a little about the history of it?

John: Well, the history of it, ah, to answer your question and not answer it - (chuckles) you’ll probably realize by the end of the interview Irish people tend to talk ‘round in circles or move laterally in their conversation. The interior of the pub was imported from Ireland. We brought fourteen container loads of millwork, antiques, lighting, glass, all the way from Ireland across the Atlantic to install it in the pub. A lot of the millwork in particular is antique. This bar we’re sitting at is known as Frank’s bar, and it is in the style of a shop pub. Traditionally, Irish pubs come in a number of different styles. Look at the other bar we have internally, the big island bar, which is a very high-Victorian style bar, and that’s styled after great Dublin pubs. But in a lot of parts of suburban Dublin and more rural areas, publicans would have also been shopkeepers, because there wouldn’t necessarily have been a living out of being a shopkeeper or just a publican. So they did more than the bar, and there are very famous pubs around Ireland where you have publicans who were post office masters and undertakers and everything else, all on the one premises. This bar basically came out of a pub in Tipperary. It’s from a shop style pub. You can see by the antique drawers and labels, and handles and hardware on the drawers that its vintage is we believe somewhere about a hundred and twenty years old. It’s called a shop style because it has that kind of grocery shop back bar to it. Obviously, because a lot of it is antique, it has that wonderful worn, lived-in feeling. Our goal with the pub was to make it feel like it was something that had been here for decades, rather than something that was just new. We hear that repeatedly from people that come in - they can’t believe we have been here since October only, or I was here a couple of years ago and this wasn’t here but it looks like it should have been but it wasn’t. If that makes sense.

Nathan: It makes perfect sense. This place definitely does feel right at home at Disney. Now as far as your menu, it’s the traditional Irish food, but it also has a little bit of a flair to it. Can you...

John: Yeah, em, I suppose for a couple of reasons. One is that the words Irish and cuisine maybe traditionally wouldn’t have necessarily gone hand in hand. Although because of the unspoiled nature of our landscape, we would have been known for quality of produce and quality food. What’s happened over the last ten or twelve years or so is that the quality of our cuisine, driven by a lot of young talented chefs, has risen dramatically in terms of its profile. We’re very fortunate here that our chef partner is a gentleman called Kevin Dundon, who owns a very well-known luxury country house-hotel on the east coast of Ireland called Dunbrody House. Kevin works with us on putting our food together. So it’s as much about Irish food today as it is maybe Irish food traditionally. We do traditional dishes, but perhaps we do them with a bit of a twist. We do a Shepherd’s Pie, but it has a little bit of a twist, a little bit of flair, a little bit of style. People are surprised in their perception normally certainly of pubs, and pub food would have been maybe something that was more sustenance and adequate, whereas we put a lot of effort and attention into our food, and we think we are giving people almost a fine dining experience, but in a casual environment.

Nathan: Oh, it definitely is. For instance, you mention the Shepherd’s Pie. My wife and my stepdaughter love the Shepherd’s Pie here...

John: It’s great.

Nathan: Basically, a lot of people think it’s the best Shepherd’s Pie they’ve ever had.

John: That’s our ambition.

Nathan: (chuckles) How did you steer, as you mentioned, Kevin Dundon, how did you steer him away from, I know he was cooking for very high profile people in Ireland, how did you steer him away to go ahead and...

John: Kevin still does. His own luxury country house hotel is a five star property and a member of the Luxury Hotels of the World. Kevin’s philosophy on food is that regardless of whatever level you’re cooking, you know, you should be able to produce excellent food. I think one of his goals and ambitions for the pub, and it’s coming to fruition, is that people are absolutely surprised by the quality of the food. It comes from a relatively simple philosophy. It’s about, it starts with great ingredients, and we go to very long lengths, as I said we bring our fish in from Boston, to make sure we get the best possible raw ingredients. And if you start with great ingredients and treat it with a reasonable degree of respect, and you let the ingredients speak for themselves, you can produce great food. Kevin’s got a philosophy which he believes spans the world of food, and not just necessarily the world of gourmet food.

Nathan: Totally switching gears here a little bit, the restaurant, besides its great food, is also known for its great entertainment.

John: Yes, and again, Irish pubs being traditionally the center of the community and all about sociability. We love our food, we love our beer obviously, but there is a tremendous heritage in traditional Irish music. I was talking to someone recently, and they maintain that Irish music is truly the world’s imperialistic music, because there is a very well documented strain of consciousness that Irish music has influenced, or other styles of music that are directly derived from it. We decided that we wanted to bring real traditional Irish music to central Florida, so we put together our own house band called Tusker Rock, and they are made up of four great musicians who have a tremendous heritage and a reputation individually within the world of traditional Irish music back home. We brought them over here and they perform six nights a week, and perform probably the best traditional Irish music you’ll find outside the west coast of Ireland. But also, the set, as the night gets older and the crowd gets younger, also gets a bit more lively. We’ve also got a wonderful young lady from Ireland who is a very accomplished Irish step dancer. She also performs here with Tusker Rock six nights a week. It’s a real surprise to people to find something in central Florida that has, I suppose, such authentic and deep roots. When you do look at it, if you decide you want to look at it closely, the authenticity is there. You come in, have a great time, it’s very sociable and it’s wonderful, and that’s really what our goal is, but if you decide to think about it or look a bit closer, wherever you look, whether it’s our food or our music, there’s true authenticity there.

Nathan: Definitely. I was in here one night after you first opened, and the band was playing, the step dancing was going on, and the entire audience was into it. Everyone was up and dancing and yelling and screaming. It was just... I mean, I walked in and I couldn’t believe what was going on here. It was great. I mean, people are not afraid, because of the atmosphere here, to get into it and just make themselves at home, to get into the music, get into the food, etc. It’s just a really great atmosphere.

John: Absolutely. There’s a great sense of informality and sociability. Another saying that’s frequently used in the context of Irish pubs is “There’s no such thing as strangers, only friends who haven’t met,” you know. It’s interesting to watch a group of people who’ve never met each other before on any given night. You’ve got some great camaraderie, you certainly get a great sense of participation in the pub, everybody has a great night and feel elevated by the experience and then, as we say, hopefully go out and spread the gospel, as you’re doing.

Nathan: Oh, definitely. Every person, like I’ve said, I’ve talked to, they go and tell a friend because this place is so wonderful. Now you mentioned that the band is here only six nights a week.

John: Yes.
Nathan: Do you have entertainment, as far as, I believe I saw a piano player here once?

John: We do, we have entertainment seven nights a week. We also have here for most evenings a gentleman named Jay Shanahan, who is our “fear an tí”. The direct translation of “fear an tí” in Gaelic or Irish is called “man of the house.” Basically Jay is kind of host or maitre d’ here most evenings, his job is to make people feel welcome. Anybody who has a celebration or whatever, to make sure we pay them a little bit of extra attention. He’s a very accomplished entertainer and singer in his own right, as a lot of people from Ireland are. Jay performs here on Sunday evening doing some kind of great Irish ballads and some nice participation pieces where he’ll teach the audience a few Irish songs. So we’ve got something going on every night.

Nathan: Basically, you have to stay here - it’s around nine, ten o’clock usually the music starts?

John: Yeah, we start most evenings at nine, some evenings Jay will also do a little pre-show before Tusker Rock comes on. We may have something going on from eight-thirty, but from nine o’clock onwards, seven nights a week we’ve got Irish entertainment.

Nathan: Now, I’ve noticed there is a memorabilia shop in front.

John: Yes.

Nathan: Can guests also purchase the Tusker Rock CD? Is there one that is actually being made?

John: Funny enough, we’re in the process of recording at the moment. As I’ve said, we put Tusker Rock together, were formed specifically for the pub. As musicians, they’ve all played together independently at different times and in different acts over the years. So we felt to kind of allow them to establish their repertoire over a two or three month period, to get to a point where we had something that we felt was worth recording, was the thing to do. So we’re at a point now where the guys have played together long enough that they really sound like a well-oiled unit. We’re in the process of recording at the moment, and we would hope certainly in and around St. Patrick’s Day to have a live CD available.

Nathan: Actually, great segue. That was my next question! (John and Nathan laugh) St. Patrick’s Day is coming up. Is there anything special being planned?

John: Yeah. Well, I suppose what is special about St. Patrick’s Day is the place it has in the hearts of people in North America. Certainly, coming from Ireland and having spent some time out here over the years, I’ve been amazed at what St. Patrick’s means or does to the mindset of people in North America. They all jump on board with great gusto. So we’re going to open St. Patrick’s Day at noon, and we have entertainment, Irish dancing from on from two o’clock in the afternoon. Tusker Rock will be here, Jay will be here, Danielle, our own step dancer will be here. Mara Waters, who is from Ireland and danced with us here also has a local dance school, she’s bringing some of her younger dancers in to perform for the afternoon so we’ll be a little bit more family oriented. Other than that, it will be lots of good fun, good humor, great food, great Irish beer, and a great way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.

Nathan: All right. I’m going to somehow have to try to get here. I’m a little far away, but I might have to drive just to get up here for that.

John: Well, we’ll be disappointed if you don’t show up.

Nathan: (chuckles) Now, to make reservations, Raglan Road, does it have it’s own number for people to call?

John: Yeah, absolutely. You can make reservations in one of two ways. You can ring the pub directly, which is 407-938-0300 . Or, alternatively you can make a reservation through the WDW Walt Disney Dining reservation system.

Nathan: Okay

John: Either or will get you a table.

Nathan: I want to thank you very much, John, for appearing on the Mouse | Tunes podcast. And if people want more information, is there a website they can go to?

John: Yeah, it’s www.raglanroadirishpub.com

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