The Bear Festivities

Step inside, love…

n many ways, The Bear Paw Deli feels like the original of the species when it comes to Greystones’ new coffee society.

Where the sambos are fancy, the coffee comes in 427 different varieties, and, hey, everybody knows your name.

Having taken over from the pub in Irish communities, the modern coffee shop is more than just a jolt of java, but a place to meet, to belong, and to maybe even buy the branded t-shirt, baseball cap and surf board.

Having taken over the old post office in Delgany – one which had long ago moved down around the corner and the Ludlows – it’s hard to believe that Claire O’Brien opened her dream coffee shop ten years ago today.

Feels like only yesterday. And it feels like forever.

Naturally, given those fancy sambos, the cornucopia of coffees and, just importantly, the oversized sausage rolls, it wasn’t long before The Bear Paw got its claws into other parts of our purple patch, opening on both Theatre Lane in Greystones and in the almost-too-cute village, Enniskerry.

It was hardly surprising when Disney chose the latter as its main location for the disappointing Disenchanted, a shoot for which The Bear Paw really didn’t need to change a thing to fit right in.

“It really is a case of, what just happened?” says Claire today. “If someone had stopped me last week, or the week before, and told me that the Bear Paw first opened ten years ago, I would have told them they needed to redo the math. It couldn’t be ten years already!

“But, here we are. And it feels pretty much astounding to me, because expanding to three branches just wasn’t something I would have imagined happening back when we started on November 2nd, 2013.

“I also wouldn’t have imagined that the happy faces we’d see walking through the door back then would still be merrily swinging by today. This is like a second home to me, and I really hope it feels that way for our wonderful customers too…”

You can find out more about The Bear Paw Deli here, and find their Delgany branch here, Greystones here and Enniskerry here.