*Declan Kelly (Co-Manager) (front), Anton Savage, David Hayes, Adrian & Diana Fleming (owners), Geraldine Crowley (Co-Manager), Sharon Cummins, Lilly Scanlan, Loretta Kelly, Dillon Browne & Mark Sullivan celebrate The Monks Well’s win in Dublin
THE newly-renovated Monks Well pub in Quin has been recognised as Best Newcomer in the Irish Bar of the Year awards 2025.
The iconic pub, which is now run by co-managers Declan Kelly & Geraldine Crowley since reopening under new ownership in March of this year, took home gold in the Best Newcomer category at the awards held in Dublin last week.
Declan told The Clare Echo, “We’re elated. It’s a fantastic achievement for a small pub in Quin. We were very surprised. When it came out we didn’t know what to do”.
The Irish Bar of the Year Awards 2025 took place on August 18 in Dublin with three Clare establishments making the finals. Bunratty based pub & bistros Durty Nelly’s (Visitor Attraction of the Year) and JP Clarke’s (Gastro Bar of the Year) were also recipients of awards.
The Monks Well competed with a judge’s shortlist of sixteen pubs nationwide to be named Best Newcomer. A feat made even more special when it emerged that after only five months in operation, The Monks Well is by far the fastest winner of the category since the awards inception.
Twelve staff from the Quin establishment were present on the awards night, with the team staying in the country’s capital for the ceremony, Kelly told The Clare Echo. “It was an absolutely amazing night and we met loads of other pubs, JP Clarkes and Durty Nellies were also finalists and it was nice to have three local pubs up there from Clare”.
The Monks Well, which also operates boutique guest rooms (The Monks Quarters) and a Brunch Café (The Monks Pantry) has already become a popular community venue in the heart of Quin village.
With live music every Friday and Saturday night, it hosts parties and family gatherings, regular events like yoga mornings, paint your pooch and prosecco paint and sip events. The owners Adrian and Diana Fleming’s vision from the very start of construction was “to be more of a community hub than a pub” and we feel we have achieved that.
The Monks Well employs more than 25 staff and Mr Kelly added that the award win has “given us a lift” as we enter the next phase of development as we enhance the food offering at the Pantry and Barn in the coming days and weeks. Mr Kelly concluded by saying that “we owe this award to the locals who supported us from the beginning and the wider community who have started to make the “Spin to Quin” a weekly habit.
