Cape Girardeau welcomed a new Irish pub at the end of February and the restaurant portion of Katy O’Ferrell’s Publick House should open at the beginning of April.
The place is named after the grandmother of the owner, Mark Dirnberger, and is located on Broadway in the the former location of the old Royal N'Orleans restaurant.
Robert Perry, manager of the restaurant, said some renovations were necessary to get the pub ready. A fire place has been put in the dining room while the bar area has been upgraded with a new bar top and other esthetic changes to make the place look more Irish than Creole.
So far, the bar has attracted a clientele in the mid to late thirties instead of the college crowd. Perry said the price range of Katy O’Ferrell is mid to high range.
“It’s not expensive, it definitely is not on the range of what the previous restaurant here was,” Perry added.
The menu is going to have a little bit of everything on it, from soups and salads to burgers and of course, Irish food.
“We’re going to have an Irish comfort food section of the menu,” Perry said. “We’re going to have corned beef and cabbage, shepherd's pie, fish and chips and things like that.”
Perry said that a restaurant is always hiring but the major training portion has begun and everybody should be ready to go by the first week of April for the restaurant’s opening.
“I’m looking forward to seeing more people come in when we open the dining room, and it’s just some place to have a good meal and enjoy company with good people,” Perry concluded.