Dun Laoghaire Gazette : February 2012 : by Bairbre Ní Bhraonain :

A COMMUNITY HUB AND THEATRICAL TOUR DE FORCE
CAFE PROVES TO BE A TASTY ADDITION TO AREA

Yvonne and Breffní Anderson are the couple running the most exciting cafe to hit the Dun Laoghaire shorefront for many a year.

The Promenade Cafe is not just a place to grab a sandwich and a cup of coffee but a community and cultural centre for the people of Dun Laoghaire to meet and interact.

Yvonne and Breffní moved to the area six years ago and have set about revolutionising the coffee house ideal. Breffni’s family has been involved in the insurance business for over a century and his offices lead off the coffee house in a spirit of mutual interaction between the two concerns.

It’s a family company, MGA, and the cafe comes under the heading of MGA restaurants. He is very knowledgeable about the historical connection between the insurance industry and the coffee house.

Lloyds use to conduct their business in cafe prototypes on the waterfront and deal with the merchants who came ashore and those embarking on voyages, effectively insuring their vessels and cargo. Yet neither he nor Yvonne (a former health worker and founder of an organisation caring for those with intellectual difficulties) ever ran a coffee house.

Yet the sense of the unknown has played very nicely into their hands. They have pushed beyond traditional ideas of a cafe and integrated many diverse aspects to it.

These include theatre, insurance, kids’ painting competitions, adult writing competitions and community discussion…
[click here to continue reading ... 1.5MB PDF]