Welcome To Intermission

Intermission is open from 2pm daily. Open until late Monday to Sunday. Intermission is a monument to the cosy lounge bars of the 1970s, a place you could have a quiet pint after work, have the craic with your friends, read a newspaper, discover the life stories of a stranger or commiserate over life’s misfortunes. Their demise marked an unfortunate loss of one of Ireland’s great mediums of exchange, we are delighted to be resurrecting the concept in a manner which honours this great tradition.

The stunning interior of Intermission is a testament to the fine talents of Cork’s skilled craftspeople, every item you see from the joinery to the brass and the furniture to the artwork was conceptualised and constructed within a five-mile radius of the bar. It was an amazing process to work with such talented people. The wood panelling which defines the character of a lounge represents some of the best carpentry in the country. It has all been designed with comfort of our patrons explicitly in mind.

The central feature of Intermission must be the beautiful and captivating mural, titled The Pavilion of Earthly Delights which runs along the lounge wall. Designed by talented Cork artist Anthony Ruby, the mural has everything. The panels draw from a wide range of influences including The Garden at Eichstatt: The Book of Plants by Basilius Besler, the fantastical topsy-turvy logic of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights as well as Max Ernst and Leonora Carrington’s surrealist visions.

It contains diverse elements from the natural world and uses fantastic zoomorphic figures and references the human body. Also depicted in the panels are sugary delicacies, gin distillation and surreal versions of iconic buildings that are woven into the fabric of Cork’s visual identity. The work is composed using a series of vignette type images that are set within the overall dream-like landscape. You’ll find a multitude of depictions to ponder including references to The International Exhibition of 1902, St. Anne’s Shandon, The Lee Fields and even aliens! You could truly spend all day gazing upon the brilliantly elaborate depictions, best enjoyed alongside one of our delicious cocktails.

From 5pm you can then wander up to Pavillion upstairs with a drink in hand if you so desire. The Pavilion, paying homage to its days as one of Cork’s finest cinemas, is a multifunctional arts space which includes a big screen and projector.