TM’s Vintage Bar – a community hub
MEET OUR FINALISTS: BEST FAMILY BUSINESS
When Tom Michael Hill and his wife Patricia took over TM’s Vintage Bar in Kilnaleck, they knew it would be more than just a place to pull pints. Twenty years later, the bar has become a central hub of community life - a place where family, friends, and neighbours gather not just for a drink, but for chat, banter, and even the occasional bit of homework.
“This November we’re 20 years in business,” Patricia reflects with pride. “There used to be nine pubs in the town, now there’s only three left. We’re a very busy pub. I do the days, and Tom does the nights. On weekends, our two sons help out a lot, and the grandkids even stock the shelves sometimes. They love doing it.”
That family involvement is what makes TM’s Bar stand out. Patricia says the pub often doubles as a second home for her grandchildren. “They come in for their homework in the afternoons, and sometimes the locals even have to help out with it,” she chuckles.
Sport also brings people through the doors. With the new Cavan streaming service the pub has become a place to watch games together with everyone cheering on the local club Crosserlough, of course. “It’s all too complicated with apps and paying for tickets,” Patricia explains. “So people come in here, watch the matches, and have a chat about it. The turnout is always great.”
Life in the pub trade is not without its challenges. Patricia points to the lack of local taxis and services in the town as a real drawback: “There’s no taxis anymore, the bank is gone, not many food places, not much of a town left.”
Still, she wouldn’t trade her role. “I love the craic and the banter, the boys coming in and the chat about the weather. It suits me.”
The pub boasts a large covered outdoor area and bar for larger functions and private parties and the Hills recently invested in a new cool room, refrigeration system and taps to provide a wider variety of popular beers, stouts and ciders on draft - all of which are going down smoothly with the punters. The pub also regularly has live music.
Patricia, 62, and Tom Michael, 63, live above the pub now. While the noise took some getting used to, Patricia says she now recognises every voice and enjoys hearing the life of the bar carry on downstairs. Running a pub seven days a week is demanding, but Patricia insists she wouldn’t want it any other way: “Other people tell me about cruises, but I’d be missing something if I wasn’t here.”
For Patricia and Tom Michael, TM’s Vintage Bar is more than a business. It’s a way of life, a family legacy, and, most importantly, a community home.
DROP IN
TM’s Vintage Bar is located on the Main Street in Kilnaleck.
Call 04 9-4336207 or drop in for a drink and a chat.