JJ's reopens with a smile

ISLAND institution JJ's Irish bar and restaurant made a triumphant come-back this week, three months after being closed in the government crack-down on one and two star hotel venues.

The nightspot was one of those which fell foul of MPs determined to wipe-out vice and other unacceptable behaviour which led to a ruling, just before Grand Prix weekend, which saw bars and restaurants attached to all one and two star hotels either closed or stopped from selling alcohol and employing entertainers.

The move prompted an outcry with letters pouring into local newspapers on the move in general - and the closure of JJ's in particular, which had never had a vice problem and had always excelled as a well run establishment.

The venue, which celebrates its 10 year anniversary this month, is a great favourite with both expats and locals alike, and has long been known for its traditional Irish cooking and friendly atmosphere.

Social networking site Facebook quickly had a page dedicated to protesting its closure and attracted around 1,000 members who shared memories such as: 'I miss the craic at JJ's', 'I met my future hubby at JJ's, good times, good memories' and 'Where-else can a bloke do an Amy Winehouse impression?'.

This week, their pleas were answered when the much-loved venue opened its doors again on Sunday with the entrance to the neighbouring Al Bustan Hotel walled up and its restaurant licence from the relevant ministry firmly in place.

And despite the news only spreading through word of mouth, the place was soon buzzing with many regulars saying they have been keeping their eyes on JJ's throughout the closure in the hope that it would soon be reborn.

Opening the doors at 6pm bar manager Mikey Goodger said: "We've waited a long time for this day, we're really looking forward to welcoming back all our old friends and making some new ones."

General Manager Antonio Ahmaramiam added: "We have waited three months, but it has given us the chance to do lots of work that we would normally try to fit in during Ramadan. We've painted and had the floors redone and put a smoking area upstairs ready for when the smoking ban comes in.

"We've been working with the ministry and they've been very helpful. We believe in complying with everything that's required of us.

"Virtually all the staff are back, though a few did leave the island saying they didn't want to work anywhere else.

"We can't believe how much support we've had both through Facebook and letters to the newspapers, we never asked people to do this but it's great that they did.

"We're really excited to be open again and are now looking forward to celebrating our 10th anniversary with some special events at the end of July."