The Cartoon Inn, 28 Market Square, Rathdrum. 0404 46774
The Cartoon Inn has recently opened under new management, Marino Monterisi and Alvaro Herran of the renowned Bates Restaurant.
Known as the place ‘Where Entertainment and Craic is an Art form’ The Cartoon Inn is famed far and wide for the rich and humorous cartoons which adorn its welcoming walls, the legacy of the now defunct Rathdrum International Cartoon Festival. Bill Eirner, Hunt Emereson, Ulrich Schroeder, Bob Foster are among some of the famous artists whose work can be seen at close quarter.
The pub first came into wide notice in 1785 when James Bates established his hostelry in this central Market Street location. Due to it’s central location the inn played host to both Irish rebels and forces of the Crown in it’s pursuit of such. Though its owners have changed down through the generations the character of The Cartoon Inn lives on and a steady stream of thirsty travelers has never died.
Since the 1960s, the buildings of the Cartoon Inn and Bates Restaurant have been used for film locations such as Michael Collins, The Country Girls, A Terrible Beauty and A Love Divided.
The most epic production undertaken in the area is the revitalisation of Market Street to the rear of the pub where Bates Restaurant and Simply Bates Café hold pride of place.
Home of the Rathdrum Rugby Club, The Cartoon Inn is the perfect place to sit back and watch a good match, whether it is Rugby, GAA or Soccer. Here customers can enjoy a creamy pint of Guinness or a crisp glass of wine with or without a snack or meal from the adjacent Simply Bates Cafe.
So call in to the Cartoon Inn and feast your eyes while quenching your thirst in a warm welcoming atmosphere that just makes you want to come back again and again!
