Almost a year ago, brothers Ed and Doug Daly were looking for a suitable venue for their new venture the Dead Donkey.
Working at the Broadfield at the time, the Daly brothers were looking at places in Crookes and Kelham Island, but were never really sold by any of the buildings they’d looked at. When the rumours were confirmed that Mr Pickles’ Food Emporium at 240 Abbeydale Road wasn’t going to be reopening, they set their sights on a venue which is literally yards away from Ed’s house. “It was completely accidental, finding this place,” Ed tells us. “One of aunties is the friend of a cousin who was letting the building. Doug lives just off Chesterfield Road and we’ve spent most of our lives here.
Having worked in hospitality for a while, they’d always wanted to open a bar together. “There’s no un-diplomatic way of saying this, but the catering industry is just crap. You work unsocial hours, you can’t make plans with friends or family, you’re on minimum wage and we’ve been on the receiving end of that for years.”
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“We’re paying our staff the Living Wage,” adds younger brother Doug. “We’re closing 11pm-ish and shutting up on Sundays and Mondays, so people can go to the bank or the post office. It’s about having that quality of life.”
Another huge part of Dead Donkey will be its accessibility. Regardless of your persuasion, whether it’s craft beer, wine or cocktails, their knowledge of booze and reasonable pricing will likely be a unique part of the experience. “We’re going to have beers from here, there and everywhere, basically. The wines are supplied from Starmore Boss and we want to price them reasonably. If you want to come in and pay for a £4 wine then fine. If you want to come in and pay for a £15 bottle of wine, you’ll get a bottle worth that much!
“We’re going to have a big whisky selection too, because that’s our other vice. If we’re at Starmore Boss then it would be rude to pick up, say, 50 bottles of whisky, wouldn’t it?”
Dead Donkey opens at 240 Abbeydale Road on 12 April. Head over to the bar’s Facebook page for updates in the meantime.
In association with www.sivtickets.com, the local box office.
