Popular Irish pub reopens in uptown Charlotte after being closed nearly a year
Another sign of life returning to uptown is the reopening of one of Charlotte’s more popular Irish pubs.
Rí Rá on North Tryon Street quietly reopened Wednesday after being closed for nearly a year during the coronavirus pandemic.
The opening comes the same week as another uptown restaurant, The King’s Kitchen on West Trade Street, plans to reopen its doors Friday after being closed for more than a year.
Rí Rá will be open from 5-11 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday and 5 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday-Saturday, according to the company website.
Quinn Witte, director of facilities for Rí Rá, told the Observer on Thursday that the restaurant will have limited days and hours for a few weeks as part of a soft opening.
The restaurant began promoting on social media last month that it was hiring.
David Kelly and Ciaran Sheehan, natives of Dublin, opened Rí Rá in 1997.
In addition to Charlotte, four other locations are open in Atlantic City, New Jersey; Burlington, Vermont, Las Vegas and Portland, Oregon. Rí Rá Atlanta permanently closed in May 2020, The Atlanta-Journal Constitution reported.
Closed during COVID
Rí Rá voluntarily closed on March 16 last year, the day before St. Patrick’s Day, as COVID-19 cases surged in North Carolina. Gov. Roy Cooper ordered all bars and restaurants to close dining rooms the following day.
Rí Rá briefly reopened Aug. 10 under statewide capacity restrictions and with safety protocols, but closed again 18 days later. Witte previously told the Observer it wasn’t viable to be open at that time, and that foot traffic would determine when Rí Rá would reopen.
Last July, uptown restaurant owners were struggling from the lack of foot traffic from office workers and events, compounded by mounting restrictions and people not comfortable dining out.
Fans of the Irish pub on social media said “We miss your amazing food” and “Can’t wait for you to reopen to get the fish and chips.”
Uptown Charlotte lost at least one Irish pub during the pandemic.
Fitzgerald’s on 5th and College streets, across from Epicentre, announced last July it was permanently closing.