With a history dating back to 1263, Kytelers Inn, in the heart of the Medieval City of Kilkenny, combines a rich heritage with 21st century amenities and service.
Since it was first established by the notorious Dame Alice de Kyteler in the 13th. Century, the Inn has welcomed visitors and has provided them with good food and beverages. To-day its menu maintains the proud tradition of Irish cooking and from its taps flow local beers like Kilkenny and Smithwicks as well as Guinness and the Irish lager, Harp.
It is a place of merriment and celebration whose rafters continue to be raised by music and song, where weddings, birthdays and family events are celebrated and where the people of Kilkenny and their visitors gather for music, dance and conversation.
One of the oldest inns in Ireland, its first owner occupies a special place in the history of Kilkenny. The daughter of a Norman banker, Alice de Kyteler married four times and in the process amassed a considerable fortune. Local jealousies abounded and she was eventually accused of witchcraft and sentenced to be burned. Her excellent connections with local gentry ensured however that she was ‘spirited’ out of the country to England before the execution could take place.
Over the centuries which followed, the fortunes of Kyteler’s Inn ebbed and flowed. It was a thriving inn in good times and lay derelict in others. By the 20th century it was in dire need of repair and was substantially refurbished in the 1960s by a group of Kilkenny investors, but still struggled as a business.
A New LandLady
In 1986 Kyteler’s Inn was acquired by its present owner, Nicky Flynn, who set about reviving it as a place of good food and drink, entertainment and traditional Irish hospitality. She stripped away plaster to reveal the original stone walls and hired local stonemasons to restore the Medieval interior.
In 2008, the top floor of the Inn was developed in to a large and atmospheric space called The Top Bar. Reminiscent of a Baronial Hall, it can be configured to suit a wide range of events including wedding receptions, family and office parties, product launches, corporate receptions, meetings, music and literary performances. It has even become a theatre during Kilkenny Arts Week.
With the growing popularity of the city as a visitor destination, Kyteler’s Inn has become a popular tourist attraction, welcoming people from all over the world. Guests range from the curious who want to stroll through the interior and soak up its heritage and history, tour groups who can have their own space in the Top Bar, those who come specifically for the live music, diners who want to sample the Kyteler’s Inn cuisine (featuring traditional dishes like Bacon and Cabbage and Irish stew), to those who simply want to enjoy a pint of Kilkenny beer while chatting to local people.
Award Winning
It has been the recipient of many awards including Tourist Bar of the Year in the National Bar Awards for both 2013 and 2014. Kyteler’s Inn has previously won The Music Venue Of The Year and have twice been nominated in the Kilkenny Chamber of Commerce business awards, winning once in 2013.