Can you ask your Granny - first supermarket in city?

gerbilgranny

An odd request, I know, but in the hope that someone might put me out of my misery:

My mother was from Kilkenny city, and I've very fond memories of going to stay with my granny in Nore Terrace, off Maudlin Street, from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s.

As my parents moved house quite a bit, now that I'm (much) older, it feels like Nore Terrace was a constant - almost like my own childhood home - and the memories of Kilkenny city are precious. Now all my relatives there have passed on.

I remember the outside toilet, and there being no fridge or inside tap. I remember toast being made at the fireplace.

I remember my Granny getting her bread from Crotty's or Molloy's, and there would have been a favourite butcher, greengrocer, etc. The local shop was Mai Walsh's on the Dublin road, and there was Wallaces nearby too, but I don't those couldn't have been the places Granny would have bought things like jam, flour, toilet paper, etc etc etc. She never got to see Superquinn or Dunnes Stores - so would anyone know what the first, or at least earlier, supermarkets in Kilkenny city were? I remember Woolworths - but would there have been something like a Liptons?

If anyone has any idea, I'd be grateful to find out. Thanks - enjoy living in your lovely city.

Eaglebridie 32

I can recall a supermarket in High St, L&N I believe it was called, situated about where Argos is now.

I'm presuming it's the first supermarket type of business as we know it that emerged in Kilkenny.

I'm thinking about late 60's early 70's here

Captain Havoc

There was Lipton's in kilkenny

Comerman

My better half says there was a supermarket where the "knickknack" shop is now in High St. beside Sam McCauleys and thinks it was called Liptons. Also there was a shop called Bescos?? down where Winstons was.

gerbilgranny

Thanks - I'd a feeling about Liptons, as I remember them in other towns.

Ah yes - L&N - I remember that - was thinking there was somewhere with a 'L' in the name! I remember buying sachets of Kelloggs (I think it was) 'Rise and Shine' drink there - you mixed this dried powder with water and you got a delicious 'fresh juice'!

I really appreciate the responses.

brettmirl

There was an L&N on High St and Loughbuoy. On John’s Green there was a VG supermarket (where Centra is now)

Elliott’s at the Parade/High St (Ladbrokes) was one of the main grocery places, before the bigger supermarkets came into town.

The nearest Quinnsworth were in Carlow or Clonmel.

gerbilgranny

brettmirl wrote: »

There was an L&N on High St and Loughbuoy. On John’s Green there was a VG supermarket (where Centra is now)

Elliott’s at the Parade/High St (Ladbrokes) was one of the main grocery places, before the bigger supermarkets came into town.

The nearest Quinnsworth were in Carlow or Clonmel.

Thanks - that's great info, as you're going back a good bit there. VG supermarket rings a bell (a very very ancient bell!). I reckon Granny must have shopped in Elliott's too.

looksee

Didn't Liptons become L&N? I recall shopping in Kilkenny in the 70s and I seem to recall that L&N was the only supermarket. Though I do vaguely recall some sort of a store in the dark little arcade further up High Street. They were all manky.

I remember going into L&N to buy cheese. Pretty much all they had was block cheddar that had to be cut. It was on the butcher counter and I asked the butcher to cut me some. He grabbed the block of cheese with one bloody hand and went to hack a lump off with the still bloody knife he had been butchering with. I objected and he looked bemused then wiped the knife on his apron and went to give it another go. No thanks, sez I, I'll leave it.

KK4SAM

There was also a Supermarket where the Wheat Sheaf was in Rose Inn Street.I think it then moved to upstairs in the Arcade but didn't last long.

Captain Havoc

Lipton's was on the corner of Friary St.

road_high

Supermarket choice in Kilkenny has always been terrible then, even worse back in the day of course. Before Dunnes came it must have been dismal.

PeterCasey

road_high wrote: »

Supermarket choice in Kilkenny has always been terrible then, even worse back in the day of course. Before Dunnes came it must have been dismal.

People shopped in there own locality then, you obviously are not from Kilkenny.

PeterCasey

What was the shop that you had to go up the steps to it was an old building it was burnt to the ground I think Boots shop was where it was.

looksee

PeterCasey wrote: »

People shopped in there own locality then, you obviously are not from Kilkenny.

Really!What 'own locality? I used to come in from Freshford in the 80s, pre-Dunnes (just). You would have been sadly stuck to get everything you needed without coming into Kilkenny. And right, the supermarket options were dismal.

brettmirl

PeterCasey wrote: »

What was the shop that you had to go up the steps to it was an old building it was burnt to the ground I think Boots shop was where it was.

The Sports Centre beside the town hall?

PeterCasey

brettmirl wrote: »

The Sports Centre beside the town hall?

No it was between Joe Neills chemist Mceneaneys.

KK4SAM

PeterCasey wrote: »

What was the shop that you had to go up the steps to it was an old building it was burnt to the ground I think Boots shop was where it was.

That was Smithwicks General Merchants

PeterCasey

looksee wrote: »

Really!What 'own locality? I used to come in from Freshford in the 80s, pre-Dunnes (just). You would have been sadly stuck to get everything you needed without coming into Kilkenny. And right, the supermarket options were dismal.

Had you not Byrnes, O Donnells, Jj Cahills, EDooley electrical shop that sold televisions to the north of the County, Val Reynolds butcher, Walls hardware grocery, several more in Freshford. I am talking about the late 1960s, 1970s you had three hardwares in Freshford five petrol stations. J o Hara old garage is turned back into a filling station opened the last couple of weeks it has brought life back into a good old town.

looksee

Yes there was a butcher, just before the bridge, I'm hopeless at remembering names. A general grocers across the road and Brennan Sisters on the corner. There was the co-op, and Walls though they didn't stock much. There were probably a few more but by the beginning of the 80s (we were in Kilkenny prior to that) I certainly don't recall that there were enough to reasonably get all groceries.

PeterCasey

KK4SAM wrote: »

That was Smithwicks General Merchants

That is the name thanks .

cargo

You also had the Red Lion on Vicar Street although I dont know how far back that went.

i can remember shopping in the L&N in the 80's with my mother.

pertinax

Woolworths on the high street might be a possibility? I 'm not sure when it first opened though. I used to think they only sold clothes but apparantly they used to flog anything.

cargo

pertinax wrote: »

Woolworths on the high street might be a possibility? I 'm not sure when it first opened though. I used to think they only sold clothes but apparantly they used to flog anything.

They definitely sold Pic-n-Mix. I remember it was heaven although I probably owe them a fortune for all the ones I'd eat while filling a bag

gerbilgranny

Ah yes - Woolworths in Kilkenny was a sort of rite-of-passage for me. At whatever age it was (maybe 10?) it was deemed okay for me to walk from Maudlin St all the way over to Woolworths and back on my own.

I felt like I was in Macy's in New York, or Harrods in London (had I known about them ).

The weather always seemed to be really hot and dry in the summers too...

I worked in another Woolworths branch as a teenager - they did seem to sell allsorts, but as far as I can remember, not 'everyday' general groceries...though definitely allsorts of the liquorice variety.