Irish pub Paddy Wagon, a fixture in Richmond, is opening a Caribbean restaurant neighbor
While many businesses have come and gone from downtown Richmond in the last 25 years, one place has thrived.
The Paddy Wagon Irish Pub, 150 E Main St., was first opened in 2004 by former Eastern Kentucky University professors Chuck Fields and Greg Farrow at the former location of cherished local bar The Family Dog. However, a fire in 2007 led to the pub moving down the street to its current location, formerly the home of another iconic bar in O’Riley’s Pub, after a brief stint inside a nearby warehouse in between.
Originally planned as a modest venture, the scope of the pub quickly grew according to Fields.
“Greg and I initially just wanted to open up a small EKU faculty club with no food, just bartending, but it quickly grew,” says Fields of how the pub’s vision morphed into what it is today.
The menu includes burgers such as the signature Guinness Burger, sandwiches, wings, appetizers and flatbread pizzas.
Organizing trips to Ireland, Scotland
Part of the Paddy Wagon’s formula for success has been its extensive involvement in the community, especially with EKU students. Ever since the bar opened 18 years ago Fields has been organizing annual, and sometimes bi-annual, group trips to Ireland and Scotland through the bar. The expeditions marry together Fields’ love for traveling and teaching, with him acting as tour guide for each group that comes along with him.
“Most of the students and other folks who come on these trips haven’t traveled much domestically much less internationally, so it’s always fascinating to watch them explore and experience a new part of the world for the first time,” says Fields.
Another event that Fields has long organized through the bar is an annual Thanksgiving feast. Initially organized as a get-together for EKU faculty, graduate and international students with nowhere to go home to during the holiday, the gathering has since grown into an event where anyone in the community in need of a warm meal and human connection is welcome. The meals are served free of charge, with nearly 150 people being served in 2022.
Paddy Wagon also used to organize a holiday bar crawl that at its peak included over 20 participating bars from Richmond’s downtown corridor before having to put the event on hold the past three years due to the pandemic. Many of the bars who had previously participated are now closed or are no longer interested.
“It pains me to see so many businesses go under, but it also makes me proud of all we’ve accomplished and that we’re still standing here, especially having known nothing about the industry prior to launching the business,” says Fields.
New tropical bar, restaurant coming next door to Paddy Wagon
With plans to turn the Paddy Wagon over to his business partner Silas Smith in the next couple of years, Fields, 72, has his eyes on another project. Prior to the pandemic he purchased a small building next to the Irish pub at 144 E, Main St. that he’s currently in the process of turning into Islands In The Stream, a tropical-themed bar and restaurant expected to be open by Spring 2023.
Despite its aesthetic drawing upon his travels, particularly to various spots throughout the Caribbean including Cuba, Jamaica and the British and U.S. Virgin Islands, the restaurant’s namesake is actually inspired by the posthumous book by author Ernest Hemingway of the same name rather than Fields’ travels or the hit song from Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers.
Featuring walls lined with pictures and other island mementos along with a metal lined ceiling like those commonplace in the region, Islands In The Stream looks to create a little slice of paradise in the Central Kentucky town. This sentiment also extends to its menu, which will feature everything from Jamaican jerk chicken to ceviche and oxtail along with a variety of rums, tequilas and beers native to the area.
While the business’s hours of operation are not yet set in stone, Fields expects it to be open Friday through Sunday including early on weekends for people to gather to watch Premier League fútbol and have brunch on Sundays. He also plans to utilize the large deck out back for live music and overflow seating on Sundays when the Paddy Wagon is closed as well.
Now over three years since Fields’ vision for Islands In The Stream first began materializing, the business owner says his anticipation to finally open up is through the roof not only for him, but for folks in the community he’s spoken with as well.
“Islands in the Stream has been an idea of mine for several years,” says Fields. “This type of food is my favorite to cook and to eat. I love the Islands and have sailed there nearly 40 times. I’m excited to bring these flavors to Richmond and to introduce the community to something new, especially given all the hurdles I’ve had to overcome in getting it ready to open.”
The Paddy Wagon Irish Pub
Where: 150 E Main St, Richmond
Hours: 3 p.m.-1 a.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Saturday, closed Sunday
Online: RichmondPaddyWagon.com