Madam, - The imminent demise of yet another Dublin institution, Bewley's, which appears set to be swept away in the tide of so-called modernity, is another sign of how far we've come, yet how much we've lost as a result of our new-found affluence.
Bewley's cafés, with their distinctive architecture, dark wood and stained-glass windows which appear to have emerged straight from a Vermeer painting, are set to be lost forever.
Poet Brendan Kennelly described Bewley's as "the heart and hearth of Dublin".
Indeed, these cafés have always been a focal point for ordinary Dubliners and seem to have been a favourite of the various "Dublin characters", which seem more of a limited commodity of late. Tourists visiting the city also seek out these unique, almost time-warped, coffee houses. Yet another - practical - reason to ensure their survival.
We all have our own memories of Bewley's cafés and James Joyce even mentions the place in his work.
You could happily sit with a coffee and newspaper for hours, if you wished, without fear of being asked to move on, or if not, being made feel as though you should.
Objectively though, Bewley's lost something, in terms of direction and quality, since Patrick Campbell's acquisition in the mid-1980s and despite keeping the name and customer goodwill, the place had a feeling of being on borrowed time.
The original Bewley family were Quakers and their paternal approach to customers seemed like an anachronism. Those who had fallen on hard times and couldn't afford the price of a cup of tea or bowl of soup were never turned away.
Neither were they made feel like charity cases, rather as just another customer, and discreetly fed and given a few hours shelter. This practice continued right until the Campbell takeover, less than 20 years ago.
Despite a mooted closing date of late November, it's not too late. Either the Government or a business consortium should look at finding some way to keep these cafés going before yet another part of Dublin becomes just a memory and we can all look forward to the banal, impersonal, uniformity of the various café franchises, which seem to have mushroomed in recent years. - Yours, etc.,
DAVID MARLBOROUGH,
Kenilworth Park,
Dublin 6W.
Madam, - It was with great regret and concern that I learned of Bewley's closure on Grafton Street and Westmoreland Street. Regret because we will once again stand apathetically by as another part of our cultural landscape is obliterated (remember the plane trees on O'Connell Street) and concern because this is a symptom of a wider disintegration of our cultural uniqueness. There is a real danger that Dublin will become nothing more than a satellite town of London.
When it comes to our heritage we are completely careless as we blunder forward trying to be more "international". Grafton Street more and more resembles an English high street, you can forget about "coffee at eleven". We take no time to live any more, rather we rush about fuelled by Italian espresso and American bagels and lose our head in Zara. We are now witnessing the slow death of our unique city and I for one despair of the consequences of this addiction to materialistic gain and lack of self awareness. This started long before Bewley's imminent demise and it won't end there either.
It may not be long before we witness a new phenomenon of cultural emigration from this impending cultural desert. - Yours, etc.,
MIRIAM BARROR,
Green Building,
Temple Lane Sth,
Temple Bar,
Dublin 2.
Madam, - Does anyone else see in the closure of Bewley's little more thaa classic case of asset-stripping?
Bewleys was a wholesome Quaker-owned operation which was run on progressive co-operative lines for most of its illustrious history. The staff loved working there (and it showed); the customers loved being there and the whole place was an institution - as much part of life in Dublin as the Abbey, Guinness, Joyce or Beckett.
When the Bewley family could no longer run the place, it was taken over by an Irish catering company called Campbell Catering.
They needed a vehicle to reposition themselves in the quality end of the catering business. Bewley's was that vehicle and Campbell Bewley was born.
They used the Bewley name to become an international player, famously winning the contract for the catering for the Channel Tunnel.
They franchised all that was recognisably "Bewley's" to produce Bewley's-themed food outlets all over Ireland and the UK.
These had little in common with the original Bewley's beyond the wallpaper and the graphics.
Now that the business transition is complete the cost-cutting can commence.
Campbell's have flogged the Bewley's horse to death and can now leave it to rot in the gutter like some rust-belt steelworks.
A fitting monument to the ideology of "Celtic Tiger" Ireland. - Yours, etc.,
SIMON McGUINNESS,
St Joseph's Cottages,
Ashtown,
Dublin 7.
A chara, - It is lamentable that we have a plethora of super-pubs but we are now losing our only super-cafe. - Is mise le meas,
ALEX STAVELEY,
Norseman Court,
Stoneybatter,
Dublin 7.