Waterford City and County Council has agreed to sell Number 2, Blackfriars, Waterford City, to a buyer from Dunmore East for €260,000.
Number 2, Blackfriars was taken into Council ownership on 5 July, 2024, after being identified as a derelict site.
2 Blackfriars, once the site of P Larkin’s butcher shop, was a curiosity in Waterford for years as it opened its doors daily but had no meat to sell. Instead, the proprietor, named locally as Michael Griffin, would ‘hold court’ inside the butchers, with anyone welcome to call in for a chat.
Over the years the ‘meatless’ or ‘vegetarian’ butchers gained media attention. Articles covering the butchers that sold no meat were stuck to the street-front window, explaining the unusual situation to passers-by and adding to the local legend surrounding the shop.
According to reports, Michael Griffin, lived over the shop since he was born in 1934. The P Larkin sign is said to reference the original owner, who handed the business to Michael’s father. One of six children, Michael was the only one in the family who took butchery as a profession and, at 18 in 1952, he took charge of the family business.
Michael specialised in attending agricultural fairs and hand picking the best cattle to provide the highest quality meat. Business boomed, and Micheal’s became a mainstay butcher in Waterford City. That was until 1983, when he decided to stop selling meat.
Ireland had joined the EEC (now the EU) in 1973, and Michael believed this had lowered the quality of meat that butchers could sell. For a time Michael is said to have sourced meat from other butchers for his loyal customers but eventually he stopped doing that too.
Michael may have had no more meat to sell but the shop door remained open in 2 Blackfriars for over 30 years. Michael would sit on a stool by the back wall with his dog and any member of the public was welcome to come in for a chat about hurling, horse racing or anything beyond.
2 Blackfriars could have been sold during the Celtic Tiger for a considerable sum. Instead, it became a local meeting point and curiosity; many comments online note how much of a gentleman Michael was and how missed his presence is in Waterford City.
Although 2 Blackfriars has now transferred to new owners, Michael and his unique approach to life have earned him a permanent place in Waterford history.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme
AARON KENT
