'The embodiment of Cork decency' - Tánaiste pays tribute to famous Cork chipper after closure announcement

Tánaiste Micheál Martin has paid tribute after the owners of Jackie Lennox chip shop in Cork announced it will close its doors for the final time this Sunday.

The iconic chipper, which is located on Bandon Road in Cork city, has been open since 1951, and has served traditional fish and chips and other battered foods to generations of Corkonians as well as students from UCC and other educational institutions.

Announcing the closure, owners Frances and Brian Lennox said time had creeped up on them and they were ultimately "unable to cope with the burden of our success".

They said Jackie Lennox and his wife Eileen "raised nine children, seven of who were born above the shop", adding that all the children worked in the shop over the years.

Frances and Brian thanked all the loyal customers, workers and suppliers over the years saying it has been "a privilege".

"Please remember us fondly and we hope that we have made in a small way a contribution to the culture of Cork," they concluded.

In a post online, Tánaiste Micheál Martin said "a sincere thanks to the generations of Lennox family who ran the chip shop, adding that they have "made an outstanding contribution to Cork life, and its folklore".

"Lennox’s takeaway personified Cork decency, with good fun. An iconic institution, we’ll be sad to see it close, but ever grateful to a great family," Martin added.

Many other local political figures joined in leaving tributes, with Cork South Central Sinn Féin TD Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire describing the business as “the greatest chipper of all" and "an absolute institution for several generations in Cork".

“It’s the end of an era,” Ó Laoghaire added.

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