“It was just a mad moment.”
The owner of Dublin’s Berlin bar has said he is “appalled” and “embarrassed” by the footage of a brunch event that happened in the venue over the weekend.
Restauranteur Jay Bourke said that the video shot at the event, which showed a member of staff standing on the bar while many attendees failed to physically distance, was “an aberration.”
Bourke, who was in Cork at the time of the event, said that he had met with Gardaí and members of staff to rewatch CCTV footage and discuss the afternoon event, which happened on Dublin’s Dame Lane.
He said that the 20 second clip shared on social media was not representative of the “pretty well controlled” event.
https://twitter.com/NoelRock/status/1294764775147266049?s=20
“It was just a mad moment,” he told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland. “[The barman] was not doing what he should. The barman was naughty. He’s young and got excited.
“It was a moment of exuberance, I suppose. It’s my job as an operator of pubs and clubs to keep that exuberance under control, and under normal circumstances I do.
“This was an aberration rather than a normal occurrence. Young people need to have fun, our job is to provide it […] That footage does not reflect what went on at all.”
Bourke said that he regrets putting on the event due to the video footage shared online, but that he is confident that CCTV footage proves that the event was controlled.
He added that public health guidelines were broken but that he is not worried about Berlin losing its license. Bourke also said that he has provided the CCTV footage to the Gardaí, RTÉ, and the Irish Times.
He said that he is confident that the incident will not happen again.
“I’m extremely unhappy about this, that I’ve been hung out to dry,” he said.
Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly called the footage reckless and said that he has spoken to Gardaí about the event.
He added that the footage should not be excused as “young people just want to have fun.”
