A protest in support of Yamamori Izakaya is set to take place this Tuesday at 6pm on South Great George’s Street, as tensions continue to rise over a legal dispute with British hotel chain The Hoxton Dublin.
The demonstration, organised by members of People Before Profit, comes after the hotel sought a High Court injunction against the popular nightlife spot, citing repeated noise disturbances. The move has sparked widespread backlash online, with many Dubliners accusing the hotel of threatening one of the city’s established late-night cultural venues.
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The Hoxton, which opened in November following refurbishment works at the former Central Hotel on Exchequer Street, adjoins Yamamori Izakaya — a long-running restaurant and bar known for live music five nights a week. Music at the venue runs from 11pm until around 3am Wednesday to Saturday, and until approximately 2.30am on Sundays.
In an affidavit to the court, the hotel’s manager Stephan Ernest claimed there had been “repeated and serious noise nuisance” emanating from the club into the early hours. He stated that the situation had forced the hotel to close more than 30 rooms and compensate guests who complained. The hotel has said noise levels have prevented it from offering roughly a quarter of its rooms for booking.
A spokesperson for The Hoxton said it had sought to “engage constructively with Yamamori Izakaya since late November to conduct joint acoustic testing”, adding that “testing has not yet been facilitated by Yamamori Izakaya”. According to the hotel, it was left with “no choice but to seek this injunction”. However, both parties agreed last Friday to work on sound testing together over the weekend in an effort to reach a resolution.
The legal action has triggered strong reaction across social media, where critics have labelled the hotel #ThePoxtonHotel. Commenters flooded the venue’s accounts with negative posts. One wrote: “Please leave Izakaya Bar in Dublin alone. Building a hotel and taking legal action on top of an active, long-running, and beloved music venue will only affect your hotel reputation negatively.” Another added: “Shame on you. Sincerely, everyone in Ireland. Leave our historical cultural spaces alone and take your greed elsewhere.” A third said: “I’d rather sleep in the Izakaya smoking area than one of the rooms at this hotel.”
Speaking to Newstalk, musician and People Before Profit member Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin said the protest is being held “because people are sick of the loss of cultural space venues in the city”. He warned that the injunction could pose a serious threat to a key part of Dublin’s nightlife. “They see with the threat of this injunction that they could lose a very important venue for the nightlife of the city,” he said.
Ó Ceannabháin also pointed to the Dublin City Council Development Plan, which states that new residential or hotel developments built adjacent to established late-night venues must demonstrate that their proposals will not negatively impact existing uses. “It says that all applications for short or longer-term residential proposals, including hotels, that seek permission adjacent to established late night users, such as nightclubs, shall be required to demonstrate in their application that they have ensured their development will not cause negative impacts on the adjoining uses in the future,” he said. He argued that this places responsibility on newer developments to mitigate potential conflicts.
Yamamori's nightclub, Izakaya has operated in the area for years. The venue has so far declined to comment directly on the legal proceedings. In a statement on social media, the venue said: “From all of us at Yamamori & Izakaya, thank you sincerely for your continued support and loyalty. It truly means a great deal to us. Unfortunately, we are unable to comment at this time.”
The matter is expected to return before the High Court this week, as campaigners prepare to gather in what they say is a stand for Dublin’s nightlife and cultural identity.
