Chieftain Pub Brings Irish Culture to Plainville

Thomas and Mary Kahill bought what is now the Chieftain in September of 1995, but they started in the restaurant business a long time before that.

“It’s just in our bones and blood,” Mary said.

The couple originally met in the early 1970s in Ireland. They opened their first restaurant in 1973 called, "The Old Still." They said they loved the location.

“We came here in 1989 straight from Logan airport,” Mary said. “It was the first drink we had in the U.S.”

The couple said they moved from Dungarvan in county Waterford in Ireland, which is a coastal town. In 1989 they sold their current bar in Ireland, called the Welcome Inn, and moved to Wrentham. They said originally when they moved to the U.S., they had no intention of opening another restaurant

“But when we met the owners of the place we had to try it,” Tom said.

Both Mary and Tom said they wanted to open a restaurant that served as a neighborhood bar.

“It’s an unusual bar in the sense that we’ve always been somewhere between Luciano's and a neighborhood bar,” Tom said. “That’s what we’ve got here. We’ve got an eclectic bunch of people coming in here.”

Mary agreed, and said it’s somewhat similar to the restaurants and bars in Ireland, in that it is more of a social place than a place of business.

“In Ireland, people go out to have a drink, they don’t stay at home,” she said. “That’s what happens here. Everybody knows everybody. We have so many repetitive customers.”

Tom and Mary said they come out with a new menu every two years and do daily specials. They agreed though the main difference between them and many other restaurants in America is the method of storing, pouring and keeping Guinness beer.

“There is a knack to it,” Mary said.

Tom said they clean the lines every three weeks to keep the beer fresh and free of bacteria buildup, and they use stainless steel lines instead of plastic.

“Stainless steel to make the product as perfect as possible,” he said. “Plastic bleeds.”

Tom added that in a recent phone application that tells customers where the best glass of Guinness is in the area, "The Chieftain" came in first.

“We’re at the top of the list,” he said.

The couple said they also do not make what is known as an Irish Car Bomb, because of the historical connotation connected with the nomenclature of the drink.

“Too many people lost their lives,” Tom said. “Even now, two days ago 84 people lost their lives to car bombs in Iraq.”

The couple said they’re success after more than a decade in the U.S. was attributed to their 32 employees.

“They’re our backbone,” Mary said. “Some of the guys in the kitchen have been here for 16 years. We wouldn’t be successful without our staff.”

Tom and Mary said they donate as much as they can to the local police forces, fire departments and schools.

“We donate directly to the schools so you know exactly where it’s going,” Mary said.

The Chieftain is located on Route 1 on 23 Washington St. in Plainville.