A pearl of a Pub in Galway by J. Herbert Silverman

Some two hundred years ago, Kilcolgan was a flourishing fishing port, nestling along the green fields which line an estuary of Galway Bay. A dozen houses clustered at the weir, a natural dam through which the waters passed. Here dwelled Michael Moran, who not only fished and farmed, but also ran a 'pub' frequented by sailors, as well as turfcutters who worked in the fields around this west of Ireland village.

'The port, alas, declined. The turf-cutters disappeared about 40 years ago when highways cut through the bogs, and other fuels began to warm the houses of Galway.

But years later, the seventh generation of Moran's still operates the pub, Morans of the Weir, attracting local farmers and some fishermen along with a throng of foreign visitors who have heard it described as one of the best restaurants for oysters and mussels in the Republic.

The thatched farmhouse remains as it was in Michael Moran's day, although the original kitchen and two bedrooms have been expanded. Now there are two whitewashed dining rooms, two small bars, a 'snug' and a large rear room for occasional groups, although Morans is not a mecca for coach tours.

The current Michael Moran, in his seventies, will hand over the duties of host to son Willy, 24, one of seven children (there are two sets of twins), all active in running the restaurant.

For years Morans served oysters dredged from its own beds with homebaked brown bread to go with them. About 14 years ago smoked salmon, crabs and prawns were added to the menu, along with home-made vegetable and beef soup, and the restaurant started on the road to its notable success.

In the words of Raymond Rodgers of the London Daily Mail, "I came to Ireland in search of wild fowl and found Morans. You have sparked life for me - never again will oysters taken with crumbly brown bread, washed down with foamy cream-headed pints of Guinness, ever taste the same. And your smoked salmon is the nectar of the Gods."

What attracts visitors time and again to the dining rooms here is the food, the family and the surroundings. A peat fire still glows in the iron stove, the kitchen of yore is now a cozy nook with tables for about eight or ten persons, and benches along the wall permit a guest to relax and drink a 'jar' of Guinness or down a Paddy Irish whiskey. The new addition can cope with small parties but seems an almost unhappy accommodation to progress.

Some other things have changed. Forty years ago a dozen oysters cost seven cents, and it was not unusual for a diner to consume two or three dozen at one sitting. Today a dozen go for $6.50, which is somewhat of a testimony to inflation and the changing scene in Western Ireland. Certainly a plate of dressed prawns at $4.40 would have been inconceivable 20 years ago.

The most popular time of year in these parts, and certainly the most crowded, is during the Galway Oyster Festival, which gets underway the second week of September. It begins with the ceremonial opening of the first oyster of the season, and features the international oyster-opening championship. It was here that Willy Moran achieved a kind of international fame. He holds the world's record for opening the most oysters in the least time - 30 oysters in one minute, 31 seconds. This record, set........

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