Ten jobs created with opening of Jolly Boys branch in Athlone

An Athlone branch of a Ballymahon eatery that was started by three local businesspeople opened in recent weeks, creating ten new jobs in the process.

Jolly Boys Pizza and Grill, which was established by Michael Delaney, Leo Flanagan and Fenton White, opened its premises in the Arcadia Retail Park in mid-March, having operated the original branch on Ballymahon's Main Street since 2020.

"The response in Athlone so far has been excellent," Michael Delaney told the Westmeath Independent last week.

"There have been a few little teething problems here and there, but overall we are very happy with how things have been going to date.

"There are more things we want to do, and things we want to add into the mix, but it's been a good start."

Michael Delaney explained that around ten staff had been hired for the Athlone branch, between full-time and part-time roles.

Pizza is one of Jolly Boys' specialities, and the business brought in some Italian authenticity by recruiting three chefs from the country to work at the Athlone branch.

While the Athlone premises has "a limited dining space," Michael explained that it's "predominantly a take-away and delivery business, in comparison to Ballymahon which is more of a restaurant."

Outlining the background of the Jolly Boys business, he explained that he, Leo, and Fenton were all from the wider Ballymahon area and that Leo had been working in various pizzerias for a number of years prior to the opening of Jolly Boys in October 2020.

"Fenton and I have no background in anything to do with food; I run a lighting company and Fenton runs an electrical contracting company," explained Michael.

In addition to its pizzas, the Jolly Boys range of burgers has proven very popular and is made with beef from Michael's own farm beside the Royal Canal on the Longford side of Ballymahon.

"We have a Bord Bia-approved farm and the cattle are grass-fed, without any concentrates. It's very much a farm-to-fork operation.

"We try to do everything as sustainably as possible, and as locally-sourced as possible, be that with compostable packaging or locally-sourced ingredients, and the beef is the big one," he said.