Sligo café and wine bar in the running to be Ireland’s Favourite Local Business

Ósta Café and Wine Bar is one of the businesses nominated in the Ireland’s Favourite Local Business competition, backed by the Love Sligo Gift Card.

Located alongside the Garavogue River, Ósta first opened in the town 18 years ago. Industry expert Brid Torrades has over 40 years of hospitality experience under her belt and said:

“We opened Ósta in Sligo in 2006 and my goal was to make it a neighbourhood place for people to meet friends, enjoy good food and drinks, read the paper and relax. I wanted the produce to all be top quality using local, seasonal produce. And these values hold true today. We serve excellent organic, fair-trade coffee which is roasted in Ireland – the same brand we’ve used for 18 years.

“We really encourage and support local suppliers.  In the beginning this was hard as local producers were in short supply but there are many, many excellent food producers in the northwest for which we are grateful.

“Our staff are our backbone. Many of the team have been with us for a long time, and that keeps us moving forward. We’re also fortunate to have loyal customers. People that used to visit Osta as kids for their pancakes now visit with their own children, and many families have been with us since the start. I think independent businesses are so important to a town and customers really appreciate that in Sligo.

“Baking starts early morning in Osta so that people can get their coffee and scone on the way to work, we also offer brunch and light lunches, maybe a warming soup or stew depending on the weather. In 2020, we also started farming our own herd of Dexter cattle so we can produce our own grass fed beef. I think food provenance matters more and more. People want to know where their food is from but also the healthiest, most nutritional option.

“Sustainability is also a big focus for us. When we started the business, compostable packing wasn’t as available as it is now. Today, we’re able to use compostable cups, and encourage customers to use their own cups too.”

Ósta Café and Wine Bar is part of the Love Sligo Gift Card led by Sligo BID, which can be spent with over 230 local businesses. Brid says the initiative benefits everyone in the town:

“The Love Sligo Gift Card is great for the town. If I give a Love Sligo Gift Card to someone, it doesn’t matter where it’s spent, we all benefit eventually. It powers the circular economy and is very easy for us as a business to accept.

“It’s an honour for Osta to be nominated as Ireland’s Favourite Local Business. I’m proud that we are part of people’s day to day lives, and that they have taken the time to nominate us means the world.”

Shops, restaurants, salons, hotels and attractions in Sligo– and right across Ireland – are all eligible to be Ireland’s Favourite Local Business 2024. People can nominate their favourite local business in the competition free at lovelocalwin.ie, giving the name of the local business they think deserves to win and a reason.

Ireland’s Favourite Local Business will be the business who has the most nominations and will win a €500 Town & City Gift Card, such as the Love Sligo Gift Card, with one person who nominated the winning business receiving a €1000 Town & City Gift Card. Businesses can find out more about the competition online.

Over €750,000 of Love Sligo Gift Cards have been sold to date, with the cards popular for both consumers to buy and organisations to use as staff rewards, taking advantage of the Small Benefit Exemption scheme.

Gail McGibbon, CEO at Sligo BID said: “We’re thrilled to see this nomination for a popular Sligo business in this national competition. Local businesses are the foundation of our town and community, with many part of our Love Sligo Gift Card that continues to go from strength to strength. If there is a Sligo business that makes a positive impact on your life, I encourage you to vote for them as Ireland’s Favourite Local Business.”

Mark Cunningham is the manager of the Sligo BID and business development manager for Miconex, and said: “Sligo has such strong independent businesses. It would be great to see a Sligo business win this national accolade and the ability to call themselves Ireland’s Favourite Local Business. It takes 2 minutes to nominate your Favourite Local Business in Sligo, for the chance to win a €1000 Love Sligo Gift Card for yourself, with the winning business also winning a €500 gift card alongside the honour of being Ireland’s best.”

Fintech Miconex, founders of the Town & City Gift Card concept active across Ireland, is sponsoring Ireland’s Favourite Local Business 2024. Over 20,000 local businesses are part of Miconex’s local gift card programmes around the world with over €35m spent locally through the cards.

Colin Munro is the managing director of Miconex and said: “Ireland’s Favourite Local Business is designed to shine a light on local businesses in the run up to the Christmas period. Congratulations to Osta for their nomination.”

Enter Ireland’s Favourite Local Business competition free at: www.lovelocalwin.ie

The competition closes on the 31st October 2024.