2022 Award Winners ‘MOVERS & SHAKERS’ AWARDS 2022

Niall McKenna - James Street & Co Restaurant Group

 That Belfast chef and restaurateur Niall McKenna is a man on a mission is no secret. He has a culinary vision for Belfast that may well date back two decades, to when he and his wife Joanne opened the acclaimed fine dining venue James Street South and the adjacent Bar & Grill - all now reimagined as James St. Their excellent Hadskis on Commercial Court closed this year but, far from being the negative move that might be expected in these daunting times, it was all part of the grand plan - to create a major hospitality hub in the city’s Cathedral Quarter. The whole Hadskis team moved over to open a new restaurant at Waterman House, a Grade B listed Bushmills bonded warehouse that is also home to the former James St Cookery School - and Waterman Restaurant soon became one of Belfast’s hottest dining destinations. So now the cookery school and the restaurant are in place, along with conference and event spaces. There’s plenty going on to appeal to different ages and interests, so the buzz is growing. It’s big city but one man’s vision is near to becoming reality, and it’s all the better for that.