Ballinhassig business gifts €12k

One Cork business recently celebrated the one year anniversary of the opening of their cafe in style.

TLC Foods marked the occasion by getting the new ‘Sunday Game’ presenter, Bandon’s Jacqui Hurley to come to their cafe in Ballinhassig and cut a ribbon to mark the milestone.

She also presented a cheque for €12,000 that the owner of TLC Foods gifted to a local community committee, Ballinhassig Community Development Association (BCDA).

TLC Foods was started 12 years ago by owner and Managing Director Tadgh Long on his own 12 years and the company now employs 25 staff both full and part time. BCDA has housed the business for the last 12 years.

It is a catering company with a strong focus on Irish food. All the meat used in dishes is Irish, which is a requirement of membership of Love Irish Food. They are proud members of Love Irish Food since 2018, ensuring they support local business as much as possible.

Tadhg said he is “delighted to be able to give back to the community, having been kept busy throughout the pandemic with customers like Eli Lilly, Cork GAA, MSD, Cork Camogie and all the local shops and supermarkets that stock our gluten-free food range”.

He added that they have been a “whole lot luckier than some of our comrades in the business”.

The cafe opened one year ago and is “hugely successful with the amount of local support”, according to Tadhg.

He has big plans for the company in the next few years. “Looking forward, we hope to open a unit in Ballincollig this year or early 2024 and look to employ a further 20 full time staff over the next four years in both production and retail and across our catering facilities.”

“Our dedicated staff play an essential part in the success of the company.” he added.

Kabin Cafe Ballinhassig opens Tuesday to Sunday serving breakfast and lunch daily. A full selection of both gluten-free options and homemade baking is always for sale while they also stock their own in-house gluten-free ready meals.