By Sara Hogan and Jessie Banhazl
It was a warm and foggy Friday night in October when we arrived in Kennebunk searching for Ryan’s Corner House. As we turned into the downtown area, there was no question we had found it — a large group of people were gathered around fire pits, drinking pints, and listening to the live Irish music that echoed throughout the neighborhood.
When we entered the bar, the tiny room was packed to the brim with tables, bar stools, and lively guests. The space, formerly an 18th century barn, is covered with defaced dollar bills that have been marked up and tacked to the low ceiling and walls by guests. Steaming plates of fish and chips and tray upon tray of Guinness pints zip by, carried by agile and friendly staff. The music from outside wafts in through an open door. It’s tight, but there is something deeper in that intimacy that resonates with the patrons. “The space is so small you get acquainted with everyone. I firmly believe this is one of the few bars where friendships for life have been made,” says Tracy Ryan, the owner.
Ryan’s Corner House has become a beloved destination in Kennebunk since it opened its doors in 2011. So beloved, in fact, that a group of 20 die-hard regulars decided to create a “Board of Regulars,” a social club/governing entity that is not afraid to assert its opinions as to how the pub should be run. (More about that later.)
For regulars like these, along with occasional local patrons and vacationing guests, pubs and bars like Ryan’s Corner provide an essential space for people to gather and create community. That’s important because countless studies have pointed out how critical these spaces are to one’s well being. Disturbingly, more than half of US adults report that they experience loneliness, and loneliness has increased to such an extent this century that the condition has been designated as an epidemic by the US Surgeon General. What’s more, a 2023 advisory stated that “loneliness and social isolation increase the risk for premature death by 26% and 29%, respectively…as much as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.”
Places like Ryan’s Corner House are an effective antidote against this terrible state of affairs, and we were excited to have the opportunity to visit the pub on a bustling Friday night to meet with the Board and the owners to learn what makes this particular spot so welcoming, so friendly, and so special.
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Originally hailing from Limerick, Ireland, Joe and Tracy Ryan opened Ryan’s Corner House Pub in April of 2011. “We came to visit Joe’s sister who had a summer house here. With the crash of 2008 in Ireland we decided to make a move,” Tracy reported. “It took a while to get the locals in because they were already established at other bars like the Pilot House, but it eventually took off pretty good,” said Joe.
“People have been very welcoming. This is a great community,” said Tracy, “and there was never a true Irish pub in the area. And it’s a pub as opposed to a high-end restaurant.”
“Since the day I was born I’ve been in the business. And you either love it or hate it, but it’s in my blood. I just love all the aspects of socializing, the camaraderie, the meeting of people,” added Joe.
Tracy and Joe’s hospitality has created a loyal following among Kennebunk locals and with tourists, as well. Many return year after year. Andrea Cusack, the bar manager and an employee since Ryan’s Corner opened, feels a strong kinship to her guests: “It’s amazing on a Friday or Saturday night when you can look around and you know every person’s name in that bar. They’ve become family over the last 13 years. I get to watch them grow up and now they’re old enough to drink, getting married, and coming in with their children.”
The laid-back environment is comfortable for all types of folks. “This is my comfortable place to be single,” remarked Jennifer Stone, a Ryan’s Corner Regular and Board Member. “It’s the most comfortable place in town I feel.”
Ross Gregor Adam, the bar’s musician-in-residency, has seen many people visit the bar over the years. “In Southern Maine, there’s loads of good spots to go out and eat and drink and listen to music,” he stated. “All the other places I play, generally tourists go out, they have a good night in the pub and they leave town and don’t return. But with Ryan’s, they keep coming back.”
One of the reasons they keep coming back? To hear Ross perform.
Hailing from the East Coast of Scotland, Ross Gregor Adam has been performing Irish and Scottish music at Ryan’s since 2020. “The first night I went in there, Joe (the owner) was sitting at the bar and we were talking away about music and songs that we like, and I told him I used to sing in the pub back home in Scotland all the time. He handed me a guitar and I ended up playing a whole set that night sitting at the bar,” Ross remembered.
In summer, there can be a line up the street to get in, with passers-by watching Ross from the sidewalk. Ross plays for up to four hours a set, encouraging patrons to sing along while he switches instruments and moves through the crowd, requesting shots of whiskey as the night goes on. There can be conga lines around the outside tables and up and down the street. “It’s the only place I’ve ever played where there’s regularly a conga line!” said Ross.
People come from all over to see Ross perform. “The next morning, I’m walking into my day job with sunglasses on, rougher than a badger’s arsehole, and strangers are like ‘great gig last night,’ families from Chicago or Texas and all around the world,” he said.
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Another reason people return to the bar is to check in on their dollar bills. “A gentleman by the name of Brian McGraw from Texas started it back in 2014,” explained Tracy. “He put up a $100 bill and a $20 bill, but we don’t know why. Then people just started putting money up. We started making kits for people to sign and hang up their dollar. People check their dollar or they send people to check their dollar to make sure it’s still here!”
According to legend, the tradition of tacking up dollar bills in bars dates back to the Gold Rush of the mid-1800s, when miners would nail money to the ceilings of a bar as a fall back plan should their luck run out. Today, the dollar bill tradition leads to a sense of community and shared experiences. These expressions of gratitude and appreciation by customers serve as an interactive and signature decor element of the pub.
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One of the unique characteristics of Ryan’s Corner House is the existence of its formal “Board of Regulars,” a group of 20 local patrons who banded together to influence Tracy and Joe’s decision making when it comes to how they run the bar.
Jeff Brown, Ryan’s 75-year-old Chairman of the Board, explained it this way: “Ryan’s used to close in winter. We have the Prelude (winter carnival) down here the first two weekends in December, and then the Monday after that Joe would have a ‘drain the pipes’ party for the locals, and we would come in and ‘drain the pipes,’ but that meant we had to stop drinking from December till the weekend before St. Patrick’s Day, and that just didn’t work for us. So, eventually we coerced Joe and Tracy into staying open at great sacrifice to ourselves. We increased our alcohol intake to make sure that it was worth it for them, and I believe it’s been successful.”
“One day, we decided that we should form a board of directors and have regular talks to assist in the running of the bar, well, ‘running’ maybe, but to at least provide commentary and comic relief,” said Jeff.
“Jeff was appointed chairman immediately. He has the gavel,” laughed Tracy. “They’re great supporters. People want to be part of the board. It’s pretty original, actually.”
So, what does it really mean to be a part of the Ryan’s Corner Board of Regulars? The requirements are:
- Come to the board “meetings” Sunday afternoons
- Fill the bar in the winter
- No talk of religion or politics
- Don’t spill your Guinness
“The board is always looking out for everyone. Jeff will make sure that if someone new is in town he welcomes them,” stated Tracy. “(Staying open through winter) is a tough task because this building isn’t winterized, but we do it. Now we do live music year-round because the town needs life in the winter. There will be 40–50 people packed in here like sardines. Ross jumps and leaps around the room. It’s amazing, everyone’s singing along. It’s electric.”
Most of the regulars try to make it in to see Ross perform as often as possible. “I feel like the fellowship I have with the regulars there transcends the fact that I’m the guy that shows up and sings ‘Whiskey in the Jar,’” laughed Ross.
They also help out around the bar. “They’re always willing to help us out, like if we’re busy and we need a case of beer or a bucket of ice they’re on it,” said Andrea.
The board consists of about 20 members and has been formalized for six years. Many of the original members are still active, and new members have been added. You are able to get on the board if someone nominates you. The acceptance rate is 100%.
Board members range in age from their early 30’s to mid-70’s, and they have varied careers. Members include retirees along with real estate agents, teachers, a semi-retired boat captain, finance professionals, a retired police officer, lawyers, and a world famous Kaleidoscope artist.
“One of the ladies is the activity director, and she bakes everybody a special cake for their birthday. They all met at the Corner House, and they’ve become friends outside the Corner House. It’s so lovely!” Andrea gushed.
In talking with The Board and Corner House staff, one person came up over and over in conversation as a cornerstone of the Board of Regulars. Scotty Falconer, who passed away in December 2022 at 92 years old, was an integral part of the Ryan’s Corner House community, and he left his mark on the pub. Scotty, who was described by multiple people as having “no filters,” is sorely missed:
“You know all the girls loved him,” said Andrea. “We had one young girl — I think she’s a sophomore in college now — and when he passed away she looked at her mom who is on The Board, and she goes, ‘well who’s going to inappropriately compliment me now?”
“Scotty was a hell of a guy. He’d be sitting at the bar and playing the bones (spoons) all the time. Before he died, he left me his bones and a bottle of whiskey. He used to tip people in $2 bills. We kind of feel like that was his way of leaving a trail. You go somewhere and you see a $2 bill and you’re like, ‘oh Jesus he’s been here,’” laughed Ross, “When Scotty died, it changed the dynamic a bit. I mean not in a bad way or a good way. It just changed”.
Even in death, it’s rumored that Scotty is still a regular at Ryan’s Corner. Andrea and many of the Board believe Scotty is, in fact, continuing to patronize Ryan’s in the afterlife by haunting the pub.
Jeff recounts the day of Scotty’s funeral: “When Scotty passed, Joe and Tracy were out of town but they texted me and said, ‘Hey, after Scotty’s funeral service, bring everybody back to the pub.’ So, Andrea and I were in here that morning, and she touched the CC (Canadian Club Whiskey), which was what Scotty drank, and the food alarm suddenly went off from the kitchen. There’s nobody here but me and Andrea. And then about five minutes later, another alarm goes off and plays all 12 musical alarm settings. This never happened before, never happened since. Then we went to the funeral, it was an open casket. All of a sudden, Scotty’s pacemaker alarm goes off from the casket in the middle of the service.”
“It’s just little weird things, like I was standing nowhere near these two glasses and all of a sudden they just came flying off the shelf,” Andrea reported. “Strange stuff like that. We blame all that stuff on Scotty.”
Once a regular, always a regular.
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In the months that we’ve been writing “The Regulars,” for The Bollard, certain themes have emerged. Through the places we’ve visited and the people we’ve talked to, we’ve found that there is a specific combination of the staff, space, and patrons that can make a place truly magical. That blend is critical and can be a lifeline to anyone in a community. All you have to do is walk through the door.
Ryan’s Corner House Pub is that kind of place, an all-too-rare center of convivial community in a society engineered to make us more isolated.
Tracy and Joe are aware of how special their pub is, and they don’t take it for granted: “We feel when people come through the door and we get them in once, they’re here forever. And that’s been proven. We’ve made some amazing friends ourselves here. It really is like a family. It’s incredible.”
An edited version of this story was published in the December 2023 issue of The Bollard.
