Rocksalt Café is a small café specialising in brunches, lunches and speciality roast coffee set in the scenic seaside village of Blackrock, County Louth.
The brand was originally launched in 2018 by food entrepreneur Daniel McLoughlin and quickly expanded to include more locations in Dundalk, Felda and most recently Carlingford.
Rocksalt Café has been the named the best café in Ireland twice by the Irish Restaurant Awards and the team also run a thriving catering business and online shop.
In this interview, Daniel McLoughlin tells Robert McHugh about how he became involved in the hospitality sector by accident until a trip to Luxembourg changed his outlook.
Tell us about your background – where you grew up, studied, etc.
I grew up in Blackrock, just outside Dundalk, in a lovely little seaside village in County Louth.
I went to Blackrock Primary School and then went into Dundalk for secondary school. I couldn't wait to leave Dundalk. I wanted to get out and experience the world and travel. I was 17 and didn't think I would ever come back.
I started my hospitality journey at Shannon College of Hotel Management. My second year of the course I spent in Luxembourg and then I went back and finished my degree.
To cut a long story short, I ended up working with Sofitel Hotel Group in London with a guy called Vincent Madden.
I loved hospitality. I loved the buzz, the energy, and the fact that everyday was different. It was a fantastic experience for me.
I ended up working for Exclusive Hotels after four years in London and then moved to a place just outside Brighton called Horsham down the South. I ended up winning a Young Manager of the Year Acorn scholarship in the UK.
At the time, I had a very clear goal, I wanted to be a general manager of a five-star hotel before the age of 30. I had worked my way through Sofitel from trainee manager to food and beverage manager.
I took a job with the Camellia Restaurant in Exclusive Hotels which was a three rosette restaurant and Stephen Edwards was the head chef, he had just won MasterChef: The Professionals. I was thrown into a world-wind of experience of highs and lows. It was breakfast, lunch and dinner, all done to a very high standard.
When I won the Acorn Scholarship, I had a new mentor called James Haller. I shadowed him and he questioned my goals in hospitality. I always said that I wanted to open my own business but I wanted to be a general manager of five star hotel before I did that. He said you don't need to do that, you need to learn how to run a business.
James had a huge background in casual dining restaurants and he had the likes of Patisserie Valerie, he had a group called La Tasca in the UK which he bought when it had two restaurants. I think he sold them when it got to 67 or 68 restaurants and he was involved in Frankie and Benny's as well. He had a casual Mediterranean-style restaurant chain called Ego Restaurants and I basically just shadowed him for two days and I said, "James, I've got to work for you. I'll do whatever it takes."
He had a position for a general manager of one of his restaurants in Kenilworth just outside Birmingham and I jumped at that. I turned that restaurant around from a £16,000 a week turnover to just up to £30,000. I did that in a year and it absolutely thrived.
I had a bug then to move home. My goal had changed then after working with James. After seeing what I could do in the industry, I decided instead of being a general manager of a five-star hotel, I wanted to have my own business and my own restaurants by the time I was 30.
I was about 27 when I left the UK. I ended up working with Ted Robinson and Glenroyal as they opened and launched new restaurants.
It was a brand new opening for me. I developed the whole thing from concept to opening. We designed Shoda Market Cafe there in Maynooth which was a fantastic success. It was brilliant for me because I project managed the whole thing from construction to branding, to decor layout - the whole thing basically, all with with somebody else's money!
After two years, an opportunity came up in BlackRock to open up my own place where I grew up. It was the chance to open a small cafe and the rest is history!
RockSalt started off back in 2018 with myself and a head chef, and probably five or six other people who were mainly part-time. We have grown that business to five different outlets now with a bakery and a thriving catering business. I've got over a hundred people working for me now. It has been a whirlwind of success.
What first drew you to hospitality?
Funny story, Absolutely nothing. I screwed up my CEO form in secondary school. I always wanted to do sports. PE teaching would have been my main choice after not being able to become a professional footballer. I didn't get the points to study sports science or sports management.
Next on the list was Shannon College Hotel Management which a career guidance teacher actually snuck in there for me. He just thought I'd be a good fit for it.
I didn't know anything about hospitality. I ended up in Shannon College Hotel Management on September 1. I absolutely hated it. I couldn't stand it. I had to wear a suit and tie to work every. There was roll calls, you had to be clean-shaven. All my mates were living the great college life up in Dublin and around the place.
That was the first six months basically. Shannon throws you into the deep end. I nearly gave up, I nearly quit. I said, "Feck it, I'll just go back for the second part after Christmas, give my all and see what happens."
I really, really just started enjoying it. My second year was in the NH Hotel in Luxembourg as a placement and I absolutely loved it. I could see that I was good at it. I had a spark for it, I loved the restaurant, I loved the bar, I even loved the housekeeping and everything else about it. It was a new experience.
I loved being out and about. I was 19 at the time. A new kid that had moved to Luxembourg. I didn't even know where the heck Luxembourg was at the time!
So it was a world of an experience and it was absolutely amazing. I came back and absolutely fell in love with hospitality. I went back to do my third and fourth year in Shannon.
When I graduated, I won the award of most likely to succeed in the industry out of all of my peers, so that was a real special moment for me. It is something that I'll always remember. Most of it was because of a huge traumatic turnaround from year one to year three.
I spent my last year in Shannon working with Vincent Madden in the Sofitel Hotel Group in London which was another absolutely fantastic experience. I was lucky enough to work my way up through the industry and through the management side of things there.
What was your first big role?
Every new role I took was a big role. From starting off as a training manager with the Sofitel Hotel Group in year one. After ten months, I was promoted to assistant restaurant manager and then when I left I was a food and beverage manager. They were big roles within the group.
I suppose the biggest, most challenging and most career-defining role was when I took on the role of restaurant manager with the Camellia Restaurant in Exclusive Hotels and Venues. I was working with Stephen Edwards, the head chef at the time, and Danny Pecorelli, who owns Exclusive Hotels. They were two huge, huge characters in the UK hospitality scene. That was a baptism of fire. Stephen had just won MasterChef: The Professionals. The restaurant was was fully booked every night of the week and we also did breakfast and lunch for for guests staying overnight in the hotel.
That was where the luxury side of training really came in, and it was my first role managing a team. It was a big role and a big challenge for me. It was a good moment for me to really test my skills and my abilities. Through a lot of hard work and a lot of long hours, it was a whirlwind success in the end.
My other big role would have been moving out of hotels and going to work with James Haller in Ego restaurants and taking full control of the Ego restaurant in Kenilworth. That is where I learned the business side of things. James just threw me in the deep end. You might have only seen him once or twice every two or three months.
I was solely responsible for the business, in terms of producing P&Ls, managing the service, HR, recruiting, kitchen standards, the whole thing.
It was my first independent role in the industry where I had my own business to run at an early age. It gave me a lot of confidence in my ability and what I wanted to do.
I knew that I could certainly open my own business if I wanted to.
Who was your first mentor in hospitality?
My first mentor was Fintan Madden in the Sofitel Hotel Group in London. He actually came back to do interviews when I was in my final year in Shannon. At the time, I just wanted to go to New York. I wanted to work with the Irish hotel chain over there, Fitzpatrick's.
However, Vincent came over and gave a talk to our year - a really, really inspiring talk. I was sitting at the back of the lecture hall and I just thought I need to work for this guy, there's something about him. I could learn so much from him.
Unfortunately, I hadn't put my name down to interview with him so the slots were all taken, he had only flown over and back for the day, for 10 or 12 interviews.
I went home, put on my best suit and tie. At the time, you were only allowed to go to the interviews in your college uniform. I knew I would stand out. I went down and gave it my best shot, I waited around the college until the very end.
The last interview came out and I said, "Mr. Madden, I really want five minutes of your time."
He said, "Oh, Daniel, I'm sorry, I'm running across to Shannon Airport here. I've got a flight to catch."
I said, "No problem, I'll walk with you."
I started talking to him, telling him that I wanted to work for him and telling him what I was doing. I told him that I would work for him for free. He had a laugh and he said, "Why would you do that?"
I said, "Because, I want to work for you, Vincent, and I know you are the man that's going to help me in my career. If I'm any good, maybe, after a month or so you could start paying me."
So we walked to the gate and he turned around just before he went through the passport control and said, "Right Dan, we'll see you in June."
That was a really good introduction for me. Vincent took me under his wing for the next three to four years. He gave me some really key quality service and business insights into the world of hospitality.
James Haller was also a huge mentor in terms of leadership and business as my career progressed.
When I finished with the Shoda Market Cafe in Maynooth, I was looking for something to come up. I came back back home one day and I asked, Paddy Sands, who works with illycaffè, for a bit of advice. I told him I wanted to set up my own upmarket-style cafe.
He said, "I think I just saw planning permission going up for an old music shop in Blackrock under Connor Hughes. I was home for Christmas and I ended up going down and banging on his door at 10 o'clock on St. Stephen's Day morning.
I spent about one minute with Connor. I said, "Conor, you don't know me, but I'm the guy who's going to take on this on and turn it into a cafe. This is what I want to do."
I told him my ideas. He probably thought I was a bit mad. He then said, "Okay, no problem, I'll have to think about it. We've got plenty of people who want to take it on."
I suppose I had a bit of gumption in trying to get it!
Connor walked into Shoda one day and said, "You can take it on, you're definitely the right guy to do it."
So after that, we went through construction, we put the kitchen in, did everything else, and created RockSalt based off my experience through hotels. I wanted to create a five-star experience, but in a real casual and relaxed way. We do all the same touch points of a Michelin Star restaurant.
Even if you are just coming into grab a coffee, we wanted to create something a little bit unique and different. That is paramount to the success of RockSalt.
Our head chef Connor Prendergast has been with us since day one. We actually used to play football together. He worked his way up to be sous chef at Tankardstown House and then jumped on board with me from day one. He really helped me design the menu.We want good casual food with a twist. We put the same attention and care that you would put into a dish going across the table at a Michelin star restaurant, but in a casual environment. It is affordable for everybody to come in and enjoy.
We have a unique atmosphere and decor. We designed an open kitchen at our first café in Blackrock and have followed suit with all of them since. We designed it out of an old horse stable so that you can see the chefs working, cooking, in the middle of the restaurant.
We have an open coffee dock and seating designed from lovely old booths that came out of Hungarian trams from the 1950's. The doors on our toilets actually came from an old Indian prison.
Everywhere you go, there is a little story and something to be looked at. There is a real sense of quirkiness and adventure. We have done that throughout our restaurants, between Dundalk and Carrickmacross. and our bakery as well in Little RockSalt.
We wanted to create something completely unique and different with our coffee so we created our own blend of a Brazil, Sumatran and Kenyan coffee.
We have been open for six and a half years and it has just gone from strength to strength. We just hit the market at the right time. We remain focused on our team the quality of the food and service.
We have reinvested all profits and I solely own it myself. We've grown the business to a turn over of just over €5 million a year. We've got five outlets, a catering business and our fit meals available in Supervalu.
We also work with 12 different professional sports teams providing nutritional meals for all the athletes every week, post-training, pre-match. We work with Stephen Kenny and St. Patrick's Athletic. We look after Dundalk FC, Drougheda United, Kildare GAA, the whole setup.
It's a really busy operation going at the moment. I certainly love and enjoy what I do. I suppose we will see how far we can take it. That is what RockSalt is all about - good, friendly service, and passionate people.
What are the major challenges at the moment?
It's all financial mainly. Labour is a huge challenge, in terms of getting the right people at the right price, so that you can sustain a cafe business.
The minimum wage going up over the last two years has really impacted margins making it very hard to produce the quality of food at the prices that you want to do it. We are still very, very labour intensive. We have nearly 100 people that work for us at the moment, so the knock -on effect on that was catastrophic for the business this year and last year, and that's been a big, big challenge that we've had to overcome.
Combine that with the VAT rate at 13.5 % and it is obviously tough as well. The cost of goods across the board over the last two and a half years has been very challenging. You can see all the all the cafés and restaurants that are closing down over the last year.
That has made things very difficult to navigate through but what I always try to get across is that everybody is in the same boat. There will always be restaurants. There will always be cafés. The cream will rise to the top. We are all going through those challenges. There's no point in moaning about it.
Realistically, we have just got to get on with it, try and make the best it. Obviously, you have to manage your margins and you have to pass it on to the customers. If you offer good quality food and and you get the service right all the time, people don't mind paying extra as long as it's consistent.
We try to focus on the positive things and what's in our control.
What are the main opportunities?
I think there's a big market for fit meals at the moment. We have gone into that market just over the last year. We have got seven shops locally that are supplying our fit meals based on their nutritional value.
We have designed a fit meal that is only four or five days shelf life, but we have done this to ensure quality and consistency. We wanted to create a product that was very similar to something to be served up in any of our restaurants or cafes.
We have these meals in Supervalu, Centra and Landis shops around locally. We started off selling 20 to 30 meals a week and now we are close to 2,000 meals in production in our kitchen at the moment. That's a big opportunity and I'm excited and eager to push that on and see where it can take us.
We also launched a little RockSalt concept last summer beside our main RockSalt in Blackrock. We put our bakery in there and we opened up another coffee dock as well in a local gym and they have been really good business models in terms of managing labor and costs. We have them in the right areas where you are constantly turning over good quality coffee and protein shakes and wraps and sandwiches and things like that on the go.
There is much emphasis these days on good food done well, on the go, and I think there is a huge market for that because you get a lot of bad coffee and bad sandwiches, especially when you are traveling and you just want to grab something quick. I think there are good opportunities in the market.
Cafés are tough at the moment, but hopefully they will bounce back and there will be more opportunities there. They are labor intensive at the moment. Obviously with the costs going through the roof that that is quite a hard sector to grow.
What do you like to do when you are not working?
I've got two young boys, Jack and Louie, who are seven and five, and they certainly keep me busy on my days off! I try to spend as much time as I can with them.
I have managed, probably just over the last year, to get a bit of a better work-life balance, where my days off are solely filled with time with them. We play a lot of football and rugby and different things. They're fantastic lads and very energetic so that's where a lot of my time goes!
Other than that, I play a bit of football myself, a lot of five a side kind of stuff. That really helps me focus and switch off after work. I enjoy going to the gym and things like that, and traveling.
It's very hard to switch off. For a business that's constantly going, you are always on your phone and there's always somebody asking questions about something.
My mind doesn't stop. I'm always thinking of the next thing, how we can do something better or improve it.
What is your favourite meal?
I've never really had one. I'm a lover of all foods. I love food done well. I love trying different things from a medium rare steak to a spice bag from the local Chinese, if it's done well.
I certainly appreciate all dishes and flavours. I like the casual dining aspect to things now, the food scene has definitely changed. I think there is not as many Michelin star restaurants, but you can still go and get a really good meal.
It is like what we try to do at RockSalt. It is a more casual environment, but you can visit once a week, twice a week, at slightly more affordable prices.
That's not to say that I don't appreciate a meal every now and then in a Michelin-Star or a Rosetta restaurant as well.
What is your favourite drink?
Coffee. Flat white would be my choice. It has to be a good flat white.
There is nothing worse than getting a bad coffee. That really annoys me, especially, if you burn your mouth from the first sip.
What is your favourite holiday destination?
Anywhere foodie-led. I love going around trying out little bars and restaurants that are off the beaten track. That is how you get really good, authentic food. Madrid is his class for that. Lisbon was brilliant as well. I love anything to do with Italy.
When I have the kids, we enjoy Center Parcs. We have been down there four or five different times now and they absolutely love it! It is a great outdoor adventure for them.
