17 Commercial Quay.
I was looking through an old hard drive when I came across these photographs of Metro 17, a bar that was located on Wexford’s Commercial Quay.
Although I only visited the bar a handful of times, it did seem like a pretty nice spot. All of my memories of the place seem to revolve around watching major boxing events and the 2014 World Cup.
Inside the bar.
Metro 17 opened in September 2009. A brave move when you consider that Ireland was in a deep recession, and popular nightclubs were closing left, right, and centre.
Prior to that, the building was home to Shooters, a small bar that had a pool table and a darts board.
Shooters felt like a college dive bar. It offered pitchers and cocktails. Many people would drink here before heading to the Centenary Stores.
Metro 17 closed in early 2015. Following its closure, the building lay vacant until it was eventually purchased by the owners of the adjacent Crown Bar.
When I entered the smoking area for the first time, it was packed with people dancing and singing along to “Pursuit Of Happiness” by Kid Cudi. Simpler times.
In recent years, the building was amalgamated into the Crown Bar.
The Crown Bar in July 2023. Credit: Google Maps.
It is now a live venue called the Crown Live, which hosts musicians and comedians.
The projector was often used during big sporting occasions.
On the night of Saturday, the 29th of November, 2014, I grabbed my tripod and started taking night shots of various places around Wexford town. I’m a big fan of night shots, as I think that they give off a nice aesthetic.
When I set up my tripod on the path across from Metro 17, a few staff members at the front door started looking at me and pointing at me.
At first, I thought, “They’re just curious.” However, I was quickly proven wrong.
Before I knew it, a group of bouncers were storming across the road towards me.
When they reached me, they demanded to know why I was taking photographs.
At the time, I was pretty confused, as I wasn’t expecting such a reaction. One of the bouncers told me that I had no permission to take photos of the property. I informed him that he was mistaken, as I was standing in a public place.
I was well within my rights.
They eventually eased up and walked away once I explained that I was taking photos of multiple places and that Metro 17 was just one of many stops.
The entire interaction left me bewildered. I couldn’t understand why they would overreact in such a way.
Later, it dawned on me that they might have been worried that I was a “concerned citizen” who was somehow “vetting” their ID verification process.
