New Restaurant May Replace Worcester's Closed Blarney Stone

WORCESTER, MA — A new bar and restaurant may soon take the place of a long-standing Main South bar that lost its liquor license following a fatal incident in 2019.

The owner of the proposed Mint Restaurant & Bar will appear before the Worcester Board of License Commissioners on Thursday to seek permits to open in the former Blarney Stone space at 79 Maywood St., according to meeting materials.

In November 2019, Framingham resident Devalter Rocha, 54, was hit by a driver while crossing Chandler Street. Worcester police later arrested Ian McGrath, of Worcester, and charged him with nine crimes, including motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation.

McGrath had been drinking at the Blarney Stone before the fatal collision, according to police. The bar lost its liquor license and closed in March 2020. Blarney Stone owner Thomas McCabe last summer appealed the liquor license suspension in front of the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC). A July hearing on the matter was continued, and a decision had not been released as of this month, according to the ABCC.

The new restaurant would be owned by a company called TL Foods LLC, which is managed by two Worcester men, Trang Le and Van Le.