Bantry’s Fish Kitchen. Simply Fabulous Fish

Bantry’s Fish Kitchen

Simply Fabulous Fish

Wolfe Tone looks out over a sunny Bantry Bay.
Breaded mussels (left) and Sea-Bass.

Bantry’s Fish Kitchen prides itself “in having a menu that is almost all locally caught fish and shellfish”. But don't worry if you are a meat eater, they also serve steak. And some nice desserts too!

They say: “When talking about our fish we focus on three elements, freshness, simplicity, quality. We do our best not to interfere with the Fish we are serving, simply served with skin side up along with a variety of simple butters or sauces on top or on the side.”  A bit like the winemaker who does most of his work in the vineyard!

And they stick to that rule. The Fish may be emperor here and he or she is not over-dressed with complicated sauces and suchlike. In the case of both our mains during a weekend dinner, the fish was so fresh it might well have been swimming in the bay just a few minutes earlier.

Herb Crusted Cod fillet with Herb Crust and Parsley butter was the perfect illustration, indeed a perfect fish dish. There was just enough of the crust and parsley to enhance the delicate fish but no more.

The Sea Bass fillets on a Caesar salad was a bit unusual, hadn't come across that combination before. But again the perfect fish was enhanced by the salad. Oh, by the way, we did have some vegetables and fries on the side! And also some beer, including Mountain Man Hairy Goat, Eight Degrees Pale Ale and Tom Crean Lager.

The starters were excellent also. The Bantry Bay Breaded Mussels were unexpectedly served in a Scallop Shell and were top class and I certainly enjoyed a warming Fish Kitchen Seafood Chowder.

We were tempted by the dessert list but in the end decided to give it a skip and said our goodbyes to Diarmuid who served us well throughout the evening.The restaurant, open for lunch as well, is upstairs - the family also run a fish shop on the ground floor - and is highly recommended. We certainly enjoyed the fish and the chat.

Beer Versus Wine

Beer Versus Wine
Colm v Caroline.

Scrumptious Blackpudding from Jack McCarthy.
Great flavours from the L'Atitude kitchen.

Lots of good humour and great drinks at the Beer v Wine Smackdown in L’Atitude last Thursday night where the protagonists were Caroline Hennessy and Colm McCan.

Caroline, co-author of the Irish beer bible Sláinte, made it clear at the outset that she was making the case for craft beer saying “the other beers have no flavours”. Her first beer, Black’s Kinsale Pale Ale, was a perfect example. “Hops are the spice of beer,” she said.

“Beer is just to wash away the dust”, joked Colm as he introduced his heavy hitting first, the Decanter Gold winning Wiston Rosé, an English Sparkling Wine, made in the South Downs by Limerick’s Dermot Sugrue. Both were matched with Hederman Smoked Mackerel with Rhubarb Compote from the L’Atitude kitchens.

Colm did admit he was a big fan of craft beer as he put a call, on speaker-phone, through to Dermot in the UK and they chatted about the huge honour received by Wiston when their wine, a twenty-bottle bottle of it, was chosen, instead of the traditional champagne, to launch the mega cruise liner Britannia.”Twenty minutes later the Queen was still saying wow”, referring to the pop (explosion!) when the Nebuchadnezzar made contact with the ship. See it here on video.

Ireland is fast becoming a big producer of all kinds of drinks, including spirits, and so Caroline decided to include cider as her second round choice. And the local cider she picked was the Stonewell medium dry, a great match with Jack McCarthy’s black-pudding and apples.

Colm said cider, in the way it is made, is the closest thing in Ireland to wine, “at the moment!” as he introduced his biodynamic 2012 Vinsobres from the Southern Rhone, “a winter-warming wine..with a natural acidity that should cut through the black pudding”.  It sure did and even won the round with “victory” in round one going to the Pale Ale.

And then we were on to round three where Double Chocolate Porter Brownies were paired with Knockmealdown Stout and Taylor’s 2008 LBV. The stout, with its traditional flavours, is by Eight Degrees where Caroline can't help but be involved considering that husband Scott is one of the two founders. The brewery, set up in 2011, has been going well ever since. She said the current craft beer wave is well underway thanks largely “to a tax break in 2005 by then finance minister Brian Cowan”. Eight Degrees are just about to start a “massive expansion”.

Chris Forbes of Taylor's was next the next speaker on Colm’s phone and he explained some of the terms used in the port industry including LBV (late bottled vintage, all from one year). “Slow aging,” he said, “helps maintain the flavours and the tannins. The beauty of Port is that it cannot be made anywhere else in the world, only in the Douro. “We use all kinds of traditional grape varieties here”. He mentioned the various Tourigas and Tintos but he said the really important thing for Taylors was not the individual varieties but the blend itself.

Contestants in round 2,
paired with the pudding.

That attention to detail was evident in the LBV as it held its own with the brownies. The Stout was an excellent match, not surprising since a generous amount went into the Brownie mix! Then we had the voting, via murmurs of approval. Caroline and Colm had a round each to their credit and the final matching ended in a draw and that meant honours were even overall.

The point of all this is that there are very good wines out there and, increasingly, very good Irish beers and ciders. And now, the Irish is taking its place alongside wine at the dinner table and in the restaurant.

Here's my recent example. I spent 24 hours in Kinsale on the weekend before last and enjoyed craft beer Malt Lane and in Monk’s Lane in Timoleague. Last Friday and Saturday, I was in Bantry and sampled craft beer in the Fish Kitchen, across the road in Ma Murphy’s, in the Maritime Hotel and, on the way home, they had a selection in Church Lane in Macroom. Don’t think that would have happened 12 months ago. Point made!

The next “match” between Caroline and Colm is likely to be at Savour Kilkenny in the autumn.

Come Join The Cheerful Chorus at Monk’s Lane

Come Join The Cheerful Chorus at Monk’s Lane

There is almost an monastic silence as we stroll towards Monk’s Lane in the centre of Timoleague. But, open the door, and there is the happy sound of people dining. Our table is ready and soon we join the cheerful chorus.

The menu is full of promise. The sandwich section uses the best of local produce: Toons Bridge, Gubbeen, Ummera. And so it continues. In the mains and salads you see O'Neill's sausages, Crozier blue cheese and Clonakilty black and white pudding.

I spotted an Eight Degrees tap on the bar and that was just the start of the craft beers as a separate menu lists over a dozen of the best including the local Black’s of Kinsale. And the wine list is good too, quite a few available by the convenient (it was midday!) 100ml glass.

Service is excellent, knowledgeable, chatty. The furniture has touches of the ecclesiastical and there are lovely bunches of wild flowers on the tables.

It is a cold day so we start with the soups. They are very simply titled: Roast Vegetable Soup (4.50) and Spanish Fish Soup (6.50). Both are excellent but that Spanish dish is a gem, packed with fish, mussels, vegetables too, and warming spice. We get real bread and butter on the side. Great start.

CL then goes for the Lamb Quesadillas with salad and salsa fresca. You can have a small portion for eight euro and the larger one will cost 11.50. Well cooked and presented, the minced lamb was very tasty and not too spicy (no great need to use the cooling dip).

My choice was the Steak Salad and I hit the jackpot here: Seared steak salad with pecorino shavings, toasted pumpkin seeds and cherry tomatoes, all for 12.50. The steak, in strips, was plentiful and perfectly cooked and all the elements, including a robust salad, complemented each other in an explosion of flavours and textures. Compliments to the chef!

Dessert. The usual question: would we? The usual solution: we shared. And there was plenty to share when our generous slice of Apricot and Raspberry cake arrived, surrounded by some fresh fruit cubes, cream and ice-cream! Happy out, as we say around here.

We made a detour to get here. Well worth it. Very Highly Recommended.

Monk's Lane,

15, Mill Street,

Timoleague

(023) 884 6348

Electric Fish

Electric Fish

Scallop & Cod Burger

If you go to the Fish Bar at Electric, you must try their burger. A fish burger? Yes, why not? And this one is something special. I know I’ve mentioned it before but the Scallop and Cod Burger, served with cucumber pickled and smoked paprika aioli, is irresistible. And that tender brioche burger, made in-house, is a perfect wrap for the quality fish within!

It was one of our mains in the South Mall venue at the weekend. The other, from the specials board, was Chermoula Marinated Cod with a honey and lemon yoghurt. Superb flavours and textures and, with a bowl of Rosemary and Olive Oil Patatas Bravas, a substantial course indeed, almost matching the burger.

Both were washed down with a beer. They have very good choices here, both on draught and in bottle. I had a pint of draught Howling Gale Ale, the original from Eight Degrees and an original that has stood the test of time.

Chermoula Cod

I was also tempted by the Longueville Cider and the Kinsale Pale Ale, both from the bottle list. Next time! Some nice wines there too including Club Privado Tempranillo and Fosso Corno Montepulciano by the glass and, on the white side, Martin Codax Albarino and Tinpot Hut Pinot Gris.

The dessert list at present includes a couple of excellent cheese options. It is strong too on chocolate and our choice was the novel Chocolate and Chilli Sugar Strawberries. Sweet ‘n spicy!

We had started off with some Grilled Pacific oysters, a few Rockefeller style (with breadcrumbs and parsley) and few Kilpatrick (Worcester sauce, bacon and spring onion). The Kilpatrick were the tastier. They also serve these Pacific “natural” and indeed if you aren't used to oysters, this is a good way to start as the variety is very very small - easy to swallow!

Chocolate and Chilli Sugar Strawberries

Lots of other starters available if you’re not up to the oysters, including the FishBar tasting plate. If someone in the party isn't into fish, then don't worry as they do cater for the “landlubbers” as well.

This is a lovely informal place (no reservations required, nor taken) and the staff keep it informal, well able to crack a joke but well able too to make sure your dishes arrive on time and with all you need. Highly recommended.

Oysters, Kilpatrick style.

Eight Degrees Scores Bronze at World Beer Cup!

Irish brewery wins at World Beer Cup

Bronze medal in the Olympics of beer for Cork's Eight Degrees Brewing

Big congrats to Mitchelstown's small Irish brewing company, Eight Degrees Brewing, who scored a massive success at the 2014 World Beer Cup. The World Beer Cup is an international brewing competition in Colorado acknowledged world-wide as the ‘Olympics of Brewing’. It attracted over 4,700 entries, from 1,403 breweries in 58 countries.

Eight Degrees Brewing was awarded a bronze medal in one of the most hotly contested categories - the American-Style Amber/Red Ale category. It won the medal for its Amber-Ella beer, an ale made with American and Australian hops balanced with malt tones. The achievement is particularly noteworthy, given that they entered an American style beer, into one of the two most sought after American-style categories within an American awards process.

“The award is massive for us and will immediately open up export opportunities, including the United States. We never dreamed that a small three-year-old independent Irish craft brewery could achieve an accolade like this," said Scott Baigent, co-owner of Eight Degrees Brewing. The company’s head brewer, Mike Magee, was in Denver to receive the award.

Amber-Ella was initially brewed only last September, as a ‘one night stand’ for the Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival. Earlier this year it was named as one of Beoir’s 2013 Beers of the Year and, by popular demand, it was brewed again in February 2014. Amber-Ella will now become part of Eight Degrees’ core range along with other award winning beers like Howling Gale, an Irish pale ale.

Eight Degrees is an independent Irish craft brewery based in Mitchelstown, Co Cork, focused on creating exciting and naturally adventurous beers for craft beer consumers.

Visit eightdegrees.ie and WorldBeerCup.org for additional World Beer Cup information. A list of winners is here: http://www.worldbeercup.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/WBC14-Winners-List.pdf

Contact:
Cam Wallace cam@eightdegrees.ie 087 1654770
Scott Baigent scott@eightdegrees.ie 086 1594855

The World Beer Cup is a global beer competition presented by the Brewers Association (BA) that evaluates beers from around the world and recognizes the most outstanding brewers and their beers. Gold, silver and bronze awards in the competition’s 94 beer-style categories were presented at the World Beer Cup Gala Awards Dinner at the Hyatt Regency in Denver, Colorado on April 11, 2014.

Dinner From Just One Stall. Market Meal #7

One Stall Dinner

Market Meal #7

This is the latest in a series of Market Meals. The difference here is that the meal comes from just one stall and that is the relatively new Fresh from West Cork initiative in the English Market, just opposite the renowned Chicken Inn.

And another difference is that I’ve had a  bit of fun matching the four courses to beers. Since four beers is hardly enough for a growing boy, I’ve done it twice. Match One is with Cork beers while Match Two is with Porterhouse Beers.

Thanks to the ever patient Michael Creedon of Bradley's Off Licence for his knowledgeable help with selecting the beers but the final pick was mine! Don't want you  going into North Main Street and blaming Michael if your local favourite is not on the list.

Back now to Fresh from West Cork. Walter Ryan-Purcell is the face behind this “cooperative” effort from the west and close to forty producers are represented so it wasn't that difficult to get enough for a four course dinner. Indeed there were many options.

It just illustrates that you can do all your food shopping in the English Market. Maybe not all at Fresh from West Cork - they don't do fresh fish, for example - but you’ll be spoilt for choice if you wander around the wider market

Starter: Union Hall Smoked Salmon with Lemon Labneh by McCarthy’s Natural Dairies.

Cork Beer: Green Bullet Ale (Mountain Man).

Porterhouse: Hersbrucker Pilsner.

The smoked salmon, served with a little salad, was quite rich and the creamy Labneh added to the texture. Might have been better served on a Ryvita cracker or similar. Both beers worked well though in different ways. The Ale added more flavour while the Pilsner, not lacking in flavour, provided a nice cutting edge, a contrast against all the creaminess. One up to the Porterhouse team!

Mains: Gubben Traditional Dry Cured Smoked Bacon with vegetables from Peter Ross.

Cork Beer: Blacks Black IPA (Blacks, Kinsale).

Porterhouse: An Brain Blásta Strong Ale.

The Gubbeen bacon, smoked and lightly peppered, was sensational, the star of the night. With its fantastic texture and flavour, it was out on its own. The beers were both good matches; the Black perhaps best taken with bacon on the palate, the PH between bites! An Brain Blásta (even at 7%abv) doesn't mean brain blaster. It is Irish for The Tasty Drop.

Cheese: Loughbeg Farm hard Goat Cheese with Yellow Zucchini Relish also by Loughbeg.

Cork Beer: Friar Weisse (Franciscan Well).

Porterhouse: Red Ale.

The gorgeous crumbly cheese didn't seem to be getting on too well with the spiced up relish. Until the Friar Weisse was introduced. The local wheat beer transformed the potential discord into a very edible treat. A terrific match. Porterhouse don't make a wheat beer and through no fault of its own their Red Ale couldn't quite replicate the feat of the Friar here. Still, it was a nice way to pass the longish interval to dessert. That makes it 1.5 each for the beer teams.

Dessert: Yummy Tummy’s Brownies with Glenilen Clotted Cream.

Cork Beer: Knockmedown Porter (Eight Degrees).

Porterhouse: Oyster Stout.

Let me get this straight. Yummy Tummy’s Brownies are ace. Glenilen Clotted Cream is ace. You're on a winner. Now, add Knockmedown Porter (Eight Degrees) and you have a jackpot combination! Irresistible! That gave the edge to the Cork beer team, 2.5 to 1.5. The Oyster Stout, a gem in its own right, didn't have quite the same impact in the sweet finale to a smashing West Cork dinner.

On Bread and Beer. And Beer in Bread.

Not Bread Alone!

Man does not live by bread alone! Not sure that Arbutus Bread would go along with that. Especially after their latest loaf, a very tasty white bread that is made with, among other things, beer from Eight Degrees Brewing Company in Mitchelstown.

Picked up a loaf in Bradley’s at the weekend. It didn't last long at all. What a crust. Couldn't wait to try it. Just added some Glenilen butter for the first slice. Fantastic. Some homemade gooseberry jam for the second slice. Superb. Ain’t going to tell you about the next slice. Nor the one after that. Experience it for yourself.

Am I the only one thinking that the Kinsale Pale Ale is the best around? Renewed acquaintance with this gem, by Black’s, in Jacque’s last week and thought it was just outstanding. Loved the way the flavours spread over the palate from the first sip and that dry clean lingering finish. Indeed, linger is the word. Took my time sipping, the better to enjoy every single every drop.

The very next day I called in to Bradley’s to get a wee stock of the KPA and here Michael Creedon,helpful as always, introduced me to the latest beer from Black’s, Ireland’s first Black IPA. Another gem that might well confuse you because of the dark colour and chocolate and coffee tones. Very happy with that one, though I must confess I’d have a slight preference for the KPA.

Kinsale have moved up to the popular 500ml size and I'd like to see more brewers follow suit and that includes Franciscan Well. I do like a wheat beer and the Well’s Friar Weisse is a favourite. Up to recently it was available only on draught and in that form I enjoyed a few out in Blairs Inn. Now is it in bottle but only in the 330ml size, same as their Rebel Red. Still, bottle size notwithstanding, it is a very tasty drop - love those refreshing flavours.

Tasting Notes

Kinsale Pale Ale ABV 5% - An exciting fusion of Cascade and Citra hops inspires tropical and citrus flavours that are beautifully balanced with the malty sweetness. The taste dollops a smack of citrus onto the palate – grapefruit and lime – alongside more sweet pineapple and tangerine a decent little malt body fairly creamy, with definite biscuit and cake-dough sweetness and straw overall very well balanced. Clean and crisp citrus bite to finish on, which lingers for a while alongside the sweet tropical fruit notes.  - Alltech Dublin Beer cup bronze medal winner 2013.

New from Blacks of Kinsale, Ireland's first Black IPA! A unique beer that ambushes your senses, it pours dark with a creamy beige head but tastes light and hoppy! Complex hoppy fruity flavours and aromas mixed with roasty bitter chocolate and coffee tones. Low carbonation for a smooth stout like finish. Dressed in black, charged with hops and ready to rock.

Flavours of Christmas (but may be tried at any time of the year!)

Flavours of Christmas

(but may be tried at any time of the year!)

Bubbles from the Loire

Ummera Smoked Chicken (served with a Cajun Potato Salad). Lovely contrast after days of turkey!

Rwandan Coffee, the Cup of Excellence award winning Maraba Sovu 2012 lot #14,  via Robert Roberts Connoisseur Club.

Organic Pink Bubbles (made from Cabernet Franc) from Chateau Miniere and Domaine du Clos d’Epinay Vouvray Brut. Souvenirs of the summer holidays in the Loire Valley.

Mella’s Rum & Raisin Handmade West Cork Fudge.

Ummera smoked chicken.

Cashel Blue mature and Warre’s LBV Port (2002).

The Cornstore’s Plum infused Whiskey.

Dungarvan Coffee and Oatmeal Stout, by now a Christmas standard.

Eight Degrees Zeus Black IPA, 7%. Looks like a rich dark porter but tastes like a pungent IPA.

Fleming's fantastic Orchard Chutney.

Fleming’s Orchard Chutney (Apples, Pears and Green Tomatoes from their own orchard).

Barrie Tyner’s Pates (from the local Farmers Markets, inc. Mahon).

Pandora Bell’s Honey Nougat with Almonds and Pistachios.

Cashel Blue

Cornstore's Craft Beer and Food Month. A series of successful pairings

Craft Beer and Food Month at The Cornstore

A series of successful pairings.

Goat cheese starter

 For those who love good food and a good beer to go with it, Cork’s Cornstore is the place to be this month. The popular restaurant is running a Craft Beer and Food Menu every Wednesday and Thursday. I sampled it last week and can highly recommend it. The Menu is proving very popular so the advice is to book ahead.

They have put a lot of effort into the pairings and a beer (or cider) is suggested with each course. You can, of course, swap around to suit yourself. But we went with the suggested beers and found a series of successful pairings.

Ravioli

You have  a choice of five starters. I kicked off with the Porcini Mushroom Ravioli in a game broth with shredded duck leg and celeriac remoulade. This was a lovely dish on its own but, matched with O’Hara’s Curim, perhaps Ireland’s only wheat beer, it was even better, the object of the November exercise accomplished!

The Warm Goat's Cheese was recommended to us and, with poached fig and red pepper and tomato compote, it sure was a gem, But, matched with the flavoursome red ale, the Dungarvan Copper Coast, the balance was spot-on, the result perfectly delectable. 

Venison

Other starters included Crisp Pork Belly with Stonewell Medium Dry Cider, Chicken Wings with Trouble Brewing Sabotage IPA and Pan Seared Scallops with Eight Degrees Barefoot Bohemian. Check the full menu here.

Brown Bread was the unusual but excellent addition to the Wild Venison Stew, also with braised red cabbage and a wild mushroom dumpling. This earthy game dish, a wintery dark in the bowl, had a great complement in the black stout from Trouble Brewing called Dark Arts, an appropriate name indeed. A highly recommended dish!  

Steak

Trouble Brewing’s Sabotage IPA was one of the suggestions to go with the Aged Rib Eye Steak. Recommending it, the Cornstore said that it has a lovely bitter finish. “And really works well with our award winning steak rub and cuts through the little extra fat of the rib eye steak.” Very true indeed, a perfect alchemy of beer and boeuf, the steak served with mushroom and onion fricassee, a half roast plum tomato and pepper sauce.

Dessert and Beer? No problem to the taste team at the Cornstore. The Flourless Chocolate Cake, with fresh cream and raspberry coulis, is a luxury treat, some very expensive chocolate used here, and it was well matched with a small glass of the Franciscan Well Limited Edition Stout, aged in Jameson Whiskey Casks. The stout, a special treat, also doubled up well with the magnificent Cheese Board Selection (with fruit and crackers). 

And then what do you match with their Apple Dessert plate (mini apple crumble, apple sorbet and apple panna cotta)? Why, Stonewell Dry Cider, of course, the dry style of the Nohoval produced cider perfectly complementing the seasonal apple selection.