Take a Walk on the Wild Side: Award Winning Chefs Collaborate for Wild Ingredient Dinner

press release

Take a Walk on the Wild Side: Award Winning Chefs Collaborate for Wild Ingredient Dinner 

Bryan (left) and Eric

Bryan McCarthy of Greenes and Eric Kavanagh of Cahernane House Hotel to host a Four Hands Dinner at Greenes Restaurant on Wednesday the 26th of February.

Greenes Restaurant in Cork city is hosting a special wild ingredient-driven dinner on the 26th of February where executive head chef Bryan McCarthy will welcome head chef Eric Kavanagh of Kerry’s Cahernane House Hotel into the Greenes kitchen.

Coming into the end of game season, Bryan and Eric have devised a six course menu which is a celebration of wild food with stand-out dishes of venison and local, foraged ingredients. 

Bryan McCarthy said, “Eric is one of Ireland’s best game chefs and myself and the team at Greenes are delighted to be working alongside someone so renowned for their game cookery. The menu’s focus is on wild, foraged ingredients, offering something unique for our diners and allowing us to showcase our combined passion for this type of food. ”

There will also be a Spring season edition of this four hands collaboration, where the roles are reversed and Bryan will be joining Eric in the Cahernane House kitchen on the 2nd of April. 

Eric Kavanagh said, “I have known Bryan for many years and it’s a wonderful opportunity for me to go back to my Cork roots and work with the talented team in Greenes. Bryan has always been innovative in his work and I know our combined styles will make for two very special evenings for our guests in both Cork and Killarney.”

Greenes

The Wild Ingredient Dinner at Greenes is taking place on the 26th of February and costs €59 per person for six courses, including a drink reception kicking off at 6:30pm. Dinner and accommodation in Greenes’ sister venue, Hotel Isaacs, can be booked at a cost of €258 for two people sharing.

Those who want to experience the best of both culinary experiences - one in the buzz of Cork city and one in the peaceful Kerry countryside - can also book the Spring Four Hands Dinner at Cahernane House for the same price - €59 per person for dinner only, and €258 for dinner and accommodation for two people sharing. 

Reservations can be made for both venues at www.greenesrestaurant.com or by phone at 021 455 2279.

Keep up to date with the latest news by following Greenes on Instagram and Twitter at @GreenesCork and on Facebook at @GreenesRestaurant, and Cahernane House Hotel on Instagram at @CahernaneHotel, on Facebook @Cahernane and on Twitter @CahernaneHouse.

Great Start to the Day at Good Day Deli

Great Start to the Day at Good Day Deli

GDD Benny

It was with a good gut feeling that we headed to Good Day Deli for a recent breakfast. And it was with a very good gut feeling that we left this oasis in the gardens of Nano Nagle Place off Douglas Street Cork.

You won’t get your Full Irish here as GDD is close to being fully vegetarian; they do offer a few (sustainable) fish dishes. Owners Claire and Kristin bill the restaurant as a “Sustainable Foods Cafe serving a mix of healthy, local, seasonal, organic and fair trade foods with a commitment to sustainability throughout our food chain. We aim to inspire sustainable lifestyles in Ireland by empowering people to make good food choices that will boost health and wellbeing; elevate local producers; support animal welfare; and protect the environment now and for future generations.”. 

Pear & Pancakes

And they have a host of local suppliers recruited to help them attain those goals.  Organic for Us (milk), Holo Organics (Kombucha); My Goodness (Kefir), Wilkie’s Organic Chocolate, West Cork Coffee, Blanco Nino (tortillas), Pana Bread, and Leamlara Micro-greens, are among the names on the January list.

There is a Kia Orana (welcome) sign on the path up to the restaurant and the welcome inside is warm, smiles and chat and no shortage of info about the menu. We are spoiled for choice, everything from Morena Granola to a Vibrant Vegan Trio to Connolly’s Any Way Organic Eggs. 

I’ve enjoyed their Benny here before and was tempted by the Smoked Beetroot version, also by the Stack of Seared Toons Bridge Halloumi. The Kia Orana Bruschetta (Ardsallagh Goats Cheese with caramelised Mealagulla apples) also beckoned.

My pick though was the Good Day Deli Smoked Salmon Benny. Frank Hederman’s superb salmon came with two organic poached eggs, a very well made Hollandaise (perfect in both quality and quantity), toasted seeds and leafy greens all on sourdough. Delicious!

CL’s choice was the The Hibiscus Poached Pear Pancakes (chunkier than usual), tasty too with a poached organic pear, coconut mascarpone and a drizzle of the Hivemind Honey from the innovative Crosshaven farm.

The drinks here are that bit different too, including a selection of natural wines via Le Caveau. Of course, they have teas and coffees but be sure and study the menu further. You may well like the Coco Mocha (a mocha or hot chocolate with rich Wilkies chocolate plus West Cork Coffee Espresso with coffee, coconut and Maple Cream Whip!)

And then there’s the Hibiscus Soda (a mix of Hibiscus and Poached Pear, with citrus fruits juice, fresh mint and Fizz). A beautifully refreshing soda is what the menu card says and I can confirm that for sure. Absolutely delicious and refreshing. And another superb drink, CL’s choice, was the Apple Juice from Mealagulla in Ovens.

Just as much choice on the lunch menu. But that’s another day’s work! Or should I say another day’s pleasure.

Good Day Deli 

Nano Nagle Place, Douglas Street, Cork T12X704

Phone: 021 4322107

Come to Table. The café in Brown Thomas Cork

Come to Table.

The café in Brown Thomas Cork

If you are in Cork City centre outside Brown Thomas and someone asks you the location of the restaurant in this store - there are two possible answers. If the visitor is from the US, Table (the name of the restaurant) is on the third floor, if he or she is from the UK, Table is on the second floor*. No confusion though about the quality at Table; it is excellent as we found out at a recent lunch.

We were in for lunch. After a smile and a welcome, we were shown to our table and the menu handed to us. It was headed Brunch but all the dishes listed were lunch items - no Eggs Benedict or Smoked Salmon and Eggs.

It was quite a tempting selection in any event, soup or chowder to start with (if you wished), then lots of salads, a more substantial cod dish, chicken supreme also, there were a few veggie options (including a sweet potato and red lentil dhal), a Bacon Cheeseburger plus a Tex Mex Chicken Burger.

I had put my eye immediately on the Salmon Nicoise, Marinated Green beans, Baby Potatoes, egg, crispy croutons and green leaves. And, after a hesitation or two, that was what I ordered. Very happy with this large plateful of tasty fish and veg (those green marinated beans were a standout).

CL picked the Falafel and roasted Mediterranean Vegetable Salad, lemon tahini dressing (vegan). This dish had just been added to the menu and our friendly server told her the chef would be looking for feedback. And he got a good one. Another dish packed full of flavour and not a little colour. The Kemp sisters, owners of the café, are indeed noted for light and colourful dishes, just like the modern art prints around the walls.

We took up the option of having a cup of soup with the mains. The soup of the day was Sweet Potato and Coconut. It was really top notch and so too was the brown bread that came with it. They have a short list of wines here, some bubbles too. But we went for the juices and got two very good ones indeed. CL had a generous glass (all portions are fairly generous here) of just squeezed orange juice while I hit the jackpot with a bottle of Rhubarb and Ginger Lemonade (produced by Limerick’s Wild Orchard).

Finished off with a cup of coffee and a Apple and Cinnamon Crumble with Vanilla Ice-cream from Featherbed Farm. Again that dessert was quite large; more importantly, it was also top notch, the real thing!

Table is run by sisters Peaches and Domini Kemp, who started off their joint food business about 20 years ago with “one employee, one small van and a helluva lot of prayers”. Their first venture was to introduce bagels to Ireland. More recently, they are also to be found in stores such as Brown Thomas, under the Little Museum of Dublin in Hatch and Sons, and in the Irish Museum of Modern Art. What a long way they have come!

. 

Table 

Brown Thomas

19 Patrick Street

Cork

021 480 5555

* Apparently, the Americans start counting from the ground floor while the UK and Ireland start from the floor above the ground level. But, with the globalisation of the English language, there’s bound to be some confusion.

Relaxing Sunday Brunch at Bobo

Relaxing Sunday Brunch at Bobo

Weekend brunch is now quite a habit in Cork with many places offering the mix of breakfast and lunch on Saturdays and Sundays. We headed to Bobo Café on a recent Sunday.

The Bobo Sunday brunch begins at noon. No problem finding parking on Donovan’s Road that day but that might not apply on weekdays. One solution would be to get the bus and get off at the stop to the west of the UCC gates. Here, you’ll find another gate into the college grounds and then a narrow footbridge over the river will take to within 200 metres or less of the entrance to Bobo which is in the Glucksman Gallery (opens on Sunday afternoons, by the way).

Bobo serves Golden Bean coffee, homemade treats, craft beers and fine wines and is open on Tuesday to Saturday 10.00am to 5.00pm and on Sunday from noon until five. Local suppliers include O’Mahony Butchers English Market, Ballycotton Seafood, Colin Wolfe Macroom (eggs), Greenfields Farm Glanmire, and My Goodness.

We joined a few “early birds” a couple of minutes after the café opened and got one of the many tables that look out onto a green area to the west of the cafe, between the internal road up to the UCC quadrangle and the riverside walk. The view is slightly spoiled by the big concrete barrier necessitated by the tendency of the river to flood. The apron before the barrier is used for dining al fresco during the good weather.

There were nine separate dishes on the well-priced brunch menu plus three sides. Fancy something on the smaller side? Well you may pick from their Granola with Yogurt, Mixed Berry Syrup and Fruit, or the Poached Eggs with Guacamole on Sourdough, or the Eggs en Cocotte with red Chard and cream.

The French Toast with Maple Syrup and Berries (bacon optional) was seriously considered as was the Jack McCarthy Blackpudding, chard, cherry tomatoes and poached eggs. The Bobo Hash Browns, salsa, scrambled eggs and mixed leaves also caught the eye as did the Tostada Andaluza (Jamon Serrano, tomato and garlic on toasted baguette).

Pedestrian bridge to and from Western Road

In the end though, I went for the Shakshuka, a Middle Eastern Tomato Salsa with baked eggs and chorizo. A cracking bunch of leaves from Greenfield plus a few slices of toasted sourdough enhanced this already delicious dish.

Our other plateful, the Chilli Tempeh with beans, patatas bravas and beets (also €10.00) was full of colour and flavour. I got a few bites of that one and we each gave it the thumbs up. Service was friendly here as are the prices!

If you come here during the week (and indeed on Sunday afternoon), you’ll be able to visit the Glucksman Gallery, and/or take a stroll over that little bridge I mentioned to access the Mardyke, including Fitzgeralds Park, and see the north channel of the river. 

By the way, there are guided walking tours of UCC. Run by UCC Visitors' Centre, this is an opportunity to discover the great history of the university in the setting of the beautiful campus grounds. More info on their Facebook page here. 

As it happens, Bobo have just announced their new lunch menu and it features tempting dishes based on Beef Cheeks, Wild Prawn, Ras Al Hanout Cauliflower and more.

Bobo

Lewis Glucksman Gallery, University College Cork,

T12 V1WH

(021) 490 1848 

COBH MANAGER TAKES HOME TOP HONOUR AT PRIDE OF CENTRA AWARDS

COBH MANAGER MICHELLE TAKES HOME TOP HONOUR AT PRIDE OF CENTRA AWARDS

-Annual Award Ceremony Applauds Centra Employees-

The sixth annual Pride of Centra Awards ceremony took place recently in Dromoland Castle in Co. Clare, where a selection of outstanding Centra employees were honoured for their passion and commitment shown in the workplace this year. There were 54 employees from across the country shortlisted across six categories with Michelle McCarthy, Department Manager of Centra Cobh, Co. Cork, taking home the Department Manager Award but also named as the Overall 2019 Pride of Centra Award winner.  

Presented by Sybil Mulcahy, the Pride of Centra Awards celebrates the dedication and enthusiasm demonstrated by employees. Each of the shortlisted finalists have gone above and beyond their role to emulate the Centra brand values and ensure their store is at the heart of their community. The overall winner was selected from six category winners; Employee Award, Department Manager Award, Store Manager Award, Length of Service Award, Community Champion Award, Outstanding Customer Service Award & Overall Pride of Centra Award 2019.

Commenting on the Pride of Centra Awards, Dan Curtin, Centra Sales Director, said; “These awards were established to recognise and celebrate the incredible individuals who consistently live by the Centra brand values, each and every day. Centra stores operate in the heart of communities across the country and these awards not only provide the opportunity to showcase the amazing work that Centra staff do every day within the store, but also highlight the remarkable and selfless work they do within their local communities. Customers tell us time and time again that the number one driver of shoppers to Centra is our staff and we are proud and grateful for their dedication, commitment and passion for our brand.”

Pride of Centra 2019 Category Winners:

1. Pride of Centra Overall Winner & Department Manager: Michelle McCarthy, from Centra Cobh, Co.Cork
2. Pride of Centra Employee Award, Nikita Kelly, Centra Kells, Co. Louth
3. Pride of Centra Store Manager Award, Connie Lynch, Centra Piltown, Co. Kilkenny
4. Pride of Centra Length of Service Award, Brendan Deane, Centra Belmullet, Co. Mayo
5. Pride of Centra Community Champion Award, Bridget McLaughlin, Centra Moville, Co. Donegal
6. Pride of Centra Outstanding Customer Service Award, Rachel Ellis, Centra Kells, Co. Meath

Commenting in relation to overall winner Michelle McCarthy, Judge Paul Ellison said; “Since joining Murphy’s Centra Cobh, Michelle has helped turn the shop into a local landmark, famous for its fresh food and high-quality service. She is an inspirational leader that has built a fantastic team of staff and created a positive culture through continuously motivating, involving and encouraging all employees of the store. Michelle is loved by all the customers with her wonderful positive attitude, friendliness and enthusiasm and she is hugely involved in the community dedicating her time to many different initiatives and charity events every year. She truly embodies the Pride of Centra Award.”

The 54 finalists represented 19 counties; Dublin, Cork, Sligo, Waterford, Wexford, Donegal, Galway, Clare, Cavan, Leitrim, Limerick, Mayo, Laois, Tipperary, Kildare, Kilkenny, Kerry, Carlow and Offaly. All shortlisted candidates were recognised for their ongoing commitment to their work with community initiatives, charity organisations, customer service and engaging activities in-store.

 press release

Something Different at Dockland. A Delightful Diversity of Dishes

Something Different at Dockland 

A Delightful Diversity of Dishes

Thai Curry

The transition from Club Brasserie to Dockland had some punters worried. But it was more or less seamless and soon we realised that, while there were many small plates here, the choice was bigger than ever, the types of dishes more varied than before. You don’t need to be over adventurous to enjoy the flavoursome food here but plain eaters may have to study the menu in some detail.

Toulouse sausage

We arrived in early on a Friday, in good form having earlier attended the O’Donovan Wine Fair in the nearby Clayton. The form wasn’t entirely down to the wine - we spit much more than we swallowed. But the drops and the chats were enjoyable as was the warm welcome by Beth and her newly male reinforced Dockland team!

There are no sub headings on the menu, just one title: bites to bigger bites. Roughly you have a dozen bites (small plates) and, believe it or not, more or less the same number of bigger bites (main courses, if you will, not that the old terminology is entirely accurate here). You could perhaps have three bites, or one bite and one bigger, or even two bigger. Lots of scope to try different things and also to share.

And lots to drink also, including an increasing choice of non-alcoholic (they’re working on that!). A good list of white and red wines, an impressive collection of gins, and a full bar too. No shortage but in the circumstances we gave it a skip on the night.

It did take us a while to go through the menu. I started with the Toulouse Sausage Bruschetta, with tomato chilli jam, roasted red onions, mustard mayo and honey mustard dressing. With a crispy little salad, this was terrific, moist and full of texture and flavour, a terrific bite and I was on my way for six euro.

Roasted stuffed Aubergine

CL’s opener cost the same, actually 6.50. Her choice was the Roasted Stuffed Aubergine, with tomato fondue, roasted red onions, feta cheese, sumac and mint oil. Again, moist and delicious, a cracking combination of textures and flavours. Up and running.

Just to give you an idea of the variety here, I’ll detail two of the other “bites”. One is the Moroccan Lamb Koftas (ras al hanout, saffron aioli, harissa oil, and zataar), another the Macroom Halloumi cheese, courgette plus carrot fritters. With all the various combinations available here, you could eat at Dockland for weeks and not repeat yourself.

Big bites are just as varied. You could have Crispy Asian Duck confit plus a spiced noodle salad (with blood orange lime nam iiim chilli dressing, coriander, chillies, mint, toasted tomato seeds, sugarsnap, mixed peppers). I was seriously considering that before I made a different choice.  Also tempting was the Slow Roasted Crispy Belly of Pork with fennel seeds, served with Borlotti beans, rosemary, buttered cabbage, Clonakilty blackpudding and caramelised apple.

In the end, my pick was the Thai Green Chicken Curry, basmati rice, cucumber mint salad (18.00). At first glance, I thought this was a little on the small side but the bowls were packed, one with the curry (oh those crunchy peppers), the rice was perfectly cooked and that little bowl of cucumber sauce played a key role and I also enjoyed my poppadum. Took my time with that I can tell you and enjoyed every little bit - no room for dessert at the end!

Dhal

Our other dish was also from the east: Spiced Lentil and sweet potato dhal, spinach, basmati rice, poppadum crisps and yogurt (16.00). The result here was equally satisfying, a superb and generous counter to the cold outside. We were very happy with those two dishes, not the kind of plates you’d do at home (and that’s one of the reasons we venture out to Cork’s marvellous restaurants and cafes).

And that plain eater?  Perhaps the Chargrilled Ribeye steak along with the Dockland Dirty Fries would do the trick. Even there, expect a surprise or two like the roasted harissa oil with the chips! Plain or adventurous, you’ll be well looked after here. The welcome is warm and the service is efficient and friendly.

Taste of the Week from Kilbrack Farm. Buy local, fresh and fair.

Taste of the Week

from Kilbrack Farm

I found my current Taste of the Week in the superb kale on sale at the Kilbrack Farm stall in the Coal Quay Farmers Market last Saturday. They have other amazing organic vegetables, as does Caroline Robinson a few stalls away. It doesn't have to be just at the Coal Quay. Midleton or Douglas Markets may be more convenient for you. I plan to go to Killavullen next Saturday morning. If Saturday doesn't suit, head to Mahon Point on Thursday. There's a couple of excellent farmers stalls there and don't tell me the markets are expensive. Last week, I got five or six superb carrots in Mahon for one euro!

After the Coal Quay last Saturday, I called to the English Market. Eoin O'Mahony had a lovely piece of porchetta* to go with the kale. There was bread from ABC and paté from On the Pig's Back. As you know, there's lots of other stalls in both markets so no shortage of choice. The point I'm making is support local, buy fresh and fair and you'll end up with a taste of the week that suits your tastes and your budget and, more than likely, your health. The longer my food's journey, the less I trust in it (anyone been watching Rotten on Netflix?). So buy local and from a trusted source. The more we pull together, the further we will go.

* Speaking of pork, we got a delicious shoulder from Woodside Farm at Mahon Thursday; cooked low and slow with seasonal root vegetables, it gave us a very satisfactory dinner on Sunday, as it regularly does.

Nash 19 Champions Local Producers. The Customer Wins

Nash 19 Champions Local Producers.

The Customer Wins

Superb pork, crowned with crackling

Quite a few new restaurants, all types, sizes, styles, in Cork these days, some of them grabbing the attention. But a experienced and still enthusiastic troop of the old reliables can teach these new kids on the block a thing or two. Take Nash 19 for instance, established in 1992 and now a treasure of good food and good cooking right in the heart of the city: seasonal, local, consistent and so welcoming.

Good to keep these places in mind and I reaped the benefit last Tuesday when I accepted an offer to a birthday lunch (mine) and we decided on Nash 19. Some new faces in the crew but all come with big smiles and they soon had us seated, the menus in our hands, water at hand. It was a good start and gradually got better.

Warm Chicken Salad

Lots to pick from here, various salads, four fish dishes, traditional offerings such as Lamb’s Liver and Irish Stew. And if you couldn’t make up your mind you could do worse than choose the Local Producer Plate, their signature tasting plate.

The one that caught my eye was the Pork Loin, baked in Bombay Aloo (potato) & Fennel, with crackling (15.90). Crowe’s Farm are their regular supplier so I had no worries about the pork and in addition to the described elements there was also a helping of cracking kale (from Waterfall Farm), gratin potato and root vegetables. Overall, a superb mains, well thought out and equally well executed.

CL meanwhile was enjoying her Chicken Warm Salad, Mexican style, guacamole, tortillas and salsa (13.90), a bowl packed with colour, flavour and texture. 

Wines are supplied mainly by Liberty and Le Caveau and the birthday boy was invited to help himself by his driver for the day. Our server was confident about the wines and suggested I try the light unoaked and organic Mesta Tempranillo, a 2018 joven, from Ucles in Spain. She was spot on and I enjoyed the pairing!

We had each started with a “small” bowl of Rich Tomato and bean soup; they also had a chowder on offer. The soup took the cold out of the system and we settled back to enjoy our mains.

Nash believe in quality. Not alone do they source the best but they handle it well all the way from delivery to the plate. And it is not just quality. Quantity is never lacking here. So we were pretty full when the dessert question came up!

I studied the list, again no shortage of choice. The legendary Raspberry Mille Feuille caught my attention immediately but then I spotted something that might better suit the cool October day and so we decided to share the Pillow Meringue with spiced plums and hot chocolate sauce (6.60). Glad to report my hunch was right on the money. Indeed, those mildly spiced plums were worth the money on their own.

So there you are. What’s another year? Let’s see.

Superb Cuisine in Capacious and Comfortable Cornstore

Superb Cuisine in Capacious and Comfortable Cornstore

Very much enjoyed the cuisine, not to mention the comfort of the renovated dining room, at dinner in the well-established and hugely popular Cornstore last week. Cold and wet outside but we were cosy and well fed inside.

The Oyster Festival may be over - and we did visit the Cornstore as one of the stops on the previous Saturday’s Gourmet Trail - but there is no shortage of oysters around. And they have quite a variation here with their Hot Grilled Buffalo Oysters, an unusual twist on the classic Buffalo wings that, with ginger beer pickled samphire, gives the molluscs a spicy lift!

There’s quite a choice of starters on the A La Carte here, about ten appetisers plus five small plates and also a special or two on the night. I had been looking at two of the specials - smoked mackerel and lamb kebab - before ordering the oysters. CL’s pick was the Heirloom Tomato Salad with Crumbled feta, red onion, toasted pistachio, shredded basil & organic rapeseed oil.

No shortage of choice either when it comes to the main section,. Here their famous aged steaks have a little section to themselves and, as we’ve found out on previous occasions, are top class. This time though I picked Rack and rolled lamb (Roast rack of lamb & braised shoulder of lamb, rosemary and sweet potato cake, leek fricassee & a mint pesto). The rack is served medium here and was perfect. Hard to beat the tender shoulder, hard to beat the whole combination, the different textures of the lamb, the soft crunch of the leek plus the bread-like feel of the cake. Quite a dish.

CL loves her fish. As this is another speciality of the house, it was with confidence that she ordered the Baked salmon with grilled prawns with Fondant potato, tender stem broccoli, samphire and blood orange hollandaise. And that confidence was well placed indeed and well rewarded too.

Quality all the way at the Cornstore but no shortage of quantity either, so there was some hesitation about dessert before we decided to share the Vanilla Crème Brulée with salted chocolate biscuit. Again a delicious choice, even that biscuit was a beauty!

Whiskeys galore here and the Cornstore cocktails (including dessert cocktails and mocktails) are legendary. An extensive wine list includes whites from light and crisp to rich and elegant, reds from easy drinking to full bodied and robust.You may get craft beers by the bottle - I noticed bottles from Blacks of Kinsale and Black Donkey of Roscommon on the list. And I found another one, a wheat beer, for my non-alcoholic “collection”, a Schneider Weisse by the famous German brewer. Enjoyed that!

Enjoyed the dinner very much indeed and it got even better when a family member texted us with an offer of a lift home. Delighted to accept!

• By the way, their Christmas Group Festive menus are now available, so you may want to check these out. As you know, the large restaurant is ideal for groups.

The Cornstore 

Cornmarket Street

Cork

4274777

Bayview Lunch Brings Out The Sun!

Bayview Lunch Brings Out The Sun!

Red Mullet

Fancied some good fish last Friday so we headed off to Ballycotton’s marvellously situated Bayview Hotel, a hotel where head chef Ciaran Scully has an unrivalled reputation when its comes to fish. But, as we turned right at Shanagarry, we could see the fog straight ahead and it stayed with us, not quite blocking out the view of the pier as we parked but certainly most of the bay was out of sight.

But the mood and the weather improved as we tucked into our excellent lunch and, before the dessert, we were able to see right across the large bay to the Garryvoe Hotel, a “sister” of the Bayview. It turned out to be a lovely afternoon. Would have been a good one to take the cliff walk but, well, we were pretty full at that point so a stroll down to the shore was a much as we managed.

Terrine

There’s an amazing menu here, packed with a huge choice of good things, not all from the sea. We were thinking of trying Roscoff Onion & Rebel Red Broth topped with Sourdough Croutes & Melted Hegarty’s Cheddar, just one of the soups on offer.  A Salad of Macroom Mozzarella, Leamlara Farm Leaves, Heritage Tomatoes, Basil Pesto, Balsamic, Sourdough also caught the eye.

Grilled Inch House Black pudding with Beetroot Ketchup, Young Buck Blue Cheese, Onion Mousse featured prominently in our short-list of starters. But our pick - we shared it - was the Pig’s Head Brawn Terrine, Plum and Pedro Jiménez Puree, Bayview Piccalilli. This was perfect, the tasty meat flavours improved no end by that purée and even more so by the selection of pickled vegetables. These guys know how to pimp your terrine! 

There were Steak, Duck leg, Lambs Liver on the mains. But fish of course is the specialty here and the Fish Board of Smoked Mackerel Pate, Dublin Bay Prawns, Little Darling Pickled Herrings, Ballycotton Smoked Salmon Salad & Sourdough Baguette beckoned but will have to wait for another visit!

They always have a selection of simply pan-fried fish here, served with side salad and chunky chips (really chunky!), usually priced around the €22.00 euro mark. We know the plaice around here is always top class so that was CL’s pick while I went for the Red Mullet. 

The plaice was perfection itself, no batter to take from its delicious flavour. And I can honestly say the same about the more “meaty” mullet, a fish you don’t see that often on local menus. Hopefully that will change as it really is a beauty.

The choices continue at the end. There’s an Irish Farmhouse Cheese selection, Ice-cream variations, plus Sorbets. The Bayview uses lots of Irish produce and Tipperary Farm Boulaban is their ice-cream supplier. And we finished off with the Bayview Affogato: Boulaban Vanilla Ice Cream drowned In Freshly Made Double Espresso Black Barrel Syrup. Nice!

The four-star Bayview has a cliff-top nest in Ballycotton, overlooking both the pier and bay, a great place to dine and stay.

Bayview Hotel 

Ballycotton

Co. Cork

Ireland

Farmgate Café 25 Years On. Still Going Strong

Farmgate Café 25 Years On

Still Going Strong

Old Millbank salmon

When the Farmgate Café advertise for staff, they stress “it's a busy fast paced environment”. And it is. I saw for myself last Wednesday week (Aug 7th). No shortage of spaces when we arrived at 12.30pm but it was such a different story thirty minutes later. By then, the Dining Room was full and there was a queue for the Balcony, even a little queue to exit! Twenty five years after its founding, the English Market restaurant's food is as much in demand as ever.

We got a table in the glassed off Dining Room and were soon studying the menu and the specials on the board (which included plaice and corn beef). Service is friendly and efficient here and water was quickly delivered to the table along with some of their complimentary breads (delicious, as always) and Glenilen Butter.

Chicken Livers

Something on the lighter side was our target, so we passed on the mains of fish, the beef, the free-range chicken and the Irish Lamb Stew, all tempting and most sourced from the English Market below.

We could have nibbled on olives and on the addictive House Spiced Nuts (we had those during the Walk the Long Table stop here). In the end, I picked the Seared Chicken Livers with Marsala on sourdough toast (8.50). There was a well-dressed salad on the plate as well and it was a superb combination of flavour, texture, even colour.

You can get Irish beers here and European wines but I regularly go for their sparkling elderflower drink and we shared a carafe (4.50). There’s a great loyalty between the Farmgate and their suppliers so it was no surprise to see the Old Millbank Organic Irish Smoked Salmon (12.50) on the menu here and CL gave that a run and confirmed the offering was as good as ever.

One of the advantages of the smaller plates was that dessert could be accommodated!  There was a Pannacotta Special with strawberries up on the board but it was the regular Champagne and Elderflower Sorbet with West Cork Strawberries that tempted me. Must say I hit dessert jackpot with that one, so delicious I was half inclined to lift the bowl to my lips and drain the last drop of the melting sorbet!

Champion Sorbet!

Actually, there is a quite a long dessert menu here. Our other one was also cool and colourful: Lemon Tart and Raspberry Sorbet.  Did a bit of sharing there and that too was excellent but I still gave mine the nod as the best! Each cost  €5.90.

You may reserve a table in the Dining Room (table service) but not in the Balcony (counter service). The menu available in the Dining Room is mostly available too across the way and, in addition, you’ll be able to choose from soups, salads, toasted and open sandwiches, and a daily roast or two.

Farmgate Café  

English Market

Princes Street

Cork

T12NC8Y

Ireland

local: 021 427 8134

international: 00 353 21 427 8134 

e: info@farmgatecork.ie (general enquiries)