Taste of the Week. Sage in a Pot

Taste of the Week. 

Sage in a Pot. Pork Pot.

Midleton chef Kevin Aherne has been one of those restaurant owners doing a bit of pivoting recently! With his popular Sage closed, he has been selling his skills in different ways via pots, pies and sides. These are now available on Neighbourfood and in many stores - keep an eye on their Facebook page for updates.

I found a selection in Bradley's recently and the superb Pork Pot is our Taste of the Week. Bascially, this is slow-cooked pork, stroganoff style with Lemon and Sage. The addition of the lemon and sage is genius, enhances the pork no end without in anyway overwhelming it. The pots cost €7.50 each and for that we got a delicious main course for two. Well, we did add rice!

Looking forward now to my second pick, the Vegan Pot (red dahl with lentils, chickpeas, potatoes, cumin and coriander). Wonder what we'll add to this medium hot dish.

Sage2Go 

The Courtyard
8 Main St
Midleton
Cork
Ireland

 021 463 9682

Sage Opening Hours

Kevin and Reid have just been in touch from Sage with their Christmas opening hours....

"Just to let you know the restaurant will be open for Lunch Tuesday 22nd ,Wednesday 23rd & Christmas Eve .

We will be closed from the 25th -29th of December

Pending on imminent restrictions we will re open on the 30th You can place your reservation via the link

http://www.sagerestaurant.ie/book-your-table/

We will also be open in The Food store this coming Monday for Collections, Hampers, Vouchers etc

https://sage.tablepath.com/vouchers/purchase

Once Again a very Merry Christmas - Take Care."

Kev & Reid

Chargrill Comes Into Play As Sage Pivots Towards Courtyard Dining

Chargrill Comes Into Play

 As Sage Pivots To Casual Courtyard Dining

Starters

“Outdoor is safer.” So the Covid19 experts say. Sage Chef Kevin Aherne took heed and has pivoted his dining option to the al fresco experience of the courtyard. Not just any old courtyard, of course. The Sage one is well covered, well heated too, good solid well-spaced tables with comfortable chairs and even vines with bunches of grapes (keep your hands to yourself) hanging overhead.

So how about a drink? We are studying the menu. The style is now more casual than previously. No shortage of wine here and there’s a full bar inside. Howling Gale, by Eight Degrees, is available on draft. And there’s a bottle of Johnny Fall Down. Tempting. But then we spot the ElderSplender (Prosecco and Elderflower) and, being splendid elders ourselves, we ordered a couple. And yes, they were splendid, very enjoyable indeed.

Friendly people served us through the evening. And soon our starters were on the table. Could have had my beer taste satisfied with the IPA Haddock Sliders or the Ale Brined Chicken Skewer.

Dahl

But we picked their 12 Spice Chicken Wings. We each took a different version. CL enjoyed hers with Fermented Red Chilli Sauce while I tucked into mine with Terry’s Honey (I was keen to try that one!).  As it turned out we swapped quite a bit, both well pleased with a delicious opener.

Time then for the main event. There’s a Rib Eye steak and also an Angus Beef Burger, a couple of flatbreads (one with Gubbeen salami), and a vegetarian with Ballinrostig halloumi entitled “A bit like fish ’n chips”. 

Salmon

Most are done on the grill as is the the Chargrilled organic salmon, with crispy egg, coronation mayo, charred lemon dressing and wilted greens. A flavoursome dish but the flavours had to compete with a surfeit of smoke and the wilted greens turned out to be kale which doesn’t wilt as easily as most other greens.

The Sage Dahl, full of colour, flavour and texture, was very appetising  when presented on the table. The menu description:  lentils, potatoes, chickpeas, scallions and red chilli, brown rice, and peanut rayu. The option of adding chicken (from the grill of course) was taken up and all in all it was quite a dish. 

ElderSplender

A Sage social media post later indicated that the Salmon was the most ordered dish of the evening but my vote goes firmly to the Dahl.

So what else is happening at the Midleton venue? The former Greenroom has been turned into a shop cum deli called Sage 2Go and here you may buy lots of local products such as their own Grilled Lemon Dressing, Chilli Jam, Elderflower Cordial, Aherne’s Organic Raw Milk, Beetroot relish, wines, ciders, Highbank products (syrup, treacle, balsamic vinegar), Wicklow Rapeseed Oil and much more.

Need a snack during the day? Well Sage2Go is the place to go for coffees, scones, desserts, sushi, and a range of salads, sandwiches and snacks here and enjoy them in a seat in the Courtyard or as a picnic on a nearby green. And, if you don’t feel like dining out just yet, you can order from the Sage Take Out Range and collect your choice here.

No "12 Mile" heading on the Courtyard menu but make no mistake this is local produce. Producers listed on the menu include: Pana Bakery, Midleton Distillery, Taylor's Farm, Leahy's Farm, Greenfield Farm, The Chicken Inn, Ballycotton Seafood, Stafford's Farm, Joe's Farm, Ardsallagh Goats Cheese, Ballinrostig Organic Cheese, Terry's Honey, John Tait's Black Angus Cattle, O'Farrell's Butcher, and Frank Murphy Butcher. Quite a stellar line-up there!

More details on their website here. Also check their Facebook for opening days, times and other updates.

TablePath's Helping Restaurants Go "Click & Collect"

A classy take-away from Greene's!

TablePath's Helping Restaurants Go "Click & Collect"

With the food service industry being turned inside out these days, you have to be quick to adapt.  And helping Cork restaurants such as Greene's Sage and Da Mirco take the Click and Collect route is well established restaurant booking service TablePath, making it easier for the restaurants simplify and automate what can be a complex process. 

By the way, one of the partners in TablePath is Martin Poucher who is also the tech brains behind NeighbourFood with Jack Crotty, another brilliant food related service and one that doesn't seem to be getting the credit it deserves.

I just clicked into DaMirco's website there and here's what it looks like for this weekend.Tempting - you'd better hurry.

Other local restaurants on the TablePath system are:

www.greenesrestaurant.com (Bryan)

www.theglasscurtain.ie (Brian)

www.sagerestaurant.ie (Kevin)

www.12tables.ie (Dave & Cat)

www.damirco.ie (Mirco)

www.thewhalestail.ie

www.freddysbistro.com (Limerick)

www.oneillsbistro.com (Tipp)

Andrew Monaghan, Sales Manager with TablePath: "All their orders come through to them on their TablePath account and they can decide how many orders they can handle every 15 minutes and the system will work with that figure. Can also handle the maximum amount of orders they can handle per day.

The system automates all the payments, orders placed and time slots. Many of those now working with us had initially gone down the ‘pen & paper’ route of taking orders, payments etc. but once we had given them a demo on how simple the TablePath system was they were happy to work with us immediately!

from The Glass Curtain.

We manage all the set up (free of charge!) and we also manage all their Menu / pricing updates so there is very little for the restaurateur to do except process the incoming orders and drop them to the hungry customers in their cars.

With ‘Social Distancing’ going to have a big impact on the number of diners each restaurant can handle from June 29, we believe that the takeaway aspect of each restaurant will work ‘hand in hand’ with their core business once they re-open their doors! Our system integrates with STRIPE who handle the secure online payment process. 

We are delighted to work with many of Corks top restaurants and look forward to working with more over the coming weeks!"

That was the year that was! Rewind 2019

That was the year that was!

Rewind 2019

When you go over the hill, you go faster. And certainly this year, 2019, went faster!

Cask "toasting". Wine, Whiskey and Beer evening  at the Franciscan Well

It was a good one though, some terrific visits to producers of all kinds, delicious meals, excellent stays at everything from B&Bs to five star hotels and friendly festivals as well.

And great to be able to confirm that friendliness is still a huge and engaging factor in the Irish hospitality sector. There were warm welcomes, above and beyond, in many places and our front of house laurels go to:

Luca in Ali’s Kitchen, Cork; 

Julie in Finns’ Table, Kinsale;

and to the entire team at Wicklow Heather in Laragh. 

With Mary T (right) at Castle Grove

On the Gastro Pub scene, you’ll find it hard to beat the Victor led front of house at O’Mahony’s of Watergrasshill. And in accommodation, the nod goes to Mary T and the Sweeney family at Castle Grove House in Donegal. Always a terrific welcome too at both the Trident in Kinsale and the Celtic Ross in Rosscarbery. Top guesthouses: Perryville (Kinsale) and Sheedy’s (Doolin).

Breakfast is a key part of accommodation of course and we came across some gems this year. Aldridge Lodge  in Wexford is absolutely outstanding while Sheedy’s of Doolin is another excellent place. I don't do breakfasts in restaurants often but ORSO in Cork gets an honourable mention! The most impressive breakfast room we came across is the beautiful conservatory in the Quay House  in Clifden and the breakfast is good too as it is in Kinsale’s Perryville.

Fish breakfast at Aldridge Lodge

O’Mahony’s of Watergrasshill is an outstanding venue for pub grub while Gallagher’s in MacCurtain Street Cork impressed on a pre-theatre visit.

Goldie

The fish offering is also improving all the time and we came across two quite innovative places this year: Fisk in Downings in Donegal and Goldie in Cork City. Kudos too to the Wild Strands Café (Malin, Donegal) for their use of seaweed and fish. Superb fish dinner as always in the Bayview Ballycotton, the village is also well served in that regard by Pier 26, and there was an excellent fish lunch at the Mountain House in Ardfield, West Cork. In Cork City and in a few Kerry towns, you'll find, as we did, the ever-reliable Quinlan's.

Great variety in the restaurant scene nowadays, including the famed vegetarian (and wine!) offering at Cafe Paradiso, also on Leeside. Crab claws were superb at Pier 26 (Ballycotton) and Naughton's (Kilkee) while the best steak was served at Liberty Grill (Cork). Hard to beat Nash 19 Cork for pork and the Market Lane group for lamb (especially when the Blasket Lamb is available). When it comes to variety on the menu, Cork’s Dockland is the place to be.

Liberty Grill steak

Enjoyed the Palestinian fare at Izz in Cork though the ethnic highlight was the Pickle Pop-up with Sunil Ghai  in Sage Midleton. Another good one was Richy's Curry Series with his excellent Indian chef Meeran Gani.

Pearse Lyons Distillery

Lunch is an important time if you're on the road. The Woollen Mills Café in Foxford , St Francis Provisions (Kinsale), TIA in Louisburgh are all worth noting - great salads and more. In Cork city, put the Farmgate (celebrating 25 years) and Crawford Gallery Cafe on your list, not forgetting Vikki's in Sunday's Well, O'Callaghan's (Mitchelstown) and Seasalt in Cobh. Something more substantial? Then put Tramore’s Copper Hen in your diary. And go for the lunch tasting menu at Greene’s Cork if you are looking for something really special. Off for an afternoon? Why not the extra special Afternoon Tea in the River Lee Hotel?

Ichigo Ichie. "Every moment we change"

We enjoyed a few special dinners. The Sake dinner at Ichigo Ichie was outstanding. Great company, wine and food at the Rizzardi Wine dinner in Courtmacsherry’s Lifeboat Inn. And fantastic wine and fish at a FEAST event in the Bayview. And another excellent night was the Barnabrow Gourmet Evening with ENO Wines.

Paradiso Cork

Indeed, FEAST was our top festival this year. It has made huge strides in recent years. The Pickle Pop-up here was a good one and another very enjoyable meal was the Picado Mexican Pop-up during the West Waterford Festival. 

Quay House, Clifden

Oh, I nearly forgot dessert. Indeed, I’ve been known to skip it sometimes. But two that I remember with pleasure are the Mocha Choca Yumma at the Ballymaloe Cookery School Garden Café Truck and the Apple and Berry Crumble at the Copper Hen (Tramore).

Dessert at Ballymaloe CS truck

Both Eight Degrees and Kinnegar breweries, two of the best around, took time out to show us their breweries. Another very enjoyable event was the Wine, Whiskey and Beer evening  at the Franciscan Well. Other producers visited included Clonakilty Black Pudding, Seymour Biscuits (Bandon), St Tola Cheese (Clare), Hegarty's Cheese (Whitechurch).

On the wine side, there was a very impressive Spit 2019 day in the River Lee. Best wine bar we visited was the Gallery in Westport. More and more non-alcoholic drinks, good ones, are coming on the market and our favourite this year is the Highbank Orchards Organic Drivers Cider.

A couple of excellent distillery visits too including to Clonakilty and Powerscourt (both new). Perhaps the most memorable was the lovely Pearse Lyons distillery  in Dublin’s Liberties, big thanks there to our guides Bernard and James.

Speaking of guides, we had the lovely Karen Coakley include us on her excellent Kenmare Food Tour, lots of good food and variety in this small Kerry town. Kenmare is excellent but our top town of 2019 for good drink, excellent food and off-the-scale craic is Clonakilty. My highlight in Clon is the annual Street Carnival. In the city, we enjoyed the Long Table Walk in June and the Gourmet Trail (part of the Oyster Fest) in September. And in mid-summer, we thoroughly enjoyed a West Cork Farm Tour where another three top class guides - the O'Donovan family - showed us around..

Downings

Can’t go without mentioning pizza. I know there are many good ones around nowadays but my nod goes to newcomer Curley Stu  (check his Facebook here for venues) and the well established Pompeii (regulars at the Franciscan Well and in Waterville for the summer).

Lunch at Greene's

Great to see so many places now putting the emphasis on local and Blarney’s Square Table, champions of local, have been doing exactly that since they started. The Europe has, we think, the best five star hotel lounge/bar while Powerscourt has the best pub. 

For comfort and ticking all the other restaurant boxes as well, it has to be the Cornstore in Cork. Always a good atmosphere here. This year though the best buzz we came across was at Tapas de Lola (Dublin) and The Bullman (Kinsale).

Always get around to the farmers markets and it usually pays off! And it paid off on the double when we called to Killavullen before Christmas as it was here that we found the best ever Mince Pies (Noirin) and the best ever Sausage Rolls (Ciaran).

Bray Head walk

Some Random Bits

Top walks for auld fellas: Knockadoon, Ballycotton Cliff Walk, Nire Valley Gap, Bray Head (Valentia)  and Carrigfadda (West Cork).

Film: Satan and Adam (Netflix)

Books: Beautiful Affair (Mike Hanrahan), Suzy Suzy (William Wall), Rewind (Catherine Ryan Howard), all different but each with a strong East Cork connection.

Museum: Little Museum of Dublin.

So that was 2019, or at least a summary. If you have any suggestions for 2020, you know where to find me! 

Taste of the Week. Highbank Drivers Cider

Taste of the Week

Highbank Drivers Cider

Highbank Orchard Syrup is on the table every morning in this house and now another marvellous product from the organic Kilkenny farm is our Taste of the Week.

There was a marvellous lunch recently in Sage Midleton where the guest chef was Sunil Ghai from Dublin’s Pickle Restaurant. We had the car and were wondering what to drink until I spotted this on the drinks list.

It proved so bloody good, I didn’t stop at one! That second glass appeal. No doubt about it. Made from their Cider apples, this gluten free Drivers Cider is a refreshing non-alcoholic drink for the designated driver with no added sugar or chemicals. It is full of flavour and so well balanced, a terrific non alcoholic drink and miles away from many of those tasteless “zero” drinks. Different class, much more than a mere alternative!

Highbank Orchard

Well done to Kevin and Réidin for stocking it and hope other restaurants and bars follow suit! Well done too to Julie and Rob for producing it, along with many other good things.

Highbank Orchards 

Cuffesgrange

Co. Kilkenny

Sunil Ghai at SAGE

Sunil Ghai, Master of PICKLE, at SAGE

Take A Break! Halfway through, we were invited to try

 the cucumber with three salts: black (mildest), lemon and chilli.

Sunil Ghai, of Pickle Dublin and one of Ireland's top chefs, was guest chef at Midleton's SAGE Restaurant last Saturday as part of the fantastic FEAST Cork festival, bringing together the best of produce from the area and featuring local and visiting chefs and a whole lot more besides.

Sunil, relaxed in the kitchen and dining room, went down a treat as did his food. It was an unmissable  opportunity to enjoy a feast by one of the foremost Indian chefs in Ireland, to sample his bold, contemporary cooking style. And we enjoyed an array of dishes inspired by his hometown of Gwalior in central India.

Sunil in Sage kitchen. Pic courtesy of Sage.

Kevin Aherne, chef patron st Sage, introduced Sunil and welcomed him, saying that the focus of FEAST 2019 was very much on the multiculturalism of food. Indeed there was a very successful 13 nation get-together in Midleton on the following day and, in my own case, I had attended a Polish dinner in Surf and Turf (Midleton) on Thursday night, an Argentinian BBQ at Barnabrow on Friday before heading back to Midleton on Saturday.

Kevin explained that both Sunil and he are members of Eurotoques. He said Sunil had surprised the chefs in the Sage kitchen with the variety of amazing aromas and flavours of his food and he would surprise us too. There was a surprise for Sunil himself. He told us he could hardly believe the way the local farmers brought their produce direct to the back door of the Midleton restaurant. "I don't know when this will happen in Dublin."

The Gupshup Gwalior Platter was our starter. On the left is the Semolina Puff with chickpea, pomegranate and tamarind chutney; in the middle, the Crispy fried kale leaf in carom infused gram flour batter with chilled yogurt and mint chutney; and finally the Grilled Artichoke marinated in PICKLE spice mix & smoky chilli yogurt. The kale was outstanding but each was delicious.

The Fish Course. But first we were invited to bite into the dark piece on top: a pickled lemon. Just bite in and you get an amazing explosion, like a concentrated lemon drink but with none of the sourness. Sunil told us that this Amritsari Fried Fish (cod in this case) is a very traditional Punjabi dish and he served it in Sage with a warm raita and charred asparagus.
Looked inviting and tasted even better.

The Gwalior Goat Keema Pao is the signature dish at Pickle. It is a Special goat preparation from Sunil's hometown: goat mince, diced and marinated liver, marinated for 24 hours in reshampatti (Rajasthani chillies) then slow cooked with shallots and yogurt. Served with Maska Pao (buttered Pao). Maska also means to "butter someone up, to flatter them".

Our dessert was Gulab Jamun: fried milk doughnut poached in saffron and cardamom flavour sugar syrup. Yumil!

Also at Feast

Patryk Serves A Feast of Poland At FEAST Dinner In Surf & Turf

Lobster & Sushi at Granary a Highlight of Midleton Sunday Stroll

Asado at Barnabrow House. FEAST’s Argentinian BBQ

Ingenuity & the Bounty - the Seafood & Wine Dinner at Ballycotton’s Bayview Hotel.

Bayview's Feast of Fish. Flavour and Fun, thanks to Ciaran & Team

Bayview's Feast of Fish

Flavour and Fun, thanks to Ciaran & Team

Seafood Cocktail

Stephen Belton, GM of the Garryvoe Hotel, welcomed the guests to host venue the Bayview (where he is also GM), for the first big event of Feast 2018. Speaking of Bayview Chef Ciaran Scully, Stephen said he’s never met anyone with “such a passion for food”. And a mischievous sense of humour too as you can see by the second dish being called My Ding A Ling. “Enjoy the flavours and the fun,” Stephen concluded.

Kevin Ahern of Sage was introduced as the driving force behind Feast but he quickly countered that he wasn't the only person pushing the expanded and expanding festival. “We are proud of Midleton’s past festivals but now we want to drive it forward. We see East Cork as a food destination, both nationally and internationally. We want to create revenue in the area, not in just one town. We are very happy with it so far, so many nights booked out already.”

Ciaran's Ding A Ling

The wines for the evening were provided by James Nicholson Wine and their man on the

spot was Richard Reeve. “The wines chosen are a little left field, not the obvious ones (not even a Sauvignon Blanc!)”.  The pairings were excellent and we got more info on the individual bottles as the evening went on.

The first offering from the kitchen was a rather spectacular Seafood Cocktail (Ballycotton Brown Shrimp, smoked eel, herring, trout caviar, confit of tomato, pickled apple, Bloody Mary Jelly, Samphire, Sea purslane, Fried sea lettuce). Lots of flavours and textures there. And the wine chosen, was the Bodegas Coloma Pinot Noir Rosé from Extremadura in Spain. This early release wine has quite a bit of heft compared to the normal rosé and was certainly a winner with the mix in cocktail. A terrific opening all round.

Mackerel

The high standard would be maintained. Next up was My Ding A Ling (torched Ling with Salt Baked Celeriac, Little gem, Hazelnut & Gubbeen Pesto, Smoked Skeaghanore Duck-breast).  A superb combination with that celeriac playing a key role. And the wine here, the vibrant South African Boekenhoutskloof Wolftrap white, was terrific and again a great match, with its fantastic aromas and flavours.

Holy Mackerel was the title of Ciaran’s next offering. Basically it was all about the humble fish, the flavour packed pan-fried fillet enhanced by a Roast Miso Aubergine, Pickled mushrooms, peanut powder, Nasturtium, rice crackers. A good fresh wine to cut the oily fish was required here and Richard had just the job in the Umani Ronchi Vellodoro Terre di Chieti Pecorino. An intense aromatic wine with clear mineral notes, fresh with ripe fruits, it matched the mackerel well.

Fish and Chips

Now it was time for the Fish & Chips. The Bayview’s version: Deep fried monkfish, octopus, pea, lemon and potato purée, fried capers, oyster mayonnaise, Jerusalem artichoke chips. Another amazing effort from the kitchen. Richard didn’t have a Sauvignon Blanc but he did have a Chardonnay. The Domaine Bellevue from the Touraine, Loire Valley, was unoaked with excellent depth of fruit and that with its northern freshness gave the wine a lovely mouthfeel, another excellent match.

Time now for the sweet finalé. The Chocolate Trinket Box contained Jameson and Burnt Orange Chocolate Mousse with a Beamish Stout Ice Cream, rich and delicious. The dessert wine came from the Quady Winery in California, the Essensia Orange Muscat 2014.

A superb night of fish and wine again at the Bayview. Great how Ciaran chooses these events to highlight the super qualities of fish that we don't always rate in Ireland, such as the Ling and the Mackerel in this case.

Still lots to do in Feast. Check the remaining events here. 

Best Steak. Best Game. 2017

Best Steak 2018

Sligo steak

Cork butcher, Tom Durcan, turned up more than once in the the steak stakes in 2017, benefitting from the decision of the Globe to go local (after the takeover by Clayton) and by the return of the Oyster Tavern (a few yards from Tom's stall in the English Market). Best sauce was the Jameson at the Embassy in Sligo. The list is in no particular order.

Darwin's, Dublin. ..with an excellent Barolo jus

Embassy, Sligo... with Jameson Whiskey sauce

The Globe, at the Cork City Clayton Hotel... with a trio of sauces

The Cornstore, Cork... always good for steak!

The Oyster Tavern, Cork..outstanding flavour from the Durcan steak

The Ivory Tower, Cork, with a Peruvian touch

The Commons Inn, Cork ... Irish Hereford beef steaks are aged 35 days

Sage, Midleton, County Cork. Superb beef from Charlie Terry.

The Maestro at Radisson Blu, Little Island, Co. Cork. Outstanding fries & Portobello mushroom

Murrisk Pie

Best Game Dishes

The Tavern at Murrisk, Westport

Blairs Inn, Cloghroe, Co. Cork

Barnabrow, East Cork

Meals with a Difference 2017

Meals with a Difference 2017

Night of the Long Table
400 dine out on Cork's South Mall

Bayview Fish Special

Holy Smoke

Café Paradiso

Market Lane (Blasket Island lamb)

SpitJack (Cheese & Fortifieds)

Barnabrow's Gourmet Evening

JP McMahon at Greene's

Sage

Al Fresco in F-EAST Cork Superb Sage Meal

Al Fresco in F-EAST Cork

Superb Sage Meal

A sharing plate of one of our four starters, Ballycotton Smoked Salmon

Kevin Aherne has some serious form when it comes to an outdoor feast. He has even one or two on board a small boat. Tuesday's outdoor event though was in the much more stable, much more comfortable courtyard at Sage, his Midleton restaurant famous for the #12 mile menu!

Of course, the food would be local and Kevin emphasised the importance of provenance as we sat down to eat at the Long Table. As soon as the starters arrived, the oysters, the salmon, the mackerel, the mussels, we were on a roll and total strangers began to chat and enjoy the occasion and the food. 

It reminded me, to a degree, of the supper that often followed a day's threshing back in the day. But we wouldn't have had wine in those days, mostly bottles of stout and other beers. And, of course, it would have been in an open barn or in the farmyard, not under a heated canopy.

The other starters: oyster, mackerel and mussels

No doubt the forty or so of us gathered for this event, the second of FEAST, the newly rebranded food festival in East Cork, were soon in good form, especially after a glass or two of the lovely organic Cava, the Alta Allela, from a family vineyard close to Barcelona. The La Source blend of Vermentino and Chardonnay, another organic wine, was a delight and it accompanied our starters and the Le Caveau import from the Languedoc was an excellent match indeed.

Kevin, Réidin and their team were now busy, working hard to assemble the food for the mains. But there wasn't a problem (not that we noticed!) and soon the large group were tucking into the local duck and beef with the various sauces and side dishes. An amazing display of just how good local produce is once in the proper hands. Again that velvety wine from Portugal was just the job.

Just like the starters, there were four items for dessert, all delicious. Perhaps the highlight though, certainly for those around me, was the Bó Rua mature cheddar from just out the road. Then again was it the Wilkies 64% chocolate delice served as the memorable feast came to a sweet and appropriate conclusion.

Still time to enjoy a visit to FEAST. This Thursday evening, Ballymaloe is the venue for a Seasonal Cocktail and Feast. Tomorrow, take a trip to Rostellan for chocolate, cheese, shellfish, wines, prosecco, teas and hot chocolate in a historic courtyard. Saturday is the main event with demos and stalls all over Midleton. Highlight may well be the restaurant tent with 11 local restaurants serving small dishes for a fiver (max.) and a long table outside. On Sunday, it will be wind-down time in Sage with a #12 mile BBQ in the Courtyard.

Last Tuesday’s FEAST Menu in Sage:

Local man Kevin.

On arrival: Cava Alta Alella, a Brut Nature (biodynamic)

To Start: Ballycotton hot oysters, breadcrumbs, aged cheddar.

Ballycotton smoked salmon.

Pickled and charred Ballycotton mackerel.

Ballycotton mussels and Jameson cream.

La Source, Pays D’Oc 2016 (Vermentino/Chardonnay.

To Savour: East Ferry roast Aylesbury duck, spiced plum sauce.

Beef sirloin (James Walsh, Buckstown), béarnaise.

Pickled beet salad (Joe Burns, Killeagh)

Cauliflower gratin (Joe Burns, Killeagh)

Last of new the new potatoes with gremolata (Staffords, Roche's Point).

Beyra, Douro 2015; Alfrocheiro/Jaen/Tempranillo/Touriga Nacional

To Finish:  Toasted mallow and lemon verbena posset, wild strawberries.

Wilkies 64% organic chocolate delice.

Soft Ardsallagh goats cheese, elderberries.

Bo Rua cheddar, Terry’s honey crackers.

Highbank Orchard organic proper dessert cider.

Posset

See other posts from FEAST 2017

Rostellan Chocolate Hosts FEAST

Ferrit & Lee. The Perfect Serve.

FEAST on the street. The main event.