Jacques. Perfect. Since 1980.

Jacques. Perfect. Since 1980.

Cod Fritters

Jacques, started by two sisters in 1980, quickly hit the culinary high notes and has remained top of the Cork charts. Also in the 80s, Fairground Attraction had a big hit with It’s got to be perfect. It could have been a tribute to the Barry sisters, Eithne and Jacque.

Too many people take second best

Well, I won't take anything less

We certainly knew we were on to a good thing when we headed to the venue recently. Not too sure which door we’d take though. Jacques are a bit unusual. In 1980, you entered through the door at 9 Phoenix Street. In recent years, they extended to Oliver Plunkett Street and the main door is at No. 23. Take either. Behind each is a warm welcome and excellent food. And drink.

Smoked Duck Salad

There’s a full bar here, with pints of Murphy’s and Heineken. You’ll also find craft beers, including those from the Cotton Ball, a local brewery, and local ciders Stonewell and Longueville are also supported. Irish spirits of course, including Bertha’s Revenge and Kalak. As are a variety of local food producers such as Skeaghanore, Toons Bridge, Ardsallagh, Ballinrostig Cheese, Goatsbridge, and Knockalara. Kilbrack Farm.

Cheers! Negroni

One thing I noted about the dishes at Jacques is that you get plenty of greens and veg on your plate. Unlike some places where you’d be lucky to get a see through sliver of carrot or a mini-cube of beetroot, too tiny for the tines. Kilbrack Farm are among their greens and vegetable suppliers and the produce is terrific. And just because they are generous with the veg, doesn’t mean they skimp with the meat or fish.

My mains is a perfect case in point: Fresh wild tranche of Turbot, hollandaise, green beans, olives and crispy potatoes. That tranche was really big, beautifully cooked, fresh and full of flavour. And the experience was enhanced no end by the sauce, potatoes, the olives, and the greens (which included more than the beans).  

Turbot

CL, disappointed that pheasant was off the menu at another restaurant recently, finally got her bird here: Roast pheasant wrapped in pancetta, potato and cranberry cake and red cabbage. Seasonal, savoury and a perfect (that word again) fit for a coolish January night.

One of my favourite cocktails is Negroni. I don’t always have the three ingredients handy at home so when I saw the mix of Campari, Vermouth and Gin, offered at the head of the menu, I ordered it and I was off to the perfect start. There’s a multi-page wine list here with a page of “pouring wines”, each by the glass. CL picked the Poggio Alla Luna Chianti (DOCG), aromatic, fruity, good acidity, and an excellent match with the game.

Pheasant

We were in early enough for the Early Bird but stuck with the main menu. Some great choices here, both of mains and starters. And we began with two beauties. CL’s was the Smoked Skeaghanore Duck Salad, Toons Bridge Mozzarella, plum dressing and spicy granola. Can’t recall seeing Mozzarella with duck before but it was a treat. 

I think mine was even better though! The Cod and Celeriac Fritters, with a Lime and Chili Dipping Sauce, is new to the menu but it is such a perfect combination of textures (there are some leaves there too) and flavour (that sauce is perhaps the catalyst) that I reckon it will be on offer for a long time to come.

We had been in quite early- the restaurant was getting busy but the level of service had never dropped. They don’t hang over your shoulder or anything like that but every now and then, there is a gentle query to see if everything is going well. “Perfect,” I replied each time!

Jacques 

Tel : +353 (0)21 4277387        Email : info@jacquesrestaurant.ie      

 Address : 23 Oliver Plunkett St, Cork

The Copper Hen Adds a Royal Touch to Tramore Food Scene.

The Copper Hen Adds a Royal Touch

 to Tramore Food Scene.

The Copper Hen has flown its original home at Fenor and has perched in Queen Street, Tramore. And here, in a beautifully decorated building, you may now enjoy the superb food produced by owner-chef Eugene Long and his team. There are no less than three dining rooms in this long town centre building and, when the sun comes out, there’ll be al fresco dining in the garden patio as well.

They seem to have hit the ground running. Despite being newly opened, there were no hitches the other day when we called for lunch. Quite the contrary - everything was perfect, the food and service top notch.

Lunch is offered on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays while dinner’s available Wednesdays to Saturdays (from 5.30pm). You can expect extended opening hours when the holiday season kicks off in earnest. While the quality is very high here, the prices are not. And you can get even better value with the evening Early Bird offer, two courses for €24.00, three for €29.00.

We had spent the previous evening and indeed some of the morning at the West Waterford Food Festival, so weren’t exactly starving when we arrived in sunny Tramore. 

There was a soup on offer but we went straight to the mains. From a good choice we picked what turned out to be two gems. I thought the Beer Battered Cod with lemon mayonnaise and handout chips (€14.00) would be good but the prospect looked even better when the cod ran out and I was “upgraded” to John Dory. Probably, the best fish and chips ever!

We were enjoying the food and the service and a lovely glass of wine. This was the Atlantik Albarino (7.95), aromatic and full of flavour and ideal for fish. The wine list here may not be the longest but it is very interesting (as you’d expect with Wines Direct as suppliers). All are available by the glass, by the way, which is great for the customers. For instance, if you start with mussels and a white, you can order a glass of red for your meat course.

Anyhow, that Albarino was superb with the John Dory and also with CL’s choice: Tiger Prawns tossed with garlic, Gubbeen chorizo and herb butter served with Seagull Sourdough (11.00). Another excellent and very enjoyable dish.

The Copper Hen is a terrific supporter of local produce and you’ll hardly get more local than the sourdough as it is made around the corner in the well-known Seagull Bakery, a very impressive bakery indeed. The Copper Hen make their own brown bread and that went down a treat, not least with a group of American ladies at another table.

Would we have dessert? Yes was the answer, but just the one, to be shared. There was a choice of five, all at €7.50. On the face of it, our Apple and Berry Crumble wasn’t the bravest of picks but it turned out to be a gem, beautifully made and presented - apparently they have a bit of a reputation on this one. If you do get the chance, do order one. One each!

The Copper Hen 

20 Queen Street

Tramore

Co. Waterford

Tel: 051 330179

CorkBilly’s Drinks Digest. Wines, Spirits and Beers Events

CorkBilly’s Drinks Digest

Wines, Spirits and Beers Events

Arthur Mayne’s Burns Supper

Some wee walkies too.

A night of literary celebration awaits as the annual Burns Supper returns to Arthur Mayne's! 

This year we've teamed up with Chivas Regal and 3 of the other Cork Heritage Pubs Mutton Lane The Old Town Whiskey Bar at Bodega and Oval Bar to bring you a night to remember! 

On Friday January 25th the trail starts here in Arthur Mayne's! recite your favourite Burns poem and join us for a glass of Chivas Regal 12 year old and a piece of fresh haggis! 

See poster for details

Eight Degrees Tasting

Beer tasting at Kilbarry SuperValu, Tramore Road, Waterford.

Time: 14:00 to 19:00

Cans: Sesiún, Citra, Hurricane, Full Irish 

On offer at 3 for €10

TODAY FRI AT 2 PM

Beer tasting: SuperValu Kilbarry, Waterford

Kilbarry SuperValu · Waterford

Wines Direct

“Celebrate the end of your 'Janvier Sec' (we can't even say the words in this parish) in style with the return of our Mystery Box. Once again we have created a limited number of very special cases, heavily discounted and with Free Delivery included.” • 12 Bottles • 6 Red • 6 White • No Doubles • No Duds. €150. Details here https://winesdirect.ie/the-mystery-box.html 

SuperValu Offers You Bubbles for Valentine’s

SuperValu have a bunch of bubbles on offer just in time for Valentines Day. The one I fancy is McGuigan’s Frizzante. I remember Neil McGuigan introducing that at a dinner in the Trident not too long ago - he just loved getting the most out of the pronunciation!  

“It comes in a resealable bottle,” he said. “It is produced from Semillon grapes, it is easy drinking, for everyday”. Nothing wrong with easy drinking on Valentine’s either! It is fresh, soft, scented and grapey, with delicious lightness and good length. Best served chilled. And it is down from €14.99 to €10.00!

Spanish Wine Week including Two-day Tapas Competition in Kerry.

Part of Spanish Wine Week 8th -14th April 2019

details https://jeansmullen.com/Blog/Index/1316 

Brittany at The Friary!

Cider and Crepes

 Let's all celebrate Brittany once again. Sat Feb 9th - 6.00pm! Details https://www.facebook.com/events/2925144140830855/

In a galaxy, not so far away, there is a country, proud and full of culture.

For one night, let's celebrate this wonderful land… Brittany! 

Gorgeous single estate cider and apple liqueur imported directly from Château de Lézergué, delicious salty and sweet crêpes made by the “bretonniest” of the bretons Cyril Kerboul, all of this wrapped with the best music that Bretagne can offer (and obviously with no partiality at all). [*edit DJ Arbraz*: extreme partiality intensifies]

Kentoc'h mervel eget bezan saotret…

Breizh da viken!*

Let's all celebrate Brittany once again.

L’Atitude WINTER WINE SERIES

MOUNTAINS, ISLANDS,
VOLCANOES & COASTS

Thurs Feb 7^th 7.00pm

VOLCANOES

The Winter Wine Series focuses on the landscape around where grapes are grown and how it influences wine style. In this second tasting we will look at volcanoes and how volcanic soil structure creates a unique environment that influences grapes. There are many examples of interesting wines produced on volcanic soils – ranging from Etna to Santorini, Tenerife, Chile, Oregon and Madeira, to name but a few. We will present a selection we think really reflect their volcanic origin.

Join us and Pascal Rossignol of Le Caveau , Kilkenny as we taste our way though our selection of favourite “Volcanic” wines.

Tickets €20. Booking Essential

Richy’s BYO Offer

Clonakilty restaurant Richy’s are offering a helping hand when dining out. “Feeling the crunch after Christmas? Why not save some dosh by bringing your own wine to Richy’s! T&C's apply. Available 14th Jan - 28th Feb 2019. Corkage €5.”

Franciscan Well’s Cask Ales and Strange Brew Fest

Our favourite festival of the year....The Cask Ales and Extraordinary Brew Festival running from Jan 31st to Feb 2nd. Yellow Belly, Rising Suns, Metalman and West Cork Brewing are just some of the brewers at the festival and will compete in the Beoir Cask Competition to see who can come up with the most extraordinary beer under categories: Best lager, best "pale', best stout and best specialty. Judged by The national Beer enthusiasts club, winners will be announced on the Saturday of the festival. Live music, performances & Pompeii pizza! Admission is free

  

L’Atitude Scales New Altitude. Filling Me Softly With Her Food

L’Atitude Scales New Altitude

Filling Me Softly With Her Food

Stracciatella. Multo Bella.

No secret that Cork’s L’Atitude 51 is one of the best wine-bars around. That’s been confirmed by awards, both local and national. But did you know they have a lovely food offering too? Number One Union Quay is certainly a place to take it easy, easy drinking and also easy eating, sometimes easy listening as well.

Here you can go from aperitifs to small plates to large plates and have a lot of fun doing so. No shortage of variety here with a range of dishes that distinguishes L’Atitude from the mainstream. Who, for instance, is doing Toonsbridge Stracciatella?

But, I’m getting ahead of myself. There is a huge wine menu here, page after page of organic and natural wines, and that is what we looked at first. Many are available by the 125ml and 175ml glass, a 250ml carafe and by the bottle. Some, the more expensive ones, are available by bottle only! Since we were in, we were going to try a few so the glass was our vessel choice for the evening. 

Tapas Plate

And we started with the Crisp with Attitude Page, featuring wines that are lively, racy and mineral. CL made a very good pick: the Secateurs Chenin Blanc from the Badenhorst estate in South Africa while I enjoyed the Wines Direct import, the Paddy Borthwick Riesling from New Zealand. Sipped those as we tucked into a bowl of mixed olives. 

The menu here is “less formal”, encouraging you to share as the dishes arrive from the kitchen. Oh, they also do a Plat du Jour. You’ll see that on the blackboard. On the night of our visit it was Tagliatelle with a lamb ragu and they coupled that with a glass of wine, all for around fifteen euro (if I remember rightly). And they also do lunch daily.

And soon we were sharing another dish, a much bigger one; the Tapas, at €18.50, is one of the more expensive ones on the menu, but a very impressive platter indeed, well assembled and well presented. It contains Coppa, Jamon, Pecorino, Toonsbridge Mozzarella, Charred Aubergine, Artichokes, Roasted Red Pepper and Caponata was irresistible and easily and lazily dispatched.

Duck x 3.

At this point, the wines had changed. I was on to the orange wine (lots of skin contact and yet a good introduction to the style for beginners) from Sicily, the cloudy Rallo Baglio with a fantastic concentration of the flavours. CL meanwhile was on safer ground with the Madregale Rosso, one of the best house wines around these parts.

Now with the Tapas and the basket of bread finished we sipped the wines and waited for the next batch of food! And that’s where the eye-catching palate pleasing Stracciatella comes in. Even though the two dishes came together, there was a duel around this beauty. It is the creamy filling you’ll find in Burrata (another Toonsbridge cheese). It is soft and fresh, it has to be. Presented on a  bed of grilled aubergine and topped with Dukkah, it was temptation from the first bite, especially when spooned into the “pocket” breads that came with it.

The sharing continued with the Duck 3 Ways: Ummera Smoked Duck, Duck and Port Paté, and Potatoes sautéed in Duck Fat. Well, you know that Ummera’s Smoked Duck is a gem of southern cuisine yet the combination here somehow managed to put an extra shine on an already excellent product. Superb.

We were on to our final wines by now, both of us on the red. CL picked from the “Fruity with Attitude” section and came up trumps with a classic Pinot Noir by Regnaudot (Burgundy) while my final tipple was the Blaufrankisch by Austria’s Judith Beck, a winemaker that seems to be appearing more and more in this country. The plush Blaufrankisch, with generous fruit, is biodynamically produced and worth seeking out.

And L’Atitude itself, with its friendly service and informal style, is also worth seeking out either for wine or food or both!

L’Atitude 51 

1 Union Quay (corner opposite City Hall)

Cork

021 239019

The Aniar Experience. Tastes of the West

The Aniar Experience. 

Tastes of the West.

When I was a boy, I would fish for pollock in Belderrig with my Mayo cousins, using eels we had caught earlier in nearby mountain streams as bait. Later, with adult help, the pollock would be cooked over a few sods of turf. Not the handsomest of fish, but a delicious one.

Strawberry, woodruff

The Michelin starred Aniar in Galway city has a modest exterior. Inside, it is cool, the air conditioning at a perfect pitch to keep the temperature down to comfortable levels during the late June heatwave.

Goat, fennel

Pretty much everything is at a perfect pitch: the service (chef Killian Crowley came to explain the details of most of the dishes), the provenance, cooking and presentation. We have booked in for the Inis Oirr menu, a six course tasting menu. It costs 72 euro and we know that before we arrive. 

potato, charcoal

The drinks are on the expensive side, 9 euro for a bottle of Kinnegar beer for example. We take a look at the 80 strong wine list, looking for something light, something versatile. With excellent guidance from sommelier Zsolt Lukács, we settled on the excellent Terres Dorres L'Ancien Vieilles Vignes produced from Jean-Paul Brun's oldest Gamay vines in Beaujolais.

eel, kohlrabi.  The eel is Lough Neagh.

You are eased into the meal with four small bites, a multiple amuse bouche if you will. Three are pictured (above) and the fourth was a kelp and sea radish dashi. All were “amusing”, each tasty and each interesting.

bread and butter

 Bread is an integral part of the meal here, a sign of friendliness and informality (Aniar is not a stuffy place). And when the selection (with a couple of butters) arrives on the table, there is a poem with it: Bread by Brendan Kennelly and, before you leave, you get the recipe for their Brown Soda Seed Bread. 

pollock, pine

So on we go to the Pollock and the Pine, a few green pine needles included so that you can try the citrus taste for yourself.  Another eye-catching palate-pleasing dish is the Oyster and Wrack, the oyster has been slightly charred on top. The sea, oh the sea. 

oyster, wrack

Chef-patron JP McMahon likes to foster old cooking and preservation methods such as curing, pickling, smoking and fermentation.  It seems that next we are getting eggs but the shells contain mostly fermented potato and under that there is some chewy pollack, a worthwhile chew I hastily add. As with many dishes, the eye and the stomach are well satisfied.

potato, pollock

Here comes the mains. The lamb and the baby gem have both had the Green Egg treatment. Hardly tradition but quite superb, a McMahon Galway mix of colour, flavour and texture.

lamb, baby gem

So now we start to wind down with a "pre-dessert": an ice-cream of rapeseed (organic, of course) and birch (foraged). Perhaps I said wind down too soon. For it is followed by the main dessert of Strawberry and Woodruff, more foraging, more fermenting. The alpine strawberries are fermented to make a gel. Smooth and delicious.

rapeseed, birch

Elderflower

Now we have two more. Beetroot with goats cheese is one. The other is Elderflower Meringue. And that is the finalé of a lovely meal, a menu that tends towards the lighter side, certainly lighter than the tasting menu enjoyed in Chapter One three years back.

You are not stuffed - nor should you be, anywhere -  but neither are you in any way hungry. In that regard, it is comparable to the 12 course menu at Ichigo Ichie in Cork. Indeed, I thought I saw a Japanese character on the front of the Aniar menu but when I looked properly I saw that is Ogham, an ancient Irish alphabet, and of course it spells Aniar.

 The menu, which changes daily, is seasonal and local. Virtually everything on it is from Galway with a nod to one or two of the near neighbours, so maybe not quite as radically local as the 12-mile menu at Kevin Ahern's Sage in Midleton. If you want something different while you’re in Galway,  Aniar is the place to go. Very Highly Recommended.

beetroot (and below)

Also from this trip:
King's Head Bistro
Kitchen at Galway City Museum
Getaway to the City of the Tribes. Galway

Aniar

53 Lower Dominick Street

Galway

Twitter: @aniargalway

Facebook: AniarRestaurant

Web: www.aniarrestaurant.ie

Tel: 091 535 947

Local Grapes: Three Blends To Try

Local Grapes: Three Blends To Try

Local grapes feature in these three bottles, one each from Bordeaux, the Alentejo region of Portugal and Piedmont in Italy. While the Bordeaux grapes will be familiar to most of us, the local Portuguese and Italian grapes will be less so. Worth a try though!

Chateau Thieuley Bordeaux (AOC) 2015, 13%, €15.95 Wines Direct

I love Bordeaux (and Bergerac) whites, especially when Semillon is the main grape, and this excellent dry wine, rich and full flavoured, suits me very well indeed. Sec (dry) is highlighted on the front label and it has spent 3 months ageing on lees. The blend is Sauvignon Blanc (35%), Sauvignon Gris (15) and Semillon (50).

Colour is a clear gold/straw. There are rich aromas, exotic fruit plus floral elements. From its elegant and attractive nose, to its generous mouthfeel, its excellent freshness ad acidity, to its long finish, it is pretty much faultless, Well balanced and Very Highly Recommended. Should be superb with most kinds of sea fish including lobster and salmon, freshwater fish too. 

Antonio Lopes Ribeiro ALR, Vinho Regional Alentejano 2012, 14%, €16.50 Mary Pawle Wines

The organic grapes for this blend grow in an wooded area planted with Pine, Oak and Chestnut. I though I got a hint of oak but maybe not as it is unoaked! Trincadeira, Aragonez (Tempranillo), Alicante-Bouschet and Touriga Nacional are in the blend and the wine-makers say “it goes with everything”.

This versatile medium bodied wine has a ruby red colour and red fruit aromas. Baked fruit and spice on the palate, moderate tannins, and a long dry finish. Highly Recommended.

* The lettering on the bottle could fool you into thinking it is AIR but no, the ALR comes from the initials of Antonio Lopes Ribeiro.

Valle Unite Ottavio Rubé Rosso 2014, Costa Vescovata, 13.5%, €14.55 Le Caveau

Costa Vescovata is a town in Piedmont and the Valle Unite is the winery. The grapes - it is a blend of Dolcetta and Croatina - are local and this organic wine is “a brilliant price/quality ratio” say Le Caveau. It is named after Ottavio Rubé, one of the founders of the co-op.

Colour is a deep ruby and there are strong, even “funky” red fruit aromas. Same strong fruit evident on the palate, a good input of spice too, also savoury flavours, quite grippy with excellent acidity. A decent finish too. A good buy and Highly Recommended. You can expect some sediment here so best to decant.

Italian Wines From Recent Tastings. A Short List Of Favourites!

Italian Wines From Recent Tastings. 

A Short List Of Favourites!

With a little help from the recently published The Modern History of Italian Wine, we have been tasting our way through quite a few wines from the peninsula and its islands. Such a range of terroirs, such a range of wines from the cool foothills of the Alps to the heat of Puglia out to the hot islands with their cooling breezes. You won't find the very expensive classics here but I think the selection below contains some excellent wines at reasonable prices. And they all are readily available in Ireland. Just click on the links for review, supplier and price details and don't forget to come back here. Enjoy.


Red
Cantina Tollo Montepulciano d’Abruzzo (DOP) Bio 2015
Innocenti Rosso di Montepulciano (DOC) 2012
La Vigne di Sammarco Salice Salentino (DOP) 2014
La Vigne di Sammarco Primitivo di Manduria (DOP) 2015
Ciabot Berton Barolo (DOCG) “La Morra” 2011
Luigi Righetti Amarone della Valpolicella (DOCG) Classico 2012
Terrabianca Scassino Chianti Classico (DOCG)
Carminucci Naumakos Rosso Piceno Superiore (DOC) 2013
Fontanafredda Raimonda, Barbera D’Alba (DOC) 2009

Orange
La Stoppa, Ageno, Emilia, Emilia Romagna, Italy, 2011

White
Pighin Pinot Grigio Grave del Friuli (DOC) 2015
Cantina Sociale Gallura Vermentino di Gallura Superiore (DOCG) Gemellae, 2013
Carminucci Naumakos Falerio (DOC) 2015, 12.5%
Colle Stephano Verdicchio di Matelica (DOC) 2015
Terredora Di Paolo “Loggia Della Serra” Greco di Tufo (DOCG) 2015
Colutta Pinot Grigio Friuli Colli Orientali (DOC), 2015
Les Crêtes Petite Arvine Valle D’Aosta (DOP) 2012

Dessert
Masi Angelorum Recioto della Valpolicella Classico (DOC) 2012

Context: The Modern History of Italian Wine

 See the posts from the Italian series:

Fontanafredda. Important Player in Italian Wine
Two Amazing Whites from Italy.

Wines of Italy's Marche

In the Heart of Chianti

From the Islands

Pighin's "Grave wines are bargains". Good too!

Sweet Favourite of the Romans. Still Going Strong.

Barolo and Amarone. Two Italians Worth Knowing

Puglia: Cool Wines From The Hot Heel Of Italy.

Montepulciano and Montepulciano confusion!
Pinot Grigio, one of the most popular grapes.

Velenosi from the Marche

Italian Wines from the Alps