Taste of the Week. Knockanore Cheddar with Garlic & Herbs

Taste of the Week

Knockanore Cheddar with Garlic & Herbs

Wheels of fresh cheese, waiting to be stored in the dairy. (Bus Bia Tour 2015)

Eamonn and Patricia Lonergan began making cheese on their farm in the lush rolling countryside of Knockanore (West Waterford) in 1987. The cows graze on quality grass, they’re milked and the Lonergan’s use traditional methods, right on the farm, to make a variety of delicious cheeses.

This one, bought at the shop attached to the Farmgate Restaurant in Midleton (East Cork), has garlic and herbs added. Additions to cheese don’t always click with me but this “blend” is absolutely perfect and our Taste of the Week.

The  cheese is made from raw unpasteurised milk and the rennet used is vegetarian.

Knockanore Farmhouse Cheese 

Ballyneety

Knockanore

Co. Waterford.

Celebrating Café Culture on Sligo Food Trail with a new video series. No 1: Pudding Row, Easkey

Celebrating Café Culture on Sligo Food Trail with a new video series
No 1: Pudding Row, Easkey

Sligo Food Trail is richly endowed with incredible cafés and to celebrate them are launching a new video series entitled Café Culture. Each will feature a different café on Sligo Food Trail. Pudding Row in Easkey is first up and it is a true gem in every way. Opened five years ago by Easkey native Dervla James and her husband Johny Conlon, Pudding Row has become a destination café on the Wild Atlantic Way.

Dervla has brought the vast experience garnered in Dublin’s iconic Cake Café, The Pepper Pot and a stint in Germany, to this cosy café and bakery. Every one of the tempting breads and cakes are baked in house every day. They are proudly committed to local, organic produce where possible using Carrowgarry Farm for organic fruit, veg and salad leaves and Andarl farm in Mayo provide free Range Pork and bacon. Free range eggs come from Woodville Farm and award winning local honey from Zoe Lally in Rathlee.

Pudding Row has received a slew of awards including Cafe of the Year in the Irish Restaurant Awards, Vogue Magazine Editor’s Choice, McKenna Guide’s Café of the Year and an appearance on the McKenna Guide's Top 100 Restaurants every year since opening.

Their signature dish is a stunning pear and bacon sandwich on homemade white bread. Food writer John McKenna says "I'd walk all the way to Easkey for a slice of Dervla's Victoria Sponge!" … and who are we to argue?

Watch out for the next in the Sligo Food Trail Café Culture series. They will be released regularly on social media and will be available on the website www.sligofoodtrail.ie

View the short video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpATU5fjDRA

Barnabrow House Gourmet Evening. From Cock-a-leekie to Grand Cru Sauternes

Barnabrow House Gourmet Evening. 

From Cock-a-leekie to Grand Cru Sauterne

A warm welcome to Barnabrow House from owner Geraldine Kidd to guests from near and far (Liverpool, Dublin and Clare) was followed by Head Chef Stuart Bowes giving us a few tantalising hints about the multi-course menu ahead while Donie O'Brien (ENO) introduced the first of his wines for their annual Gourmet Evening. We were already acquainted with the Cava Pares Balta "Organic" as we came in. Cava, as you know, is made in the traditional method, just like champagne and Donie also told us about the beautiful vineyard (bees and butterflies in abundance) and that their own sheep graze among the vines.

And the Penedes Cava proved quite a match for the opening course from Stuart's homeland: Cock-a-Leekie, made with five ingredients (East Ferry Farm Free Range Chicken, leeks, Agen Prunes, puffed rice and stock). The prunes certainly enhanced the soup.

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On then to the Braised Frank Murphy Beef cheek, Gnocchi Romano and gremolata. The local beef paired very well indeed with Donie's selection, the Chateau Fontareche Cuvée Pierre Mignard, produced in Corbieres by one of his friends.

Our fish course followed and the Wild Halibut Brandade, scallop, roast parsnip with tomato and curry was another excellent combination, the rich tomato sauce and the light curry perked up the halibut and the scallop without ever threatening to overpower them. Another thumbs up for Stuart. Donie could never be accused of being a wine snob and the down to earth Kerryman admitted to "not being a Chablis man" but he still managed to pick a beauty here, the very impressive Domaine des Malandes 2017 (which will be fully organic from 2021).

The rabbit was perhaps the surprise of the menu and Stuart encouraged us to enjoy it. I certainly did, not least because it was served with a terrific Bordeaux: Château de Parenchère Cuvée Raphael (2016). Donie was very enthusiastic about this and told us they have a great terroir and get the best out of it. "Smooth, rich and opulent, " he said. "And it should go well with the rabbit." And it did!  I've been eating rabbit from my schooldays and I thought Stuart's Pancetta-wrapped version was superb, with Feuillatte with Turnip Fricassee, Golden Raisins, and Star Anise.

Our three cheeses came with terrific oatcakes and a well judged Spiced cranberry and grape chutney. The three, from the bottom, were Ardsallagh Goats, Cooleeney Soft Cows Milk, and Hegarty's Smoked Cheddar.  Enjoyed that plate as we sipped our Château Caillou Grand Cru Classé Sauternes 2007, the same wine that did its sweet duty for dessert, its honey and apricot notes a terrific match.

Blood Orange Trifle, Cointreau, Warm Orange Espuma, and Luker Chocolate.
Why don't we see more desserts like this? Hint from the chef: Don't delay.
Blood oranges from Sicily are at their best now. And another tip:
Give them a good soaking with the Cointreau!

Sweet finalé. Barry's Tea or Maher's Coffee with a selection of the splendid Petit Fours: Rum and Raisin, Chocolate Truffle, and Jelly.

Good night! And a good night's sleep was followed by an excellent breakfast at Barnabrow.
Amazing selection of fruits, yogurts, breads and more, including honeycomb, not to
mention the cooked dishes, egg dishes galore (including Benny of course) and, if you were game for it (I wasn't), the Full Irish! Storm Dennis had been playing around all weekend but our attention
was very much on the stormer being played by the Barnabrow chef and his teams,
both in the kitchen and front of house.

Supervalu Highlight Increase in Sales of Cava during 2020 Spanish Wine Launch

Supervalu Highlight Increase in Sales of Cava

 during 2020 Spanish Wine Launch

Supervalu have had a long association with Spanish wines and recently launched their 2020 selection. It includes the two Cava below. 

Head wine buyer Kevin O’Callaghan: “Ten years ago, Spanish wines sales were dominated by red wines, but today Spanish white wines have enjoyed a 9% growth and now account for 22% of total Spanish wine sales, a sizeable increase considering ten years ago SuperValu’s Spanish white wine sales amounted to less than 6%...while Spanish Cava has also seen growth of 18%…”

Cava is a different distinctive under-rated sparkling wine, made in Spain using the same method as Champagne. There’s a great choice with the Spanish, mainly Catalan, wine whereas many of the big Champagne houses are nowadays owned by the LVMH Group and many smaller producers are now selling their grapes to the big names rather than sticking to the increasingly more difficult independent route. Prosecco is extremely popular in Ireland of course and sometimes I wonder why. Having said that, there are some really good examples of the main Italian sparkler.

Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Heredad 12%, €30.00*.

Light gold is the colour of this elegant Cava, so elegantly presented, constant little fountains send micro-bubbles to the top while slightly bigger ones cling to the sides. Fruit (apple), and a touch of honey in the intense aromas. Mouthfeel is excellent (it has spent some time on the lees), and the high standard, fruity and full of flavour, plus that biscuity touch, is maintained all through to a long impressive finish. 

This premium Cava comes in a decorated bottle. Patiently resting in its precious bottle, it is allowed to quietly mature for the most time in the calm darkness of the Segura Viudas cellars before a last poignettage, from Head Winemaker Gabriel Suberviola, intensifies the contact of the lees for a more complex and finished bouquet. Poignettage occurs when the bottle is shaken vigorously so that the dosage liqueur marries perfectly with the wine. Some of you may be familiar with dosage; it not, check here. 

Notes indicate that it pairs well with meat dishes, such as pork and chicken. It is produced in the Penedès area (near Barcelona) and the blend is of just two grapes: Macabeo (67%) and Parellada.

Gran Troya Cava Brut NV 11.5%, €26.00*  

It may be a little less intense in all aspects than the Segura Viudas and it’s very approachable. If you haven’t tried Cava before, this is a terrific introduction. Indeed, if you are not familiar with Cava,  start with the Troya and then make Segura Viudas your next drop.

The Troya colour is a pale gold and there is no shortage of tiny bubbles rising to the top and forming a ring around the perimeter of the glass. It is reasonably intense, mellow aromas, and fruity in the mouth with a long dry finish. A fairly typical Cava. The grapes used are the traditional Macabeo, Xarel-lo and Parellada “from our own vineyards”. Try with olives, grilled almonds. Serve at 6-8 degrees.

* Watch out for the regular Supervalu offers. For instance, during the second half of February, the Segura Viudas is on offer at €20, and I have seen the Gran Troya as low as €12.00.

SAVE THE DATE: DESIGN POP RETURNS

press release

SAVE THE DATE: DESIGN POP

May 22-24, 2020

Various Locations, Cork City

6 designers X 6 food producers = 6 pop-up pavilions

PLUS exhibitions, talks, workshops and more

Watch highlights from the 2019 event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3NhdIPHmRY

The Choice Machine (2019)

Following it’s hugely successful debut in Cork in Spring 2019, Design Pop, Cork’s new trendy design and food festival is gearing up to return from May 22nd - 24th, 2020.

Design Pop brings together six top Irish designers to create six pop-up installation structures which will go on display in various locations across the city over three days. Each designer is paired with a Cork-based food or drink producer to create a bespoke space which the public are invited to explore and interact with. The 2019 edition saw designers Shane O’Driscoll, Alan Macilwraith, Fíor studios, Meitheal Architects, Conor Merriman, and Alex Pentex team up with food specialists Banana Melon, Good Day Deli, All Full up, My Goodness, Soma and Applebee cakes. The new pairings for the 2020 festival will be revealed in the coming weeks.

As well as this exciting new design and food trail across the city, the festival also hosts a jam-packed programme of exhibitions, talks, and workshops, which will take place both within the designed structures and in more unusual spaces around Cork allowing artists, creatives, food stylists, producers, designers, and makers, to discuss and showcase their work processes. The weekend is truly a celebration of innovation, creativity and Cork. Save the date now: May 22-24, 2020.

Speaking about the 2020 edition, Festival Director Amy McKeogh, an architect with a masters degree from University College Cork, commented: “Design POP’s first year was a huge success and a wonderful experience for all involved. Design POP celebrated Cork, Design and Food in new and exciting ways. I am really looking forward to seeing how we build on the success of last year and to see what is created this year by all the talented collaborators.”

Our ambition is to make Design POP the number one cultural, creative and design-led event in Ireland and it seeks to establish Cork as the heart of it all.”

Stay tuned as the full line-up will be revealed in the coming weeks. Join the mailing list to be one of the first to hear about what the festival has in store! www.designpop.ie

If you would like to sponsor the festival, or volunteer throughout the weekend, contact the team at hello@designpop.ie

Pigalle Bar & Kitchen flying the flag as Cork’s south bank shows signs of catching up with the north.

Pigalle Bar & Kitchen flying the flag as Cork’s south bank shows signs of catching up with the north.

When I enter the restaurant, there’s a long bar on my left, with its polished counter reflecting a row of craft beer taps, shelving behind all a-dazzle with shiny glasses and bottles. The right hand side is lined with booths, a comfortable banquette to the wall, comfortable chairs opposite. The rear wall has a trio of mirrors and behind me, to the front, two windows look out onto the street. Above the counter, French and Spanish posters evoke a continental feeling.  

I’m in Pigalle Café and Bar on Barrack Street. And while there is a continental feel here, it is all based on local produce. Chef Mark Ahern, ex House Café, and less than a year here in Pigalle: “Our menus concentrate on locally supplied natural and seasonal produce wherever possible. An exciting result of this is a menu that is constantly evolving and changing. We are an island with beautiful rich land and outstanding produce that is surrounded by the Atlantic ocean, this must translate on to every dish." 

And here it does. Deliciously. It is marvellous. Just one meal here and it goes straight into my shortlist. Put it on yours. The welcome is warm and soon we are studying the current menu. There are regular changes. We take our time, get all the info we need from our server (we didn't have to ask), and when we are good and ready, our order is taken!

Then we turn to the drink options. No shortage. A pageful of tempting wines, lots of gins, no lack of cocktails. And those beers. Not just craft beers; being so close to South Main Street, the ever popular Beamish is a stalwart here. But we do order craft, a glass of the KPA (€3.00) by Blacks of Kinsale who have three taps here. The taps rotate though. Four of the seven red wines are available by the glass and I pick one for my duck: a 2016 Monastrell from Bodegas Sierra Norte (Spain), a dangerously drinkable velvety juicy flavoursome glass for €9.50.

Turbot charged start

And the meal? Excellent, no culinary uniformity here as the flavours of the sea and the land are impeccably presented in a variety of stunning dishes.

Ox Tongue

There are five starters on offer, including Buffalo Cauliflower Wings with Macroom Buffalo Blue, and Ballyhoura Mushrooms, sticky rice cakes with smoked curry Peanut Rayu. There’s also a Irish Charcuterie Plate, coppa, chorizo, salami, toasts, pickles and chutney. 

And there’s a new dish here: Ox Tongue, Chorizo broth, brioche crumb and watercress. It’s a big hit with CL. The tongue comes shredded (as you might get featherblade) and enclosed in two balls; it is delicious, the broth a stunning enriching companion in the bowl (8.00).

My pick is the Tempura Turbot, Shichimi Pepper and squid ink aioli. The fish, under the thin veil of tempura, is perfectly cooked, white as a new golfball, delicate and delicious and the well judged spice in the aioli enriches the turbot without in any way threatening to takeover the flavours of the sea.

Sole

Duck & Greens

There’s a half-dozen mains to choose from. This time CL picks the market fish of the day which is Lemon Sole served with Prawns, Mustard Crust, sprouting broccoli, potato terrine. The delicate fish dish is once again superbly executed. Oh, by the way, we also ordered a side of beef dripping fries. An eye-catching mouth-watering stack was delivered. And heartily demolished, chip by chip.

Our other pick was the Carrigcleena Duck, Cabbage Farci, Wild Rice, black garlic and Plum  sauce (24.00, just like the Lemon Sole). Another accomplished dish from the team in the kitchen. Just superb. Love the robust greens here, from the Coal Quay Market, and there was a bonus when some sprouting broccoli was added to the list. Yum!

Couldn’t raise a gallop when it came to dessert, even though the short list was very tempting! Still, I think I may be crossing the bridge(s) more often, now the south bank is showing signs of catching up with the north.

Pigalle

Pigalle

111 Barrack Street

Cork

Phone: 0214323214

Amuse Bouche

Inès gazed out now at the rows and rows of Pinot Noir grapes that crawled towards the horizon. She wondered if the vines she could see now were descendants of the ones Michel had once cultivated so carefully. Even if they weren’t, certainly they carried a piece of him. His blood had spilled here, seeped into the soil, become part of the earth itself before the Nazis had hauled him away. He had given all he had to this land. And now it would help sustain the granddaughter he never had the chance to know.

from The Winemaker’s Wife by Kristin Harmel (2019). Very Highly Recommended.

Embrace a Shannonside Star: the Limerick Strand Hotel

Embrace a Shannonside Star: the Limerick Strand Hotel

The Limerick Strand Hotel has much going for it: a splendid location, terrific rooms, delicious locally based food and a top chef in Tom Flavin, and a splendid location. We appreciated all of those but we have to say that the staff here, from reception to bar, to the various dining rooms, are premier class, friendly and helpful.

They knew we were heading to the Milk Market on Saturday morning so they handed us a brochure and, as it turned out, there was a little map in the room as well with the market highlighted. But it wasn’t just for us. We saw numerous examples as they interacted with other guests, the bar staff making a toddler feel at home, the restaurant staff chatting and helpful to a foreign family. 

Just one small part of the superb breakfast offering.

Our room was on the third floor and we used the lifts all the time, never a bother, all working perfectly. The room itself was splendid with great views from the large floor-to-ceiling window out over the mighty Shannon. It had all we needed, comfortable chairs, TV, Wifi, Controllable Air Conditioning, Tea/Coffee Making Facilities, a cooler, Hairdryer, Iron/Ironing Board, Bottled mineral water and more, including 24 hour room service. 

All guests at the Limerick Strand Hotel enjoy daily laundry service, and access to the Energize Health Club with 20m pool. Our bathroom was top class, with separate bath and shower and Paul Costello toiletries.

Let there be light!

The decor in rooms and corridors and open spaces is excellent. There’s a chandelier that stretches over two floors and also a spectacular display of county jerseys. We had a beautiful large scale picture of King John’s Castle on one wall of our room.

The bar is long and very comfortable with its own food menu. Doors can be opened in the good weather. And while you can get all the mainstream drinks here - I enjoyed a Jack Daniels nightcap - they also support local and a couple of pints of ale from the local Treaty City Brewery (you’ll find that over by King John's Castle) went down well earlier.

No shortage of food here and they have two main restaurants. One is the Terrace Bar & Restaurant which is a stylish place to meet throughout the day and evening in an informal riverside setting. This was where we had an excellent dinner and you may read all about the experience here…

King John's Castle

The River Restaurant is another special dining room, again overlooking the magnificent River Shannon and again with an emphasis on fresh, seasonal produce. It is a great spot for breakfast and for Sunday lunch and more.

And it was here that we had breakfast, one of the very best hotel breakfasts that we’ve come across. No wonder they won Georgina Campbell’s Ireland Irish Breakfast Awards. Many more awards as well as you may read here. 

From our table, we could indeed see the Shannon below but, at this point we were really interested in the food, much of it sourced locally. You could ladle your porridge (Flahavan’s Jumbo Oats) from a large pot and spoon on some honey from a full Croom honeycomb alongside. Lots of cereals (including a Gluten Free selection) available too, seeds and yogurts and more. And a splendid selection of fruit. Breads and pastries from the in-house bakery. There were juices galore and even a smoothie station.

Bedroom

I enjoyed the muesli and a scatter of seeds while CL selected a plateful of fruit and that was a very good start. The staff again were very helpful, getting the teas and coffees out sharply and offering to take our order to the chef station. You could also order direct from the station yourself, egg dishes, omelettes, and pancakes all available.

If you wanted the Full Irish, all you had to do was help yourself from the buffet. It was the Cheese (including Cashel Blue) and Cold Meats that caught our eyes and we each filled a plate from a choice that included Chicken breast, sliced Irish ham, chorizo, salamis, Silver Darling Pickled Herrings, some leaves and relishes too. Splendid stuff and a great start to the day!

The hotel is easily found. You’ll see it as you cross the Sarsfield Bridge. It’s on the left and, after passing the main building, turn left immediately for the car park which is underground. You pay €8.50 for 24 hour parking. There is a lift up to reception.

Sarsfield Bridge and the Strand Hotel

The location is terrific for visiting Limerick city itself. Main attractions such as King John’s Castle, the Hunt Museum, and the Milk Market are just a walk away. This being Ireland, you’ll get various estimates. For instance, different people told us the Milk Market was  anywhere between three and seven minutes. As it turned out, we strolled over and forgot all about the time! Definitely more than three minutes though! And we were a lot slower coming back with our bags full! It was well worth it. As is a visit to Limerick and a stay at the Strand!

#guest

Also on this trip:
Limerick's Marvellous Milk Market
Superb Dinner at Strand Hotel

Taste the Place. Superb Dinner in the Limerick Strand Hotel

Taste the Place. Superb Dinner in the Limerick Strand Hotel

Bavarois

Tom Flavin

Taste the Place is the name of a menu at the Terrace Restaurant in the splendid Strand Hotel in Limerick. The comfortable dining room overlooks the Shannon and it is here that Executive Head Chef Tom Flavin and his culinary team put a huge emphasis on fresh, seasonal and local produce; the produce is carefully sourced from over 40 local suppliers. “Our ethos is to champion local produce where possible in all our menus”. 

We made our choices exclusively from Taste the Place and enjoyed every single bite of a meal, confidently cooked and presented. Add in excellent service from start to finish, even a chat with the accomplished chef himself, and the visit turned into an occasion to savour and remember.

Cheesecake

The first name I spotted on the menu was Mulcahy’s of Ballinwillin and knew straight away that I had my main course sorted. The Mulcahy Wild Boar belly came with a Rigney’s Free Range Pork Sausage and that too was a gem, packed with texture and flavour. Also on the plate were O’Brien Mature Cheddar Colcannon, Urban Farmer Beetroot and Attyflin Estate Apple Jus. Quite a celebration of the best of local and also a demonstration of the skill on the kitchen. I'll certainly be looking out for Rigney's produce after this!

Across the table, CL was enjoying her fish of the day: Whiting, with a creamy risotto (including various finely chopped veg) and a drizzle of beetroot sauce. Amazingly, you rarely see this delicious fish, related to cod apparently, on restaurant menus. Cooked perfectly, as was the case here, it is excellent, is light, firm, lean, sweet and delicate.

Wild Boar, Sausage

We had stopped at the bar on the way in and glad to see that they had ale by the local Treaty City Brewery on draught. Enjoyed that at our leisure while keeping an eye on the Ireland v Wales U20 rugby international on the big screen over the flickering flames of the modern fire. Outside, the leaves were shaking as the edge of storm Ciara began to make its mark. 

They have a very extensive wine list in the restaurant. Our picks were the Havalos Malbec, aromatic, rich and lush from Argentina and the Rabbit Island Sauvignon Blanc, typically New Zealand, crisp with lively acidity that makes an immediate impression on both nose and palate. 

Whiting

Both of our starters came from West Cork, well one from the ocean. CL’s choice was the Castletownbere Squid Calamari with chilli butter. Perfectly cooked and the butter certainly enhanced it.

Calamari

I have a great fondness for all things from Skeaghanore Duck and the Strand’s homemade liver paté, with sourdough croutons, Cumberland sauce and a striking pickled cucumber, just reinforced that fondness.

Having enjoyed two compelling and courses that masterfully showcased the sense of place, we were feeling quite happy and not all that keen on round three. But once the dessert menu arrived, resistance melted. My Caramel Bavarois, plum compote and coconut, was colourful, delicate and heavenly while CL’s highly recommended Oreo and White Chocolate Cheesecake was rich and smooth. 

Time then to say thanks to the staff and head to the comfortable bar for a nightcap!

Also on this trip:

Limerick's Marvellous Milk Market

A Shannonside Star; Staying at the Limerick Strand Hotel