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Just Ask Restaurant of the Month for May - The Bay Tree Bistro

The “Just Ask!” Restaurant of the Month winner for May is The Bay Tree Bistro, Waterford City

Keith Boyle

"Locally sourced food, cooked local, by a local chef" is the mantra that has diners flocking to Keith and Carmel Boyle's spacious two-storey restaurant Merchants Quay, along with "quality over quantity" - and, while we're at it, they have earned a reputation for great service and good value too.

A pleasing combination of old and new give this lovely premises a warmly welcoming feeling and conveys a sense of occasion - and the homemade crisps served with drinks in the ground floor bar give a hint of the tasty fare that’s to come.

Upstairs, in the atmospheric restaurant - old stone walls, beamed ceiling, smart bare topped tables and delicious fresh breads served with plain and flavoured butters - Keith's carefully crafted menus are all about the seasons and they change every month. An early menu ('the pre-dinner menu') offers exceptional value, but the later three- and five-course dinner menus offer something different and quite special, with the option of carefully selected wine pairings as well.

The Bay Tree Bistro

Keith's cooking has great finesse and his menus are a celebration of the best local and Irish foods, with a focus on artisan production - it's nice to see credit given to such a terrific range of suppliers.

There are some stalwarts of the quality food scene (Crowes Farm pork, Oak Park chicken and Billy Burke fish among them) but also some unusual names and products that deserve to be better known - the gorgeous Piedmontese beef that John Commins produces near Thurles, for example, and Elda Wild Irish Venison of Dunhill, Co Waterford, who supply wild game in season.

You’ll also find heritage potatoes from Ballymakenny Farm in Co Louth and fruit and berries from local grower, David Dennison among a number of specialist growers of vegetables, salads and fruit. There's even a dedicated forager, Andrew Malcolm of Lismore, Co Waterford who supplies wild roots and herbs.

The Bay Tree Bistro - Food

The same philosophy applies to the drinks list, which includes wines from small, independent winemakers (supplied by Wines Direct, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath) and beers from a number of craft brewers including the local MetalMan Brewing, Kevin Dundon's Arthurstown Brewing Company just across the estuary in Co Wexford, and Munster Brewery, in nearby Youghal, Co Cork.

Very pleasant and knowledgeable staff add an extra dimension to a meal experience here, and it’s not hard to see why The Bay Tree Bistro has so quickly taken its place among Waterford’s leading restaurants.

SAMPLE MENU:

Address 16 Merchants Quay Waterford Telephone 051 858517
Opening Hours
Tues-Sat 5pm-10pm
Restaurant Closed Sunday/Monday

Our Suppliers:

Vegetables: Eoghan Dunphy Annestown Co. Waterford
Beef: John Commins, Piedmontese Cattle Breeder, Thurles, Co Tipperary
Pork: Crowes Farm, Outdoor Reared Pork Farmer, Co. Tipperary
Chicken: Oak Park Foods, Co Carlow
Organic Vegetables and Salad: David Ward, Glenmore Co. Kilkenny
Fish and Shellfish: Liam Burke (Billy Burkes) Ballybricken ,Co Waterford
Wild Roots and Herbs: Andrew Malcolm, Forager, Lismore, Co Waterford
Dry Goods: Musgraves Market Place, 6 Cross Roads, Co Waterford
Venison and Game: Elda Wild Irish Venison, Dunhill, Co Waterford
Fruit and Berries: David Dennison, Dennisons Farm, Passage Rd, Co Waterford
Heritage Potatoes: BallyMaKenny Farm, Drogheda , Co. Louth
Miscellaneous: La Rousse Foods

Our Brewers:

MetalMan Brewing, Tycor, Co Waterford
ArthursTown Brewing, Arthurstown, Co Wexford
Munster Brewery, Youghal, Co Cork“
Wines: Wines Direct: Mullingar, Co. Westmeath

The Bay Tree Bistro Pre Dinner Menu

2 Courses €23
3 Courses €28
Available All Evening Tuesday-Thursday
5pm-6.30pm Friday and Saturday

To Start:

Soup of The Evening (GF)

The Bay Tree’s Seafood Chowder, Salmon, Cod, Prawns, Smoked Haddock, Creamy Seafood Velouté (GF)

Natural Smoked Haddock and Prawn Risotto, Manchego Cheese, Seasonal Greens (GF)

Pressing of Pork, Potato, Apple, Parsley, Pickles (GF)

Asian Vegetable Spring Roll, Tahini Aioli (V)

To Follow:

Chicken, Wild Mushroom, Pea, Pancetta, Spiced Bread Sauce (GF Option Available)

Hake, Citrus Crust, Baby Spinach, Lemon Gel, Bubbles (GF)

Prime 8oz Hereford Beef Sirloin Steak, Chestnut Mushroom and Caramelised Onion Pie, (€4 Supplement) (GF Option Available)

Organic Vegetables, Puff Pastry, Yellow Pepper Pesto, Seasonal Greens

Your Server Will Advise if There is also a Daily Special

To End:

Lemon Curd Tart, Cracked Black Pepper, Celery, Thyme, Basil Sorbet

Inside Out Chocolate Biscuit Cake

Seasonal Crème Brûlée Butter Cream, Cupcake (GF Option Available)

Dessert Special

Bay Tree Select Cheeseboard, Filo Crackers, Fruit, Chutney (€5 Supplement, €8 with Port

The Bay Tree Bistro 3 Course Dinner Menu €35
Wine Suggestion €15 extra

Our New Structured Dinner Menu is Designed to Showcase the Best of Local and Artisan Ingredients and Products our Suppliers have to offer. The Dishes may be a little smaller, but you will be treated to a selection of Snacks, a Bread Course, Starter, Main Course and Dessert over the period of your Meal. We also offer a Wine Suggestion Option from our Selection of Wines.
(Please Note Wines offered are 125ml glasses)
Please allow adequate time for your meal and a little extra during our busy periods.

To Start:

French Onion Soup
Wood Pigeon, Mushroom, Sorrel, Blueberries
Tasting of Trout, Rillete, Gravlax, Pickled Ginger
Scallop, Morteau Sausage, Cauliflower, Bloody Mary
Poached Pear, Young Buck, Chicory, Beetroot

To Follow:

Featherblade, Black Garlic, Celeriac, Onion Broth
Duck, Parsnip, Pumpkin, Radish,
Monkfish, Sea Salt Butter, Tenderstem Broccoli, Saffron, Wild Herbs
Organic Vegetables, Puff Pastry, Baked Feta, Yellow Pepper, Seasonal Greens
Hereford Sirloin Steak, Mushroom and Onion Pie, (€4 Supplement)

To End:

Chocolate, Passion Fruit, Pistachio, Natural Yoghurt Sorbet
Lemon Curd, Cracked Black Pepper, Celery, Thyme, Basil
Granny Smith, Conference Pear, Butterscotch, Eton Mess
Select Cheeseboard, Crackers, Fruit, Chutney,

The Bay Tree Bistro 5 Course Dinner Menu €45
Wine Suggestion €20 extra

Our New Structured 5 Course Dinner Menu is Designed with the Real Foodie in mind. This menu gives You The Diner the Chance To Experience Nearly all of our 3 Course Menu over the Space of The Evening. You will be treated to a selection of Snacks and Bread, Soup Course, Starter, Fish Course, Main Course, Dessert and Petit Fours over the period of your Meal. We also offer a Wine Suggestion Option from our Selection of Wines.
(Please Note Wines offered are 125ml glasses)
Please allow adequate time for your meal and a little extra during our busy periods.

Soup:

French Onion

To Start:

Wood Pigeon, Mushroom, Sorrel, Blueberries
Tasting of Trout, Rillete, Gravlax, Pickled Ginger
Scallop, Morteau Sausage, Cauliflower, Bloody Mary
Poached Pear, Young Buck, Chicory, Beetroot

Fish Course:

Monkfish, Sea Salt Butter, Tenderstem Broccoli, Saffron, Wild Herbs

Main Course:

Featherblade, Black Garlic, Celeriac, Onion Broth
Duck, Parsnip, Pumpkin, Radish,
Organic Vegetables, Puff Pastry, Baked Feta, Yellow Pepper, Seasonal Greens (V)

Dessert:

Wine Selections:

We suggest the following wines:

To match with our starters:

Chateau des Eyssards (Semilon, Sauvignon Blanc) France.
This Bergerac Blanc will be the perfect partner to the trout & scallops.

Terrana Nicodemi Montepulciano, Italy -for the Wood Pigeon or the Poached pear we think the most interesting match will be this wine.

To match with our mains:

Crego E Monaguillo (Godello), Spain, will be the perfect match for the Monkfish.

Guerinda Tres Partes (Garnacha) Spain will match beautifully with the featherblade.
The Natural partner for the duck will be Paper Road (Pinot Noir), New Zealand

For our Cheeseboard we suggest a glass of our Vintage Port – Quinto do Crasto (125ml glass)

We hope you enjoy our selection of matching wines – all from small, independent winemakers with a real attention to detail and passion for making the best wines to complement our food.

Welcome To The Bay Tree Bistro

Thank You For Choosing To Dine With Us Here At The Bay Tree Bistro. Our Ethos Here Is Locally Sourced Food, Cooked Locally By a Local Chef. All our produce is sourced from small artisan suppliers where possible or from local butchers, fishmongers and farmers. All our dishes are made here in house from our breads and desserts to our stocks, sauces, pastas and ice cream. We firmly believe that quality always prevails over quantity so we never choose cheaper or inferior ingredients. We hope you enjoy your dining experience here with us.Whilst we will do all we can to accommodate guests with food intolerances and allergies we are unable to guarantee that dishes will be completely allergen-free.

IF YOU HAVE ANY PARTICULAR DIETARY REQUIREMENTS OR ALLERGIES PLEASE LET US KNOW IN ADVANCE & WE WILL ALWAYS DO OUR BEST TO TAILOR OUR MENU TO SUIT YOUR NEEDS. Unfortunately due to the structure of our menus we cannot cater for the following dietary requirements without prior notice. Vegans or Lactose Intolerant.
We apologise for any inconvenience

Please Note all our food is Freshly Prepared and Cooked to Order. We allocate approximately 2 hours per table of 2 persons to relax and enjoy the dining experience we wish to offer. For Larger Tables we allocate up to 3 hours. Please allow adequate time for the kitchen and front of house staff to help you to experience this. Please allow extra time for this during our busy periods.

Thanks Again

Keith, Carmel and Team

The New Wave of Cuisine Represented by The Bistro Movement is pumping, innovative and fuelled by tattoo ridden chefs, shaking up the status quo to deliver phenomenally clever food at affordable prices without the pomp and circumstances of high end restaurants..
THIS IS HAUTE CUISINE FOR THE PEOPLE”
Katrina Meynnink Author of Bistronomy,

Our Suppliers:

Vegetables: Eoghan Dunphy Annestown Co. Waterford
Beef: John Commins, Piedmontese Cattle Breeder, Thurles, Co Tipperary
Pork: Crowes Farm, Outdoor Reared Pork Farmer, Co. Tipperary
Chicken: Oak Park Foods, Co Carlow
Organic Vegetables and Salad: David Ward, Glenmore Co. Kilkenny
Fish and Shellfish: Liam Burke (Billy Burkes) Ballybricken ,Co Waterford
Wild Roots and Herbs: Andrew Malcolm, Forager, Lismore, Co Waterford
Dry Goods: Musgraves Market Place, 6 Cross Roads, Co Waterford
Venison and Game: Elda Wild Irish Venison , Dunhill, Co Waterford
Fruit and Berries: David Dennison, Dennisons Farm, Passage Rd, Co Waterford
Heritage Potatoes: BallyMaKenny Farm, Drogheda , Co. Louth
Miscellaneous: La Rousse Foods

Our Brewers:

MetalMan Brewing, Tycor, Co Waterford
AurthorsTown Brewing, Aurthorstown, Co Wexford
Munster Brewery, Youghal, Co Cork“
Wines: Wines Direct: Mullingar, Co. Westmeath

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VIEW ALL JUST ASK RESTAURANT OF THE MONTH WINNERS

“Just Ask!” is a public awareness campaign that aims to encourage consumers when eating out to look for information on where the food (particularly meat) on their plate comes from, and encourages chefs to provide this information on their menus. The programme supports both large and smaller artisan suppliers, encouraging both Irish diners and visitors from abroad to support restaurants that are in turn supporting their suppliers.

Here at Georgina Campbell Guides we have always been avid supporters of the ‘eat local’ concept, and we always enjoy reading menus that have a real sense of place. The dining experience is greatly enriched by knowing that the food on your plate is inspired by the produce and traditions of the area, and sourced nearby – and we would love to see more chefs sharing that precious information with their guests.

If you are a visitor to the area, learning a little about local food and the people who produce it adds a special extra dimension to the visit – and, for residents, it reinforces a natural pride in the good things of their locality and makes a meal all the more enjoyable.

So, we are delighted by the high standard of menus that continue to be submitted for our ' “Just Ask!” Restaurant of the Month Competition', menus that really speak of the best of Irish foods – and the dedication of both the people who make them, and the chefs who select them to create wonderful dishes with real Irish flavour for our enjoyment.