Articles

Smoked fish has always been an important part of Irish life, valued both for its flavour (very useful for making a simple diet more interesting) and its good keeping qualities. And it’s never been more popular than it is today, as discerning diners, chefs and home cooks all take pride in seeking out the very best smoked fish available.
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There is a handwritten card of the utmost sadness pinned up in our local shop, and it reads: 'Polish woman desperate to work. Will do anything.' Whoever would have thought even a year ago that things would have come to this, and so quickly?
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Over the June Bank Holiday weekend, Bord Bia launched its new season lamb campaign, promoting great tasting leg of lamb recipes for weekends and special holiday occasions. Award winning chef Neven Maguire was on hand with a reminder that “great food starts with great ingredients” and that new season lamb is both delicious and easy to cook.
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The “Just Ask!” Restaurant of the Month winner for June is Over The Moon, Skibbereen, Co Cork, which is run by François and Jennifer Conradie who moved from Cork city (where they had both worked in Jacobs on the Mall) in 2007, to set up their own first restaurant in this bustling West Cork market town.
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Lucy Madden recalls a busman's holiday to Edinburgh, winding up in the B&B from hell, and begins to understand just why we should be grateful for the exceptionally high levels of inspection by the Irish Tourist Board (Fáilte Ireland).
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The revival and development of Irish farmhouse cheesemaking over the last 30 years has seen some extraordinary enterprises take root and thrive – including St Tola Organic Goats Cheese, which is produced in the West of Ireland by Siobhan Ni Ghairbhith on the family farm at Inagh, Co. Clare; a village just south of The Burren and nine miles north-west of Ennis, it is easily identified by the Biddy Earley Brewery at the cross roads, which was Ireland’s first brewery pub...
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The first in an occasional series on diversification and added value in Irish hospitality – finding new ways for hotels and restaurants to thrive also brings good news for customers. All over Ireland, hotels have been taking an especially hard hit during the current economic crisis. Many have reduced their prices drastically and, while this may initially sound like great news for consumers, in many cases it will quickly become unsustainable. But the canny ones - either taking out insurance ahead of the gathering storm clouds, or simply seeing opportunities not obvious to others – have diversifed to make their offering more attractive to guests, and concentrate on giving added value rather than simply slashing prices. Castle Durrow Hotel, for example, opened a shop in Abbeyleix to complement their thriving weddings business and included a café to tempt in travellers on the busy Dublin- Cork road. Like the locals, MARILYN BRIGHT was impressed.
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The culinary highlight in Dublin in June is unquestionably the Taste of Dublin festival (11-14 June), held again this year at the lovely Iveagh Gardens on the south side of St Stephen’s Green; there is no lovelier place to be in fine weather – and how it has grown. As a taster, why not try some recipes selected by Georgina Campbell from some of the chefs and restaurants taking part? Emphatically not the ‘restaurant’ dishes they are likely to be offering at the event, these are straightforward seasonal recipes for cooking at home which have been given to her at various times over the years or appear in their books.
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Ely restaurants are renowned for serving organic beef, pork and lamb from the family farm in the Burren, County Clare and for their exceptional wine list (over 100 wines by the glass), as well as food that - despite the scale - is all home cooked. This recipe from their recently published cookbook ‘The Wine and Food of Ely Through the Seasons’ for Pesto Lasagne demonstrates their down-to-earth attitude and attention to detail – and, like all the 70+ recipes in the book, two wine suggestions are offered to accompany the dish.
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“Just Ask!” is a public awareness campaign run by Bord Bia 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.
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