RESTAURANTS AND FOOD IN CORK

Year of the Dragon at Ying’s Palace

2012-01-26T11:43:00.000Z

Main course Comfort The Beers Ying’s Palace Celebrated the coming of the Year of the Dragon, a little on the late side, with a very tasty meal indeed at Ying’s Palace in Mayfield last night. This is a really well appointed restaurant with a high degree of space and comfort and consistently good food. But, like many Chinese establishments, the take-away business outshines the

Thank You Mr Karwig

2012-01-25T09:34:00.000Z

Thank You Mr Karwig (and Mr Whelan) Morambro Creek, Padthaway Australia, Shiraz 2008, 14.5%, €18.50, Karwig Wines A big thank you to JoeKarwig in Carrigaline who imports this excellent New World Shiraz, a terrific wine. And thanks also to that well known butcher, Pat Whelan of Clonmel, and now also of Monkstown (Dublin), as it was from Whelan’s on-line shop that I got the ever so tender

Hayfield Manor Wine Society February Dinner

2012-01-24T10:30:00.000Z

HAYFIELD MANOR WINE SOCIETY February Dinner Jean Louis Smyl of Famille Quiot in the (Rhone Valley) was the star of the evening when the Hayfield Manor Wine Society held its inaugural dinner in the hotel last November. At a recent Hayfield event. Sandra is pictured with Ballymaloe's Samuel (left) and yours truly. pic: Colm McCan. Sommelière Sandra Biret-Crowley, who did some great

MACROOM'S CASTLE TOPS THE POLL

2012-01-23T09:50:00.000Z

Customers make Macroom hotel their Number One Castle Hotel Scoops Trip Advisor Travellers’ Choice Award A delighted Lorraine Kelleher, who manages PR for the Castle Hotel, has been in touch to tell us all about the latest honour for the 4 star hotel in Macroom: "The Castle beat off stiff competition and was voted best bargain hotel by Trip Advisor this week in its annual Trip

Amuse Bouche: Do Not Stay Long After Eating!!!

2012-01-20T17:09:00.000Z

I've been pleasantly surprised at the success of these brief food related pieces; if you want to see all eleven, click here “...a man stood in a wooden booth surrounded by tomatoes, cucumbers, and boiled potatoes in buckets of water. High stacks of white bread and a bowl of butter on his table, he sliced the vegetables fine. A series of cardboard signs in English hung...from the ceiling.....

Sow and Grow, grow it yourself for all ages

2012-01-20T12:16:00.000Z

SOW AND GROW A few months back we did a post - it turned out to be quite a popular one - about Ailish and her marvellous Sow and Grow project. With the winter on the wane and temperatures rising, Ailish is ready for the New Year as you can see: "Happy new year! Sow and Grow have wonderful plans for Spring 2012, including gardening workshops for teachers, childcare providers, parents and

WONDERS OF THE FARMGATE

2012-01-20T08:19:00.001Z

WONDERS OF THE FARMGATE Last time, I wrote about the Farmgate, I headlined the piece: Great balls of flour. The “balls of flour”, were there again today: Golden Wonders with skins intact. I cut one in half to demonstrate to my two UK guests what is meant by the phrase. I must admit that the potatoes didn’t form part of my own dish but I did take a half, just because I couldn’t resist

Happy New Year, With Rosé en Primeur!

2012-01-19T09:37:00.000Z

HAPPY NEW YEAR With Rosé en Primeur! Just got a Happy New Year card from the folks at Laurent Miquel vineyard near Beziers. Dominique is one of the signatories and she explained to me previously that the French spread out the New Year Celebrations over the first few weeks. No rush there then! But you may want to rush out for an offer that Dominique also told me about. It is one where

CARRIGALINE: TOP RIESLING COUNTRY

2012-01-16T15:39:00.001Z

RIESLING COUNTRY Germany, Alsace and the Clare and Eden Valleys in Australia are noted as great places to grow Riesling. But Western Australia can also come up with the goods as evidenced by the Tingleup below. It won Decanter magazine’s Regional Champion Award for the best Australian Riesling on sale in the UK at under £10.00 and is one of a few I've tasted recently. Bernhard Mehrlein,

TOP NOTCH FOOD AT THE BARN

2012-01-14T13:29:00.002Z

THE BARN I enjoyed a lovely meal at The Barn last evening. For over thirty years, the venue, on the Mayfield to Glanmire Road, has been a fixture on the Cork dining scene. And that kind of longevity doesn’t happen by chance. This is a comfortable place, starting with the ante-room where you may take a seat and check the menu while sipping an aperitif. The coats are put away neatly in the

MARC RETURNS TO CORNSTORE

2012-01-13T11:57:00.000Z

What: Beer Loves Food Series Where: Cornstore, Cornmarket Street, Cork When: Wednesday 18th January at 19.30 Price: €24.95 for a three course meal with beer Contact: Cornstore for booking on 021 4274777 The ‘2012 Beer Loves Food Series’ kicks off at the Cornstore, one of Cork’s most popular restaurants to celebrate the naturalness of beer and food matching. Beer and Food enthusiasts

EARLY CALL TO LIBERTY GRILL

2012-01-12T15:54:00.000Z

LIBERTY GRILL Called in to Liberty Grill early (6.00pm) last evening. No reservation but no problem getting a table, though it did get quite busy later on. Seating was comfortable and service was friendly and courteous. I started with the Southern Fried Chicken Salad (€7.65): slices of southern fried chicken on a bed of seasonal leaves with Jalapeno peppers, toasted cashews and tomato salsa.

THE MARKETS ARE BACK

2012-01-12T12:25:00.000Z

Great see the Farmers Markets back in action. Happy New Year to all the producers and hope to see you in the coming months. Met a few in Mahon this morning and this picture represents a small selection of what was on offer. Click on image to enlarge

SEXY CORKSCREWS; SERIOUS WINES

2012-01-11T09:29:00.000Z

Vines of La Citadelle, with Ménebres in the distance SEXY CORKSCREWS; SERIOUS WINES LA CITADELLE HAS IT ALL Merci mór to Mrs Tyrrell of the Wine Store who first alerted me to the treasures of the Luberon. The Luberon is a mountain range and associated valleys in the middle of Provence in the south of France. It is very well known in these islands largely because of the writings of Peter

KNOW A LOCAL HERO?

2012-01-10T16:49:00.000Z

Only FIVE days left to nominate your local hero and honour someone who deserves recognition for the great work they do in your community Enter them in the 2012 ‘Santa Rita 120 Local Hero’ competition and they could win €10,000 for their local community and the trip of a lifetime to Chile Closing date for entries: 17 January 2012 Do you know someone who deserves recognition for

TV3's COME DINE WITH ME. WILL YOU?

2012-01-10T13:27:00.000Z

Pictured at the celebrity show on TV3

Amuse Bouche

2012-01-10T11:01:00.002Z

"It is not uncommon for a bottle of Lafite ’96 to fetch a couple of thousand dollars more at auction in China that it would in Europe. Many (?) Chinese enjoy the showmanship of presenting important guests with this kind of celebrity wine, and my favourite aspect of it all is that many prefer to take it with a splash of coke.” From Around the World in 80 Trades by Conor Woodman.

Comfort food from warmer climes

2012-01-09T16:41:00.001Z

Allrecipes.co.uk | Find recipes9th January 2012 Moroccan comfort food Spice up January with comfort food from warmer climes. From lamb tagine tocouscous royale, our Moroccan recipes are sure to beat the winter blues!What’s your favourite comfort food? More Moroccan ideas Slow cooker chicken tagineMoroccan hariraVegetable tagineAll TaginesAll Moroccan recipes

ONE CHATEAUNEUF’S NOT ENOUGH

2012-01-08T16:16:00.001Z

WHEN ONE CHATEAUNEUF’S NOT ENOUGH Old bottles in the museum in Chateauneuf Chateauneuf du Pape, Domaine Barville, Brotte, 2007, 14.5%, Nash Wines Over the Christmas, I had the opportunity to sample not one but two Chateauneuf du Pape. I bought this one last June at the Domaine's outlet in the village itself, where they also run a very interesting wine museum, and it cost €28.00.

The Sentinel - Corned Beef Sandwich with Gruyere | Foodspotting

2012-01-06T09:51:00.000Z

The Sentinel - Corned Beef Sandwich with Gruyere | Foodspotting Hey Cork chefs, take a look at this. Another use for corn beef!

ALE AND HEARTY AT THE WELL

2012-01-05T16:14:00.000Z

HAPPENINGS AT THE FRANCISAN WELL Craft Brewing has taken off in a big way this last 12 months but the pioneering Franciscan Well on Cork’s North Mall still has a trick or two up its sleeve. And indeed, the brewers there have produced two of the best beers of the year in my opinion: The Shandon Century Extra Stout and the formidable Bellringer, both limited editions. The Shandon made

2012-01-04T10:43:00.000Z

CHRISTMAS WINE REVIEW Glad to say most of the wines flagged in a last month’s A Festive Wine Mix came up trumps over the holiday period. The Hamilton Ewell Fortified Red Wine, available from Bubble Brothers for about €18.00, was an after dinner highlight and this port taste-alike went down well with the Green Saffron Christmas Pudding. Not all alcohol Much before all that, the Innocent

FOODSPOTTING.COM

2012-01-03T11:12:00.002Z

FOODSPOTTING FUN Kay Harte and yours truly talking to Foodspotting in The Farmgate (Pic by Chris Connolly) A visual guide to good food and where to find it. Just recently, I’ve joined the ranks of Foodspotting.com. What is Foodspotting.com? In their own words: “Foodspotting is the easiest way to find and share the foods you love: instead of reviewing restaurants, you can recommend

Healthy winter meals

2012-01-02T15:37:00.001Z

Allrecipes.co.uk | Find recipes2nd January 2012 Healthy winter meals Even after a festive season full of indulgence, we still need a warming winter meal to come home to. But what’s healthy may surprise you! This healthy biryani is quickly made from scratch and lighter than most, and we have plenty more Healthy meals where that came from! What’s your go−to healthy recipe? More

BUSY BUZZ IN MARKET LANE

2012-01-01T17:23:00.000Z

MARKET LANE Walking into Oliver Plunkett Street’s Market Lane restaurant is like walking into a hive: busy, buzzing. And, yes, some sweet things but let us start at the beginning. This is a no reservation restaurant (unless you have a party of six or more) but we two were in early and, without delay, we were seated by the window. My starter was Ham Hock Terrine and spiced apple relish with