Friday Food & Drink Spotting

Friday Food & Drink Spotting 

Caffé Italiano Italee

If you find yourself needing a coffee at the Parnell Place end of Cork’s Oliver Plunkett Street, then you could do worse than pop into Caffé Italiano Italee, Cork’s newest Italian Caffé. I had a lovely Americano and a strawberry pastry there the other day. Both were good and the prices were reasonable, as seemed the case with their wine selection.

The website isn’t up and running yet but, aside from the pastries, they also do decent looking sandwiches and I also spotted this tempting Antipasti on Foodspotting.

ely Pastry Magician

The many Cork people that dine at ely will be delighted to know that owners Erik and Michelle Robson have managed to lure the renowned pastry chef Montacer Mansour, aka as Monto, to join the team.

Monto has already won the hearts of ely diners with his beautiful handmade truffles which are just a taster of his delights. His lightness of touch when it comes to dessert will have ely regulars salivating when combined with seasonal local produce which take his desserts into another sphere.

Blind Tasting in Fenn's Quay

Want to find out more about the Blind Tasting Event in Fenn’s Quay next month. Then click here on the Bia Sasta newsletter. 

Bradley’s

Bradley’s in North Main Street is something of a Mecca for beer drinkers and I picked up nice presentation pack there at weekend, consisting of three bottles of Chimay Trappist beer (the Red, the Blue and the Tripel) and a proper glass (the chalice, what else). Just be aware that these are relatively strong (going from 7 to 9 per cent) and also that different serving temperatures are suggested by the good fathers of the Belgian monastery.

Bradley’s already well known for its fabulous collection of drinks is rapidly making a name for itself in the good food area. Recently, Green Saffron dropped me a bombshell when I found out they were no longer making my favourite breakfast granola, a slighty spiced one. But on a recent stop at Bradley’s I found a terrific replacement: Staple Diet’s Toasted Breakfast Cereal with fruits (pictured).

* Has anyone tried the Steak and Pint Special for €16.50 at The Lounge Bar in Silversprings Moran Hotel  . Sirloin steak, pan-fried onions, sauté mushrooms, with a pepper sauce and a complimentary ¼ bottle of wine or a pint

* Spotted what looks like a good value deal at Electric, two platefuls of food and a bottle of wine for €30.00. Check out the details here.