Legacy Cider. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree! A Quart of Ale± #96

Legacy Cider. 

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!

A Quart of Ale± #96

There’s going to be some top notch cider coming your way in Legacy bottles soon. On a visit to the Dungarvan based cidery last week, I got a hint of what is around the corner thanks to owner Liam McDonell. 

And there’s a lot of it here, so no worries about supplies. Some 80,000 litres slowly working its way towards maturity (it takes 6 to 9 months) and more in casks, bottles and other containers that pack the floor of the facility.

The original legacy.

“Since you’re here, why not try some straight from than tank," offered Liam. He explained that they do single variety fermentation here with the blending coming at the end, after much sampling of course!

The Michelin variety is common in cider production and we headed to that tank first. It is a medium bittersweet cider with soft tannins. A few sips and we could see that, while very dry at present (all cider apples are dry), it is, in Liam’s words, “coming along nicely”.

Pat and Liam

Next up was a tank of Elstar and John O’Gold. This was lighter in colour than the Michelin with its characteristic pear drop showing well. Dabinett, another well-known cider apple (which also produces a bittersweet juice), was also true to character. Bramley is well known to cooks and usually eaten cooked due to its sourness and that went down well with CL, much to Liam’s surprise.

He is obviously looking ahead to getting all this liquid bottled and on the way to a wide spread of customers. He’a also looking forward to their cooperation with Cape Clear Distillery who have provided Legacy with some barrels, previously used for gin and for white wine. And they also have some barrel aged cider on the way; the process is quite well advanced and should be ready before the end of the year, certainly for Christmas. Also on the schedule for Christmas and before is an Apple Wine (using those wine barrels from Cape Clear!); it will come in a 750ml bottle.

There be good things here! Patience required.

And what was Liam doing when we arrived? Why, beginning work on their mulled cider for next Christmas. The 2021 edition went down very well but, as they started it in the autumn, the production coincided with their busiest time of the year and caused something of a bottleneck in the premises (which is big but not that big!). It is blended with award-winning Legacy Irish Cider and spiced with winter warming spices including cloves, nutmeg, star anise, cinnamon and more; a heart-warming drink to enjoy with friends and family. By the way, the spent spice mix finds its way to restaurants and into some tasty dishes!

Keep an eye out
 for this later
in the year!

While Legacy Cider is a relative new company, having been started in April 2016, apples have been very much in the McDonell family for at least three generations. Liam's grandfather was one of a number of locals encouraged by the government of the day to grow apples, And there was an apple market right where we were in Dungarvan. Indeed, Liam still uses some small wooden crates in which his grandfather stored and transported the apples. The venture eventually petered out as the group, with no value added, weren’t getting reward enough for their produce.

But the seed had been sown and Liam’s dad Pat took a different route. “My Dad became passionate in apple tree growing, achieved a PhD in the subject and developed his own miniature apple tree!" Pat still runs his own company and is “the chief advisor" at Legacy. As Liam said:  “He’s a wise old sage with over 40 years of experience.” 

No wonder Liam went into apples, eventually going on to found the well-named Legacy. The Legacy Dry was their original cider. Liam is as enthusiastic as ever about it: “It’s my favourite as I think it has a lovely balance between sweet and dry. There is a 'good bite to it' as I’ve been told oftentimes, this 'bite' is the strong Bramley flavour coming through.”

And he is very happy also with their Legacy Medium. “This is a crowd pleasing cider; easy drinking, great flavour profile, natural apple aroma. Great with good friends, a warm sun, a good sporting occasion or kicking back on your own.” This one is a bit like the Alsace Gentil wine: it has no less than six varieties: Elstar, Bramley, Discovery, Katy, Michelin and Dabinette. 

Latest: Catch Liam talking about yeast and more on Beoirfest this coming Saturday. He'll be joined by  Brewpub De Kromme Haring and Eik & Tid who will bring the beer experience. Interested? Register here for free.

Also on this trip:

Dine and Stay at The Tannery

Copper Coast Road

Trip to Mahon Falls in the Comeraghs

WaterFood 2020. A Celebration of Waterford From the Mountains to the Sea!

WaterFood 2020

A Celebration of Waterford From the Mountains to the Sea!

 

Pictured on the Waterford Greenway ahead of a busy September are (l-r) TV Honan (Waterford Spraoi), Ned Gahan (Head Distiller, Waterford Distillery), Craig Dee (Coach House Coffee) and The Reckless Chef, Bernie Power of Taste Tramore.

From the mountains to the sea and throughout the historic city streets, Waterford comes alive this September with food, entertainment and art! Waterford has always been a city of firsts - the first place to roast coffee in Ireland, the home of the rasher, and not to forget the humble blaa.

Known nationally for its festival and event scene, this year Waterford comes together to celebrate all of the things that make Waterford great, as well as some more “firsts” - including the launch of Waterford Distillery’s ground breaking new Irish whiskey, a brand new sea themed festival in Tramore - Vitamin Sea Festival, and Waterford’s first Honey Show.

From September 4th to 13th Waterford’s renowned international street theatre organisation Spraoi, will present Spraoi Time 2020, which is sure to lift people’s spirits, hearts and minds in traditional Spraoi style. This walk-through exhibition will take place across the city streets over ten evenings in September and will feature mesmerising sculptures, spectacles, circus, lights and sounds. For the first time ever Spraoi will also have a foodie element as it overlaps with the Waterford Harvest Festival to offer pre theatre menus in many of the restaurants in Waterford city. www.spraoi.com

Waterford Harvest Festival will then present A Harvest Celebration from the 11th to 13th of September! With a keen focus on celebrating the very best of local food and drink, this year's programme will be packed with dining events for every taste which will strictly adhere to social distancing and government guidelines. With online demos and chats, as well as events in cafes, restaurants, bars, distilleries, beaches and gardens there’s a Harvest event for everyone. From guided tours, to bottomless brunches, to Ancient Food Feasts, basket making to the love of bread and butter. This year even sees the launch of the Waterford Honey Show! All of these events will have a side of the usual serving of Harvest fun, and while it may look different, Harvest 2020 will be one to remember. www.waterfordharvestfestival.ie

Moving into mid-September, the coastal town of Tramore launches its inaugural Vitamin Sea Festival. A weekend programme of sea inspired events featuring exciting foodie collaborations, guest hosts, coastal excursions, taste trails, online events, craft markets and much more celebrating the vibrant outdoor and food scene!  From freshly roasted coffee to Middle Eastern inspired falafels - Tramore has become a hive of artisan food producers and this will be showcased on 18th - 20th September. To keep up to date with this seaside foodie revolution check out ‘Vitamin Sea Festival’ on Facebook and Instagram. www.facebook.com/vitaminseafestival

And to conclude this county-wide celebration of Waterford’s artisan food producers, creative chefs, and world-class produce, the West Waterford Autumn Festival of Food is holding two Festival weekends. Wild Weekend takes to the mountains, rivers, beaches and woodlands of beautiful West Waterford to discover the best wild food tastes, with picnics, foraging, cruises, barbeques and more. Join renowned chefs to make the most of the new season’s foods from September 25th to 27th. Then October 2nd to 4th sees the region’s restaurants and chefs come together to showcase the best of local in Dining Weekend. www.westwaterfordfestivaloffood.com

With 100km of sandy beaches, the Waterford Greenway, a 46-km off-road walking and cycling path stretching from Waterford City to Dungarvan, the 1,000 year old Viking history that emanates from Ireland’s oldest city and some of the tastiest food festivals in the country, Waterford is perfect staycation destination all year round.

For full programmes for all of the above see www.spraoi.com, www.waterfordharvestfestival.ie, www.facebook.com/vitaminseafestival,  www.westwaterfordfestivaloffood.com or www.visitwaterford.ie

press release

The Delightful Ardmore Cliff Walk

The Delightful Ardmore Cliff Walk

The Ardmore Cliff Walk is a loop, about 4 kilometres long, starting and finishing in the village. Immediately after passing the Cliff House Hotel, you'll find yourself in St Declan's Hermitage. Then you continue on around the headland. Note a couple of lookout buildings and a wreck.  Next, you turn back towards the round tower in the distance. Well preserved and well worth checking out, along with graves from an earlier shipwreck, that of the SS Ary. A few minutes later, you'll find yourself back in the village. After an hour's walking, you may be tempted to bathe those tired feet in the salt water. Much more detail on this local site here .

Park down in the village and check out the fabulous beach.

Much of the walk is about St Declan and you'll pass this on your left on your way up towards
the Cliff House Hotel (below)

The gable end of the Cliff House Hotel. Restaurant here is Michelin starred.

St Declan's Well

Follow the bishop

The sea was so calm on Monday. Not always so, as this wreck of the crane barge Samson testifies.
It's been here since 1987.

A signal tower, like the restored one in Kinsale, both part of an early 19th century defence system.
.From here, you can see the next one west, in Knockadoon.

Like to see this when the winds are high and the waves crash in!

Don't forget to look "inland" from time to time

Where does the sea meet the sky?

Fr O'Donnell's Well

The round tower overlooks the bay. If you started your walk via the Cliff House, you'll end the loop here.
But you may also do the walk in reverse.

Waterford’s Mezze named finalist in Shop of the Year 2020

P R E S S  R E L E A S E

Waterford’s Mezze named

finalist in Shop of the Year 2020

The Guild of Fine Food’s annual Shop of the Year awards, an accreditation scheme which recognises and promotes excellence in independent retail, has announced its finalists for 2020. Among the 36 independent retail outlets named, Mezze, a specialist shop selling middle eastern food and ingredients in Waterford (check them on Twitter @mideastmezze ), is among those in the running to win Specialist Food or Drink Shop.

Having had a written entry reviewed by a panel of respected industry experts, Mezze, which opened in June 2019 and offers a selection of hard-to-find middle eastern herbs and spices alongside artisan foods from Ireland, will now undergo two further rounds of judging; an announced visit from one of the judges and a mystery shop carried out by Insight6. Shop of the Year 2020 will reach its exciting finale on Monday 9 March when the world of fine food gathers at Fodder Farm Shop and Café in Harrogate to find out the winners of each category, immediately following Fine Food Show North, the Guild of Fine Food’s trade-only exhibition held at the Yorkshire Event Centre.

From overall shopping experience and financial performance to staff training opportunities and environmental initiatives in place, the panel of judges, which includes Edward Berry of The Flying Fork, Stuart Gates, former managing director at Fortnum & Mason and senior buyer at Harrods, award-winning retailer Tracey Colley and food writer, Patrick McGuigan, will rate, score and provide feedback on every aspect of the shops before agreeing on an overall category winner. A Newcomer Award will be given to a worthy category entrant that has been trading for less than two years and any entrants considered to be leading the way with new ideas will be put forward for the Innovation Award.

  

Facts and figures about Shop of the Year 2020:

• Shop of the Year recognises and promotes excellence in independent retail
• Previously forming part of the Great Taste accreditation scheme, Shop of the Year is now a standalone accreditation, offering independent retailers a recognised stamp of approval from industry experts
• Shop of the Year is judged by a panel of experts with a proven track record of success in independent retail
• Insight6 provides valuable feedback, through the eyes of the customer, in an unannounced visit to each finalist
• There are five categories:
• Delicatessen & Grocer
• Specialist Cheese Shop
• Farm Shop (farmer owned)
• Food Hall
• Specialist Food or Drink Shop

A Can of Bass and A Swallow in a Country Pub. My Nire Gap Walk. Thirsty Work

A Can of Bass and A Swallow in a Country Pub

My Nire Gap Walk. Thirsty Work.

Paint the town red?

We saw a swallow in a country pub. Well, you would wouldn’t you, lots of them! Sorry, not that kind of swallow. It was the one that can fly!

Let me start at the beginning, that very morning when I,  as fresh as a daisy, left Cork; I was heading for the Nire Valley in West Waterford with a plan to walk the Nire Valley Gap. 

First call though was to Lismore, a lovely town with many attractions including the castle, the cathedral, the park, its location on the Blackwater River, its cafés (even without the much lamented Chop House) and its hotels (including Ireland first purpose built hotel).

What attracted me most this morning though was the frontage of Biddy Greehy’s Public House and Grocery. This famous pub lasted from 1952 to 2003 and the current owners maintain the window displays – now part of their home – as they would have appeared in the middle of the previous century: all manner of wine and beer containers (including a can of Bass that looks more like a can of paint), tobacco boxes, shoe polish tins, snuff and wine corks and so much more. 

After a “considerable” delay there looking at the old curiosities, we headed to nearby Cappoquin and enjoyed a delicious lunch at Barron’s Bakery (one of the oldest if not the oldest in Ireland). 

About 30 minutes later, having passed through Ballymacarbry and passed Hanora’s guesthouse, we arrived at the Nire Valley Car Park, the Sat Nav lady working very well indeed on this occasion. It was a warmish but grey day. I'd have preferred a bit more light for the photos but locals said later we were lucky the sun wasn’t out as it would have made the trek very difficult.

Movin' on up!

Anyway, we changed the footwear, sorted out what to carry (water, for sure), picked up our sticks and headed into the hills. A few walks, mainly big loops begin here, but we only had eyes for the Gap Walk, the shortest and most straightforward one. The opening stretch was perhaps the toughest and we rose rapidly with our view expanding all the time, the car park quickly becoming a dot below.

Once we went through a stile, the walk through the Comeraghs became easier as we were now walking across the slope, mainly on a grass surface with lots of sheep and those Comeragh lambs around us, red splotches of paint marking them now (they had been blue before the stile). Lots of stops for photos and we were delayed by having to skirt around some boggy bits (there had been very heavy rain two days earlier). Some watery bits had permanent timber platforms across to help the walker.

Cheeky chappy

In the mountains, of course, you think you are near your destination, that the height ahead is the final one. But that is seldom the case. We were wondering were we ever going to get to the gap! 

Then we met a small group who promised us that the cafe at the top was excellent! We checked the remaining distance and they said about 20 minutes. Not very encouraging but, being so close, we kept going and indeed got to that magnificent view out the other side, over the lowlands where the village of Rathgormack is situated.

If you are up to it, you can now go to the left or the right and head off on a loop that will take you back to the car park. But we were just about fit enough to make it back the way we had come and that was the plan in any case. 

Rathgormack is down there somewhere!

Two mile walk

Of course, the sun began to peep out every now and then and give us a tempting glimpse as to what the lovely area would look like when the sky is clear. So on we went, slowly but surely and we did manage to make it back about 15 minutes outside the maximum of two hours indicated in various sources (the minimum is 90 minutes). But we certainly enjoyed it and I promised myself I'd be back once the weather is guaranteed!

Back to Ballymacarbry now and soon we found our Glasha Guesthouse, a splendid place with the splendid Olive in good form, tea and cake at the ready and we soaked up the now well-established sun in the well kept enclosed garden with the fountain running. Later, she served us an excellent dish of salmon and we washed that down with very nice organic Verdejo from her short list. Not every guesthouse can offer such a service!

Glasha sunset

Large Bottle

Then she suggested a visit to the pub (three minutes away) but said a drink would only be deserved if we competed another walk, a two mile loop around the country roads. We did that as the sun began to go down and eventually headed to Lonergan’s pub across the bridge. 

No big selection on tap here  as you might expect and so I ordered the large bottle as the locals do. Indeed, I had a works colleague once, from this area, who was known as Large Bottle. Mine was a Smithwick Red Ale #1 and it is indeed a large bottle at 568 mls (and with an abv of 3.8). Very cool and enjoyable after all the walking.

It was then that the swallow flew in, past us and over the head of the only other customer who was reading his paper before circling the small area and exiting out the front door again to join his feathered colleagues in the dusk. The customer didn’t spot the bird but suggested that since it had left so quickly, it hadn’t liked what it had seen!

Anyhow that led to a chat with the customer and the barkeeper about the demise of some birds, including the corncrake. The customer, from nearby Newcastle (Co, Tipperary), said he does hear the cuckoo from time to time. 

That got us on to Old Moore’s Almanac, for some reason. I remember using that little magazine to try and pick (without success) the Grand National winner. It is still being published apparently and its latest success according to our fellow customer was in predicting that Prince Philip wouldn’t be well enough to greet President Trump. I reckon Philip was happy that that one came true!

On this trip:

Plum Wine. Sparkling Apple Juice. The Butler and The Queen. Fruit Cakes and Steeplechasers. All in a Tipp Day-trip

Enjoyable lunch at historic Barron's Bakery

Lonergan's Bar

Enjoyable Lunch at the Historic Barron's Bakery in Cappoquin. Try a Blaa and a Cappoquino!

Enjoyable Lunch at Historic Barron's Bakery in Cappoquin.

Try a Blaa and a Cappoquino!

Last week, while heading east in Waterford, we enjoyed lunch in the café at the famous Barron’s Bakery in Cappoquin. Later that day, a person working in local hospitality asked me why would you stop in Cappoquin: “There’s nothing there. I always recommended Lismore to my guests.” No doubt lovely Lismore, just a few miles further west, has a lot going for it but I rarely pass Cappoquin either.

We had a wee stroll around the town before calling in to Barron’s, a place we’ve visited a few times before. Barron’s Bakery has been operating for five generations, serving only the local community for all those years. Esther Barron, a direct descendant of the founder John Barron, runs the oldest bakery in Ireland with her husband Joe Prendergast.

Salmon Blaa

The baking takes place during the night, using the amazing old-fashioned Scotch Brick ovens. Bread-making here is a slow process but the bread is all the better for it. The bread is two hours in the making before it even gets to the oven whereas a factory process take only 20 minutes. Esther: “Hand-moulded bread is always more flavoursome. The bread can't be rushed. My father used to say ‘the art of bread-making is beyond science’”.

The bakery was established in 1887 and is one of the last bakeries in Ireland that still uses the Scotch Brick ovens. These give the bread a unique taste, flavour and crust as we found out for ourselves when we tasted their Blaa at lunch last week. Along with the Blaa, they produce Pans, Cobs, Grinders, Bloomers, Basket Pans, Brown Sliced, Doorstep Sliced and Stonebaked Pans.

The Coffee Shop, founded by Esther herself, serves breakfast, lunch and snacks all day until 5.30 pm daily, Monday to Saturday. It is a great place to meet friends, enjoy good local food and drink a quality freshly brewed coffee. You might treat yourself to a "Cappaquino" or eat a tasty slice of old fashioned Chester cake. If there's a celebration coming up, you may order your special cake here too. You can also admire some of the stunning photography from "Our Daily Bread” the story of the bakery by Roz Crowley. 

Coronation Blaa

Here’s a flavour from the book: The ovens were turned on each Christmas Day and people brought their turkeys. I loved the smell of the turkeys roasting with their delicious stuffing. We had to call to the houses, about twelve of them, to tell them they were ready. Daddy often got up on St Stephen’s Day to bake if people ran out of bread.

We had a look at the extensive menu here, soups, lots of sandwiches, wraps, quiche and so on but when we saw the specials featuring the famous Waterford Blaa, our orders were confirmed.

CL’s choice was the Fresh Baked Salmon with pickled cucumber and salad. This was served on either brown soda or Blaa and she picked the local favourite. An excellent dish for just eight euro.

My special, even slightly cheaper (7.90), was Coronation Chicken with salad, again on the Blaa. The light curry sauce enlivened it and there was also a small bowl of slaw. Both dishes were well cooked, excellent food at reasonable prices. Good service too.

So, do keep Barron’s and Cappoquin in mind if you find yourself passing through these parts, maybe after or before a trip to the Vee or the Nire Valley.

The Copper Hen Adds a Royal Touch to Tramore Food Scene.

The Copper Hen Adds a Royal Touch

 to Tramore Food Scene.

The Copper Hen has flown its original home at Fenor and has perched in Queen Street, Tramore. And here, in a beautifully decorated building, you may now enjoy the superb food produced by owner-chef Eugene Long and his team. There are no less than three dining rooms in this long town centre building and, when the sun comes out, there’ll be al fresco dining in the garden patio as well.

They seem to have hit the ground running. Despite being newly opened, there were no hitches the other day when we called for lunch. Quite the contrary - everything was perfect, the food and service top notch.

Lunch is offered on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays while dinner’s available Wednesdays to Saturdays (from 5.30pm). You can expect extended opening hours when the holiday season kicks off in earnest. While the quality is very high here, the prices are not. And you can get even better value with the evening Early Bird offer, two courses for €24.00, three for €29.00.

We had spent the previous evening and indeed some of the morning at the West Waterford Food Festival, so weren’t exactly starving when we arrived in sunny Tramore. 

There was a soup on offer but we went straight to the mains. From a good choice we picked what turned out to be two gems. I thought the Beer Battered Cod with lemon mayonnaise and handout chips (€14.00) would be good but the prospect looked even better when the cod ran out and I was “upgraded” to John Dory. Probably, the best fish and chips ever!

We were enjoying the food and the service and a lovely glass of wine. This was the Atlantik Albarino (7.95), aromatic and full of flavour and ideal for fish. The wine list here may not be the longest but it is very interesting (as you’d expect with Wines Direct as suppliers). All are available by the glass, by the way, which is great for the customers. For instance, if you start with mussels and a white, you can order a glass of red for your meat course.

Anyhow, that Albarino was superb with the John Dory and also with CL’s choice: Tiger Prawns tossed with garlic, Gubbeen chorizo and herb butter served with Seagull Sourdough (11.00). Another excellent and very enjoyable dish.

The Copper Hen is a terrific supporter of local produce and you’ll hardly get more local than the sourdough as it is made around the corner in the well-known Seagull Bakery, a very impressive bakery indeed. The Copper Hen make their own brown bread and that went down a treat, not least with a group of American ladies at another table.

Would we have dessert? Yes was the answer, but just the one, to be shared. There was a choice of five, all at €7.50. On the face of it, our Apple and Berry Crumble wasn’t the bravest of picks but it turned out to be a gem, beautifully made and presented - apparently they have a bit of a reputation on this one. If you do get the chance, do order one. One each!

The Copper Hen 

20 Queen Street

Tramore

Co. Waterford

Tel: 051 330179

Granville Hotel’s a Superb Base for Waterford Getaway

Granville Hotel’s a Superb Base for Waterford Getaway

Blaa Eggs Benedict at The Granville

I’m sitting in the busy TF Meagher Bar in Waterford’s Granville Hotel, sipping a pint of Helvic Gold Ale by Dungarvan Brewery. The bar is busy, with most of the customers eating from the well-priced bar menu. There are old prints and pictures all over the place, hardly a spare bit of space on the walls. 

One catches my eye. The tour de France is currently running and Carrick on Suir man Sean Kelly is one of the Eurosport commentators. The Granville have a painting of the cyclist when he was a very young competitor indeed. 

Another pic is even more eye-catching. It is a large scale drawing of a group of heads, nine in all if I remember rightly. Who are they? Politicians? Perhaps, but we don't recognise any. We ask the barman and he tells it’s an representation of a bunch of regulars and that a few are still alive. Great to see a bar appreciate their regulars!

Breakfast plaice at The Granville

The Granville is a friendly place, thanks to its staff. Our room is excellent; we have everything we need and a view over the quays where our car is parked for free (thanks to an arrangement between the hotel and the operators). 

We are in Waterford for about twenty four hours and our first stop for grub is at the Candied Hazelnut, a relatively new restaurant on O’Connell Street. Its food is gluten free, peanut free and plant based and the casual and colourful space is fast becoming a favourite haunt for foodies, coeliacs, vegetarians, vegans, plant based people, tea and coffee lovers, and those with a sweet tooth. We enjoyed our meal there and you may read about it here.

O'Connell Street

Mount Congreve view

On recent visits, we’ve seen the three museums (account here) and taken the Waterford Crystal tour (account here). So we headed out to nearby Kilmeaden to visit Mount Congreve House and Gardens. 

Quite a few signed walks on this massive 70-acre estate and of course we took the orange one, the long one. There is a walled garden here, with a frail Georgian glasshouse. But it is mainly about large-scale plantings where some great views open up over the Suir, especially from the Temple. 

The 4-acre walled garden was alive with bees and insects and further into the walk we saw a couple of sturdy rabbits bouncing around in the trees. Later, near the entrance/exit, a fox prowled in the distant corner of a field.

As we finished our walk, we got a fine view of the house itself. There is a excellent café near the garden shop and here we enjoyed a decent cup of coffee but, with dinner not too far away, we avoided the good things. Nearby is the terminus for the Waterford & Suir Valley railway but we had missed the last run at four o’clock. Next time. This picturesque run takes you into Waterford and back, and runs at the margins of Mount Congreve, alongside the Suir and the Greenway.

Your move

The dinner I mentioned would be in Everett’s, another relatively new restaurant here, sited near the Medieval Museum in a very old building indeed and part of it is based in ancient wine vaults. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and the account is here.

It was after that that we enjoyed a spell in the Granville bar. After a good night’s sleep we were ready for breakfast. And what a breakfast you get here in the Bianconi Room, their main restaurant. 

Take the porridge, for example. It is of course the Flahavan’s variety and you can add to it from a selection of Bailey’s Cream, Irish Whiskey, Muldoon’s Waterford Whiskey Liqueur, or Highbank organic Apple Syrup!

It is a fantastic buffet selection and the hot dishes from the kitchen are also top notch, including the Full Irish of course. But being in Waterford, I just had to have a Blaa. And there it was on the menu: Blaa Eggs Benedict Waterford Style (poached eggs and ham on toasted Waterford blaa with Hollandaise). Delighted with it. Maybe Cork Chef Bryan McCarthy should have went with the Blaa in Barrack Street rather than the bao. Blaa Boi would make a good name too!

The Pagoda
Mount Congreve

Full after that excellent breakfast, it was time to say goodbye to the Granville and head west along. And we stayed on the main road (the N25) until just beyond Leamybrien when we turned left on a country road towards Durrow. We were following signs for the Waterford Greenway and soon arrived at the parking area near a bar and shop where you could have a bite to eat and hire a bike.

No bikes for us and we walked along in the sun. For a while. After a few minutes we found ourselves in the Ballyvoile Tunnel, cool and a few drops of water falling down too. Soon we were back in the sun, admiring the countryside and before we knew it were atop the Ballyvoile viaduct where the views improved! Quite a few cycling and not too many walking.

We carried on for another while in the direction of Clonea and, not too far from the viaduct, we got a brilliant view of the ocean. Time to return, we thought, and so we retraced our steps to Durrow, the total walk, a leisurely one with lots of stops for photos, taking just over an hour.

Al Fresco at The Granary

Greenway tunnel

It was getting close to lunch-time and we had just the spot in mind, having read a few days earlier that the Cliff House Bar had introduced a new menu. And a good one it is as we found out as we relaxed on the terrace watching the comings and goings on the blue waters below. A superb finalé - read all about the meal below - to our superb trip to Waterford. 

Also on this trip:

Lunch at Spectacular Cliff House
The Candied Hazelnut
Everett's New Waterford Restaurant

On The Greenway