ROCHESTOWN PARK HOTEL

ROCHESTOWN PARK HOTEL

I always found the Rochestown Park Hotel of a high standard when catering to large groups. I hadn’t been there for some time until recently for a club function where the attendance was around the 170 mark.

There has been a change of management at the venue but you need have no worries about its ability to cater to a large number (indeed, there were other large functions going on simultaneously in various parts of the building). Started with Vol au Vent and then soup. Each was of a good standard and neither had this salty taste that you often get in this type of situation.

The main course was beef or salmon. I had the beef. It was excellent as were the vegetables (broccoli, carrot, cauliflower – all cooked well, nether too hard nor too soft). Then we finished off with a medley of mini desserts and a grand cup of coffee.

Service was top class, helped along by the fact that they had an “overseer” on the floor, making sure that all the tables were well covered.

Check out my review of Rochestown Park Hotel - I am cork - on Qype

THE BROKEN JUG

For more on Mayo trip see: http://swissroll07.blogspot.com/

Ballina - Eating & Drinking - Pubs & Bars - Pubs


THE BROKEN JUG

“Situated in the heart of Ballina this extensive pub is really warm, welcoming and cosy. Providing the very best in food and drink, their carvery lunches are superb. A haven for the tourist or the weary shopper the Broken Jug is also very popular with the younger age group. The friendly and efficient staff will make your visit here truly memorable.”

The opening paragraph comes courtesy of the Broken Jug itself, a pub cum eatery in the Co. Mayo town. It is warm and friendly but the bare timber furniture and backless seating is more for the “younger age group”!

The restaurant section is a shade more comfortable and the food is very good, the service friendly and efficient and the prices reasonable.

The other night, I started with a magnificent chowder, very very tasty (indeed one of the best I've come across) and not suffocated with cream as happened in a Cork venue recently.

Main course was a lasagne. It was almost top class, and would have been but for it being a little overdone in the heating which made some of the edges too hard. Overall though – the cheese and mincemeat were excellent – it was a fine dish, served with chips and an undressed well mixed salad.

Dessert, there were about five choices, was homemade apple tart with cream and, yes, the apple was real chunky stuff, just the way I like it.

I have given it four stars but three and half would be more like it - if you're over forty!

Check out my review of The Broken Jug - I am cork - on Qype
For more on Mayo trip see: http://swissroll07.blogspot.com/

DOWNHILL HOUSE HOTEL (Ballina)

For more on Mayo trip see: http://swissroll07.blogspot.com/

DOWNHILL HOUSE HOTEL

The Downhill House Hotel, on the Sligo Road, was our Ballina base for a recent trip to County Mayo.

The Hotel, in a wooded riverside location quite close to the town centre, is well up to its 3 star rating.

All the staff are friendly and efficient; the rooms and public areas are comfortable, the leisure centre is popular and the Hotel also boasts well kept gardens where you can sit and stroll.

We enjoyed an excellent evening meal there: braised shank of lamb with an exceptional red wine sauce. A bottle of red from one of the Bordeaux chateaux cost just €20.00.

Service here is also friendly though sometimes a bit over attentive – you don't need your glass of water topped up each time you take a sup!

The breakfast was also very good and the full Irish was perhaps the best that I’ve come across.

If dinner is not included in your package, the restaurant prices can be very stiff and this is where the bar comes to the rescue.

Prices are reasonable here and the chef’s special often includes two or three items from the restaurant menu. We had a mild chicken curry one evening and it was a superb example of the type.

Check out my review of Downhill House Hotel - I am cork - on Qype

For more on Mayo trip see: http://swissroll07.blogspot.com/

FISHY FISHY

NO TALL TAILS

Quite a lot of hype recently about the Fishy Fishy Cafe in Kinsale. Believe it – no tall tales here.

A late burst of summer tempted me to the coastal town and quite a lot of tourists too. Got in early for lunch this Thursday, just ahead of a posse of international visitors.

Started with the local mussels, served with fresh basil and lemon butter. Well done, tasty and a promising start, as were the accompanying pieces of freshly baked breads.
Main course was Brill, one of the day’s specials, served with creamed cabbage and a mustard sauce along with some well dressed fresh leaves. Simple and simply beautiful. Just what I like – the Brill was the star and it wasn't overwhelmed by anything else on the plate. Perhaps it could have been a little less costly than the €23.90 tag.
Had myself a lovely glass of very dry Riesling (forget where it came from) for €5.90.
Didn't really associate dessert with a fish restaurant for some reason but had a look when the list was offered. Glad I did. Had a smashing fresh fruit trifle. It was beautifully presented and was melt in the mouth stuff.
Service was excellent, friendly, smiling and efficient.

Check out my review of Fishy Fishy - I am cork - on Qype

MARKET LANE LUNCH

At the Market Lane, I have been meaning to try the Jack McCarthy sausages with potato mash, gravy onions, steamed vegetables and Yorkshire pudding, for some time. Got my chance at lunch today and thoroughly enjoyed it. I have had some soggy sorry Yorkshire puddings over the years but this was superb and the entire dish came in under €13.00


A slice of quiche tart with a generous helping of potato salad and baby leaves was another of the main dishes at our table and that too got the thumbs up.

I had started with one of my favourites, the French Onion Soup with gruyere and croutons, and finished with a mini chocolate pot (€2.00) and coffee. Very enjoyable as was my companion’s Banoffi.



Enjoyable also was my excellent glass of wine, a Domaine de St Marthe Syrah 2004 (FR), and that came in about €6.50.

Tesco’s Taste Northern Ireland

Tesco’s Taste Northern Ireland will take place on 11th & 12th September in Belfast’s Custom House Square.

for more details click on:
http://docs.google.com/View?id=ddtdjkcd_461c69kc9cc 

The Cotton Ball in Cork

THE COTTON BALL
The Cotton Ball is one of the oldest in the city and one of the best. It is divided into Bar and Lounge. The latter was refurnished a few years now. It is much bigger than the bar but the big square box feeling is avoided as it has been divided up into a few smaller areas.


The Cotton is not really a sports bar but you can watch the games there and more and more are now doing that on the screens which were placed in most areas.


The venue, in the Lynch family for decades, was once famed as a music venue but those days are long gone. There are mixed feelings. Many people enjoy the music but other go out for the conversation and that can be drowned out if the music is loud.


But it gets on well without the music. There is a good staff there and service, of a wide variety of drinks (including wine at just €4.00 for a quarter bottle, is usually with a smile.


You can also pop in there for lunch these days. Nothing major on the menu but you can get soup and sandwiches and Panini’s and snacks of a similar nature.


This is a well run house with a good ambience. It is also a fairly comfortable meeting place where yourself and the ball and chain can find a corner but which can also accommodate a large group of friends and relations for a milestone birthday celebration.

Check out my review of The Cotton Ball - I am cork - on Qype

Mo Chuisle Bar

Mo Chuisle Bar

Dropped into Mo Chuisle Bar in Blarney Street on a recent Saturday evening (early) . It was quiet enough at first but soon a fair crowd gathered, mainly to see Utd and Arsenal on the telly. No bother to the lady behind the bar. She gave great service to one and all with a smile.
The bar is comfortable and spacious, plenty of large screens around to satisfy most sports fans and the drink is good and keenly priced. Add in that excellent service and what more would you want!

Check out my review of Mo Chuisle Bar - I am cork - on Qype

Elm Tree (Glounthaune)

Cork - Eating & Drinking - Restaurants


THE ELM TREE

This was a disappointing visit to the newly refurbished Elm Tree. It was busy but understaffed, leading to long delays in table service. Customer service, how are ye. Delays at every course and even a long wait for the bill as the harried staff had too much on their hands.

It is something of a food conveyor, a popular one by the looks of it. You get chips and salad or potatoes and vegetables with every dish, no thought given to matching with the meat or fish or whatever.

The food factory feeling continued with the dessert. The apple pie was a disaster as the apple inside was the kind you of goo you can get in large tubs in wholesalers and the concrete like meringues (along with the summer berries) must have come from a similar source.

It started badly. I choose the Ballycotton bay chowder. Ballycotton is equally famous for its potatoes and there more than a few chunks of spud along with an admittedly decent amount of fish. But why spoil the fish with a heavy handed application of cream? The main ingredients must be respected.

That was more the case with the main course, cod, with a ham wrap and ratatouille. The cod was quite good but the square of ham was like a rock. It would all have been a reasonable dish had the ratatouille been up to scratch. It wasn't. Some of the usual ingredients (peppers, red onions, courgettes) were present but they were barely cooked and there was no sign of the key ingredients, namely tomatoes and aubergines. I know there is some debate about how to cook this dish but the Elm Tree version was so far off what they serve in French restaurants and traiteurs, it was unreal and unworthy of the name.

Quite a good spread of prices for meals and wines, though €30.00 for fillet steak is well over the top. But good prices mean little unless you are getting value for money and we certainly didn’t.

Check out my review of Elm Tree - I am cork - on Qype

Brittany Ferries Pont Aven

Roscoff

Made the close on 600 km to Roscof, so had to make a few stops on the motorway.
One of the best is Aire de Vendee. I got a triple chicken sandwich here (3 slice of ordinary bread), a bottle of Coca Cola and a dessert yoghurt (with spoon and serviette) for 5.90.
Bits and pieces of fruit, travel sweets, more coke, kept us going.
We didn't need much by the time we boarded the Pont Aven which was a pity as le Flora was open!
But we tried the self service. They had a range of hot dishes for around the 8 euro mark, also loads of salads, desserts, drinks etc.

Two Canneloni, two desserts, plus two small bottles (25 cl) of wine cost €27.65. The food was adequate (nothing special) but overall the value was decent.

Check out my review of Pont Aven - I am cork - on Qype

LA FORET

Meschers sur Gironde

Change of month but no change in the weather, temperatures still in the high 30s, pool temperature at 28 in morning.
Mainly the same course of “action”: read, pool, beach, pool. Tough going.

Still enough action to work up an appetite and the best place to satisfy that in these parts is La Foret. Have myself a Pineau Rose aperitif while studying the huge menu. We settle for the Medallions de Merlu (hake), cooked in a court bouillon, and served with various vegetables, including tomatoes, the plate further enhanced with four or five split (large) prawns. This dish cost €24.00 and was worth every penny.

Desserts were described on the bill as Tarte Au Citron and Tiramisu but, believe me, were much more than that. Both were gorgeous though I think the Advisor’s Tarte was the better choice. Finished off with an espresso (1.80, much cheaper than the 3.50 Jacques outrageously charge).
Presentation was again fantastic and it was a good end to a good day.

Check out my reviews - I am cork - on Qype

La Kaz in Talmont

Talmount Sur Gironde

Surprised to find La Foret closed on this Tuesday evening; headed down to Talmont to La Promontoire but that too was closed.
Lesson: check before you go, as many restaurants close for both Monday and Tuesday, others for just one of those days.
La Kaz, another establishment in Talmont, was open; we got a table there and soon the place was packed, putting pressure on the two serving, though our flamboyant fellow didn’t show it. They did their best but service was slow. Nothing great on the menu here so settled for a lovely pizza (11.50). Also enjoyed my dessert of Poire Belle Helene and the wine which cost €5 for a 50cl carafe.

People were expecting a thunderstorm and there was a little nervousness when one or two of the sheltering sunshades began to rattle in the wind. But nothing, only a few heavy drops, followed and there was a beautiful sunset on sea and cornfields as we drove inland to the gite.

Check out my review of La Kaz - I am cork - on Qype

Chez Mémé in Royan

Royan - Eating & Drinking - Restaurants - Italian & Pizza

Five in the afternoon, we hit the road to Royan and walked across the main sea front to take a look at a couple of smaller beaches on the western side.

Having eaten well at lunch time, we didn’t need a big meal again.

No problem in Royan which has some three hundred eateries, quite a few of them along by the marina and Front de Mer.

We settled for a pizza in in Chez Meme, one of a string restuarants in the sea front arcades. A couple of pizzas (9+9.5), 50cl of wine (5.50), two desserts (5.50 & 6.50) filled the belly.

Service was excellent and friendly and the food wasn’t bad either! Sun still belting down strongly on the beach as head for the gite.

Check out my review of Chez Mémé - I am cork - on Qype