La Bohème Waterford. Home Of The Celtic Chef

La Bohème Waterford

Home Of The Celtic Chef

Salmon (left) and cod

We dined at ease under the white arched ceilings of Waterford’s La Bohème last week, forgetting in the romantic lighting that we were in a basement (a rather elegant one, it must be said) of the impressive Georgian building that is the headquarters of the Port of Waterford Company.

Christine and Eric Thèze are your hosts here. Breton Eric is the chef. You are in good hands. He is the 2014 winner of the Celtic Cook-off, a huge supporter of local produce (even if France wins on the cheese plate!) as he showed in recent weeks. He played a big role in EAT Waterford’s input into the excellent Harvest Fest* in the city, Ireland’s oldest, and at the same time cooked a sell-out dinner in the West Cork Hotel in Skibbereen as part of A Taste of West Cork.

The restaurant, in George’s Street, has a wine bar (here you can also get nibbles and small plates, even platters) and offers an Early Bird (€24 for two course, 29 for three), a Market Menu (3 course for €35.00) and A La Carte. And there is also a 7 Course Surprise Tasting Menu (€70 per person) available for entire tables only. It is open Monday through Saturday from 5:30pm until late; open Friday for lunch; open Bank Holiday Sundays.

Our meal came from the A La Carte. Some great choices including a Summer Risotto, Terrine of Foie Gras, and Citrus Crab Salad on the starter list. Our picks were the Slow cooked Fenor Farm pork belly, poached pear, tomato and vanilla jam, seasonal greens (8.95) and the  Carpaccio of Hereford beef filet, black peppercorn crust, white truffle oil, lemon juice, rocket leaves, parmesan cheese shavings (10.95). Quality all the way.

And the high standard continued. Both mains came from the De La Mer section and both were top notch. We were wondering a bit about the gazpacho but our confidence in the chef was well founded and the salmon turned out to be a gem. Full description: Baked Irish salmon, basil, lemon and breadcrumb crust, gazpacho and cucumber. And I was totally happy with every little bit of the Steamed filet of Dunmore East cod, leeks, garden herbs, beurre blanc.

Both dishes came in at 21.95 and both were washed down with a carafe of a Vermentino from the Languedoc. As you might expect, La Bohème has an excellent fine wine list. But did you know their Craft Beer and Cider List is an award winner? Some tempting cocktails and aperitifs there too.

When it came to dessert, we passed up on all the sweet stuff, even the Classic Crème Brulée with a Brittany Financier (sorry, Eric!), and went for the cheese plate. We had many to choose from and our picks included the creamy Bleu d’Auvergne, the Comté and the Reblochon. So it was France all the way on that plate, even if the drink was a Dows LBV.

• For more on the Harvest Fest click here .
  House of Waterford Crystal Tour
  Bodega, Waterford. Good Food & Lots Of Buzz
  EAT Waterford. 5 Course Menu de Luxe on The Mall
  Harvest Days in Waterford. Visiting the Viking City
  
  

A Pair of Pouilly-Fuissé. Classy Chardonnay Couple

A Pair of Pouilly-Fuissé

Classy Chardonnay

The neighbouring villages of Pouilly and Fuissé in Burgundy, surrounded by vineyards full of Chardonnay vines, give their names to the rather large Pouilly-Fuissé appellation. It is, according to Oz Clarke, “the sexiest name in the Maconnais”,  and at its best produces rich dry white wine. Can be confused with Pouilly-Fumé, a white wine (Sauvignon Blanc) from the Loire. If this happens to you, if you grab one from the “wrong” shelf, don't worry. Just open the Fumé and enjoy.

According to Larousse Wines, Pouilly-Fuissé wines "have a clear character and a good range of flavours. As they get older, they develop dried fruit and honey notes".

Don't let them get too old though. Three to six years is the ageing potential.

Goichot Pouilly-Fuissé “Les Feuilles d’Or” 2014, 13%, €18.00 SuperValu French Wine event.

Colour is a medium gold and there are aromas of citrus and white fruits among quite a medley. In the mouth, it is smooth, close to creamy, richly fruited and soft with good acidity too plus a lingering finish. An elegant wine indeed and Very Highly Recommended. Recommended with shell fish, king prawns, lobster, crab or poultry in cream sauce as well as many goat’s cheese. 
The SuperValu sale continues until September 23rd.

Domaine Noblet-Charvet Pouilly-Fuissé 2013, 13.5%, €22.90 (now at 18.30), Karwig Wines.

Colour is a slightly deeper gold than the Goichot and it has much the same concentrated aromas with white fruit, citron, honey hints. Smooth, close to creamy again and rich, with a slight drift of spice, soft and fruity, with lively acidity. You may well find it goes better with your shellfish than the Guichot which in turn could well be better with the crab and lobster in the creamy sauces! Take your pick. I’d have a very slight preference for the Goichot but this too, from the well regarded Noblet family, is Very Highly Recommended.

Taste of the Week. So Milky Milk Chocolate

Taste of the Week

So Milky Milk Chocolate

One of the bonuses of visiting Clonakilty recently for A Taste of West Cork was the chance to meet chocolatier Allison Roberts at the tasting event in Spiller’s Lane. She was one of the local producers showing their wares and I stocked up on her chocolate bars, including the So Milky Milk bar, our Taste of the Week.

This has no “artificial anything” and is “Gluten free”. Aside from Cocoa, the other main ingredient is Coconut Blossom Syrup. And the milk is not from the cow but from the goat!

Clonakilty Chocolate is a Fairtrade operation, the beans coming to Clon from the farmers of Kokoo (Ghana). Even the wrapper is bio-degradeable. Eating it, the chocolate that is, will make you feel good in more ways than one!

Other bars include: Chai Chilli, 100% Cocoa, Decadent Dark, Wild West Salty, and Seriously Minted. The Salty and the Minted are also among my favourites but do sample and take your pick from a great choice.

Bodega Waterford. Good Food & Lots of Buzz.

Bodega Waterford

Good Food & Lots of Buzz

It is the sound, the sound of happy conversation, that hits you as you walk to your table in Waterford's Bodega. The warmly painted place is long and narrow, lots of paintings on the walls and waiters moving quickly up and down the center aisle. Busy, buzzy on a Thursday night. Wet outside but warm inside.

Got some nice dips and breads as we considered the menu. Could have had the Early Bird and a Home Grown menu, even a Harvest Fest Special, but we don't come here often so went for the A La Carte.

Fish and Duck

Also went for the local Metalman Pale Ale that they have on draught here. Not alone do they support local brews (and gins, and more) but they also support local food producers in a big way. See the long list here. Bodega is a member of EAT Waterford, a group of 25 restaurants that support local and that means your money stays in the local economy. Pull together!

Soon our starters arrived. I love my artichokes and this time I went for the Artichoke Hearts,

Stewed with White Wine, Tomatoes, Olive Oil & Fresh Herbs (7.90). Delicious. CL’s pick was the Bodega Chicken Liver Paté with Apple Relish & Ballybeg Green Leaves & Homemade Brioche (8.90). Excellent.

Lots of Tasting platters on offer, from the sea and from the land, some for singles, some for doubles. Another very popular dish - it seemed to be going out all night - was the Metalman Battered Fish and Chips. Tempted by all these, but we picked from elsewhere on the extensive menu.

My choice here was the Skeaghanore duck. This is a brilliant product and always ends up in a brilliant dish as was the case here. Fish is strongly featured across the menus and CL’s pick was the Pan-fried Sea-bass with Grantstown Tomato, chermoula and sautéed courgette, another superb dish.

We were feeling pretty full after all that but couldn't resist one of the desserts on the Specials Board, the Dennison’s Roast Plum and Greengage compote, pumpkin seed granola and buttermilk froyo. We shared that beauty and it was two happy punters that stepped out in the feckin’ rain! But there was a taxi in a line outside to ferry us to our hotel.

For review of the Waterford Harvest Fest, check here.
House of Waterford Crystal Tour - Recommended!
EAT Waterford. 5 Course Dinner de Luxe on The Mall.

Celtic Chef at La Boheme

Harvest Days in Waterford. Visiting the Viking City

Meitheal on the Mall. EAT Waterford.

Meitheal on the Mall

EAT Waterford

The Starter

Waterford, Ireland's oldest city, has probably seen many a meal in a tent over the centuries but the weekend event in the Marquee on The Mall highlighted local produce and we were treated to five courses of delicious food, all prepared by a meitheal of local chefs and a big crew of helpers.

Indeed, the whole Harvest Festival, which ran from Friday to Sunday, had local produce at its heart as producers in the various markets, SuperValu with their food academy, bars who had no shortage of craft beer and other local drinks (Blackwater gin and Muldoon whiskey for example) and especially the GIY locations around Blackfriars, all embraced the idea of locavoring.

Hake

The practice of sourcing locally grown food has much going for it: freshness (so nutritional superiority), better taste, avoids trucking and air transport, biodiversity, and perhaps most importantly, supporting the local economy.

EAT Waterford is an association of 25 of the city's restaurants, restaurants that produce a great diversity of styles based on produce from the local farms and producers and, of course, all that fresh fish from the nearby seas, You’ll see their brochure at many places, including tourist offices, all over the city. Pick one up and you’ll enjoy your stay all the better.

Lamb

Dessert x3!

The weekend Tasting Menu in the Marquee highlighted the excellence of both the food and the chefs. Five restaurants were involved in this year's effort and the people that got together to work their culinary magic were Christine and Eric (La Boheme), Stan, Mailo and Kelly (The Athenaeum), Donagh and Daithí (Loko), Arnaud and Patrice (L’Atmosphere), Tony (Bellissimo), and all their restaurant teams.

There were six opportunities to enjoy the meal. I came to eat at lunchtime on Saturday and enjoyed it immensely. I still think that the hake dish was the tops but all were excellent and we had a surprise glass of Muldoon Whiskey Liqueur as the finalé. The night sessions were sold out and it looks as if there will be more of them in 2016. A great idea and well done to all at EAT Waterford and to their producers.

Some of the chefs, gazpacho, the Muldoon surprise.

Also on this trip:

Celtic Chef at La Boheme

Bodega, good food, good fun

Interesting Tour of Waterford Glass

Harvest Days in Waterford. Visiting the Viking City

Amuse Bouche

There would be pleasant stops for a drink or food: the back bar of Jammet’s; the Dolphin with its delicious grills; the Red Bank restaurant, which for years as a child I had thought was a bank, when my father used leave me in the car and nip in; Neary’s pub with the bowls of gas along the counter; Davy Byrne’s, the pub James Joyce writes about in Ulysses; and others. We met friends of Arland’s including Brendan Behan, who seemed very fond of him. They joked and talked together, often in Irish.

from A Taste of Love by Theodora Fitzgibbon (2015)

L’Atitude 51 for Wine. Ratatouille. Movies & Music

L’Atitude 51 for Wine

Ratatouille. Movies & Music

Called into L’Atitude 51 on Union Quay for lunch midweek. Looked at the blackboard and went for the headline dish: Ratatouille with Chicken Skewers (€9.50). It was a good choice, the bowl packed with that high class Ratatouille, full of colour, flavour and texture. Indeed it was so good, that one customer specified Ratatouille on its own.

It is a small enough menu but you may have anything from a half sandwich to the top hot dish. Some recent examples of the latter are Tuscan Sausage & Bean Stew; Baked Longueville Apple Cider Chicken with Mustard Mash;  Tagliatelle with Lemon Pork Ragù;

and Couscous: Moroccan Stew with Chicken and Merguez Sausage.

If I hadn't wanted the Ratatouille, I could have had picked from Salad: Insalata Caprese with Mixed Leaves, West Cork Tomatoes, Toonsbridge Buffalo Mozzarella & Basil (€9.50);
Soup: Cumin, Carrot, Potato €4.50.

Sandwiches:

- Ummera Smoked Chicken and Creme Fraiche

- Local Tomato, Tuna and House Mayo

- Roasted Potato with Oregano, Feta and SunDried Tomato

Full Sandwich: €6.50

L’Atitude, run by Emma Lagrande and Beverly Mathews, is best known as a wine bar and indeed won the Georgina Campbell Wine Award for 2015. It is set in a historic building, formerly home to the famous Lobby Bar.

Wine tasting via Skype at L'Atitude

They have an extensive selection of wines from every corner of the globe, all carefully sourced, with over 50 available by the glass. They also serve great craft beer and cider, superb locally roasted Badger & Dodo coffee, homemade pastries freshly baked each morning, and more. Importantly, they use the best artisan ingredients, sourced locally where possible.  

The  Wine Workshop hosts a variety of exciting events focusing on the fun side of wine, from tastings and masterclasses on wine, beer, whiskey and sherry to movie nights, and much more.

By the way their Cine Cafe series for this season starts up next Wednesday evening

with "A Year in Burgundy". Part journalistic documentary and part contemplative art film, it follows seven winemaking families in Burgundy throughout the course of a year. Burgundy Wine Specialists Le Caveau, Kilkenny, will provide the "tastes" for the movie.

Wednesday 16th September 8pm. Tickets €12. Booking Essential.

Being in the old Lobby Bar, it was inevitable that music would play a part in L’Atitude. There is no shortage in the famous room upstairs where you’ll see some of Cork's finest musicians. Keep an eye on the website and on their Facebook page.

L’Atitude is a bit like their blackboard menu - lots of good things packed into a relatively small place!

Taste of the Week. Martin’s Whiskey Marmalade

Taste of the Week

Martin’s Whiskey Marmalade

How about whiskey in a jar? Whiskey for breakfast? An early morning Hair of the Dog maybe?

Martin’s Homemade Jams and Marmalades, from Mallow, have started making a whiskey marmalade with the whiskey coming from St Patrick’s Distillery of Douglas. It is quite different to other versions, with a lovely aroma and surprisingly delicious flavour and is our Taste of the Week. Indeed, one non-marmalade eater here has been converted.

The marmalade is available at the Friday Market in Mallow, at Danno’s SuperValu and Lucey’s Butchers (both in Mallow), at Bradley’s of North Main Street (Cork) and at Roughty Fruit (English Market).

See more about St Patrick’s Distillery here.

Burgundy Bourgogne. Five of the Best

SuperValu Feature Burgundy
Some of Bourgogne's Best

The French Wine sale is underway at SuperValu until the 23rd of the month (September). The focus here is on Burgundy (Bourgogne) and indeed mainly on the whites of the iconic area.

Burgundy and Bordeaux are perhaps the best known wine areas of France but there are major differences. Bordeaux is the area of the the big chateaux, the extensive vineyard. But Burgundy is the land of the small holder.

In Bordeaux too, they blend both reds and whites. In the Bourgogne region, the wines are mainly single varietal. This “purity of expression” means that each plot gives each vintage its own personality and unique characteristics. Chardonnay (48%) and Pinot Noir (34%) are the most widely grown here.

The current sale gives you, and me, a great opportunity to sample the superb wines from the region. Andre Goichot, best known as a negociant but who is also a producer, has been here since 1947 and all the wines below are his.

Maison Andre Goichot Mercurey (AOC) 2013, 12.5%, €18.00.

Colour is a light, and bright, red while the aromas give you a nice mix of raspberry, cherry, strawberry. Red fruit flavours, cherry prominent, on the palate, light as you'd expect, the lightness of a classic youthful Pinot Noir; acidity and tannins combine well as you go into the dry finish. Very Highly Recommended. You’ll be hard pushed to find a better example at or about this price - if you do, let me know.

Don't think I'd go as far as to say it's a divine wine but the village of Mercurey is named after a local Gallo-Roman temple to Mercury, the messenger of the gods.

Did you know that Pinot Noir juice is clear? The grapes must be macerated in vats to put the skins in contact with the juice. The colour is in the skins and, without this maceration, the Pinot Noir would produce a white wine. Pinot Noir accounts for about a third of the Burgundy harvest.

Maison Andre Goichot “Les Petit Meix” Chablis 1er Cru 2014, 13%, €18.00.

This, of course, is a Chardonnay, dry and fresh. If this is your first Chablis, you’ll probably find it much drier and fresher than the non-burgundian Chardonnays you've been drinking. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then the wines of Chablis are surely the most flattered in the world - according to DK's French Wines 1999.

Colour is pale gold and it has the characteristic mineral aromas that hint of the dryness and freshness to come on the palate. It is quite a gorgeous mouthful, fruit and acidity in good balance and a super dry finalé.

Matches indicated include fine poultry, oysters and veal in a white sauce. But this is a complex wine, very versatile (you'll have no problem with duck or pork) and Very Highly Recommended.

Maison Andre Goichot Meursault (AOC) 2014, 13%, €35.00.

Colour is a greenish gold, limpid and brilliant, and here again the fruit and acidity match up in an exceptional balance. Fresh and smooth it has an excellent refined mouthfeel with a streak of minerality and a long finish that keeps giving.

On the area’s website, I read: “Nowhere in the Côte de Beaune does the Chardonnay grape do better that its does here”. Maybe a little early with this one, as they say “it is a great white wine for laying down”. It is indeed excellent now, and Highly Recommended, but whether it is twice as good as the Chablis or Montagny is debateable. Perhaps its best days are in the future! So maybe I’ll buy a few of these for that special occasion in a couple of years and lots of the Montagny for the here and now!

Former US president Thomas Jefferson once visited the region and reported: "..at Meursault only white wines are made, because there is too much stone for the red".

Domaine Les Guignottes, Les Resses Montagny 1er Cru 2014, 13%, €20.00

Not too much to say about this - just go out and buy and enjoy! This classic Chardonnay has beautiful intense white fruit aromas, peach the most prominent. Colour is a bright gold and there are amazing fruit and nut flavours, some spice too. The acidity too is outstanding. Fresh, with  a gorgeous mouthfeel and a long finish. Very Highly Recommended.

Domaine Les Guignottes, Montagny Les Guignottes, 13%, €18.00

Falling in love with Montagny, for sure. Tried this out with a trio and they all loved it as well, its amazing colours, brightness and aromas but above all for the outstanding flavours and acidity and that long finish. Great value too. Very Highly Recommended. 

Montagny (in the Chalonnaise region) produces white wines only - fresh, young, alluring classic burgundian. Very versatile as a food wine, including seafood, many cheeses (including goat) and it won't be intimidated by paella.

In Spiller’s Lane. Choc And Aah!

In Spiller’s Lane

Choc And Aah!

Allison, on her bike, with her Clonakilty Chocolate

Clonakilty hotels and restaurants were out in force as A Taste of West Cork festival kicked off in the town’s Spiller’s Lane on Saturday. The sun came out too and so did hundreds of punters as the local mayor opened the event.

With music playing, we sauntered up and down the narrow lane and started off with a delightful cocktail from Fernhill Hotel. Ingredients were mostly local, of course, and the "Corktail" included service with a smile. Neighbouring stall saw the Emmet Hotel dishing out loads of delicious small bites. We sampled canapés featuring Union Hall Salmon and Chicken Paté, both excellent.

An Sugan (top)
and Richie's bun.

A beetroot salad? The offer came from the man at the Baile an Ard Foods Stand and, of course, we said yes. It was very impressive. He told me the salad, along with quite a few others, may be bought in local shops and supermarkets and that they also do catering for events such as Communions, Confirmations, parties, even Christmas. So now you know.

An Sugan had quite a menu on offer and we picked their Scallops with a parsnip and potato puree. Three big juicy scallops, for a fiver! 

And we did well next door too with Richy’s Bistro where the man himself served up their Steamed Pork Bun, based on a dish by a top New York chef. Ricky took a while to figure out how to reproduce it but it was worth the wait as it is a beauty, another gem for a fiver.

The Lettercollum Project

On the way back down (maybe up!), we stopped for the speeches alongside the Clonakilty Black Pudding stand. And then there was ice-cream from the lady at Clonakilty Homemade Ice Cream. The Honeycomb was delicious and a reasonable two euro for a boule. They have a shop in the town and do outdoor events and supply to restaurants and hotels around West Cork. They’ve been doing it for the past ten years and all the ice cream is made on the premises.

We had lots of other samples as we made our way around but our final stop was at Clonakilty Chocolate where Allison was not alone displaying her range of freetrade bars but also the newest addition to the family, the baby sleeping soundly despite the crowds. No need to sample here, we know how good her chocolate is.

We did buy a few bars, including the favourite Mo Milk Chocolate. This includes goats milk and Coconut Blossom Syrup, a creamy compromise between the bean and milk. Enjoying it now as I write this. Tough going!

• A Taste of West Cork continues all this week with events, big and small, taking place across the area. Get your hands on the brochure or check it out here .