Superb Line-up of Food and Drink Events for next week!

Festival Cork are in their second year now and have once again teamed up with Taste Cork to bring:

Taste Cork Week 2017, October 16th- 22nd And for the first time this year, an extended special “Taste Jazz” 23rd-26th October

There are almost 40 venues signed up this year all showcasing the best local produce our county has to offer! There are some fantastic events on across the week all of which are listed on our website www.festivalcork.com

Here’s just a taster of what the week holds: (please see our calendar for full list)

Wednesday 18th October, Electric Cork host a “Meet the Producers” event, giving people the chance to meet some of Cork's best producers, and of course sample their products. Tickets €25

Monday 16th October, Casanova Gelato are giving 6 lucky people the chance to become a Gelato maker for the day, with exclusive behind the scenes opportunity into the world of making ice cream! Tickets limited €55

Wednesday 18th October, Ballyvolane House host a distillery tour and lunch

Sunday 15th October, Longueville House offer an exclusive tour of their orchard and a very special Harvest Lunch

17th and 18th of October, Franciscan Well Brewpub will be hosting beer and whiskey tasting sessions

On The Pig's Back will be hosting cheese tasting session all week long in both The English Market and Douglas

Friday 20th October, Black Brewery are doing a tap take over in The Bierhaus

October 19th, Ballymaloe House have teamed up with Jameson Whiskey to host a supper club

October 17th, Holy Smoke are having a Taste Cork BBQ with craft beer and whiskey

For all tickets and info, and all other events please visit our website or Facebook page

Taste Jazz We have a series of very exciting pop ups for our extension of Taste Cork week with Guinness and Diageo, in the fantastic new Nano Nagle Place

Monday 23rd October 2017 - Seamus O'Connell of Ivory Tower presents “Tastescapes” Tuesday 24th October 2017 – Flavour.ie and Pamela Kelly of Market Lane present “From the Producer to the Plate”

Wednesday 25th October 2017 – The Fish Bar@The Electric presents “Plateau de fruits de Mer”

Thursday 26th October 2017 – Good Day Deli presents “Sustainable Foods with South Pacific Flavour” SOLD OUT!!

We are also featuring some great Jazz events in city venues:

Electric, Thursday 26th October, Free finger food and The Loungeman

Holy Smoke,Wednesday 25th October, “Jazz Cuts” A night of whiskey, steaks and live jazz The Raven, Wednesday 25th October, the newly refurbished Raven will host a cocktail evening

Sober Lane, Thursday 26th October, Roe and Co Whiskey Tasting and live music

And keep an eye out for our “Jazz Cafes” with some live music lunches across the city!

For up to date info and bookings, check the Festival website here 

Taste of the Week. Kelly’s Vegetarian Pudding

Taste of the Week

Kelly’s Vegetarian Pudding

If you think of sausages and black pudding makers in Ireland then Kelly’s of Newport are going to be in your short list. Must admit I was surprised then to find they make a Vegetarian Pudding, a really good one and our Taste of the Week.

So why would a butcher, a prize-winning butcher, make a vegetarian pudding? “Our customers kept asking us”. The challenge, of course, was to make it as tasty as their meaty ones. They think they’ve done just that and, having dispatched one here in Cork, I agree. 

By the way, Kelly’s puddings are easy to cook. Grill them or fry them to get that crunch on the outside. In a hurry, then pop a few slices in the microwave.

Oatmeal, onions, fresh eggs are among the ingredients. This is not a token effort for the vegetarians but a serious pudding (the Kelly name is on the packet!) that is a flavoursome addition to the breakfast plate, vegetarian or otherwise. Enjoy.

Blasket Island Lamb Arrives at Market Lane Restaurants

press release

The Market Lane Group Celebrates Blasket Island Lamb 

Across all their Restaurants in October

Jerry and Donnacha

Cork’s Market Lane Group of restaurants will celebrate the unique, award-winning lamb from the Blasket Islands on all their food menus from Wednesday 11 October 2017.  This highly anticipated event is now in its 8th year, and given the popularity of this delicious, rare meat, the chance to experience it usually only lasts until the end of the month.  This celebration of Blasket Island Lamb is exclusive to the Group. 

Chefs in each restaurant (Market Lane, Orso, Elbow Lane and Castle Cafe) create special lamb dishes that reflect their own in-house style of cooking and the full range of cuts will be used.  These will be carefully partnered with drinks recommendations from the group’s wine and beer experts.

The habitat on the islands is what makes this product so special and gives it such a great reputation. The animals graze in a marshy meadow full of heather, natural grassland and wild herbs such as rosemary, sage and thyme.  The grass is salty from sea spray which gives the lamb its highly valued pre-sale flavour. The animals are free to roam so the lamb is leaner creating a perfect fat to meat ratio.

Pamela Kelly Gough, head chef of Market Lane, who has been working with Blasket Island lamb for many years now says “We are delighted as a group to shine a light on this very special organic Autumn lamb, which is different in many ways from the more usual Spring lamb” she says. “The impeccable provenance of this product is reflected in its quality and flavour; we are proud to be the only restaurants in Ireland to serve it to our customers. This truly is a farm to fork experience with everybody in the supply chain really respectful and excited about the product.”

 

Lamb Shank at ORSO

This story begins with small holder, Donnacha O Ceileachair, who raises a small flock of sheep on the Great Blasket Island.  When the April-born lambs are ready, he brings them by ferry from the Island onto the mainland.  There, they are rested for up to a week on Donnacha’s farm in Dun Chaoin, to recuperate from their choppy journey across the Dingle Sound.  Award-winning Dingle Butcher, Jerry Kennedy, then picks out the premium lambs which are sent for slaughter. When the annual Market Lane order is delivered, the remaining lamb is sold to the public directly from Kennedy’s Butcher Shop on Orchard Lane, Dingle or via www.dinglebutcher.com

Diners at The Market Group can look forward to dishes such as;

‘Elbow Lager lamb pie, pommes anna and glazed heritage carrots’, “Blasket lamb leg in fish sauce with seaweed gratin’,  ORSO ‘Moroccan braised lamb shank with ras-el-hanout cous cous, preserved lemon, pomegranate and red onion pickle’ and ‘Anchovy and rosemary leg of lamb steak, creamed polenta, with caponata and crispy shallots.’

 

At Market Lane

Check out the new menus, drinks, specials, menu changes and availability of lamb dishes on the social media channels for the restaurants within the group including www.marketlane.ie and facebook; Market Lane.

Five star grub in a roadside pub. The Tavern, Murrisk.

Five star grub in a roadside pub

The Tavern, Murrisk.

Amazing game pie

It had been a sunny day in Mayo but an autumnal cold had settled in by the time we arrived at The Tavern in Murrisk for evening dinner. We had been looking forward to the special menu, matching local foods with the fabulous Mescan Belgian style beers from a working farm on the nearby slopes of Croagh Patrick. We would not be disappointed. Far from it!

After a chat with host Pat Kelly, we began to study the menu. The Warm Silverhill Duck and Smoked Bacon Salad looked tempting as did their Award Winning Atlantic Seafood Chowder. But we each went for the Tavern Wild Atlantic Way Tasting Board.

This consisted of Cleggan scallops with Kelly’s Gluten free black pudding, bacon dust, rosette of Connemara Smoked Salmon, with Velvet Cloud Yogurt and home pickles, Galway Farm Goats cheese bon bons and homemade quince jelly. You couldn't get much more local than that and you'd travel a long way to get something better. Five star grub in a roadside pub. All washed down with the recommended Mescan beers, the Blonde and the White. A match made in Westport.

Starter

On then to the main event. The menu offered Fillet of Angus Steak, an offer hard to resist but resist we did on this occasion. CL went for the Trio of West Coast Pan Fried Seafood: Clare Island salmon, parma ham wrapped monkfish, fresh hake with lemon and dill butter, chive mash and mixed leaf salad. 

That piece of salmon alone would have made someone a fine dinner as would the monkfish. Quantity but more importantly quality. And the small things were well taken care also. The dressing with the salad was one of the very best we’ve come across. And to cap it all, the Mescan Saison was a perfect match.

Trio of fish

I had been looking forward to the Game Pie since I first saw the list. The mega mix included rabbit, pheasant and venison with a horseradish and cheddar mash and the pie was surrounded by a tonne of roasted root vegetables. And then there was a bottle of Westporter Stout to help it down. A memorable meal.

We should have had stopped then! But, easily persuaded, we shared a selection of desserts, with the Mescan Kriek: Sticky Toffee Pudding, the Tavern’s Homemade Brown Bread and Bailey's Ice-cream and, the star of the trio, Pauline’s Fruit Crumble with Irish Mist Anglaise. Before that, we had enjoyed a wee chat with busy Head Chef Pauline McGovern. 

Dessert

Quite a meal then, one that necessitated a walk in the cool, calm evening air before we called the taxi to return us to Westport and the lovely Clew Bay Hotel. And, by the way, if you in the Westport area and looking for a reliable friendly taxi-driver then try Conor at 087-2413722.

The Tavern Bar & Restaurant

Carrowkeeran, Westport, Co. Mayo.

Tel: 098 64060

Web: http://www.tavernmurrisk.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetavernmurrisk/   

Twitter: @TavernMurrisk 

The Skipper’s Next Port? Bon Voyage

The Skipper’s Next Port? 

Bon Voyage

Seafood Gratin

For the last eight years or so, The Skipper restaurant has been moored at Ventry, overlooking the nearby Atlantic Ocean. And fish from that ocean, delightfully cooked, has drawn customers here from near and far. 

But, aside from one or two farewell parties, dinner on September 30th may well prove to be the final fling for The Skipper, at least in this location. If a move is a must, and it looks like it, then owner-chef Paddy Chauvet, better known as Paddy The Irishman, may well turn up somewhere else on the peninsula, though Dingle town itself doesn't seem to be in the running.

But there were no tears, out-front at least, last Saturday night week, lots of humour among the front-of-house if anything. And the blackboard was, as always, in use. The pier is only 100 metres away and so the menu is subject to frequent change. If you're a meat-eater, you'll be catered for - Boeuf Bourguignon was on the menu. And there was even a Vegetarian Dish of the Day.

The wine-list seemed a bit run-down, there were red marks indicating “all gone” but there was still enough on the exclusively French list to satisfy most tastes. As it happened, I left the wine and picked a local beer, the delicious Beal Bán from the West Kerry Brewery which is less than three miles away.

The use of fruit pieces in the salads was a bit unexpected, CL first to be surprised when she started her Smoked Salmon Salad. It was excellent, the fish perfect, the leaves fresh as can be and nicely dressed and the melon and grapes provided an extra dimension.

The wind was blowing hard outside and my Seafood Bisque starter was nicely warm and full of flavour, and wouldn’t have been out of place on a seafront café in Marseilles.

Ray wing

Service was excellent here, casual but efficient, and always a chat or a joke and soon the mains were arriving. I picked the Ray Wing, not usually found on Irish menus.  It came with a caper cream sauce and rustic potatoes, leaves and fruit pieces of course. Quite enjoyable and, like most dishes here, well priced too.

CL's pick was the Seafood Gratin, a rather pedestrian name for what turned out to be a lovely dish. The gratin was presented in two large scallop shells with rustic potatoes, leaves and fruit pieces. All the leaves by the way were as fresh as could be and well dressed.

And there was fruit too in the dessert but different! We were unlucky that the French Apple Tart was off so shared the Raspberry and Strawberry Fool. We wouldn’t go back especially for that but would certainly follow The Skipper around the peninsula for his superb savoury stuff. And more so, if they leave those back-breaking church seats behind! Bon Voyage, Skipper!

See Also:

 Dingle Weather Or Which? Ignore Forecast. Just Go!

72 Tastes of Dingle

Amuse Bouche

On the long grassy banks beneath the peppermint trees and cavernous roots of the Moreton Bay figs.. they lay blankets and white tablecloths..and they sprawl in their workclothes and stockings, rollers in, buns half out. Out of the crates come hams, cold chickens, lettuce salad, hardboiled eggs and asparagus, potato salad and shredded carrot, chutney, bread, a jar of anchovies and a vat of pickled onions. Lemonade, Coke, ginger beer, squeezed juices and a hip flash of Chateau Tanunda. A collective groan goes up at the sight of the white linen napkins that Dolly hauls out.

 A weddin present, she says. Could never think of a decent bloody reason to get them dirty.

from Cloudstreet by Tim Winton (1991). Very Highly Recommended.

Out of the Blue. And only out of the blue!

Out of the Blue

And only out of the blue!

Out of the Blue, the restaurant with the colourful beach-hut style frontage on Dingle’s waterfront, is a fish restaurant. Nothing else. So, if there’s no fresh fish, there is no opening. They have a few sample menus on their tidy website but you won't know what is really on offer until you get there, indeed, they themselves profess not to know until the boats come in. So it is always something of a surprise, but never a let-down.

Do book in advance though especially when there is a festival in town. We were there last weekend and reserved a table for Friday night, the night that the Food Festival launched. You don't get a menu in your hand. A large blackboard is positioned on a nearby chair and you are given plenty of time to consider the long list, everything from mussels to lobster, from pollack to black sole. We made our choices as we sipped a glass of cool prosecco.

Curried plaice

If the outside looks like a hut, the inside is solid and comfortable, lots of paintings hanging there, including a lovely Currach by local artist Liam O'Neill. We had time to look around before the starters arrived.

Pan fried curried plaice fillet with mango salsa was CL’s choice. And mine was the Duo of home cured and smoked salmon with citrus dressing. Indeed, it was an agreed choice and we went half and half. Both were excellent, the salmon smooth and easy, the plaice enhanced by the mild curry treatment.

Salmon

Jean Marie Vaireaux has been chef here for the past ten years - he has been in Dingle for much longer - and we noticed that was demoing his Scallops flambéed with Calvados on the following day. We didn't pick that as a mains as we thought we’d catch him at St Jame’s Church, the demo venue for the festival. But we got side-tracked by the Taste Trail!

Back to Out of the Blue and the mains, where there were many choices. Mine was the Char-grilled Halibut fillet with garlic butter. An excellent dish, superbly cooked and delivered to the table.

Halibut

I enjoyed that and CL was very happy indeed with her Pan fried Plaice fillet with Ratatouille Provençal, another simple dish, superbly executed.

Oh, almost forgot, We have wine. The list is large enough to cover most tastes and the majority of the wines are European.  Not a great fan of Picpoul de Pinet but the Cave L’Ormarine Preambule from the Languedoc could change my mind! Crisp, smooth, fruity, and mouth-watering, it proved an excellent match all through.

Dessert? Tempted yes, but in the end settled on a share of the cheese offering that featured Gubbeen and Crozier Blue and we finished off with that and a glass of port. Delicious end to a lovely evening and then a short stroll back to the hotel.

See Also:

 Dingle Weather Or Which? Ignore Forecast. Just Go!

72 Tastes of Dingle
The Skipper, Ventry

Two Cracking Bordeaux Blends. But not from France

Two Cracking Bordeaux Blends. But not from France

Bodegas Caro Amancaya Gran Reserva Mendoza (Argentina) 2015, 14.5%, €20.95 (I got it on offer at 16.95) O’Brien Wines

Bodegas Caro, founded in 1999, is a Catena family partnership with Domaines Barons de Rothschild, the owners of Chateau Lafite. “The operation focuses on classic red Bordeaux blends,” according to Wines of South America.  “…all grapes for this project are purchased.” Caro tastings are held in their vineyard caves that date back to 1884. So there is some pedigree in both sides of the partnership. 

The signature wine is Caro and other main labels are Aruma and Amancaya. The blend for the latter is based “on the elegant texture of Cabernet Sauvignon enhanced by the fruit of the Argentinean Malbec”. It has been aged in French oak and is more fruity due to the higher percentage of Malbec and shorter ageing. The name is the native Indian name of a flower found at high altitudes in the Andes in the Mendoza area.

Colour is ruby, the legs slow to clear. There are generous aromas of cherries and dark berries, plus sweet spice too. The palate has fruit (no shortage) and vanilla (from the oak) and it is noticeably dry. Tannins are still at play here in a smooth and elegant wine, supple and satisfying right up to and through the long finish. Very good on the first day and even better on the second; decant and take your time! Very Highly Recommended. A match with beef is guaranteed but venison may be the pairing to remember!

Marks & Spencer Margaret River (Australia) Cabernet Sauvignon 2015, 14%, €16.50 M & S

The Margaret River area, in Western Australia, is justifiably famous for its smooth and complex Cabernet Sauvignon, though usually at a higher price than this. Winemaker is Matt Byrne and producers Marks and Spencer say this is “a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot (12%)”. The Decanter tasting panel recently gave it a score of 95 and awarded it Platinum: Best Value Australian Red Bordeaux Varietals. 

Colour is a deep ruby. Dark red fruits feature in the aromas. It is indeed complex and smooth on the palate, juicy and full of intense blackcurrant flavours, some spice too, tannins on the lips (inside and out); the finish is very satisfying with the fruit still a factor and hints of the oak there too. Elegant and well balanced this is Very Highly Recommended.

72 Tastes of Dingle. Great Choices for €22

72 Tastes of Dingle

Great Choices for 22 Euro

We were sitting (well, standing, no room to sit) in the sunny back-yard of Dick Mack’s Pub in Dingle last weekend, coming to the conclusion that we were attending the best food festival in Ireland. As we finished up and made our way down Green Street, we met different groups of friends, all in town for the festival and all agreeing that it is indeed the best.

The Taste Trail that we, and they, were following is a major plank of Dingle’s success. For €22.50, you can buy a book of trail tickets. Present a ticket at any of 72 participating outlets and you’ll get a taste, two tickets and you’ll get a different offering (maybe better, maybe bigger). The outlets can include restaurants and cafes and pubs, but a music shop, a Surf Shop, an art gallery, may also host a food producer or a wine seller. The choice is huge. And often impressive.

Kick off, on both Saturday and Sunday, is 1.00pm. We weren't going to be in town on Sunday so we were determined to get the best from Saturday and we certainly did well.

Out of the Blue was quite close to our hotel. We had eaten there the night before so knew its quality. Here, for one ticket or two euro, we got a Taste of the Blue, a helping of calamari with an Asian style sauce. We ate on the sunny bench outside and soon headed off towards the next stop.

At Ida's, the two of us with (l-r), Colm & Pascal (both Le Caveau)
and Kevin and David (both Ida's). Selfie by Colm!

Murphy’s Pub was listed at #8 on the list. We joined the long queue and our short wait was rewarded with a Pulled Duck in a mini Pitta Pocket with sweet red cabbage. A delicious combination and plenty of it, again two euro.

We passed stalls selling lager and fresh barbecued Tuna, even (inadvertently, sorry Sam) one selling Cloudberry’s macarons, before landing at The Dolphin Shop. Here Ruggero Sileri was busy serving his Italian Traditional Porchetta - slow-cooked (10hrs) loin of pork, served on bread with a thick layer of caramelised onions. Again a massive and tasty mouthful for the minimum.

Pink Pinot Grigio

We had intended to get to the other side of town and thought we’d better get a move on, skipping excellent offerings from the likes of the Charthouse and Fenton's and the ever popular Bush Tucker Kangaroo Skewer at Dingle Surf.

We were heading for Bacus on Green Street where Gaelic Escargot were selling their snails with a garlic and herb butter and Bacus sourdough to soak up the sauce. Delicious, though I got some curious stares as I poked the snails out of their shells while sitting on the steps of the church.

Nearby the local Fire Brigade were doing a demo, showing just how dangerous a fire in a chip pan can be, often started inadvertently by a man coming home from the pub and then falling asleep. Even if you're fully sober you’ll need all your wits about you to safely put out such a fire. If you come across any such demo in your area, do take the time to observe and learn.

Massive queues, as always, at the Little Cheese Shop, who were offering Raclette, the Swiss dish where the cheese is melted on to bread with a pickle or two on the side. 

A new twist to the old spud!

By now, we were heading down Main Street, leaving behind Spanish Wine and Tapas at the Original Kerry Craft-shop, Kerry organic Rose Veal Kofta at Kennedy’s Bar and Dingle Salted Grass Beef Taco by Dingle Cookery School at the Carol Cronin Gallery.

We kept on going to meet Pascal and Colm from Le Caveau who were doing a wine tasting at Ida’s Restaurant. I'm familiar with a few of the wines but was surprised when Colm poured a sample of what looked like a rosé only to find it was a Pinot Grigio, produced near the Dolomites by Foradori. 

Then he poured some Bravos Volcanico Pais from Chile. You'd be forgiven for expecting something rough and strong. But, no. This was a very pleasant and drinkable red wine, with a low enough ABV of 12.5%.  These two drops alone prove you should never go to a tasting (either food or drink) with your mind made up. Sample it first!

We weren’t finished yet! Nelliefreds on the Spa Road (out towards the brewery) is listed as a garage/bar. It is a venue for music, drink and food. And their offering was an unusual Light Sabre Spud. Explanation: Tornado potatoes/fries are a popular street food in South Korea. Using a special slicer, the potato is spiralled on a stick and then fried until crispy when delicious herbs and spices are added! Keep your mind, and mouth, open!

Danger here!

Back on Main Street again, we called to Pantrí. We bought on the double here, including a lovely Vegetable curry with Rice and Raita. But the favourite was undoubtedly the Maharees Beetroot and Coconut Soup with Chive Cream.

Were we finished? Not quite. Walking down Green Street, we decided we need a drink and joined hundreds in the back-yard of Dick Mack’s. Obviously, many were in and out of the bar but our destination was the small outside bar serving the beers from the newly opened brewery (also on the yard). 

With the sun out, we decided against the excellent stout we had enjoyed the previous night and instead ordered their Session IPA (4.6%) and the Amber Ale (also 4.6). And it was then, as the beers sank down, with the place packed and food being served, that we concluded that this is the best Food Festival in Ireland!

See Also: Dingle Weather Or Which? Ignore Forecast. Just Go!
Out of the Blue Dingle
The Skipper, Ventry

Dingle Weather Or Which? Ignore Forecast. Just Go!

Dingle Weather Or Which?

Ignore Forecast. Just Go!

Louis Kennedy Pottery

We have an ex Dingle woman as a neighbour in Cork and if she hears we’re heading for the peninsula, she says: “Why go, it will be covered in fog. That’s why I left.” The weather forecasts can be equally discouraging. My advice, based on years of practice, is to ignore both Mrs Flaherty and the forecasters. Just go and enjoy yourself.

Our latest examples came last Friday. Rain was forecast for early afternoon. It didn't come until about seven in the evening. Here's what we did in the meantime.

We had been in Dingle since the day before but had some time to ourselves on Friday. First stop was the beach at Ventry, wild, windy and beautiful, the sky a gorgeous blue. Great for a walk to clear the cobwebs from the night before. 

On then to the magnificent Slea Head, along with a few cars and even fewer buses. What a magnificent sight under that clear blue sky. Loads of big waves rolling in, crashing on the sharp rocks and sending sun-lit white foam bubbling towards the sands. What a son et lumière.

And then more of the same as we continued around the peninsula. Waited for the one shower of the morning to pass before walking up on Clogher Head to a point where we had a fantastic view of Ceann Sibeál and the various bays nearby, the waves crashing wild and white against the rocks. Magnificent.

Time now for a snack. We had already passed the Blasket Centre (where we’ve often snacked in the past) so carried on a wee bit and stopped at the Louis Mulcahy café in the famous pottery. Just a little snack, tea and a scone (apple and cinnamon), and soon we were shopping for a tea-pot, a lovely piece that was well wrapped up for us. Actually that took quite a leisurely while as we had a great chat with the gentlemen serving us.

Slea Head

Luke, Sharon, Zack.

Back then to Dingle and to the The Backyard at Blas, a new “club” for people involved in the event. Here, whether you’re a judge or producer, you could have a cuppa and catch up on the latest news. There were also some more formal talks about various aspects of a small food producer’s business, part of the #BOIFoodseries.

We were at the Be Social event, designed to be a MASTERBlast of social media tips with the #Blas2017 Twitter Fairy, Sharon Noonan, who was joined on stage by Zack Gallagher (@Irishfoodguide) and Luke Burgess of Bean in Dingle Coffee shop. They were trying to influence those producers who are too busy in the kitchen or the yard to have anything to do with social media.

Zack says he took to social media “like a duck to water” and wants producers and chefs to go on Twitter and promote modern Irish food by using hash tags such as #Irish and #food. Luke is more an Instagram fan as it has a focus on younger people and the cafe can show their “fun attitude”.

“Get a website,” said Zack "and use the other platforms to drive traffic to you. We have too many amazing producers who are scared of social media.” Sharon advised to “be yourself. Don't leave social media to an intern.”

Walking down to beach by Slea Head

It could hardly be expected that a 20 minute session would be a blow by blow learning experience for the audience but the over-riding message was that if you are a producer or restaurant who needs to sell (is there another kind?) then you do need to get that website up and need to use either Twitter or Facebook to engage with possible customers, not to bluntly ram your big selling points down their channels but to at least let them know that you are operating and where and when they can find you.

Aussie takes us on tour at Dick Mack's new brewhouse

Next port of call was to Dick Mack’s on Green Street. Not to see the famous pub but to visit the newly unveiled Dick Mack’s Brewery in the yard. Here, an old cowshed dating back over 150 years, has been transformed into Ireland's newest brewery. So new that the samples we were drinking were all first batches.

And the three friends, Aussie, Finn and Seamus, who set up the brewery, while understandably a little nervous as the gang arrived, were soon smiling as the compliments started to flow for their three beers: a Session IPA, an Amber Ale and a Coffee Stout. All were excellent and, during the tour, Aussie promised they'd be getting even better, though hard to see how that delicious stout can be improved.  

Slea Head

With such a promising start this is surely a brewery to watch. Initially, the beer will be on sale in Dick Mack’s but you may except it to travel, and travel well, in the not too distant future. Watch this space!

Ceann Sibeál (top left)

The tour finished just in time for us to head down town to Out of the Blue on the waterfront for a lovely fish dinner - separate post to follow! Back then to our hotel, The Dingle Bay, for the Food Festival Opening Night party. Paudie’s Bar was packed and rocking with the 7-piece Limerick band Trees Fall Down setting the pace, picked up eagerly by the punters (including a  lively bunch of Germans On Tour! ) Great day. Great Night. Great Town.

Beach at Slea Head

See also: 72 Tastes of Dingle  Out of the Blue Dingle The Skipper, Ventry

Amuse Bouche

Ballard watched the sun sink..and then got up. She once again bought takeout for herself and Lola on the boardwalk and ate sitting on a nearby bench. She could not generate much enthusiasm for food and ended up giving half her order of black beans, yellow rice, and plantains to a homeless man she knew named Nate. He was a street artist who until January had done decent business selling portraits of the former president. He reported to Ballard that images of the new president went unsold because his kind of people didn’t come to Venice Beach.

from The Late Show by Michael Connelly (2017). Recommended.