 I am in Paris at the moment, having come over to attend the Sial food exposition. I did not stay very long at the Expo, however, preferring to wander around the streets of Paris and visit my favourite foodie haunts. More later!
Last week, 
I was delivering some ice cream down to Urru in Bandon, which is one of my favourite food shops in Ireland. It’s definitely worth a look and taste!
Ruth there told me they are opening a second shop in Mallow, hopefully by the end of next month. The lucky residents of Mallow! For us foodies in Kerry, it will just about enough reason to miss the train connection coming from or going to Dublin, just to stock up on goodies!
You will find the original Urru at: The Mill, McSwiney Quay, Bandon, Co Cork.
I’m just back from Dublin, Croke Park, and a comprehensive Kerry victory. Although it wasn’t much of a game in the end, it’s good to know all the same that Sam is coming back to the Kingdom!
Technorati tags: Sam Meguire, football, Kerry, All Ireland
Yesterday my brother and I went to the Taste of Dublin at Dublin Castle. The idea was to be able to sample some of the dishes of Dublin’s best restaurants, including Roly’s Bistro, L’Ecrivain, Chapter One, Diep le Shakar. In addition, there were food producers handing out samples or selling their wares, and cooking demonstrations by chefs.
The afternoon was sunny, and a huge crowd turned up. The wine flowed, the music pumped, and the various restaurants churned out small portions of their dishes on paper plates.
We met some friends there and had a good time, although it was a bit disappointing to see many big corporations such as the ubiquitous Starbucks along side the small Irish producers.
Today, on a damp, cold morning, we visited a few of our customers in the city and then headed home. As I crossed the border into Kerry, the weather improved, and it struck me as always just how lucky I am to be living in such a beautful place. I headed out the Dingle peninsula toward the sun listening to John Kelly’s Mystery Train and very happy to be out of the city and back home.
Technorati tags: Dublin, restaurant, food, taste, Kerry
I’m just home from Spain, so please forgive the silence over the last days. The internet connetions were troubling, to say the least.
However, it was an interesting trip. I have never been to the South of Spain before, and I would certainly go back.
I had heard many negative things about Marbella, but I must say that I enjoyed a couple of days there. There was a fiesta on, so maybe I had an unusual view of things, with lots of people in traditional dress and flamenco dancers of all ages thronging the streets.
It has a pretty old town, and the promenade is what one would expect…
From there we went on to Puerto Banus. Much too much bling for my tastes…
My favourite parts of the trip were the cities of Grenada and Seville.
Grenada, with its Alhambra palace, youthful population, and delightful town, and Seville for sheer ambience. The narrow streets with endless picturesque buildings and churches are made for wandering.
Both places are foodie heaven, and I could have spent the full week in either quite happily!
I finished the trip in the sherry country around Jerez and Cadiz. It’s not the prettiest area, but it certainly has its parts of interest.
The wind along that coast is something to experience, but it feels good after the heat of the inland cities. The beach in the old town of Cadiz is quite beautiful.
I didn’t make it to any of the bodegas, but I did bring back a couple bottles - one of sherry and one of port, and both should bring happiness to someone like me.
I’m already thinking about how to use them in the ice cream!
I´ve taken a week to travel a bit in Andalucia, looking for inspiration and the possibility of opening a shop here. The latter is a fairly crazy notion because of the transportation from Ireland, but given the outrageous rents at home, it could well be that transportation costs are offset by lower rent.
Mind you, there seem to be as many cranes on the skyline in Spain as in Ireland, so who knows…
In any case, I´m having a bit of trouble connecting here, so it looks like I will have to wait until I find a more reasonable connection before posting more and just enjoy the scenery…
I have taken another day in Dublin, and it has been quite a bit of fun! A bit of business and a bit of pleasure. It started with a visit to the new Donnybrook Fair on Baggot street, where I was happy to see our ice cream in the freezer and bought a bar of Godiva chocolate for breakfast.
Off then to the WB Yeats exhibit at the National Library and then brunch at Fallon and Byrne. Their salmon blini topped with an egg hollandaise was supurb, and the fresh orange juice was delicious.
Next stop in my rather haphazard tour was Mortons, where I picked up a snack of organic chocolate by Vivani. Now I will follow the advice of Caroline and eat at Ho Sen before heading to the Gaiety for a bit of Kerry theatre with John B. Keane and Year of the Hiker.
I love a (mostly) free day in Dublin!
Technorati tags: Dublin, restaurant, food, tourist, ireland
I am in the Big Smoke after dropping ice cream to the Great Taste Awards. They are being hosted by Fallon and Byrne, a customer of ours with a new shop on Wicklow Street. Rather than go for a wide range of goods, they have chosen carefully and have a limited but tasty selection of foods. I would give you a link, but it seems their website is down…
My brother had signed us up for Bord Bia’s International Specialty Food Forum, and since ten companies including Tesco and Jurys Doyle expressed an interest in meeting us, he asked me to hang around in Dublin for couple of days and help him out. I didn’t need much coaxing. The meetings are not until tomorrow, and it is fun being a tourist in the capital.
Last night I ate at Dunne and Crescenzi, nestled in next to the Piedmont wines, and it was a tasty, light option as I had gorged on juice at the aforementioned Fallon and Byrne, and did not have a huge hunger. For people complaining about value in Ireland, this restaurant chain certainly would not bust the wallet, and a simple but delicious insalata caprese made with buffalo mozzarella and a nice orvieto went down a treat.
Then it was off to the Abbey to get a bit of culture. Aurelias Oratorio was the offering, performed by Charlie Chaplin’s granddaughter Aurelia Thierrée. It is a visually stunning piece and quite a bit of fun.
I am still disappointed with the coffee around the place, but more on that later, and if anybody has any recommendations…
Tonight I think we will head for Rolys Bistro, and who knows what else!
Technorati tags: Dublin, restaurant, food, tourist, ireland
I’m just back from an extremely gruelling trip to Belfast and back in the search of new honeycomb (caramel) pieces. The trip was successful, the honeycomb pieces are much better, and I can now say that I’ve been in a honeycomb factory. Very cool.
Belfast was most memorable for the friendliness of the people, which I found surprising. It’s been years since I’ve been there, and back then I remember fear and suspicion. Not anymore, it seems. Everyone was most helpful in helping me find my way, and the three running the factory were absolutely delightful.
On the way back down, I stopped in Howth for a break and a stroll on a lovely day. I would dearly love a shop there. It’s such a delightful town, and seems to have the same open, relaxed, holiday vibe as Dingle.
All for the future, I suppose! Now I’m heading home. I’m knackered!
Technorati tags: caramel, honeycomb, Belfast, howth, ice cream
In Tafraoute, the landscape is miraculous with strange rock formations like pink Henry Moore sculptures and a swathes of yellow flowers that turn dazzling in the sun. The almond trees were in blossom - ghostly white, and snow capped the mountain tops. Tafraoute has fewer tourists than it should, and it certainly was a highlight of the trip.
The breads in general were excellent, the best we have tasted so far, as were the breakfast pancakes called Beghrir. Both are made with semolina and maybe its the water there or the mountains - in any case how simple and wonderful. The pancakes in the morning served with honey and accompanied by a cafe au lait, the bread after a hike in the hills…
I will post a recipe when I get home and try it out myself. I bought a Moroccan dessert cookbook in French and so it will take a little work!
I am back at the coast now and the sunset was glorious. Two weeks is not a lot to spend in this country. I recommend it very highly, and it was a bargain (379 euro including flights from Shannon and accomodation in Agadir though Sunway, which is so cheap that you don’t hesitate skipping out of town and making your own way around).
I will miss Morocco!
Kieran Murphy is a chocoholic ice cream man (a director of Murphys Ice Cream) living in Dingle, Co. Kerry, Ireland.
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Copyright (c) Kieran Murphy 2006-2008.
