Where: Dublin, Ireland
When: February 1-2, 2018
With: Dave
When most people think of Ireland, or even the British Isles, "gastronomic haven" are not the words that usually come to mind. When I think of food in Ireland, I think of stews and corned beef and of course, the major staple: po-tay-toes.
When I was first in Dublin, mad cow disease was running rampant (so much so that we couldn't go to a lot of parts of the countryside for fear it would spread the disease). This did not make eating beef appetizing in any way, so my meals consisted of a lot of chicken. Couple that with the fact that it was a school field trip and most meals needed to serve a bulk of teenage kids, and hence, there was a lot of pre-fixe dining. Therefore, it's no surprise that the "Edible Dublin" entry was not exactly achieved.
Flash forward 17 years since that first trip, but this time I had Dave with me, whose favorite hobby is researching restaurants. Needless to say, I was not worried whether we'd accomplish this entry this time around. And following his research, I was no longer surprised that this was an entry in the Book. I mean, for starters, it's an island with lots of cold, Atlantic Ocean around it, i.e. the perfect recipe for seafood. And all the lamb that I hadn't even considered last time? With some hearty soups and root vegetables, this actually all sounds pretty good.
We wanted to keep things pretty casual for our trip, so we didn't book anything too fancy. Therefore, the restaurant that was the perfect match of casual but delicious food to qualify for my birthday dinner was The Winding Stair. Right on the edge of the River Liffey, this old building has (not surprisingly) a winding staircase leading up to the restaurant. The wine list was creative, the specials looked amazing, and one of their staples was a massive plate of mussels and cockles served in a simple white wine sauce. Amazing. This is all I could possibly want for my birthday.
Another food stop during our time in Dublin was at a fairly new place called Klaw. While trying to make a name for itself as a poke restaurant, the reason we went was for the oysters. All from the Irish seas, these oysters were fantastic. The guy working the bar gave us the story behind each one, like the ones that are "thrown into the Galway Bay and allowed to get nice and fat and creamy". He also gave us some interesting perspective on the Irish people's relationship with seafood. While it is abundant around them, the Irish don't think of it as a delicacy. As strict followers of the Catholic church, no meat is allowed on Fridays, and as such, fish becomes the Friday staple. Therefore, many people associate fish with a sort of penance rather than a delicacy. Luckily, things are slowly turning around as restaurants are starting to feature it more and more.
However, at the end of the day, my favorite Irish meal is the good old Cottage Pie, which I had, as should be, in a pub with a glass of Guinness to wash it down. With ground lamb meat, gravy and veggies, topped with mashed potatoes and baked with a touch of cheese on top, this will always be my favorite Irish meal. Slรกinte.
When: February 1-2, 2018
With: Dave
When most people think of Ireland, or even the British Isles, "gastronomic haven" are not the words that usually come to mind. When I think of food in Ireland, I think of stews and corned beef and of course, the major staple: po-tay-toes.
When I was first in Dublin, mad cow disease was running rampant (so much so that we couldn't go to a lot of parts of the countryside for fear it would spread the disease). This did not make eating beef appetizing in any way, so my meals consisted of a lot of chicken. Couple that with the fact that it was a school field trip and most meals needed to serve a bulk of teenage kids, and hence, there was a lot of pre-fixe dining. Therefore, it's no surprise that the "Edible Dublin" entry was not exactly achieved.
Flash forward 17 years since that first trip, but this time I had Dave with me, whose favorite hobby is researching restaurants. Needless to say, I was not worried whether we'd accomplish this entry this time around. And following his research, I was no longer surprised that this was an entry in the Book. I mean, for starters, it's an island with lots of cold, Atlantic Ocean around it, i.e. the perfect recipe for seafood. And all the lamb that I hadn't even considered last time? With some hearty soups and root vegetables, this actually all sounds pretty good.
We wanted to keep things pretty casual for our trip, so we didn't book anything too fancy. Therefore, the restaurant that was the perfect match of casual but delicious food to qualify for my birthday dinner was The Winding Stair. Right on the edge of the River Liffey, this old building has (not surprisingly) a winding staircase leading up to the restaurant. The wine list was creative, the specials looked amazing, and one of their staples was a massive plate of mussels and cockles served in a simple white wine sauce. Amazing. This is all I could possibly want for my birthday.
However, at the end of the day, my favorite Irish meal is the good old Cottage Pie, which I had, as should be, in a pub with a glass of Guinness to wash it down. With ground lamb meat, gravy and veggies, topped with mashed potatoes and baked with a touch of cheese on top, this will always be my favorite Irish meal. Slรกinte.
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