Eating well and 2009 Resolutions
Last modified on 2009-01-02 15:10:32 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
2008 draws to a close and I’ve noted the usual TV adverts that come with the end of a year when folk are thinking of change. The main two adverts are: 1) Nicorette, to stop you smoking and 2) Special K, to make you thin. Whatever about giving up the ciggies the Special K ad makes me mad.
Special K is no better for you than Corn Flakes. Read the nutritional information. The two are surprisingly similar. Kellogg’s have created a myth around Special K in so far as they have people believing Special K is some kind of essential diet food. Some kind of wonderful. Kellogg’s appeal to people’s competitive side by challenging them to eat two 30g (about a cup full) servings a day along with a proper dinner. Do this for two weeks and you will lose weight. It will just fall off, a done deal. Of course you will lose weight! If you eat two 30g servings of sausages a day and have a proper dinner I’d wager most folk would lose weight after two weeks. Dieting is not about eating one particular food, it is about being sensible. Special K is all very well, it is tasty and of course it will work as part of a calorie controlled diet but don’t be fooled! Special K is only a breakfast cereal just like Frosties. Just like Rice Krispies.
If you want to lose weight after Christmas eat a balanced diet. Learn the food pyramid. Eat apples. Eat tuna. Eat wholemeal bread. Eat healthy food. Forget the stupid Activia challenge. Forget the Special K challenge. Both are nonsense designed to make you buy product.
Take the Messy-Chef challenge: Eat well, eat healthy and eat the good stuff in moderation.
All the best for 2009. Happy New Year!
Heineken Five Litre Keg Review
Last modified on 2009-01-06 12:28:07 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
The annual Christmas get-together was held in Messy Towers on the 26th December this year, along with the Pineapple and Cheese Hedgehogs and the Ferrero Rocher we planned to spoil the guests even further by investing in a Heineken 5L Keg. I’ve had real kegs in the house before complete with gas and coolers but this is a party fellow that you can pop in the fridge with no extra setup needed. It is sizeable enough but should fit into the fridge with a little forward planning. However it will probably be at the expense of something less important, like the children’s food.
The time had come to crack it open. The tap just clicks into the top, you press down and pour. Very easy so far. We got a glass of foam. Tried again. More foam. Five litres later all it would do was pour foam. Five litres of foam and a lot of thirsty guests. If the same thing hadn’t happened last year I would have thought it was bad luck or maybe pilot-error but these things are a true nightmare. Luckily we had backup tins of beer. Never buy one.
The Cornstore, Coal Quay, Cork
Last modified on 2008-11-17 14:30:22 GMT. 2 comments. Top.
Image via MunsterPubsIreland 3 - New Zealand 22 was the final score as the All Blacks removed our rugby self-belief in an awesome display. We took solace in having a table for five at The Cornstore. A few beers and a nice dinner and sure it will all be forgotten about.
The Cornstore is a newish, buzzing restaurant on Cork’s Coal Quay (opposite TK MAXX). It certainly looks lovely, the imposing limestone outside gives way via velvet curtained doors to an atmospheric cocktail/wine bar. I was informed by Mrs Messy the Cosmopolitans were very quaffable at €9.50 each, luckily the rugby fans weren’t too late and we were seated before the girls could down more than one each.
The upstairs is big and airy and on a Saturday night pretty noisy with the chatter of other diners echoing off the walls and hardwood floors. The dining tables are simple, reminding me slightly of something from my school days. The kitchen is at the back and done in a “Hell’s Kitchen” style where you can see right in and watch at how busy the chefs are as the plates are delivered quick and fast to the staff at the pass. Impressive stuff, watching the clatter in the kitchen and the staff come and go added to the sense of hustle and bustle and how busy the place was. However this did take away from the intimacy and gave the impression of a grill more than a restaurant, nothing wrong with that I guess, maybe that is the intention but with Lobster an option at €50 a plate I wonder.
Service was efficient. Drinks orders were filled while we looked at the menu and the starters arrived pretty quickly. Deep Fried Brie, Duck Liver Pate and Prawn Cocktail gave the menu a bit of a retro feel, the Brie was pretty nice, three large chunks with some tasty salad and a dash of Cumberland sauce. Duck Liver Pate was nicely served but the Goat’s Cheese Crostini looked a little basic with an upturned round of Goat’s Cheese looking rather intimidating.
Mains followed quickly. Crisp Duck Confit Leg for me which was excellent although the bed of pak choi and butternut squash had a bit too much of a garlic hum to it, a couple of Sirloin steaks and two pasta dishes completed the set. All were well received with no complaints. The maitre’d stopped by half way to make sure we were happy which is always welcome and sadly neglected many restaurants. The only let down came at the end where we had to wait for dessert. After 20minutes of no show we inquired where they may be, the waiter came back to report the fondant had not cooked properly and needed to be redone. Another 20minutes passed while we waited. During this time the place became extremely busy with the changeover from early to late diners but this is no excuse for a 40minute wait. When it finally arrived our diner was disappointed with the fondant, maybe the expectation had been too much. A couple of coffees to finish and off we went.
The bill came to €215 (excluding service) for five starters, five mains, two desserts, two coffees, four beers and two bottles of Pinot Grigio. Excluding the wait for desserts it was an enjoyable experience in a pretty nice setting, those who prefer a more intimate dining experience should request a table downstairs.
Chateau Fonfroide Bordeaux 2007
Last modified on 2008-11-15 10:01:29 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Here’s a quick wine review done in my “I like wine but don’t know anything about it” style. Dunnes Stores have been flogging this on the cheap for quite a while now, I think they advertise it as €14.99 reduced to €7.99 and there is a good reason. Lacks depth, nose and body. Fails to mention on the label what type of grapes were used in the blend preferring to say “Its unique character (!) comes from a combination of various types of grapes and the sea”. First wine I’ve had that cites its flavour from the sea. Arrrgh maties! I drank it anyway.
Wao’s Chinese Restaurant, Grange, Cork
Last modified on 2008-10-14 09:05:02 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Taking a break from the kitchen on Friday evening we decided to take the messy-miniatures (4 and 6) to the local Chinese. Being a typically wet and windy October night we opted for the safety of the nearest to us which is Wao’s, attached to The Grange pub, right next to Aldi. In Grange.
The restaurant itself is small enough, I suppose typical of a suburban Chinese it plies most of its trade as a Take Away and boy was it busy with a steady stream of people in and out collecting bags of food. Wao’s also have the advantage of having a direct link to a pub, at 6pm we were a bit early for the Friday night curry brigade but it’s a great ‘one stop shop’ if you enjoy a few pints and a curry.
What I liked most about Wao’s is Joe. Joe (above) is the front of house guy and is eternally cheery which is a welcome breath of fresh air in today’s po-faced service industry. Joe makes the kids feel welcome and holds conversations with the adults as they wait for their take aways. He checks diners have what they need and checks the kitchen is keeping up. There should be a Joe everywhere. There should be a Joe in my local service station and there should be one at the checkout in Dunnes Stores. As for the food, it was average. The Won Tons were short on filling, the chicken curry was nice, the roast pork was plentiful and the rice was a bit sticky. Simply put it was a sit down take away. Joe visited during the meal to make sure we were OK and to steal some of the kids noodles, he told them if they finished their dinner he would give them ice cream and the deal was held up on both ends. The kids got their ice cream which was followed by lollipops and the promise of more ice-cream if they finished their dinner the next time.
The meal of Won Tons, Chicken Spring Roll, Chicken Curry, Roast Pork in BBQ Sauce, Two Fried Rice, a portion of Noodles, two cokes and a Bottle of Sauvignon Blanc came to €65. Eating out is not all about the quality of the food, its about the overall experience and what suits your needs at what time. Wao’s isn’t fine dining and nor is it advertised as such. No problems with Wao’s at all. Thanks Joe.
O’Sullivans Bar Douglas, Cork
Last modified on 2008-09-27 12:13:30 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
We normally take a trip with the kids on Saturday morning to O’Sullivan’s (otherwise known as John O’s or Sully’s) in Douglas. A corner-stone of the village since 1955 it’s been recently refurbished and is now a bright and airy 21st Century pub/cafe, it even has free wifi for the web nerds. Since I’ve started bringing the kids we call it a cafe because Heather was telling the folks at school her mum and dad took her to the pub on Saturday morning, shortly after I was sure I saw the social services lady parked outside my house.
Coffee and scones usually do the trick but the fry is top notch and covers the three most annoying things about the Irish Breakfast: 1) They serve proper sausages not the cheap and nasty jumbo ones 2) They put the beans in a ramakin so they don’t go all over your plate 3) The toast comes in a toast rack and not a dreaded basket that makes it go soggy. Why don’t more places have toast racks?
Staff are always friendly and it’s a decent place to watch Munster Rugby. Top marks to Sully’s.
Hardys Arrival Cabernet Sauvignon
Last modified on 2008-09-08 08:45:10 GMT. 1 comment. Top.
I don’t like to do long wine reviews, primarily because I can’t! Although I drink a fair bit of wine at home my vocabulary is pretty limited: nice; not nice; drinkable; dry; fruity; feck. I need to take a night class. In any event there are some excellent Irish wine blogs out there (sourgrapes.ie, Bubble Bros) so I’ll leave them do the real talking while I give a quick paragraph.
Like most other New World Cab Sauvs Hardy’s “Arrival” Cabernet Sauvignon (2006) is a rich and heavy wine. It’s heavy on the tannins and had a pretty sharp, alcohol, after taste. Volume is 13.5% which is typical of such a wine but there are far better sub €10 New World reds out there. As a true measure of it’s greatness we ended up by using it to make a red wine sauce for last night’s roast beef. Fin.
Banna Thai and The Boiled White Rice Index
Last modified on 2008-09-08 19:26:29 GMT. 2 comments. Top.
An American client went to Banna Thai in Ballincollig last night as was absolutly astounded to be charged €2.75 for a portion of white rice to go with his meal. He figured it was close to US$10 for the two portions he and his wife had. I know this is common practice among Thai and Indian restraunts in Ireland but when you charge €11.50 to €12.75 a main course an extra €2.75 surcharge for boiled, er I mean steamed, rice is a bit much. A green curry and steamed rice costs €15.50. Not cheap.
Post your prices via comments and I’ll make an index of them, like I plan to do with the seafood chowder.
White Horses and the Seafood Chowder Index
Last modified on 2008-08-18 16:27:20 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Back in 2005 I dined in White Horses Restaurant, Ardmore, Co Waterford, it’s the yellow building in the foreground on the left of the attached photo. The food was excellent but a bowl of seafood chowder cost a whopping €9.50, I’ll write that down, Nine Euro and Fifty Cent. I remember it was pretty excellent chowder but I’ve had as nice for half the cost. Three years have passed and checking the price of seafood chowder has now become somewhat of a benchmark for me, I have yet to find a price that beats €9.50. In 2008 I think it rare for chowder to exceed the €8 barrier. If folk are aware of prices in their area post it up as a comment, if I get some good raw data then maybe it will build to something.
On Saturday evening we returned to White Horses where I noted the ‘Chowder Index’ has remained static at €9.50, that elusive €10 barrier is proving difficult to break. The restaurant itself is small and bustling. It’s always busy and comes highly recommended. We were offered a 6:30 or 8:30 sitting and our table was ready when our group of five arrived at just after 8:30. Bread and a couple of menus were supplied as soon as we sat and staff were quick to come back to take orders. There were a lot of staff, all very efficient, but then again there were a lot of diners. White Horses in not a large restaurant and nor was it originally designed as such. The dining room is L-shaped with the larger tables at the front by the window. The smaller tables, for groups of two and four, are toward the back and lined against the wall where the ceiling is low and the chatter echos. Wooden floors do little to suppress the noise. Lack of space and intimacy are traits OK in certain venues but at a €30 average per main course, hitting €50 for the lobster, I believe White Horses are catering for a lot more people than the venue, or the prices, allow. I am reminded of the excellent Eco in Douglas Village, Cork where their prices are kept in line with the comfort level experienced.
Back to the food. I had Blue Cheese and Bacon Salad to start. This was a mixture of leaves with a light dressing, dotted around were some small bits of blue cheese and a few slivers of bacon along with some tiny, dry, croutons. Somewhat tasty but very overpriced at €11.50.
For mains I had Black Sole on the bone (with a Marinaded Citrus Slice) and this is where it starts to get good. The sole arrived piping hot and looked beautiful with a simple butter-based sauce to accompany but not to overbear. It tasted every bit as good as it looked. Absolutely stunning. Once of the nicest fish I have tasted. The others had Prawns in a Garlic Butter which were equally as nice. Succulent, sweet tasting, prawns cooked to perfection, a tiny bit of garlic butter was all they needed . The dishes were €32 and €35.
Three bottles of a Macon Village at €24 each, two deserts picked from the display cabinet and three coffees brought the bill to just under €330 for five. The main courses are second to none and, more importantly, they are consistently excellent. However I just cannot get over the noise and low ceilings and overpriced starters. For the price I would prefer the whole dining experience, not just the mains. If noisy chatter won’t upset your own experience then the food, for the most part, is worth it.
Paulaner Alcohol Free (Alkoholfrei) Beer
Last modified on 2008-08-08 07:16:27 GMT. 1 comment. Top.
It’s not often I bother trying alcohol free beer, normally if I am in a cafe or bar and not drinking alcohol it is most likely early morning and a tea or coffee will do fine. However, last week I had the occassion to try Paulaner Alcohol Free or “Paulaner Hefeweissbier Alkoholfrei” to give it its native German title. It originates from Munich with Heineken Ireland, who now own the old Murphy’s Brewery in Cork, doing the importing. I was given a bottle and asked to try it so I dutifully put it in my fridge and tucked it away at the back where it remained for four to five weeks just to make sure it was properly chilled.
It was sunny yesterday and my thoughts, as they do, turned to Alcoholfrei Hefeweissbier. I remembered I had a bottle in the fridge so I cracked it open and poured it. It looked pretty nice, a rich tan colour but not cloudy, it looked malty with a nice frothy head. Looks like real beer I thought. Smelled of real beer too, hops and stuff. You can tell I’m no Oz Clarke, I could flower the language up a bit and say that it smelled of hazelnuts and oatmeal but that’s a step too far.
The taste was malty but had a sweet edge to it, I am not sure if the sweetness, which I didn’t particularly like, was due to the fact it was nonalcoholic or is it just a feature of the beer. Regardless I happily drank the 0.5L and may have had another had there been one.
After some truly horrific non-alcoholic beers in the eighties and nineties maybe the technique has progressed? It may also be the fact that I only ever tried the products that were foisted upon the immature Irish market at the time, things are different these days, you can buy beer from anywhere in the world and Amen to that.
The Cliff House Hotel, Ardmore
Last modified on 2008-09-05 09:33:58 GMT. 1 comment. Top.
Having a birthday on the Saturday of a holiday weekend during the summer means there is always extra impetus for celebrating and I’m glad to report this year was no different. After a glass or two of Champagne and a nice home cooked Cannelloni we headed to The Cliff House Hotel in Ardmore for drinks.
Opened at the start of 2008 it is a 39 room, boutique style, hotel built into the cliff overlooking Ardmore Bay. The difficult €16m build took over two years and while it may be more a triumph of engineering over some of the external aesthetics this is soon forgotten when you enter reception. Stunning views, plush carpet and glass frontage abound.
Leaving reception the bar and restaurant are down a level on opposite sides of the large spiral staircase. Turning left into the bar you are greeted by a long, narrow, space further divided by three supporting columns which are decorated with slate, the stone theme is common throughout the hotel with some very impressive limestone paving (with fossils) outside reception and on the terrace. The bar area is not large but this adds to the intimacy. Outside is the large terrace providing commanding views of the bay, beach and surrounding landscape. Sitting here you could almost be on the deck of a luxury cruise ship and with the bonus of a sunny day you could well be cruising the Amalfi coast. One thing that did strike me was, apart from a row of tables along the bar window, there is no shelter or outdoor heating. Leaving the imaginary cruise ships and Amalfi coast behind the harsh reality of Irish summers means most of the terrace is a space that can only be used for about 15% of the year, and even then is decidedly cool after sun down. To the delight of the staff the guests tend to play musical chairs trying to avoid the wind and stay in the sun, it was not uncommon to see a staff member with drinks on tray scanning the decks to see where his drinkers were huddling.
This weekend was my third visit and it was nice to note some of the minor niggles present on the earlier visits, such as lack of coasters for the drinks, had been ironed out. However the bathrooms remain slightly below par. The bar of soap sitting on the counter without a holder had been replaced with a tidier bottle of liquid soap but the room could be cleaner, the bin was full of used hand towels and the urinals could have done with a wipe. Unfortunately there was no cleaning rota on the wall so I don’t know what the intervals were or when they were last done, maybe I hit at a bad time. The complaint was the same for the ladies, coat holders were missing or had fallen off and an undisguised tissue box lay stuck to the granite surface. These are niggles that I’m sure will be ironed out over time.
The staff were cheery and bright. During the drinks a suited manager stopped by to have a quick chat and to make sure all was well, his manner was friendly without being forward which is perfect. The mojitos were excellent at €10 each, plenty of sparkle and zing to them. Continuing with the Cuban theme a Havana Club and Coke cost €7.50 and was served in a decent size glass with loads of ice. Cocktail stirrers were also an addition over the previous visit. After we settled the bill the bar tender called me over to ask what I thought of his mojitos, excellent I told him and he informed me he had just come from a post on the Queen Mary (I htink he said the QM) and wanted to make sure his drinks were suiting the Irish palette, maybe he had heard I was disappointed by the drinks in The Tannery. Regardless, it was nice to chat with him and nice of him to ask. I’m looking forward to going back, the bar menu looked very inviting with prices you see on most Irish restaurant windows, hopefully we’ll have time to eat on the next visit.
The Tannery, Dungarvan
Last modified on 2008-08-04 19:55:47 GMT. 2 comments. Top.
Our initial inquiry about booking a table at The Tannery in Dungarvan was rejected but on a quick recollection they could actually fit us downstairs at 7:30, they must have decided to open up the private dining room to cater for the extra business. We showed up at the appointed time and were immediately seated in a room off the bustling bar area. As we passed through the lounge Martini glasses abounded as the diners sat waiting for their tables. The downstairs room was very pleasant, bright and airy. Often I feel dimly lit restaurants have something to hide and often I am right but no need to worry here.
Bread was delivered in the form of slices of light and airy Ciabatta accompanied by a sour cream and chive dip which had a hint of either vinegar or lemon. Lovely. The usual attempt of trying not to eat too much bread failed.
For starters I had the charcuterie plate which came as a mix of cured meats, toasted soda bread, pate and some lightly pickled cauliflower. All meticulously laid out and very tasty. Anne had the Prawn Broth with Brown Rice and Avocado Toast which, again, was beautiful to look at. The broth itself belied its light sounding name and tasted rich with a smokey hint.
Mains consisted of Lightly Smoked Salmon with a Beetroot Coleslaw, Roasted whole Monkfish with Serrano Ham and Baked Peach and our third diner, who had passed on the starters, chose the Herb Crusted Wicklow Lamb Ribs. The salmon was excellent, perfectly cooked but the beetroot accompaniment disappointed. What sounded like it should be full of flavour was a bit lacking on taste, luckily the salmon made up for it. The Monkfish was fantastic, the fish was cooked to perfection which can be tricky given the uneven shape, a lesser chef may have been tempted to remove the ‘tails’ for use elsewhere on the menu. When asked for some lemon the waitress disappeared into the kitchen and ignored us on return. Had we insulted the chef? When neither tantrum nor lemon appeared we asked a second time and received two wafer-thin rounds of lemon which looked suspiciously like they came from the bar. Impossible to squeeze a thin round of lemon onto a fish so we moved on. The lamb arrived but ultimately disappointed, to be fair the menu said ribs and that’s what they were. Four ribs with a thin coating of meat containing a fair share of fat. Our diner picked the meat from half and gave up declaring it a futile exercise.
Only when the meal was finished did we first catch sight of the Maitre D’, which I assume to be Marie Flynn. As she visited the diners I overheard the table next to us complain about the lamb. We did the same. First to the waitress who, having ignored us since the lemon incident, came to clear the plates. She offered an incredulous “but it is cooked for two and half hours” response and wafted off. The Maitre D’ arrived and explained in a friendly manner that it was rib and not rack and without any more fuss said she would, of course, remove the charge from our bill.
Dessert was a Raspberry Gratin which disappointed via the gratin’s lack of flavour and Muscat Grape Jelly, Brown Sugar Ice Cream served with a Warm Doughnut which was very well received, the grape jelly in a tiny jam jar made it look all the better. Hmmm doughnuts….
To finish a couple of excellent Irish Coffees for the ladies and, seeming as specialty cocktails were advertised via a flyer on our table, I chose a Mojito. Unfortunately the Mojito was a dour affair tasting like the ones I’ve tried to make at home: drinkable but lacking in fizz and zing. An appropriate summary for the entire night I thought as we headed into the night.
The bill came to €186 which included two starters, two mains (lamb excluded), two desserts, three cocktails and two bottles of Chablis at €35 each.
Creeky!
Last modified on 2008-07-28 15:13:38 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Stocked up on some wine this weekend. Our local Super Valu, Ryans in Frankfield, are doing Jacob’s Creek Semillon Chardonnay (2007) for €8.99 a bottle which seemed like good value.
For those who dislike regular Chardonnay, of which there are many, is a less oaked alternative. Slightly creamy taste with good body, a more robust alternative to Sauvignon Blanc, very drinkable.
