The Menu: Take a walk on the wild side of the Burren
That the weekend package (2 nights B&B, 1 evening meal, 2 packed lunches, 2 days guided walks incl. transfers, €199 pps) is based at justly renowned The Wild Honey Inn in Lisdoonvarna only further heightens the sense of anticipation because you can hardly get in the door these days for all the awards piled up in the place! It’s not such a long, long way from Clare to here! boo...@wildhoneyinn.com
The Menu is a fierce man for an even fiercer curry and the chance to enter a competition, designing your own lamb curry using excellent local Wicklow lamb, is yet another reason to visit Greystones, Co Wicklow, for their Gourmet Greystones Festival (May 6).
There are all manner of excellent workshops, including Urban Foraging, a Hands On Pork Curing & Charcuterie with Ed Hick and demonstrations from some of Ireland’s finest, including Viewmount House chef Gary O’Hanlon, Louise Lennox (The Restaurant), Sunil Ghai, (Ananda and Chakra), and The Menu’s wonderful friends in A Caviston. www.facebook.com/gourmetgreystones
In more youthful days, The Menu did a stint along with school contemporaries in Oysterhaven, near Kinsale, in West Cork, at the renowned Adventure and Activity centre, and in between jumping off high places and landing in wet places, he couldn’t help but notice an impressive Georgian building nearby, Walton Court. Return visits to lovely Oysterhaven have lessened his curiousty not one jot, so he is delighted to bring news of a French-style cafe in Walton Court run by Christine Girault featuring a host of fine local ingredients.
Currently open 11am-5pm, Sat/Sun, it will open daily come June until summer’s end. Afternoon teas and petit fours may be prebooked on 087-6481452. www.waltoncourt.com
There’s an opportunity to bring a loved one back home for a luxury family holiday for four in one of over 600 hotels and guesthouses as part of The Gathering. Sponsored by Glenisk Yoghurt and www.irelandhotels.com, there are nine prizes of flights up to €1,000 and accommodation. Entry on special packs of Glenisk Organic Yoghurt. Www.glenisk.com
While The Menu’s dear old pater could put away the nosebag with the best of them, his culinary skills were restricted to turning out a tray of fudge, but if a man can master fudge, then he is just about home and hosed.
Which is why The Menu needed no second invitation to devour Fab Fudge’s Bailey’s and Chocolate Fudge — a whiskey waft, warm cocoa tones all atop a slab of handmade and magnolia-pale fresh cream and butter fudge that melted away in the mouth with all the sensual drama of a silent-screen actress a-swooning onto the chaise longue! www.facebook.com/pages/Fab-Fudge/158318357630082
