The Menu: Baltimore
The Menu believes in feeding soul every bit as much as body and classes any opportunity to combine both as wondrous indeed — to do so in beautiful Baltimore in West Cork at the world-renowned Baltimore Fiddle Fair (www.fiddlefair.com) is heaven in the extreme. Next weekend sees the 21st festival (May 9-12) return with a very fine musical menu of local, national and international talent, matched by some equally fine food opportunities including a pre-concert barbecue every evening at the very lovely Glebe House (www.glebegardens.com) and a pre-concert dinner available from 5pm at Rolf’s (rolfscountryhouse.com). Actually, you’d be hard-pressed to avoid a bit of decent seafood almost anywhere in the gorgeous little harbour town!
It has dearly pained in recent times to recount the closures in the restaurant industry so good news on that front is doubly welcome — and here’s a double helping of welcome. Changes are certainly afoot in Cork city with the Electric’s new Fish Bar firmly pencilled in for a visit (www.electriccork.ie). Back when The Menu’s age still ended in ‘-een’, he courted a young lady who was a fair hand at the cooking as is to be expected of anyone who has ever worked in the kitchen at Jacques, an institution in national restaurant circles and a place using quality local produce in season since way before it ever became the fashion so he is delighted to see the splendid new ‘face’, a refurbishment with an entrance looking out on to Oliver Plunkett St and very much anticipates some top dining there in the near future. (www.jacquesrestaurant.ie). And speaking of top dining, a body would be a fool to miss the highlight of the 2nd French Food & Wine Festival (see Something For The Week Ahead, page 4), a seven-course banquet cooked by one of Cork’s finest chefs, Michael Fleming of Fleming’s Restaurant, all for €50. www.onthepigsback.ie
The wonderful Brooklodge Hotel at Macreddin Village, Co Wicklow, home to Ireland’s only certified wild and & organic restaurant, the Strawberry Tree, is hosting wild food masterclasses through May and June with chef and co-author of Wild Food, Evan Doyle, leading the posse as you learn to forage, gather, cook and preserve a whole host of the magnificent produce out there for the taking. Next dates May 9 & 30 (www.brooklodge.com).
The Menu has always felt that, just like puppies, spiced beef is not just for Christmas and makes a most regular practice of the spiced beef sandwich, more than happy to enjoy, with fresh Arbutus sourdough bread, a fistful of fresh salad leaves and a nice homemade horseradish mayo, a succulent slice of Tom Durcan’s finest, pink, tender, spiced beef, nicely marbled with a deep beefy fat that just melts on the tongue. www.tomdurcanmeats.ie
