Dylan serves up a winner
Celebrity chef Dylan McGrath and his fantastically successful new venture, Fade Street Social, sees the Irish Masterchef star back in the fold for the first time since the demise of his Michelin-starred restaurant Mint.
First published by John and Sally McKenna in 1992 and now in their 22nd year, the guides are a ‘best of the best’ compiled from the much larger McKennas’ Irish Food Guide. They feature the top 100 restaurants and the top 100 hospitality destinations in the 32 counties as chosen by the Guides’ contributing editors.
McGrath’s return is part of an exceptionally strong showing by Dublin restaurants in general, with new entries including The Pig’s Ear, The Chop House, and much-lauded The Greenhouse, while Mayo’s culinary crusade continues ever onwards with new entries for An Port Mór in Westport and Rua and Cafe Rua in Castlebar.
Kevin Aherne, chef/proprietor of Sage Restaurant, not only makes the cut for the first time with his Midleton, Co Cork, restaurant, but features on the chef ‘hot list’ beside two more Cork chefs, Caitlin Ruth, of Deasy’s, Clonakilty, and Bryan McCarthy for Springfort Hall, Mallow., who has since moved to The Savoy in Limerick.
The newly included Inchedoney Lodge and Spa Hotel, Co Cork, and the continued prominence of Mulranny Park Hotel (beside Co Mayo’s recently opened Greenway amenity) in the 100 Best Places to Stay in Ireland emphasises what John McKenna calls “holistic hospitality” where guests want “activity as well as relaxation”, while an additional four other new entries in Co Cork, including Ballinterry House, in Rathcormac, and Glebe Country House, near Bandon, illustrate the continued high standards in Cork tourism and hospitality.
“The key to survival in tough times is excellence,” says Mr McKenna, “and it is one of the main things that will get the industry, restaurants and hospitality destinations, through the recession. It’s what the customer expects and it’s what the ‘100 Best’ guides emphasise all the time.”
* Kevin Aherne, Sage Restaurant, Midleton, Co Cork.
* Chris Bell, Galgorm Resort and Spa, Co Antrim.
* Gary Bell, Portaferry Hotel, Co Down.
* Will Brown, The Old Schoolhouse Inn, Co Down.
* Alan Foley, Step House Hotel, Co Carlow.
* Sham Hanifa, The Cottage Restaurant, Co Leitrim.
* Bryan McCarthy, formerly Springfort Hall, now The Savoy Hotel, Limerick.
* Dylan McGrath, Fade Street Social, Dublin.
* Cormac Rowe, Mount Juliet, Co Kilkenny.
* Caitlin Ruth, Deasy’s Harbour Bar, Co Cork.
