Good food gets better

I’M CONTINUALLY surprised by how thrown waiting staff in many restaurants seem to be if one asks about the provenance of the food. They immediately seem to go on the defensive and it can take three or four attempts to find out the source of a piece of meat, fish or cheese.

A recent attempt to identify a cheese on a salad in a Cork restaurant came back first as Irish, secondly as west Cork and eventually, after I’d decided not to venture any further, I was presented with the name of a co-op in Co Tipperary. I’m still none the wiser about the name of the cheese or the cheese maker. Sadly, nowadays – despite the fact that local is the hottest word in the gastro vocabulary – the source of supply is more likely to be a multinational catering company than a local supplier, not to speak of a farmer or fisherman.

Why aren’t more restaurants serving local food proudly? Those of us in the hospitality business depend on local people to support our restaurants and hotels, yet few enough consider it a priority or obligation to put some money back into the local community by supporting local butchers, bakers, farmers, cheese makers or vegetable and fruit growers. Those who do, generate tremendous good will for their business and hugely enhance the experience for their guests by incorporating local food in season and identifying the producer on their menu. This is a win-win situation for both the customer and the producer. The latter gets the credit for the product and extra sales when satisfied customers go in search of the original next time they go shopping. Cork has a history of being proud of its own so Good Food Ireland Cork Week – from Monday, February 8, to Friday, February 12 – gives us the perfect opportunity to showcase the bounty of Cork city and county.