Letters on Lunches

The Cherry on the Icing on the Cake

We’d a bit of an anniversary at the weekend. Yes, you’ve guessed it, we’re the quintessential Irish couple who hooked up on Paddy’s night. He treated me to a late supper in the Lobster Pot and the rest, as they say, is history (that’s a funny joke if you’re from Limerick, if you’re not, The Lobster Pot is a fast food joint, frequented by drunkards, famous for garlic & cheese chips & battered sausages). So back to the anniversary, we decided to treat ourselves to dinner in the bright and airy Cherry Tree restaurant on the Ballina side of Killaloe and treat ourselves we did. If one was to pick holes, it could be said that the service was a little slow but to be fair, we weren’t being ignored; the friendly waitresses continually re-assured us that they were coming to take our orders, coming with food, coming with the bill, everything was on its way. It was somewhat funny, slightly endearing and marginally irritating. We got over it as the food more than compensated for it.

            I’m not going to properly explain what was on the menu as I just can’t. I can break it down as best I can but just can’t explain every component in detail – it was one of those top meals that you could safely say, hand on heart, ‘I couldn’t have done better’!

The bouche was a white wine & ham soup which was more like a foam (we noticed a lot of foam on our plates as the night went on) and it came with a selection of fresh homemade breads; lovely. I ordered scallops to start and himself ordered the quail. Both came out on rectangular plates in three pieces (everything’s in threes there, should have been called The Cherry Three – snigger). I’m not sure what sauces and accompaniments were with either, all I know is that both dishes were an utter joy to eat and we were left dying to see the next offering.

            A kiwi & vanilla sorbet was then delivered. I couldn’t get any vanilla but the kiwi flavour came off a treat and set us up nicely for the main. I ordered halibut with razor shell clams and rack of lamb for the other half. The lamb was ordered medium rare which was cooked as ordered and was unbelievably tender with the tiniest amount of fat attached. The halibut was divine and I was sure to point out to the waitress who collected our bare naked plates that we didn’t enjoy the food – I think she got the joke.

            Dessert, ah dessert was just a piece of chocolate heaven. It was the richest, most well executed chocolate fondant I’ve ever tasted. It came with a tiny scoop of hazelnut ice cream and pomegranate coulis. The coulis was ok, it was more like a juice and raspberry would have been better for sure. Himself had something with pistachios, I didn’t really notice as I was busy ogling the deliciousness that sat oozing in front of me.

             We ordered peppermint teas which came with hand-made chocolate truffles, jeez, would it ever end. The chocolates were just sinful and at that juncture, we were left safe in the knowledge that we had made complete pigs of ourselves! With a half bottle of Fleurie, the bill came to €123 but they also do an excellent set menu for €48. It was expensive but the quality of the food was of mammoth proportions. I believe the chef proprieter has worked in many well respected establishments, Le Gavroche and Fortnum & Mason to name a few. The Cherry Tree is definitely worth a visit for a special occasion and I’m sure we’ll be back.

Sl-Oh What a Night!

I’m feeling seedy today but not as bad as could be expected considering the amount of food & drink consumed last night. I attended the Slow Food Event in Aubars and it didn’t disappoint.

            We were jovially greeted on arrival by tuxedoed manager, Niall Geoghegan who hails from a family steeped in the Limerick hospitality trade; coats were taken, prosecco was poured and we were sent off to mingle amid the din of classical music played live on the piano & violin. Trays of Clarinbridge oysters were distributed, garnished with a delicious oriental salsa. The tangy salsa worked well with the saltiness of the oyster and whetted the appetite for dinner. Proprietor Padraic Frawley did laps of the bar ensuring all glasses were kept topped up as well as making time for a quick chat with guests.

            We were ushered to our table and offered a glass of Pinot Blanc which was lovely. Now, I’m not a huge fan of white wine but this was very drinkable and best of all, didn’t give me heartburn. The amuse bouche was a white bean, bacon & truffle soup served in a shot glass which was extremely earthy and moorish. Second course was an Inagh goats cheese crostini served with a plum chutney. The goats cheese was soft, mild and everything a goats cheese should be. I’ve e-mailed the company to source their produce as I have a hankering for it already so I’ll keep you posted on the details. Third course was a gin & tonic sorbet from Adare Farm Foods. Proper gin and proper tonic; right up my alley! Himself has given me the nickname Queen Mum due to my love of the GnT but I believe HRH was a fan of Gordons - I’m a Bombay Sapphire girl myself.

            The main course was a choice between turbot on a bed of risotto with snow peas & fennel or rack of lamb with roasted veggies & dauphenoise potatoes. We both went for the latter along with a change of wines to De Martino Organic Cabernet Sauvignon. When ordering, I asked the waitress how the lamb was cooked (she didn’t ask preference) to which I was told ‘pink’, perfect! The lamb came out soft with a rich jus and some eclectic veggies which included pickled onions, parsnips & beetroot.

            Then we came into the back straight with just three courses to go. Dessert was a choice of an apple pannacotta with an apple sorbet or a chocolate fondant served with a raspberry sorbet. One of my favourite flavour pairings is raspberry & chocolate so I went for the fondant. It was just perfect; made with the finest Cocoa Bean chocolate, it was gooey on the inside without losing its shape and not at all over-cooked. On a tangent, we stayed at a celebrity chef’s hotel last year - we’ll call him Devin Kundan – and the fondant was served in a ramekin. It was a bit too runny for my liking; Aubars’ version was far superior. A dessert wine - Haut Maurin – was then offered but I had another glass of red instead as I’m not a huge fan of dessert wines.

            I was ready to throw in the towel at that stage but a carefully constructed cheese board was brought out along with Ponaire coffee and the most sinful Cocoa Bean petit fours I’ve ever tried. I noticed a lot of chocolates being carefully wrapped in tissue paper and placed into handbags at that juncture – it’d be a shame to see them going to waste I suppose. Pity I chose to bring a minimalist clutch bag, would it have been rude to stuff my pockets with said chocolates?

            It was 12.30 by the time the tables were clean of food and we were ready to call it a night, not quite, over to Nancy’s for a night cap (GnT of course) and home to lapse into a food & drink induced coma.

            Aubars are kicking off their theme nights again on Thursday April 10^th and if it’s a fraction as good as the slow food event last night, it’ll be well worth the €65 charge which includes 6 courses paired with wine from The Wine Buff. Call Alex or Niall at Aubars to book 061-317799 – DO IT NOW!!!

Weekend Under Water

Talk about washed out of it… The weekend was just horrible weatherwise. Foodwise and rugbywise, not so bad due to a smashing win for Munster and lots of great meals enjoyed. I’ve no recipes for you as the recipe that I wanted to try out was a complete disaster and made way for one of my blondest moments so far – more to follow. 

            We began on Friday night with an Indian meal in Mayur Tandori on Steamboat Quay. Talk about delicious; I had spicy crab claws to start followed by a fish curry served with lemon rice. It was so light and the rice was perfect with the delicate fish; I’m usually too full to finish off an Indian meal but this was devoured. The service was excellent, the staff were so friendly and brought out poppadums on the house with some really tasty chutneys & dips. We didn’t order dessert and they still offered us a drink on the house which was a really nice touch.

It’s unfortunate but a lot of people still think that Indian food is heavy but it really isn’t. There are so many really light tomato based dishes available with subtle flavours. Start with something like a jalfrezi, a bhuna or a balti and ask the chef to make it mild to medium if you’re not used to chilli and you’ll be a convert like me before you know it!

We have a bit of a Saturday morning ritual when we’re in Limerick. We get up, go out for breakfast and head to the market. Last Saturday was miserable but we made it into The Sage Café for brekkie before the market. I’m so predictable when I go there; poached eggs with brown bread & peppermint tea (it’s usually earl grey but I’m a bit addicted to peppermint at the moment). I love it there, it’s friendly, the food is always spot on, everything is fresh, the décor is inviting and, best of all, there’s a fair chance that you can nudge whoever is beside you and whisper “there’s Mike Hogan from The Cranberries” which leaves you with a real sense of smugness if you’re entertaining someone from outside Limerick! I left fed, happy and with a loaf of their homemade brown bread (which I think is the best around) under my arm.

The new recipe I was attempting at the weekend was Kieran Murphy’s banana / choc ice cream which was to be made to follow a Sunday lunch that the boyf was cooking. I followed the recipe to a T and had a lovely, rich, creamy mixture to go into the ice cream machine which I procured from my mother’s kitchen. Unfortunately, I didn’t procure the instructions which meant that I didn’t put the bowl of the ice cream machine into the freezer over night so the churn did nothing but leave me with a banana sorbet that had horrible creamy lumps going through it! It was very disappointing but I made a mammoth pavlova with the egg whites not used in the ice cream instead. I don’t think I’ll let the banana ice cream beat me, might try it again this weekend and see what happens.

The boyf cooked a fab dinner on Sunday; Blind Finches in beer gravy… Don’t be alarmed and don’t go calling animal welfare just yet! It’s a Belgian dish and it isn’t made with blind finches – just battered out steaks wrapped around a minced pork stuffing. It was really delicious and there wasn’t a scrap left on any of the plates. I made spicy potato wedges & peas to go with it which were perfect as the spiciness of the wedges cut the richness of the gravy. The recipe was taken from our book of the moment – The Hairy Bikers Ride Again. Have a look here if you’d like to try it out.