Go where Ireland takes you

It’s no secret that the island of Ireland is a food-lover’s paradise! The island’s farm-to-fork mentality is helping bring delicious food to farmers’ markets, award-winning restaurants and artisanal shops for visitors to enjoy. This year promises much more on the food front – read on to find out about what lies ahead.

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LOCAL SNAPSHOT The famous Strokestown Park, Co. Roscommon, has a strong tie to Canada - this Georgian mansion is also home to the famed Irish National Famine Museum, regarded as the best private archive on the Great Irish Famine in Ireland, and has ties to the Irish Memorial National Historic Site in Gross Ile, Quebec, where over 5,500 Irish people who emigrated during the famine years are buried in a mass grave. "Today, Strokestown Park House and its Garden have been restored to their original glory," says John O’Driscoll, Curator & General Manager for the Estate. "Canadian visitors can see the two-acre fruit and vegetable garden, which supplies the restaurant with all of its produce, the four-acre flower garden and the restored Peach & Vinery glass house, which was built around 1780." What else can visitors expect? Mr. O’Driscoll says that guests can also taste a Victorian peach! All fruits and vegetables are from old varieties – the peaches are a Peregrine variety, which dates back to 1900-1906. Another must-see stop is Ireland’s last remaining Galleried Kitchen (1740). In Georgian times, since the lady of the house would never step foot in the kitchen, a gallery was built above the kitchen so she could drop her menus down to the chef. FESTIVALS 2011 The fun continues into 2011 with these fantastic festivals – Canadians can start planning now!

Hillsborough Oyster Festival

This annual festival will grace the streets of Hillsborough, Northern Ireland, in September 2011. Visitors can attend the famed Oyster Eating Contest (Canada took first place in 2010 and second in 2009!), live entertainment and a Gala Ball.

Hilden Beer Festival

Hilden Brewery in Northern Ireland, the island’s oldest independent brewery, introduced Ireland to its first beer festival 26 years ago. Each August, the festival showcases Hilden’s and other independent Irish breweries’ beers.

A Taste of West Cork

The town of Skibbereen in Co. Cork will host this fantastic week-long food festival in September 2011 to celebrate the quality and diversity of local ingredients, bringing together food markets, demonstrations, cooking competitions, tastings and talks! NEW FOR 2010 In recent years Belfast has been acknowledged as one of the best food cities in the U.K. and Ireland. Using its famed local produce and acclaimed fish, seafood and meat, Belfast’s talented chefs have created a real buzz at restaurants and pubs throughout the city. Great Belfast Food was launched in spring 2010 to showcase the best of Belfast’s food scene – from in-depth stories of local chefs to the producers who supply them, the city’s local markets to special food traditions, and fantastic food trails and tours – the website is a great resource to help visitors and locals find the very best of Belfast. Founded in 2006, Good Food Ireland is a not-for-profit member-driven organization that promotes and endorses organizations committed to local food, and links the food producer, farmer and fisherman with the hospitality sector. The Good Food Ireland website is an excellent resource for food enthusiasts planning to visit the island with information on everything from travel deals, accommodation, restaurants, food shops, producers and markets throughout the island! Northern Ireland has set a new record in the revered Michelin Guide – the restaurant industry’s most prestigious guide. Northern Ireland’s record, with a number of the establishments in Belfast alone, makes it the country with the biggest number of local entries ever with a total of 11 establishments making the list. Restaurants include veteran Deanes, Cayenne, which was awarded a Bib Gourmand, and newcomer No. 27 Talbot Street. The long list of accolades confirms that Northern Ireland has a growing food culture that can compete on the international culinary stage. SOMETHING'S COOKING! The Belle Isle School of Cookery, located near Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, offers a wide range of cooking options from one-day or evening courses to full cooking programs for the novice to the gourmand. The school provides guests with a hands-on approach through the guidance of head chef and manager Liz Moore, who will share her philosophy of adopting a modern view with local ingredients of traditional Irish recipes. The Cookery School is part of the greater Belle Isle Estate, which sits on 470 acres spread over eight islands on the northern tip of Upper Lough Erne. Dating back to the 12th century, the estate now includes a courtyard, self-catering accommodations and a castle, which was named by the National Geographic Traveler as One of the Best Places to Stay 2010. The Dunbrody Cookery School is set on the 30-acre estate of Dunbrody House, a 1830s Georgian House near the small fishing village of Arthurstown on Co. Wexford’s south coast, and home to the award-winning Harvest Room Restaurant. Celebrity Master Chef Kevin Dundon is behind the design of the programs, and provides a special emphasis on freshness and seasonality of locally-sourced ingredients to achieve fabulous dishes without the worry of overly-complicated recipes. A wide range of courses are available for beginners to experienced cooks including full-day to master class programs. The Mourne Seafood Cookery School is a state-of-the-art cookery school located in the Nautilus Centre, with panoramic views of Kilkeel (known as the 'seafood capital of the Mountains of Mourne') harbour, and offers a fun, relaxed learning experience. This is an ideal way for seafood lovers to learn more about what to look for when buying, handling and cooking seafood. Visitors will be put into the expert hands of the Mourne Seafood Bar restaurant chefs who will happily answer any questions. So, what can visitors look forward to? Whether on a half-day, full-day or a special Seafood Cookery Demonstration & Taster, they will all be guaranteed a plethora of ingredients from local producers such as dry cured bacon from Cunningham Butchers, Mourne Oyster Stout brewed at the Whitewater Brewery and seafood supplied by Mourne Seafoods! TRAVELLING GOURMET Belle Isle Cookery School has partnered with Lough Erne Resort to provide a two-day gourmet experience, ‘The Travelling Gourmet ’, from October 24 to 26. Guests will enjoy two nights’ accommodation in a luxury Courtyard Room at the five-start Lough Erne Resort with an exclusive dinner the first night by acclaimed chef Noel McMeel at The Catalina Restaurant. The following day guests will receive an exclusive, hands-on cooking lesson with Belle Isle’s Chef Liz Moore who will teach them plenty of new techniques along with knowledge of new ingredients. Cost per couple is £650 (£325/pp) or approximately C$1,060 (C$530/pp). To book call 011 44 28 66323230 or e-mail info@lougherneresort.com. Jayne Shackleford Manager, Canada jshackleford@tourismireland.com Andrea Gannon Publicity & Marketing Assistant agannon@tourismireland.com

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