Recommended food/drink in Ireland?

Old Jul 18th, 2005, 06:08 PM
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Recommended food/drink in Ireland?

Visiting Ireland in September and wondering what foods and drinks (Guiness of course!) you recommend trying while we are there? What didn't you like?
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Old Jul 18th, 2005, 06:17 PM
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We were there in May. The food was great. We stayed mostly in B&B's, and the only food that I'd skip would be the white and the black pudding. The bacon, eggs, bread, cereal were all good in the mornings. For lunch, we usually stuck to sandwiches or soup. For dinners, we had everything - steak, fish and chips, stew, and only once were we disappointed in a little pub in Castletownshend. Don't worry about the quality of food. You won't be disappointed.
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 05:01 AM
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We're not big meat eaters and only enjoy eggs now and then, so we really enjoyed the oatmeal. It was very good, and sometimes whisky cream was offered to pour on top. We also enjoyed the fresh fruit offered at breakfast at many of the B & Bs, along with delicious greek yogurt. Didn't care for the "bacon" not even my son. It's thick cut canadian style, more like ham, although we found it rather tough. Lots of good seafood which we enjoyed.
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 05:35 AM
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People will usually give the usual things like Irish stew and fish and chips....Personally what I really liked when I first moved over here was the soups. Nothing fancy but they tend to puree the soups and not leave as a broth. On a cool day soup with some cream and homemade fresh brown bread is delicious...and not bad for you either!
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 06:01 AM
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Oysters,Oysters and more Oysters raw of course.
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 06:09 AM
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Crubeen (pig's trotter). Good fish.
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 06:20 AM
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For a refreshing break from the heavy, rich Guinness, try some cider on tap! yummmmmm. Much better than what's now being served in the states, IMHO.

Also tasty is the seafood, especially in coastal areas. The Irish really know how to do salmon right!
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 08:28 AM
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We tried the seafood chowder in every town we stopped. All were prepared differently and all were very delicious.
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 12:10 PM
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The mussels everywhere we went were the best I've ever had (Kenmare, Dingle, even Kathleen's at Bunratty). Baked oysters at Packie's in Kenmare were also great.

Salmon and eggs at breakfast, outstanding.

The brown bread and butter, especially at Shelburne Lodge in Kenmare--extraordinary!
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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 01:02 PM
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I loved the traditional Irish breakfast--minus the puddings. Most B&Bs really lay a nice spread. One owner asked if I wanted potatoes with my meal. I told her that that would be lovely. Five minutes later, she came out with potatoes prepared three or four different ways, all of them delicious. Such generosity! You'll probably find that Irish dairy products are SO MUCH better than the stuff you get in the States. The butter and eggs are especially good, so I loved scones for breafast or tea and brown bread, if only because as an excuse to eat butter. (My doctor would kill me if she read this.....). I too loved the soups. They were very thick and hearty and perfect on a chilly day. I really like fish and chips and mussels too. I'm not a fan of salmon, but if you are, you're sure to find it fresh and well prepared. If you need a break from traditional fare, you might try an ethnic restaurant (locals are usually helpful with recommendations). For instance, I ate twice at a very good Italian restaurant near the castle in Kilkenny. It's not hard to find decent Indian food too. Dublin, of course, has lots of everything. One of my favorite "fast food" places there was a local favorite serving Middle Eastern kabobs. It was great for my tight budget and it was fun to go someplace that wasn't touristy. Have a great time! Ireland is such a special place; you're sure to have fun.

Kate

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Old Jul 19th, 2005, 06:29 PM
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Salmon.

Poached for dinner - fantastically yummy.

Smoked on brown bread for lunch (with salad - what they call lettuce and tomato - but with several different greens and other good stuff). Also the same sandwiches with chicken (the only place I have ever found real sliced chicken sandwiches - not some sort of nasty "chicken salad".)

Overall we found the food to be split into two distinct camps - the truly ghastly (everything boiled to within an inch of it's life, no seasoning whatosever and completely inedible - relatively few places - but some surprisingly expensive ones) and very good with really beautiful, fresh ingredients.

(IMHO this switch to real food has increased tremendously over the last 10 years- then it would have been 50/50.)
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 06:39 AM
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An add-on to the ethnic stuff -- the best Chinese food I've ever had was in Perth, Scotland and Tralee, Ireland. In both we had seafood dishes -- mussels in Scotland and shrimp in Ireland... yum!
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 06:59 AM
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I think the Chhinese food is the worst in Ireland. I will try further afield outside Dublin. There is 1 place in Dublin a Chinese friend reccommended but I think the Chinatown in NY and London are much better (and edible!) It still annoys me when people order chinese food and get chips ionstead of rice over here ...it just seems so gross .
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 09:29 AM
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I agree with NYtraveler - SALMON, SALMON, SALMON - hold the sauce. Also love Irish "brown bread" - not like Boston brown bread.

Enjoy Ireland!
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 11:00 AM
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Siobhan, the Chinese food I had in Tralee was definitely with rice -- no chips were offered!

The place was run by a Chinese family, and even the waiters spoke little English (perhaps they knew Irish?). The shrimp was salty and fried and tasty beyond belief -- I couldn't get enough. My parents both said their food was incredible as well, and they are from San Francisco, where Chinese food is VERY popular in all degrees (the west coast of the US has LOTS of immigrants from the Asian countries, and most of them set up restaurants).

I haven't tried Chinese in big cities in the UK or Ireland -- perhaps that's a good thing? The small cities seem to do rather well.
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 01:17 PM
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We were there in Feb. We tried all kinds of places to eat, from really nice places to pubs and didn't have a bad meal. We even tried a carvery (buffet) one day for lunch. The B&B breakfasts were yummy.

I enjoyed the cider but did NOT like the Guinness. The wine was passable.
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 03:44 PM
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The pub food is usually wonderful...both Ireland, Scotland, England. Go up to the bar, order and it will be brought to you. AND order a bottle of water,if that's all you want....they are usually very accommodating about it.
You have received some good ideas on the food of Ireland. ANd of course the breakfasts in B&B's are great.
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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 05:19 PM
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The best Irish Stew I've ever had was at O'Connors pub in Doolin... mmmmmmm

Also fell in love with a cereal (Hey, I needed a break from all of those big breakfasts) called Alpen, made by Weetabix. Yum Yum Yum. (Too bad the American version tastes like cardboard).

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Old Jul 20th, 2005, 05:39 PM
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Cannot agree more with the salmon, brown bread, mussels, salad leaves, butter, etc. Had great lobster (and I'm originally from Maine so I should know) in Baltimore area. Jams are great with all in British Isles--no exception for Irish!

Never once had Irish stew. Had great soups all through west coast for lunch.

I, unlike my husband, do not like Guinness. Drank gallons of Smithwicks and was very happy.
 
Old Jul 20th, 2005, 06:47 PM
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are you going to kinsale? it is touted as the "gourmet capital" of ireland? there are some great restaurants there. all the fish is really great in ireland.
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