WIN Dinner for Two at the new Ramblers Restaurant in Ardara, Co. Donegal

Friends, folks and foodies from all Donegal gathered recently for the launch of “Ramblers Bar & Restaurant” at The Nesbitt Arms Hotel, in Ardara, County Donegal. The Nesbitt Arms is situated right in the middle of this beautiful wee town of Ardara, which is famous for it's Donegal fiddlers, it's hand-spun Tweed, it's excellent music festivals and it's warm and friendly community.

General Manager, Liam McGill, opened the night by thanking all who had turned out for the opening. "We are so proud to have a loyal and regular clientele here at the Nesbitt Arms. A town is quiet without a hotel but a hotel is nothing with out the town around it", he said.

"I'm delighted to welcome you all here to the opening of "Ramblers", our brand new Bar and Restaurant" said Liam. "I want to thank everyone who worked on the new build: John Fox and Hugh Boyle with all their staff, Micky Shallow and of course, Terry Murray who has practically lived in this room for the last two months!"

The Nesbitt Arms Hotel, Ardara, Co Donegal 

Liam also raised a glass and paid tribute to the late Conal Haughey (known to all as Mr. Ardara) who passed away recently, saying, "Conal was the head chef here in the Nesbitt Arms for over twenty years and he would surely have been delighted with the new Bar and Restaurant".

Entrance to the new Ramblers Restaurant and Bar

He then called on festival organiser and local hero, Stephen McCahill, who thanked the management of the Nesbitt Arms for their continued support in the town of Ardara.  He added that the presence of hotel was imperative for the success of the town.  Praising all involved with the design, building of the new Bar and Restaurant, and with a special mention to restaurant staff and head chef Francis Floyd, Stephen commented on the wonderful standard of the hotel with its new reception, ballroom and excellent food.

Fresh Fish is delivered from Killybegs everyday

Deirdre Mc Glone, owner of Harvey’s Point Hotel and Donegal Person of the Year 2016, gave a very eloquent speech praising the people of Ardara for their continued dedication and search for an excellence offering for visitors and guests to the area. "Ardara is the most amazing town. You have traditional music festivals and events almost every month, a great community spirit and the most wonderful natural surroundings here", she said. "No wonder Ardara was voted the Best Village to Live in Ireland!"

Head Chef, Francis Floyd, sources all his meats locally in County Donegal

Deirdre then officially launched Ramblers new Bar by pulling a pint of stout and serving the first glass of the new Sliabh Liag Whiskey and Claire McGill, Deputy GM of the Nesbitt Arms, then presented Deirdre with a beautiful Eddie Doherty Tweed Throw as a memento of this trip down to Ardara.

The Library section of the new Ramblers Restaurant and Bar

As is customary in Ardara, the locals and business owners turned out in great numbers to support this very fine new bar. “Traditional but kinda chic”, “cosy and comfortable with those lovely old heritage colours”, “classy & cosy” was how some of the locals described it.

Local Beers and Spirits from County Donegal are served in the new Restaurant and Bar

To Enter a new Competition and be in for a chance to WIN Dinner for Two at the new Ramblers Bar and Restaurant in Ardara, County Donegal, simply Like and Share The Nesbitt Arms Hotel on Facebook here:


telling them the person you'd like to bring along with you if you won.
(Sneaky Tip - If you've Liked this Page already, Unlike and Like Again to enter the competition)

The Winner will be announced on Friday 29th of July. Best of Luck everyone!

Zack

Enter the Foróige National Junior Baking Competition 2016

Foróige is the leading youth organisation in Ireland. The charity works with 54,000 young people and 5,500 adult volunteers annually, through a network of more than 600 youth clubs & cafés, 150-targeted projects and national programmes such as Citizenship, Entrepreneurship and Leadership.

ALDI are once again sponsoring this years' National Junior Baking Competition, in association with Foróige, the finals of which will take place in the Aldi Marquee at the National Ploughing Championships, and this year the theme for the baking competition is ‘Muffins of the Moment’.

Prizes

The winner of the National Junior Baking Competition will win a €1,000 bursary to help them on their baking journey, as well as a trip for their local Foróige group to Delphi Adventure Centre in Co. Mayo.

In addition to this and for the first time in the National Junior Baking Competition, Aldi will be stocking the winning muffins – a huge achievement for any budding young baker!

How does the Competition work?
The qualifiers of The National Junior Baking Competition will be held nationally through youth organisation Foróige, in their 834 clubs and projects nationwide, with the regional finals taking place in late July. The National Semi Finals and Final will be held from 20th to 22nd September at the Aldi Marquee during the 2016 National Ploughing Championships in the new location of Tullamore, Co. Offaly.

County Level
The first stage of the competition will be at county level. These will be organised locally in each county to watch out for the local arrangements. There will be one winner per county, except in cases where there are more than 50 clubs in that county. In this instance, two county contestants will qualify for the Regional Final.

A county competition will be organised in each county as a stand-alone county event or will be organised as part of another event taking place in the county. Individual entrants will bring along their Muffins which they have baked themselves (see rules below) to be judged by a panel of judges.

To find your nearest Foroige Club and Contact Details Click HERE

Regional Level
There will be four regional finals - South, West, East and Midlands. Two winners from each region will qualify to compete in the semi-finals at the National Ploughing Championships in September 2016. At Regional level you will be baking on site using ingredients supplied by Aldi.

National Level and Finals
There will be two semi-final heats on 20th and 21st September. Again, semi finalists and finalists will be baking on site. The contestants placed first and second in each heat will qualify for the final on Thursday 22nd September, in the Aldi Ireland Tent at the National Ploughing Championships.

Who can enter?
The competition is open to any young person between the ages of 12 and 18 that are currently a member of a club, project (including Big Brother Big Sister), or youth service in Foróige.

Theme
The theme of the National Junior Baking Competition this year is ‘Muffins of the Moment’ and the judges are anticipating some amazing creations from the wealth of talented young bakers around the country.

The Rules:

1. This competition is for individual entrants only.
2. Participants must still be 18 or less on the 22nd of September 2016, the day of the final of the competition.
3. For the county competition each competitor will bring their Muffins, made by them. Should they progress to the regional event they will be required to bake more on site.
4. Each club or project group may submit only one entry. If more than one person in a group is interested, it is up to the club or group to decide how to choose one.
5. Bakers must produce their goods without help from others.
6. Ingredients must be purchased from Aldi – and each baker may spend a maximum of €20 on ingredients. Here is a link to the Aldi website where you can see all their products. 
7. Entrants in county competitions must be available to attend and compete in the Regional finals (late July) and the National Finals (20th to 22nd September), if they get through to each.
8. For the National Semi-Finals and Final, competitors will be obliged to use the ingredients supplied by Aldi Ireland.
9. Competitors in the regional and national events must bring their own baking tins.
10. The judges’ decision in all competitions is final and binding on all competitors and the fact of entering shall be deemed an acceptance of this rule.

(Immediate families of Foróige managers and employees and the directors managers and employees and the immediate families of other Promoters or the agencies or companies associated with this promotion are ineligible to enter.)

Any other enquiries should be directed to denis.obrien@foroige.ie

So Get Baking and the Best of Success to all who enter!
Zack

WIN 2 Tickets to 2016 Taste of Dublin with FloGas

COMPETITION CLOSED - Winner is @Ann100anna on Twitter

Dublin's unique and progressive dining scene will be celebrated during Taste of Dublin 2016, running from Thursday 16th to Sunday 19th June. Over four days, the city’s new, established and hottest restaurants will fashion together their exquisite signature dishes at the ultimate Dublin foodie festival.

You'll get to mingle with award-winning chefs, like-minded foodies and friends as you browse through the capital's premium food and drink producers and take part in the many interactive foodie features and attractions in the stunning surrounds of the Iveagh Gardens.

The Taste of Dublin Festival has become a much anticipated date in the social diary and for the last 11 years this food festival has played a vital role in progressing Dublin’s food revolution. It has always showcased the superb range of eclectic restaurants, producers and chefs that make up Dublin city’s vibrant culinary scene.

This year they are celebrating an Irish homecoming as the festival returns to the beautiful Iveagh Gardens for an unbeatable line up of events with renowned Irish Chefs from home and abroad.

Taste of Dublin's long-standing Energy Partner, FloGas, have teamed up with the award winning Dunbrody House to create the Dunbrody BBQ Experience for the first time, this year. The event will showcase the new & exclusive Flogas Gaslight cylinder. You will learn to perfect your BBQ technique with fun, interactive demos and enjoy food and craft beer from award winning chef Kevin Dundon.

Thanks to FloGas, we have 2 Tickets for Sunday Afternoon at Taste of Dublin, to give away:

Simply...

LIKE FloGas on Facebook
 
and / or

FOLLOW FloGas on Twitter

and leave a Comment saying "I want Zack's Taste of Dublin Tickets from FloGas" to be in for a chance to WIN 2 Tickets for Sunday Afternoon at Taste of Dublin 2016!
Draw takes place on Monday 13th June.

COMPETITION CLOSED - Winner is @Ann100anna on Twitter

Best of Luck Everyone and See you There!
Zack.

Who will represent Ireland and the UK in S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2015?

The first selection of finalists of the International S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2015 have been made.

Out of 3,620 participants in 191 countries and 20 world geographic areas there will only be 20 finalists. Four local chefs will now have to take part in a cook-off with 6 other chefs based around the British Isles to decide who will represent the region, identified in the competition as the UK/Ireland Geographical Area.

Mark Moriarty, Maria Elena Martinez Otero, Sarunas Godovan and Stephen Holland were chosen by ALMA Cooking School (the world's leading international educational and training centre for Italian Cuisine), and were picked from thousands of applications received from professional young chefs working in kitchens around the world.

What’s next? Each candidate will now cook a dish for their local jury members who will choose one winning entry to represent Ireland and the UK. Once chosen, the 20 Final Chefs will be paired with a young designer picked by Vogue Italia. The 20 chef/designer duos will then begin work on a unique collaboration that will see each designer create a unique piece inspired by the chef’s dishes.

The final dishes and designs will be presented, in June, at a Grand Final event held in Italy during Expo Milano 2015 where the winning entry for the S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2015 will be announced. There will also be a special prize awarded to The Best Chef/Designer Couple.

The four Irish chefs who will cook it out with some of the best young chefs in the UK and Ireland to see who will represent the region in the Final are:

Mark Moriarty is Sous Chef at Restaurant The Culinary Counter in Dublin.

Mark's dish is Celeriac Baked in Barley and Fermented Hay, Cured and Smoked Celeriac

Maria Elena Martinez Otero is Chef de Partie at Restaurant Four Seasons Hotel (InterCont) in Dublin

Maria's dish is Smoked Orange,Chocolate Heart, Green Tea Crumbs and Ricotta

Sarunas Godovan is a Chef at Restaurant Tankardstown House in Slane, Co Meath.

Sarunas' dish is Turbot on the Bottom of the Sea

Stephen Holland is Exec Sous Chef at Restaurant Lough Erne Resort in Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh.

Stephen's dish is Glenarm Whiskey Cured Salmon, Pickle Vegetables, Pistachio Bites

You can see the full list of 10 Chefs that were chosen in the UK/Ireland Geographical Area HERE

Congratulations to them all for getting through to the Geographic Finals and we wish them the best of luck in the challenge to become S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2015.

Zack

The Best Homemade Jam in Ireland 2014 Competition

Entries are now being taken for a competition to search for the Best Homemade Pot of Jam in Ireland on August the 2nd as part of the Gorey Market House Festival in County Wexford.

Acclaimed food writer and TV personality Biddy White Lennon will be judging entries across 3 categories: 

Best Strawberry Jam

Best Raspberry Jam

Best Unusual Combination Jam

Biddy White Lennon, who has written many books about Irish Cooking, is Judging

There are prizes for each of these categories as well as a Jackpot prize for the jam voted ‘Best in Show’ which is sponsored by Greens Berry Farm. Other prize categories are best ‘Junior’ (16 years and under), best ‘Man-Made’ jam, sponsored by Morri & Kell & most artistic label, sponsored by The Gas Lamp Gallery. One prize will be awarded in each of these categories.

The Rules for the competition are as follows:
• All Jam must be home-made by the entrant
• Jam should be sealed using either a lid or cellophane and waxed disc
• Jam should be unlabelled – a label will be applied on entry and a duplicate issued to entrant
• Entries must be according to the categories given
• Individuals can have as many entries as they wish

Entries will be taken from Saturday the 26th of July at the following locations:

Gorey Market House Craft & Design Centre, Main Street, 

Gorey Gorey Civic Centre (Mon-Friday only).

Entries will be accepted up until 10.00am on August 2nd the day of the competition.

Judging will take part at Gorey Farmers Market, Esmonde St. on August 2nd and the winners will be announced at 2.00pm. Cost of a single entry is €2 or €5 per three entries.

For more information or to contact  Market House Craft & Design Centre, Gorey see https://www.facebook.com/goreymarkethousefestival 

Zack

Taste the Cream of Irish Chowder at this weekend's All-Ireland Chowder Championship in Kinsale

Kinsale Good Food Circle want your help to find the best chowder chef in Ireland. A representative from each of the 32 counties will compete for the title of “All-Ireland Chowder Champion” at the 4th Annual All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off 2014.

Building on the huge success of last year’s Chowder Cook-Off, Ireland’s gourmet capital is pleased to announce that this year’s event will take place at Acton’s Hotel, Kinsale on Sunday 13th April from 2pm to 4pm. Everyone attending the event will have a chance to vote for their favourite chowder-chef!

The All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off will feature 32 professional restaurant chefs, fishermen and makers of commercial chowders, each selected to represent their county, in competition for the title of All-Ireland Chowder Champion.

The All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off is the highlight of a two day Family Festival that will take over the streets of Kinsale on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th April. This popular annual event sees the town transformed into an open-air street market, with food stalls and family fun on every street, quay and open space. Local and visiting food businesses will offer samples and take-home food for under €5, and there will be food and fun for all age groups.

Members of the public will be the judges in the All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off. Everyone will be given a voting card at the entrance, which entitles them to sample all chowders from the individual stalls, before casting their vote for the All-Ireland Chowder Champion 2014.

Will the winner be the richest, creamiest chowder, or will the prize go to a spicy concoction with a hint of chilli? You the public will decide - Tickets are €10 each, making it an unusual and affordable Sunday lunch option!

Liam Edwards, Chairman of Kinsale Good Food Circle said, “Kinsale is a busy fishing port as well as being the Gourmet Capital of Ireland, and a key destination on the newly launched Wild Atlantic Way. This competition plays to all our strengths, and we look forward to welcoming members of the public to decide which is the best chowder on the day. Last year’s Cook-0ff was a huge success, and we look forward to seeing even more visitors from America and Europe as well as from all over Ireland at this unique event.”

Competition among chefs is keen. The winning chef will not only be crowned All-Ireland Chowder Champion, but will also receive a customised trophy and be invited to take part in the Great Chowder Cook-Off in Newport, Rhode Island, Kinsale’s transatlantic twin town, next summer. The 2013 winners, The West Bar, Westport, Co Mayo will represent Ireland in the prestigious competition in June.

County Donegal's Champion Chowder Chef Joe Clinton

County Donegal, for example, is being represented by Chef Joe Clinton and he's heading down to Kinsale for the All Ireland Chowder Cook-Off on the 13th April after he won the Donegal regional final. That competition was organised by the Food Coast division of the Donegal County Enterprise Board and was held during last summer's A Taste of Donegal Food Festival.

Joe's award-winning chowder is an great example of the finest locally sourced seafood produced today in county Donegal. Ingredients include Drowes River Line-Caught Salmon, Mountcharles Smoked Cod, Northwest Atlantic Haddock, pearls of Glencolmcille Crabmeat, Killybegs Line-Caught Squid, Inver Bay Mussels & Clams, Dunkineely Prawns & Baby Shrimp. The recipe also includes a secret mix of Donegal Sea Vegetables that he has specially selected. His homemade butters are flavoured with his own Dill & Lemon balm and locally caught lobster. To compliment his chowder, Joe is serving Dillisk Scones & fresh herb breads.

The 4th Annual All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off 2014 starts at 2pm at Acton’s Hotel, Kinsale. The Tickets (entitling holders to samples of all chowders) are only €10 each or €25 for a Family Pass and are available at the hotel door.

For more information about the Kinsale Good Food Circle see www.kinsalerestaurants.com

UPDATE!

Danny Fitzpatrick, chef-owner of Fitzpatrick’s Bar and Restaurant, Dundalk has been crowned All Ireland Chowder Champion 2014 at the 4th All Ireland Chowder Cook-Off, sponsored by Clona which took place in Kinsale on Sunday, 13th April.

Zack

WIN an Keogh's Shamrock Crisps Hamper for St Paddys Day 2014

Tom Keogh, managing director of Keogh’s Family Farm is passionate about potatoes! “We are the only potato growers in the world who offer fresh potatoes and potato crisps from the same farm side by side in the same store and we sleep, eat, breathe potato crisps and potatoes!” he says.

The family have been growing potatoes in north county Dublin for over 200 years. The city of Dublin has grown around the farm over the years!

In 2012 the Keogh Family launched the world’s first-ever shamrock flavoured food delight: Hand-cooked Shamrock and Sour Cream Irish potato Crisps. The flavour for these was developed with the "Living Shamrock" company in Ballinskelligs, Co. Kerry, who have been producing fresh shamrock for the American President since 1952. The crisps have a slight Lemon/Peppery taste almost like freshly picked watercress which is expected as Shamrocks are related to that plant family.

COMPETITION TIME!
I'm delighted this year to be once again associated with Keogh's Farm in having a Hamper of their famous Crisps to Give Away in time for this year's St Patrick's Day!

To WIN this yummy Hamper simply LIKE the Keoghs Facebook Page by Clicking below:

Click the LIKE button and Leave a comment to Enter the Competition

Note: Prize is a hamper selection of crisps and does not include decorations or live shamrocks!

The competition will Close on Wednesday 12th March and hopefully you should get the Hamper in time for St. Patrick's Day (but not guaranteed - it's depending on the winner's location.)

Best of Luck to all!

Zack

And the Winner is..... Catherine Cinnamond (Get in touch with us with your address)

WIN an Irish Whiskey Haggis from McCarthys of Kanturk

Jack McCarthy and his son Tim (the fifth generation of butcher in the family to run the shop) have become one of Ireland’s most prominent and celebrated meat producers. Their meats have won many national & international food awards.

McCarthy's Blackpudding has received acclaim from La Confrérie des Chevaliers du Goûte Boudin (the Brotherhood of the Knights of the Blackpudding). This gave them the highest achievement of any participant in Europe at the event. They received Gold awards for le boudin traditionelle and le boudin a grilliere and the Bronze was for le boudin creatif. It was even served to the Queen at the banquet on her visit to Ireland.

Medal from the La Confrérie des Chevaliers du Goûte Boudin

Jack and Tim use traditional techniques but are always leading the field with innovative new food ideas and they have become some of Ireland’s most prominent and celebrated meat producers. Jack developed their "Boars Head" pudding in 2010 and it was named in honour of Kanturk, "Ceann Tuirc" means the head of the Boar in Gaelic.

Jack & Tim McCarthy are some of Ireland's best known Butchers

For several years Jack has been developing his Haggis range. This is a traditional Scottish dish that combines meats, spices and oatmeal. A traditional recipe for haggis would involve the boiled and minced liver, lungs and heart of a sheep mixed with chopped onions, toasted oatmeal, salt, pepper, and spices. The mixture would then be stuffed into the cleaned sheep’s stomach, sewn up and then boiled gently for several hours.

Jack has developed his own special recipe and he won't even tell me what it is!

The Haggis has now become quite popular outside Scotland and is particularly served around January 25th every year to celebrate Burn's Night, in memory of the Scottish poet Robert Burns - click here for info.

Haggis stacked with mashed turnips and potatoes (neeps & tatties)

The dish is usually served with "neeps and tatties" which are mashed turnip and potatoes, a whiskey sauce, a few readings of some poetry and copious amounts of whiskey to toast the Haggis!

Here's your chance to WIN an Irish Whiskey Haggis from McCarthys of Kanturk!

Jack & Tim have kindly offered us a whopping 3kg Irish Whiskey Haggis as a prize for one lucky reader here on the Irish Food Guide Blog and will be delivered to the winner in time for Burns Night, which is celebrated on January 25th.

Sorry but This competition is open for delivery to residents of Ireland and the UK only.

To enter, you must click the button below to
LIKE the McCarthys of Kanturk Facebook Page


AND you must leave a comment here at the bottom of this post.

The winner will be picked by random number generator on Sunday 19th of January. Thanks to Jack & Tim for this wonderful prize. For more from these famous Irish Butchers see www.jackmccarthy.ie

Good luck everyone!
Zack

UPDATE!
And the Winner is..... Kat Laing. I'll be in contact today. Congrats.