Afternoon in Wicklow

Instead of our usual Saturday routine of going into the City Centre we decided to go towards the coast and head south to Greystones.

The weather was fab - Ireland really is beautiful in the sun! If you've ever done the Bray to Greystones cliff walk you'll know that this is a stunning part of the country. Here's a reminder though... 

This weekend though we drove to Greystones instead of being that energetic.

We had been to The Happy Pear (www.thehappypear.ie) after doing the cliff walk previously and loved it! 

They've an incredible healthy organic food shop and a lovely restaurant / cafe serving up lots of healthy treats. I have to be honest though I've only had cake and coffee here. Well I say "only" their coffee is nicely made and their sweet treats are just yum! I chose a chocolate tart on the last visit and Sean had their lemon and lime cake (I think it was courgette cake but can't remember for sure!) 

This time I went with a macaroon. Sean just had a mango smoothie (he's on soft food diet after a wisdom tooth removal) Was sooo nice sitting outside in the sunshine enjoying my coffee and macaroon listening to the tunes belting out of their festive kart. 

It's definitely worth making this your go to spot after the cliff walk (plus it's not too far from the DART station if you're not feeling the return walk!) 

After leaving The Happy Pear we then headed to Avoca in Kilmacanogue... I love coming here. They've two cafes (one is more formal sit down in their conservatory and the other is a self service type) I can't fault the food here at all. My firm favourite has got to be their plain scone with jam and cream. Be prepared to end up looking messy if you choose this :-) 

Since they revamped their store they now have a James Whelan butchers, Poulet Bonne Femme rotisserie, Mitchell's wines shop, Michie Sushi, a fresh food counter (I think it's by Roberts?) as well as the same great choice of fresh produce and sweet treats. 

Picked up some mashed potato, lemon posset and a Sprout pressed juice drink -Vit ABC (carrot, apple, passion fruit and orange) I got myself a Poulet Bonne Femme roast chicken sandwich with everything. These sandwiches are made on sourdough with rotisserie chicken, salad and whole grain mustard. They're just delicious!!! 

Plane food

I don't know about you but I usually dislike the smell of food cooked on planes. No matter what it is it always smells the same to me - stomach turning!

Well Aer Lingus have been improved things since they worked with Clodagh McKenna to create Clodagh's Kitchen for Bia. The sandwiches I've tried are v good but now they're doing Tayto Crisp sandwich packs on board!!! Pure nostalgia and utter genius (like Tayto's pop up shop a few months ago). Is there a better way to start your holiday (after airport pints of course) :-) 

A mainly Creative Quarter evening

First stop of the evening was Beer Market  (http://www.galwaybaybrewery.com/beermarket) on High Street..

The taps have changed since we were there last week. This time I tried Buxton Brewery Red Raspberry Rye (http://www.buxtonbrewery.co.uk) It was quite tart but v nice.

For dinner we went to Soder + Ko (http://www.soderandko.ie) on George's Street.

We spotted this street art on our way (the laneway between Dublin Castle and George's Street at the side of The George) gorgeous isn't it?? 

We had a great spot near the front of the restaurant and this was my view. It wasn't that busy when we got there but it filled up pretty quickly. You can see all the way through to the kitchen and you can watch the magic at work while you're waiting for your food to arrive or even just over a drink... 

We chose a number of small plates to share... We went with the scallops ceviche, chicken pot stickers, hot beef and sweet rice, steamed Duck bun and fried sweet potato. Everything was perfectly cooked, well presented and just absolutely delish! 

The staff here are lovely and there's such a nice, chilled out atmosphere. 

Scallops ceviche, lime, chilli and fennel

Potstickers - crispy chicken dumplings 

Charred peppered beef fillet, sticky rice, black bean pesto and quail egg yolk

Roast duck steamed bun, Asian salad and Hoi Sin 

Fried sweet potato, Parmesan & Rosemary Sea Salt

To finish we had cocktails here. Sean chose an Amaretto Sour and I had a Soder Cider... One of their barmen has made it to the Diageo World Class competition finals. These were fab! All I can say is you've gotta try here

Amaretto Sour 

Soder Cider

After here we went to The Long Hall (http://www.discoverireland.ie/Activities-Adventure/the-long-hall/51633) which is one of the oldest pubs in Dublin. It's a Victorian heritage pub and it is beautiful. Just look at the Heineken tap... 

The alcohol selection is immense! From the usual Guinness etc to a decent craft selection. I chose Stonewell Cider.

This place does get jammed but grab a spot and prop up the bar. 

Next and last stop of the night was The Secret Bar / Bar With No Name (www.kellysdublin.com) on Fade Street. A hip spot that isn't quite so secret anymore! 

We were lucky and managed to get a table and some comfy seats. 

We had planned only one drink here and then move on. I tried the Lefevre cider first and then went onto cocktails when we decided to stay here as there was a really good atmosphere here.

Little stunner

Passionfruit caiprinha 

Kir Royale

If you're looking for great cocktails and for something slightly different then this is somewhere you should try. 

Suso Dublin

A very quick post on Suso Gelato on O'Connell Street.

Stopped in here after a Sunday afternoon shopping (On the Northside of the river)

This is in the middle of O'Connell Street beside Beshoffs. 

They have a choice of flavours. Coffee smelled pretty good too! I did notice some people having both - is that actually a thing (I mean besides iced coffee!!) 

I chose the medium cup and went with the cookies and the Belgian Chocolate.

Lovely flavours. Really enjoyed it! Nice treat for a nice bank holiday Sunday..

Probably a good place to get dessert after a visit to Beshoffs :) 

Thursday night date night

To stave off the post holiday blues we booked a table at AVenue by Nick Munier.

First stop on the way was Beer Market (http://www.galwaybaybrewery.com/beermarket) which is the new Galway Bay Brewery bar in Christchurch where they're "only" serving beer here. 

The tap and bottle selection is bloody impressive!

Anyhow after checking the list I decided on Founders Blushing Monk.

I just want to say that €6.50 a glass might seem steep but I think that's pretty good considering it's just shy of €22 for a 750ml bottle in most off licences in Dublin!! 

Was quite a nice Dublin evening and we strolled down Dame Street to Temple Bar until we got to AVenue (www.avenue.ie) 

This is the new Nick Munier (of Masterchef Ireland and Hell's Kitchen fame) venture... 

Yes this place is in the centre of touristville but there's just something about the place that as soon as you walk through the door you'll forget that's where you are! 

I got a voucher from the taste.ie so it worked out at just under €50 a three course meal for two plus a bottle of wine. A great deal if you ask me but even without that they do a three course set meal for €25 per person. I thought there was a good selection to choose from and that's bloody brilliant value for a restaurant in Temple Bar by any means.

So to the food..

For starters I had the chicken liver parfait with brioche. Sean chose the tartare of salmon...

For main course I had the butternut squash ravioli and Sean went with the hake.

Dessert (most important!) was apple and cinnamon doughnuts with dips. Sean tried their pear shortcake special (I think!) and Americanos to finish. 

So what can I say? I loved everything about it! Awesome service, the food is great (tastes better than it looks - I don't think my photos does it justice) and v well presented, comfy seats and the tables are also nicely spaced out. I can't actually describe it other than to add there's such a nice buzz about the place! 

By the time we were leaving the place was filling up and I think they turned some walk ins away so book in advance because you have just got to try here!!!

So we left Avenue and went to Vintage Cocktail Club VCC Dublin (www.vintagecocktailclub.com) for a drink

If there's no doorman there ring the doorbell and who knows what you'll discover! 

 

There's a huge selection of cocktails to choose from in that book! I went for a Tiki Peeky and Sean chose the Cuban Rum Cake. 

Candlelight cocktails and I like that they served water with the cocktails - we got this in Berlin last weekend and thought it was a great idea!

Left Temple Bar and went back to where the evening began, Beer Market, for another Blushing Monk!