North County San Diego Food & Drink Travel Guide

California has long been synonymous with a healthy living and great food.  If it’s local, organic and hand made the Californians will embrace it wholeheartedly.  But forget the big cities - the ‘burbs is where great food is happening, and none more so that the exploding and vibrant foodie culture in North County San Diego (North County for short) in Southern California.

I moved to Ireland 13 years ago, and was visiting for many a year before that. Even in those heady days of my earliest culinary adventures I had heard, seen and tasted the proof of Kinsale’s reputation for being the “gourmet capital of Ireland.” 

Clonakilty is a town that is well rehearsed in the traditional Irish Céad Míle Fáilte. If the town had a middle name it would be ‘Welcome’. Blessed by both its position to the Atlantic Coast and award winning Inchydoney Beach, the rolling verdant hills peppered with happy cows, Clonakilty is a place that’s more than comfortable in its own skin.

North County San Diego Food & Drink Travel Guide

California has long been synonymous with a healthy living and great food.  If it’s local, organic and hand made the Californians will embrace it wholeheartedly.  But forget the big cities – the ‘burbs is where great food is happening, and none more so that the exploding and vibrant foodie culture in North County San Diego (North County for short) in Southern California.

This article was first published on TheTaste.ie in November 2016.

I have visited “SoCal” a few times now and in this article I am letting you in on a little pocket of foodie heaven that is far from the maddening tourist crowds.  Let me take you on a little culinary tour of North County!

Continue reading “North County San Diego Food & Drink Travel Guide”

Kinsale Food and Drink Guide

I moved to Ireland 13 years ago, and was visiting for many a year before that. Even in those heady days of my earliest culinary adventures I had heard, seen and tasted the proof of Kinsale’s reputation for being the “gourmet capital of Ireland.” 

This article was first published on TheTaste.ie in July 2016. It has been updated in April 2018.

http://thetaste.ie/wp/kinsale-food-drink-travel-guide/

Over the years, it has fought hard to retain its crown as many other towns and cities across Ireland have asserted their right to be as equally acknowledged on the grand stage of culinary virtuosity as its founding father: Galway, Waterford, Dublin – naturally; as well as the sibling rivalry of the myriad other West Cork towns discreetly nudging up alongside Kinsale.

The challenge is this: when you have self-proclaimed yourself the Numero Uno in something as relentlessly creative and merciless as the food world, where do you go from there?  And how do you do it to satisfy both locals and tourists alike to keep things growing apace? Continue reading “Kinsale Food and Drink Guide”

Clonakilty Food & Drink Travel Guide – From Brewery Town to Foodie Town

Clonakilty is a town that is well rehearsed in the traditional Irish Céad Míle Fáilte. If the town had a middle name it would be ‘Welcome’. Blessed by both its position to the Atlantic Coast and award winning Inchydoney Beach, the rolling verdant hills peppered with happy cows, Clonakilty is a place that’s more than comfortable in its own skin.

This article was first published on TheTaste.ie in July 2016. Information has been updated April 2018.

Whilst often times Kinsale is hailed as the gourmet destination of West Cork, Clonakilty is its more understated cousin that is quietly growing its reputation as a world-class gourmet destination.

Clonakilty’s proud food history dates back to the 1600’s and the market that remains still so vital to the community today. For nearly 200 years, the town was home to the Deasy & Co brewhouse, famous for its Clonakilty Wrastler porter, giving rise to “The Brewery Town” moniker. The old Mill, long since silenced, would have been vital to the brewing industry as well other essential produce; and the fertile soil lent itself to great agriculture, both animal and vegetable.
Continue reading “Clonakilty Food & Drink Travel Guide – From Brewery Town to Foodie Town”

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