Restaurant Review: The Boat House, Bangor, County Down

Appearances can be deceptive and at first glance, the small stone building perched on the edge of a packed car park in the bustling seaside town of Bangor in County Down looks like the least likely place to find the first restaurant in Northern Ireland to be named in The Sunday Times Top 100 Restaurants List for the UK. This honour was bestowed on The Boat House last November and came hot-on-the-heels of an award of 3 AA Rosettes - making it one of only 4 restaurants in Northern Ireland to achieve this standard.

The Boat House

As we approached the building we quickly realised that we were in the right place and that this diminutive structure, which was originally built in the 1840s, was indeed the home of The Boat House, a restaurant owned by Dutch brothers Joery and Jasper Castel with the former also taking on the role as Head Chef.

Once inside we passed through a shoebox sized reception/bar area with a tiny kitchen located to one side before being shown downstairs to our table in the comparatively spacious dining room. Decorated in neutral tones with monochromatic table settings, the room retains many of its original features including the heavy iron rings where the boats were once moored.

The Boat House has an impressive gin list so we decided to forego wine and kick off our lunch by sampling some. My choice -Jinzu (£7) was an unusual combination of British Gin and Japanese Junmai Sake. I loved the initial burst of fresh juniper which gave way to zesty yuzu citrus flavours and subtle floral hints of cherry blossom. It made a wonderful G&T. By way of contrast, my companion’s Bathtub Gin (£5.50) was infused with a range of botanicals including coriander, cloves, cinnamon and cardamom and was full of bold flavours. It made a very different but nonetheless enjoyable G&T.

 

Bread Roll

Aside from a standard à la carte menu, The Boat House offers a 5-course lunch tasting menu (£40) which we decided to go for. The dishes weren’t listed but we were feeling in adventurous form and more than happy to go-with-the-flow and see what delights Joery Castel had in store for us.

 

After grazing on brioche-like Home-Baked Bread Rolls served with butter drenched in virgin olive oil, we tucked into our first course of Copeland Island Crab, Kohlrabi, Apple, Nasturtium, Russian Kale, Chives and Buttermilk Pearls. This was a beautifully presented dish which possessed a lightness that made it an ideal opener to a 5-course meal. Everything on the plate served a purpose and worked to accentuate the wonderful quality and sweet flavour of the crab meat. Crisp apple appeared in thin slices alongside compressed discs of slightly peppery kohlrabi whilst everything was brought together in a cohesive fashion by the buttermilk which appeared in the form of a dressing and as ‘pearls’. This was a dish which had been executed with sensitivity and an appreciation of the ingredients used.

 

White Asparagus Soup

Known as spargel in Germany where it is hugely popular, white asparagus is not something that you often see on Irish menus as we tend to favour the green un-blanched version. Here it was used to make a delicately flavoured White Asparagus Soup where the slightly herbaceous and gentle nutty flavour of the asparagus still managed to come through. I liked the simple, no frills presentation and smiled at the almost menacing looking shark-fin shaped piece of charred asparagus emerging from the centre of the soup. The soup had a loose consistency but retained enough creaminess to make it feel indulgent.
 

Next up was Loin of Irish Lamb, Black Garlic Espuma, Almond Couscous & Asparagus. I am not normally a huge fan of couscous. I don’t dislike it but most versions I have tried have tended towards the bland and have been unexciting or else loaded with too many other ingredients that overwhelm the palate. In Joery Castel’s hands this was not the case. With a restrained touch, he managed to create one of the best couscous dishes that I have eaten. Well-seasoned and herby with textural contrast provided by toasted flaked almonds, it was topped with a nice selection of salad leaves and a shard of crispy chicken skin. It was the ideal accompaniment to the succulent lamb. I also loved the umami-rich flavour of the very on-trend black garlic presented as an espuma which floated cloud-like on top of the lamb. This was a measured and well-thought out dish.
 



Loin of Lamb

Duck with Beetroot, Plum & Smoked Potato Mousseline was another corker of a dish which made sense on the plate. The duck had been cooked sous-vide in a water bath before being finished off in the pan and was as tender as you can get. Beetroot is a classic pairing with duck but it is a combination that can feel a little tired. Here it appeared in three guises - roasted, as a powder and as a gel. The dish was completed by an almost sticky plum purée and a deeply flavoured jus. It was outstanding.

Our meal finished with a sumptuous dessert of White Chocolate Ganache, Poached Rhubarb, Grenadine & Rhubarb Gel, Lavender Foam, Granola where all the elements spilled out onto the slate on which it was presented in a seemingly random fashion. In reality, of course, they had been placed with precision and a sense of purpose. Rhubarb with its inherent sourness works well against the sweetness of white chocolate and I savoured every mouthful of this delicious dessert.

 



Duck, Beetroot, Plum

In many ways the food in The Boat House appears simple but this belies the technique involved in creating each dish. It is obvious that a lot of thought and planning has gone into the food and whilst each dish is considered, it never feels bound by the shackles of fine dining. Flavours and textures dance together in perfect harmony and along with service delivered in an unpretentious and friendly manner they serve to create a memorable dining experience.

 

The Boat House

1a Seacliff Road

Bangor BT20 5HA

Northern Ireland



Telephone: 00 44 289 146 9253

Website: www.theboathouseni.co.uk

This review first appeared in TheTaste.ie
 

Jinzu Gin

 

Book Review: Sea Gastronomy by Michael O'Meara

From the moment you first delve into Sea Gastronomy - Fish & Shellfish of the North Atlantic you know that you are dealing with a book that has been a labour-of-love for author and well-known Galway Chef Michael O’Meara. Produced in conjunction with Connemara-based publishers Artisan House this encyclopaedic book details the wonderful variety of seafood available around our shores.

In his introduction to the book, food writer Ernie Whalley laments the fact that as an island nation surrounded by some of the world’s best fishing grounds we often appear to be indifferent to the bounty available from our seas. It is hard to argue with Ernie’s analysis because for many of us, the prospect of preparing and cooking fish at home is something that is terrifying and as a result we tend to avoid it.



Sea Gastronomy Cover

As Chef/Proprietor of Oscars a popular Galway restaurant that specialises in cooking seafood, Michael O’Meara is a man who understands and loves his subject. In this book, which is packed full of recipes, he seeks to demystify seafood cookery and tempt us into our kitchens.

 

From an early age Michael knew that he wanted to be a chef and picked up his love of seafood from time spent with his father, a Waterford City man, who loved to go out working on the small fishing and lobster boats operating out of Dunmore East and Ballymacaw. Family holidays to France cemented his love of seafood which he carried with him when he trained as a chef and subsequently worked in the then Michelin-starred restaurant at Dromoland Castle and as private chef to Ryanair founder Tony Ryan. He eventually opened Oscars in 2000 and it has thrived ever since becoming a mainstay on the Galway dining scene.



Fish Cake prep

Running to 440 pages, the book describes the different fish cuts and how to source seafood in clear, concise terms. There are also a huge number of recipes which are laid out in a similarly straightforward fashion. Whilst some of the recipes use unusual ingredients, many also use seafood that is familiar and reasonably easy to acquire. Michael points out that fish and shellfish are wild foods and many are seasonal, so they are not always available but there are plenty of recipes to choose from in the book to cover each month of the year. The book also showcases Michael’s love for food photography and many of the beautiful images contained in it were produced by him.



Oat-Crusted Fish Cakes

I decided to get stuck in and try out some of the recipes starting with the Oatmeal-Coated Fish Cakes which seemed very doable. In his instructions Michael suggests using a variety of fish so I included equal amounts of fresh salmon, cod and hake. Normally, when I make fish cakes I tend to use cooked fish but here the raw fish was chopped into small pieces before being added to an equal amount of cooked and cooled, crushed potatoes. Bound together with a small amount of self-raising flour, some beaten egg and flavoured with herbs and dillisk,  the fish cakes were then formed into 8 equal sized balls which were flattened and pressed into some jumbo oat flakes before being pan-fried in a mixture of oil and butter until golden and cooked all the way through. The resulting fish cakes were moist, extremely tasty and a great hit with my family. I particularly liked the oatmeal coating which took on an almost nutty flavour when pan-fried. This was an incredibly easy recipe which even the most inexperienced cook could attempt.

 



Scallops

My next dish was another seemingly simple recipe for King Scallops with Buttered Leeks and Chorizo. I was unable to get my hands on fresh king scallops but used some queen scallops instead which are smaller than the former and often considered to have sweeter meat. Involving minimal preparation consisting of chopping some leeks and slicing chorizo, this dish took approximately ten minutes to make and was delicious combination of textures and flavours.

Emboldened by my success with the fish cakes and scallops, I then decided to make the Grilled Mackerel with Russian Kale, Roast Cherry Tomatoes and Salsa Rossa. Mackerel are plentiful in our seas and as a result are often inexpensive to buy. For me, they are a hugely underrated fish with a rich oily taste that is second-to-none. I bought two whole fish at an embarrassingly low price and set about filleting them myself. This was easy to do and in no-time-at-all I had four fillets prepared and ready to be cooked. Salsa rossa is a punchy sauce which contains peppers, tomatoes, garlic, anchovies and herbs which, in the recipe given was made using a pestle and mortar, but I decided to employ my mini food-processor which worked a treat. After blanching the kale I then pan-fried the mackerel and tomatoes and assembled the dish. This was another triumph; cheap to prepare and beautiful to look at.

 

Mackerel

To finish my recipe road-test, I made the Pan-Roasted Cod with Pancetta, Tomatoes and Fried Polenta Cakes. I began by making the polenta cakes and after some vigorous stirring and time spent cooling in the fridge, they were ready to be stamped out with a cookie cutter and pan-fried. I also pan-fried the cod and made the pancetta and tomato based sauce. With obvious Italian influences, this was a dish where all the ingredients highlighted the wonderful sweet taste and flaky texture of the cod. Whilst this recipe took longer than the others to complete, it was still easy to follow.



Pan-Roasted Cod

I was really impressed by Michael O’Meara’s book and I am delighted that I now have a reliable ‘go-to’ seafood book in my cookbook collection. Seafood Gastronomy has been nominated for a Gourmand World Cookbook Award for 2016 in the prestigious Cookbook of the Year category which will be announced at the end of this month. He is up against some stiff international competition but after having read through it and cooked many of the recipes from the book, I have my fingers crossed that he will bring the award home to Galway.

This article first appeared in TheTaste.ie

 

Sea Gastronomy - Fish & Shellfish of the North Atlantic

Hardback, 440 pages

Published by Artisan House

Price: €30

 

Salsa Rossa

Restaurant Review: The Candied Walnut, Portarlington, County Laois

I would be lost without the sat-nav on my smartphone. It has successfully guided me to and helped me find the locations of many of the restaurants that I have reviewed around Ireland for The Taste. However on my recent trip to Portarlington I came close to hurling my phone out the car window in a fit of rage as the automated female voice became increasingly insistent that I turn left into a narrow pedestrian walkway after which I would ‘arrive at my destination’!

Celeriac Soup

The aim of my visit to the County Laois town was to dine in The Candied Walnut a popular local restaurant that had been recommended to me. Unconvinced that it was located down the laneway, I decided to park my car and take a little wander on foot… and guess what? There it was - tucked behind a modern apartment block. Relieved to have found it, I was still at a loss to understand how I was expected to drive down to it!

I had arranged to meet my friend Tim, a food blogger for dinner and was delighted to see that he had just arrived and was waiting for me outside the restaurant. It was busy on the Wednesday evening that we visited but this due to the fact that the main ground-floor dining room had been booked for a large group attending a medical conference. We were greeted warmly and led up to our table in the small and cosy upstairs dining room.

Spicy Chicken Wings

During the week a set dinner menu is offered but an à la carte menu is available at weekends. The Candied Walnut is also renowned for its Sunday Lunch offering. Priced at an unbelievable €21 per person for 2 courses or €25 per person for 3 courses, the set menu includes a nice range of dishes and we had no difficulty deciding what to order.

 

First up was a surprise pre-starter of Celeriac Soup which came presented in an espresso cup. Chopped chives were strewn on the surface of the soup and added a gentle onion flavour to the well-made, nicely creamy soup and we both enjoyed it.

 

Pork Belly

My starter of Hot & Spicy Chicken Wings, Celery Batons, Blue Cheese Dip looked like fairly standard fare at first but after taking a few bites I realised how good they were. The hot & spicy coating was as advertised but also possessed a complexity of flavour that you don’t often find. I loved how an initial sweetness gave way to spicy heat that complemented rather than engulfed the subtle flavour of the succulent chicken meat. I happily gnawed away at the wings, picking as much meat off them as I could. The accompanying blue cheese dip was extremely tasty but I would have preferred a slightly rougher texture with some small nuggets of cheese still visible.

 

Tim’s Slow-Cooked Pork Belly, 60° Egg yolk, Clonakilty Black Pudding was a beautifully presented and skillfully cooked dish. Generous cubes of soft slow-cooked pork belly were presented alongside spicy full-flavoured black pudding and a buttery-soft potato fondant. Unlike many other black puddings which are made using pork, Clonakilty uses beef along with oatmeal, beef blood and spices that results in a rich, textured pudding which was perfect with the pork. The sauce created by the egg yolk when pierced and a silky smooth celeriac purée accented the rich meatiness of this excellent dish.

 

Pan-Fried Cod

My main course of Pan-Fried Cod, Pea Purée, Fondant Potato, Beurre Blanc was another nicely presented and well-seasoned dish, comprising a large piece of well-cooked cod served on a bed of peppery wilted spinach and a pea purée. Whilst the purée could have been a touch smoother it was full of the wonderful sweet flavour of the peas and worked well with meaty cod and the fabulous beurre blanc.

 

Tim’s Wild Mushroom, Truffle Oil & Pine Nut Risotto, Rocket Leaves, Aged Parmesan Cheese, Panko Egg was a substantial but attractive looking dish with amazing depth of flavour. I’m not usually a huge fan of truffle oil as it can dominate. Here it had been applied with restraint and successfully managed to accentuate the flavour of the wild mushrooms without taking over. The dish was finished with some crispy parmesan wafers that added textural contrast and a deep-fried breadcrumbed egg which sat imperiously on top of the risotto, releasing its saucy centre when pierced with a knife. Whilst we enjoyed the wonderful flavours of the risotto, we both felt that it could have had a slightly looser texture.

 

Mushroom Risotto

Poached pears can be tricky to get right but my dessert of Poached Pear, Red Wine Syrup, Hazelnut Ice-Cream was an absolute joy to eat. Two perfectly poached pear halves sat side-by side on the plate and looked absolutely beautiful with a pale pink colour from the red wine syrup they had been poached in. Simply topped with small scoops of a well-flavoured hazelnut ice-cream with some candied walnuts on the side, this dish was a perfect example of how less is often more. I loved it.

 

Tim’s Banana Cheesecake, Ginger Biscuit was presented as a layered dessert in a small Kilner jar. A ginger biscuit crumb base sat under a cheesecake cream and some salted caramel. Finally the cheesecake was topped with some freshly sliced bananas with some crunchy candied walnuts on the side. This was a dessert with broad appeal which aimed to please and this it succeeded in doing.

 

Poached Pears

Service throughout the meal was outstanding and delivered enthusiastically. We both had a real sense that staff deeply cared that we enjoyed the whole experience and we did. The Candied Walnut under Chef/Proprietor Barry Hayden is producing some extremely tasty food and for the price we paid represents astonishing value for money. We both left with full bellies and a feeling that all was right with the world.

 

The Candied Walnut

Kilnacourt House

Bracklone Street

Portarlington

County Laois

 

Telephone: 0578636360

Website: www.thecandiedwalnut.ie

This article first appeared in TheTaste.ie

Banana Cheesecake

 

Restaurant Review: Ard Bia at Nimmos, Spanish Arch, Galway

There is something about Ard Bia at Nimmos that, for me, represents all that is great about Irish food. I have dined there numerous times but find that I am regularly drawn back to it when in Galway. These days all restaurants worth their salt declare a commitment to using local seasonal produce but in Ard Bia this is achieved with such ease and without a hint of smugness resulting in food that is delicious from the first mouthful to the last. I find this hugely appealing.

 

Bread & Dillisk Butter

Located a mere stone’s throw from the historic Spanish Arch, the restaurant is housed in the 18th Century Custom House on the east bank of the River Corrib which was rough and angry-looking on the windy Tuesday evening that I dined there recently. Inside, the restaurant was packed and buzzing with the chatter of happy diners enjoying their meals. Tuesdays can be very quiet in the restaurant world but not in the hugely popular Ard Bia so I was glad that I had a reserved a table.

 

I had arranged to meet my friend Brendan for dinner who was already waiting at our candle-lit table at the back of the restaurant near the kitchen pass. The dining room has an artisan, almost bohemian feel to it with its solid wooden tables and mismatched bentwood chairs. As I sat down Brendan and I immediately started swapping stories about all we had been up to, pausing every now-and-again to nibble on a delicious Brown Soda Bread which came served in an enamel bowl with an excellent Wild Garlic & Dillisk Butter.

 

Ham Hock

The succinct menu in Ard Bia changes regularly to reflect the changing seasons. It includes some interesting dishes and it is worth noting that vegetarians are well catered for. We quickly made our choices from the Spring Menu and relaxed back into our conversation.

 

Brendan’s Pea & Broad Bean, Wild Garlic Risotto, Hazelnut Picada (€8) starter was everything a good risotto should be with perfectly cooked rice used as a vehicle for other ingredients. It was enlivened by the addition of whole peas and broad beans whilst the gentle fragrance of wild garlic emphasised the flavour of the vegetables without overpowering their sweet taste. A hazelnut picada added a spicy texture to create a memorable plate of food. This was a beautiful looking dish and we both loved it.

 

Boxty Cake

My starter of Colleran’s Ham Hock, Pickled Shallot, Burnt Apple, Béarnaise (€8.50) was another superb offering full of well-balanced flavours. A light vinegar dressing cut through the richness of the soft shredded ham hock preventing it from seeming too rich whilst pickled shallots added a bittersweet element; all of which were wonderful with the crispy wafer of bread. A velvety smooth apple purée and a piquant béarnaise sauce completed the dish.

 

I have to admit that I am a committed meat-lover but found that I was immediately drawn to the Wild Garlic Boxty Cake, Sautéed Mushrooms, Tarragon Crème Fraîche, Courgette Ribbons, Red Chard (€18) main course dish on the menu. I was not disappointed. The star of the show - the potato boxty cake - could so easily have tasted bland and starchy but luckily the potatoes still retained some bite and texture. The boxty cake had been well-seasoned and included a good amount of wild garlic. It was paired with a vibrant looking beetroot purée and topped with a generous amount of sautéed mushrooms, some lightly pickled courgette ribbons and finished with a tart and slightly sour crème fraîche dressing packed full of tarragon.

 



Pan-Roasted Atlantic Cod

Swede is such an underrated vegetable so we were delighted to see it included on the menu. Brendan’s Pan-Roasted Atlantic Cod, Black Pudding & Swede Mash, Smoked Oysters Cream, Tender Stem Broccoli (€24) was a substantial and interesting plate of food that satisfied on a number of fronts. Firstly, I would never have thought of combining black pudding and swede together but with its rich earthy flavours it was truly outstanding and a perfect partner for the meaty cod. Secondly, the smoked oyster cream was a decadent addition but brought everything together with a certain panache. Given the size of our mains, there was probably no need to order any accompaniments, but this didn't stop us and we both thoroughly enjoyed our shared side of Honey & Rosemary Roast Carrots (€4.50).

 



Plum & Nettle Cake

Although we initially considered finishing our meal with a shared cheeseboard we eventually decided to order a dessert each. Brendan was delighted with his Plum & Nettle Cake, Walnut Parfait, Honeycomb (€7) but felt that the nettle flavour of the moist dense cake was a little lost against the assertive flavours of the other dessert elements. Having said that, he still managed to lick his plate clean. We both loved my Poached Pear, Rice Pudding Ice-Cream, Mint, Oat Crumb (€7) which was sweet and fruity in all the right ways. The pear had been poached to perfection and was soft and juicy and a pleasure to eat. The accompanying rice pudding ice-cream and oaty crumb emphasised the ambrosial character of the pear.



On the recommendation of our waiter, we washed everything down with a bottle of an organic Italian Ciu Ciu Bacchus (€29) which, with its fruity nose and crisp acidity worked especially well with both our full-flavoured mains.

 



Poached Pear

Service in Ard Bia appears relaxed and laid-back in keeping with the overall ambiance in the restaurant but is efficient and professionally delivered. There is something so effortlessly cool and cosmopolitan about Ard Bia at Nimmos and yet it is very much a restaurant with a sense-of-place. Owner Aoibheann MacNamara may originally hail from Donegal but she has developed a restaurant that inherently understands and appreciates what Galway is all about. The menu borrows ideas from other cuisines but the food still manages to feel very Irish. It is not hard to see why it so popular with both locals and visitors to the city alike.

 

Ard Bia at Nimmos

Spanish Arch

Long Walk

Galway

 

Telephone: 091561114

Website: www.ardbia.com

 

This article first appeared in TheTaste.ie

 

Ard Bia at Nimmos