Hungry Travelers - Page 53 of 83 - Bringing the tastes of travel back home

Co Couture embodies the artistry of chocolate

Posted on December 7, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

Deirdre McCanny had never made a chocolate in her life when she decided to leave her job in international sales and marketing to start a chocolate shop in Belfast. From modest beginnings in her apartment, she moved into her cozy shop with a big workroom in back in December 2009. It's just a few steps down from the sidewalk on the corner of Donegall Square East, literally around the corner from Belfast City Hall. It has become, as Deirdre calls it, “a chocolate oasis in the city center.” The first time we visited, a regular customer had just stopped in for a cup of hot chocolate and a cherry-sencha truffle as a treat at the end of the work day. (The tart cherry and herbaceous...Read More

Hadskis hits sweet spot of great casual bistro fare

Posted on December 6, 2016December 1, 2016 by Pat and David

Chef and restaurateur Niall McKenna bet on Belfast's revival and won. After opening the posh James Street South in 2003, he got hammered with the economic downturn of 2008. So he transformed the upscale dining venue into a great-value steakhouse, The Bar and Grill. As Belfast began to climb out of the economic doldrums, he followed up in October 2014 with Hadskis (33 Donegall St., 28 9032 5444, hadskis.co.uk) in the suddenly desirable Cathedral Quarter. Once again, he hit the sweet spot of serving the kind of food people want to eat at a price they're happy to pay. You might have to do a little looking to find Hadskis. It's off Donegall Street in Commercial Court, one of those alleyway cul-de-sacs in the Cathedral...Read More

Enjoy a millionaire’s tea at a pauper’s price

Posted on December 4, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

Aptly named Good Food & Wine is a gourmet treat shop and casual cafe that serves afternoon tea all day long. It's tucked into the Queen's Arcade shopping center between Fountain Street and Donegall Place, Not only is it steps from Belfast City Hall and the Linen Hall Library, it's also handy to the central shopping district. Mind you, afternoon tea here is not the lifted pinkie, fine porcelain, hushed ambiance formal tea. For that experience, visit the nearby Merchant Hotel (16 Skipper St., 28 9023 4888, themerchanthotel.com), the poshest address in the city. But at £7.50 per person, it's hard to beat Good Food & Wine for a tiered tray of finger sandwiches and sweet treats and a pot of brewed looseleaf Belfast Blend....Read More

Sawers gourmet shop in Belfast champions Irish flavors

Posted on December 1, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

Sawers was established in 1897 to bring gourmet foods from around the globe to the people of Belfast. It is the oldest deli in Northern Ireland. The purveyor even provided the R.M.S. Titanic with game, seafood, cheese and other delicacies for its infamous maiden voyage. The people of Belfast can still rely on Sawers more than a century after that ship's larder full of caviar and pheasant ended up at the bottom of the Atlantic. They can stop by to shop for Spanish hams, Italian pastas, French pâté and escargot, Greek olives, and Turkish candies. At the holidays, the place buzzes with people filling gift “hampers” with exotic gourmet goodies. But Sawers also cherishes great Irish foods, making it a must-stop for overseas gourmands. The...Read More

John Long’s serves apotheosis of fish and chips

Posted on November 28, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

Owner John Copeland is fond of calling John Long's Fish & Chips (39 Athol Street, 028 9032 1848, www.johnlongs.com) one of the “seven wonders of Belfast.” That puts his modest eatery right up there with Titanic Belfast (which relates the tale of the doomed ship built in the local shipyards) and the Crown Liquor Saloon (the 1820s bar known for its ornate decoration). But Copeland is onto something. John Long's is a Belfast institution. Founded in 1914 by its namesake to serve fish and chips to the workers in the city's thriving linen mills, it's the city's longest established fish and chips shop. Located five blocks due west from City Hall, John Long's is a little off the beaten path. But we knew we had...Read More

Belfast’s OX treats Irish food with hugs and kisses

Posted on November 24, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

We weren't surprised to eat foie gras and truffles at OX in Belfast, which won its first Michelin star last spring after opening in March 2013. (It's one of two starred restaurants in Belfast.) Restaurateurs believe that foie gras and truffles must appear on a menu before Michelin will award even one star. No doubt there are exceptions, but we haven't encountered them. What was a delightful surprise was that such highfalutin ingredients were the exception rather than the rule at OX (1 Oxford Street, 28 9031 4121, oxbelfast.com). The truly defining moments in the spectacular autumn tasting menu were those dishes where humble, local ingredients sang. OX aims to serve brilliantly conceived, highly seasonal food. The price is low for fine dining (£50 for...Read More

St. George’s Market in Belfast shows what’s fresh

Posted on November 21, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

We always advise friends who want to eat well while traveling to spend some time in the local fresh food market. It's the best way to see first-hand what's in season and fresh so that you can make good choices when perusing a restaurant menu. In Belfast, Northern Ireland, the best place to head is St. George's Market at 12-20 East Bridge Street. It's open Fridays from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The handsome red brick market building opened in 1890 to sell butter, chicken, and eggs. Its offerings have multiplied since then and recent refurbishments have made it one of the leading fresh food markets in the United Kingdom. You'll find freshly dug potatoes, beets, and carrots...Read More

Belfast holidays close out Year of Food and Drink

Posted on November 19, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

With no Thanksgiving to break up the autumn, folks in Northern Ireland start looking ahead to Christmas as soon as Halloween is over. That doesn't mean that Belfast lacks for reasons to give thanks. With all its occasional rough spots, Northern Ireland has enjoyed nearly a generation of peace since the Good Friday Peace Accord of 1998. The Peace Wall (below) has become a huge tourist attraction. Belfast has blossomed as a cosmopolitan, sophisticated city proud of its Irish roots. Nowhere is the renaissance more obvious than on the gastronomic front. Ireland north and south spent 2016 celebrating the island's great provender, amazing farmers, and legendary fishermen during the Year of Food and Drink. Belfast's chefs have broadly embraced that renewed local pride, and menus...Read More

Bravura Navarra wine hits all the high notes

Posted on November 17, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

Spain's D.O. Navarra wine district nestles just east of La Rioja like two lovers spooning in bed. With much the same soils, the same Río Ebro influence, and a millennium-long winemaking tradition, Navarra has everything to make great wines. It even has some of the oldest plots of the Garnacha grape in northern Spain. Eleven Navarra producers came through Boston last night showcasing one wine each at the terrific Spanish restaurant Taberna de Haro (999 South Beacon St., Brookline, 617-277-8272, tabernaboston.com). Chef Deborah Hansen's crew passed tapas as we tasted. Among them were the stunning deconstructed version of her salt cod saffron meatballs, albóndigas de bacalao, shown above. We tasted blends mostly dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot. A few were jazzed up with Syrah,...Read More

Find homey holiday tastes in these New England stores

Posted on November 17, 2016June 9, 2020 by Pat and David

As the Eating Season approaches, we start craving certain flavors that we associate with the winter holidays spent with family. We want the taste of home—whether that's a cuisine from the country where our ancestors originated or something forged by Norman Rockwell and Betty Crocker. Truth is, we love to forage for festive foodstuffs. As a service to our New England readers, here are five essential shops around the region where we find special holiday foods. This post is adapted from a piece we wrote last year in the Boston Globe travel section. BRITISH AISLES Denise and Gerry Pressinger founded British Aisles more than two decades ago so that ex-pats like themselves could get everyday British foods such as HP Sauce and the pickled onions...Read More