Ireland's Best Scone Winner is Granny Griffin in Cork

Following thousands of votes, hundreds of nominations, ten finalists and an expert judging panel, the winner of Ireland’s Best Scone 2015 has just been announced as Granny Griffin's Scones from The Griffins Garden Centre & Restaurant in Dripsey, Co. Cork.

At a Yeats-inspired afternoon tea in Dublin’s Merrion Hotel, Griffins Garden Centre was crowned home of Ireland’s Best Scone, receiving a cash prize and more importantly, the prestige of baking the best scones in Ireland, as voted for by the public and judged by some of Ireland’s top foodies.

Ireland’s Best Scone, run by Goodall’s and Odlums, two mainstays in Irish baking, has been running for four years and year-on-year the competition has increased in terms of both nominations and votes.

In late April, nominations were received from hundreds of people via twitter and facebook, and over the past two weeks, over two thousand votes were cast by the public for their favourite scone from the list of ten finalists.

This year, the public votes accounted for 50% of the judging. The other 50% of the score was awarded by the expert panel which included Catherine Leyden, Odlums’ brand ambassador; Paul Kelly, Executive Pastry Chef at the Merrion Hotel; author of ‘Food from an Irish Garden’, Fiona Dillon; and winner of Goodall’s Best Scone 2014, Graham Herterich aka The Cupcake Bloke.

Opened in 1995, Griffins Garden Centre & café is situated in the heart of Dripsey. It’s owned by Margaret Griffin and marks 30 years in business this year. Griffins is nestled in the heart of the Lee Valley, and its garden restaurant and café are renowned for their quality produce, with regular customers travelling from across Co. Cork, and from further afield to visit Griffins.

On winning the top accolade and now being home to Ireland’s Best Scone, Margaret Griffin said: “Being named as a finalist in Ireland’s Best Scone in early May was incredible. We received huge support from our customers and the local community throughout the voting stages but to be named as the overall winner of Ireland’s Best Scone in unbelievable!

“We’re very particular about the ingredients that we use and our recipe has been passed down through the generations from Granny Griffin. Our head baker, Mary O’Mahony, aka our very own Granny Griffin bakes each batch of scones with spoonfuls of love and care. We're now home to Ireland’s Best Scone and it’ll be scones all round when we take the winning plaque back to our hometown of Dripsey," she added.

Commenting on why the winning scones from Griffins are so good, TV chef and Odlums’ Brand Ambassador, Catherine Leyden, said: “Light and delicious, the fruit scones from Griffins were just a joy to taste, leaving the judges and myself wanting to sample more!

“I would like to congratulate Margaret and her team, and all of the finalists, for the quality of their baking. All of the finalists represent the unsung heroes of the Irish baking scene and are helping to further Ireland’s reputation as a foodie nation.” 

Created by Goodall’s of Ireland and in its fourth year, Ireland’s Best Scone has been a phenomenal success since its inception in 2012, commenting on why the competition was created, David Egan, Brand Manager at Goodall’s explains: “The traditions of home baking are being celebrated by so many people across the country and Ireland’s Best Scone gives us at Goodall’s and Odlums the opportunity to help celebrate these local gems on a national stage. Hailing from across Ireland, we had a superb line-up of ten finalists who are already famous locally for their delicious scones. But we had to choose a winner and both the public and our judging panel agreed that the traditional fruit scones from Dripsey in Co. Cork are simply exceptional!”

The list of all ten finalists for Ireland’s Best Scone were: 

Sophia Housing Café, Cork Street, Dublin 

Griffins Garden Centre, Dripsey, Co. Cork

Horse and Jockey Hotel, Thurles, Co. Tipperary

Limerick Strand Hotel, Limerick City, Co. Limerick

Ashdown Park Hotel, Gorey, Co. Wexford

Fitzpatrick’s Shop, Glounthaune, Co. Cork

Meet You Here Cafe, Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon

Mitchells Cafe, Kylemore, Co. Galway 

Lena’s Tea Rooms, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim

Savoury Fare, Athlone, Co. Westmeath

Griffins Garden Centre & Restaurant is situated in Dripsey, Co. Cork. Open seven days, further information can be located on www.griffinsgardencentre.ie

Ireland’s Best Scone competition will be back in 2016 so watch out for information on www.goodalls.ie

Love Irish Food launch the Food Talent Award 2015

Love Irish Food has recently launched an online competition called the “Love Irish Food – Food Talent Award” that will run over the next three months, until 5th of August 2015. 

Food lovers, talented cooks, food bloggers, Instagram stars, aspiring food stylists and photographers and are called to post a recipe and snap of their creation with Love Irish Food products.

The winner will see their very own recipe published and professionally photographed by renowned photographer Trevor Hart and styled by celebrated food stylist, Sally Dunne. It will then be published in national newspapers with their photograph reaching hundreds of thousands of people. The winner will also receive a luscious hamper of Cadbury Dairymilk, Keelings Irish Strawberries and Avonmore Cream to create some amazing delights for friends and family.

Kieran Rumley of Love Irish Food, said “The Love Irish Food – Food Talent Award" is a recognition of the hidden food talent and skill in Ireland. The beauty of this competition is that the winner could be an upcoming food blogger with a few thousand followers or talented home cook who is renowned for their baking delights in the local area. We want to showcase the hidden skill and talent and recognise a person whose recipe shines. It does not have to be elaborate, just a celebration of the Love Irish Food products that we all use every day.”

Each week Love Irish Food will announce (on the Love Irish Food Facebook and Instagram pages) three compulsory ingredients to include in that week's recipe. To enter the competition, food lovers simply have to create a recipe using the named ingredients. Participants simply include the Full Recipe with a photo of their completed creation and post on the Love Irish Food Facebook page or Instagram page.

The overall winner will be selected by a panel of judges and will subsequently enjoy a Food Styling Masterclass with Ireland’s celebrated food stylist Sally Dunne and will see their recipes professionally photographed by renowned food photographer Trevor Hart. 

The winning recipe and photo will appear in the Irish Independent and Irish Times weekend magazines before the end of the year.

The deadline for entries is midnight on Wednesday, 5th August 2015. The winner will be notified via a reply to their Instagram/ Facebook upload. The winner will also be announced via the Love Irish Food Facebook page.

For more information visit www.LoveIrishFood.ie or the Love Irish Food Facebook/Instagram pages.

And you can now Follow Love Irish Food on Twitter @LoveIrishFood

Zack.

Irish celebrity chef, Colin Fassnidge, showcases Irish Food on Australian TV

Tourism Ireland, the organisation responsible for promoting the island of Ireland overseas as a leading holiday destination, recently unveiled its new three-year strategy to grow visitor numbers from Australia. The strategy sets out challenging and ambitious targets which will see, among other things, the number of Australian visitors to the island of Ireland grow by at least 20% by the end of 2017. 

An Australian TV show, My Ireland with Colin, has lately been beaming images of Ireland, our spectacular scenery and our world-class food into the homes of more than one million Australians in a brand new cookery series fronted by a Dublin-born chef and restaurateur named Colin Fassnidge.

The show is a new two-part cookery series which sees Fassnidge return home to discover the changing face of food in Ireland. Channel 7 in Australia, working with Tourism Ireland in Sydney, produced the new series which has already aired to an audience of more than one million viewers.

Colin Fassnidge, the Dublin-born chef and restaurateur is a big celebrity in Australia

Colin has become a celebrity chef in his adopted Australia and runs two successful restaurants (Four in Hand and Fourteen) in Sydney. He is a guest judge on a popular cooking game show called My Kitchen Rules, which airs in Australia (also on Channel 7). Last autumn, he rode a Ducati 1200 around the island of Ireland, followed closely by his film crew capturing footage for My Ireland with Colin seeking out some of our culinary delights, local produce and hidden gems. He visited his family, went on a tour of his childhood haunts in Dublin and re-discovered the spectacular scenery of Ireland.

Diane Butler, Tourism Ireland’s manager for Australia and New Zealand, said: “We were delighted to work with Channel 7, to bring Colin Fassnidge and his crew to Ireland to film this brand new TV series. It’s a fantastic opportunity to get positive exposure in Australia, showcasing Irish food at its best. The island of Ireland is becoming increasingly well-known for its food offering, with a reputation for high quality, natural produce used in both traditional and innovative dishes. My Ireland with Colin is also showcasing our spectacular scenery to more than one million people, helping to inspire ‘foodies’ and prospective holidaymakers to come and discover the culinary delights of Ireland for themselves.”

 Diane added: “Building on the strong performance of recent years, and the increased number of one-stop flights via the Middle East, we have set challenging targets for the 2015-2017 period. I am confident that our new, focused strategy will deliver on the targets we have set for growth in Australian visitors, between now and 2017.” 

Australia gets a taste of Achill Mountain Lamb and Newport Black Pudding!

It's great to see Irish people all over the world helping to promote their home country as a premier holiday destination and as a blossoming Food Tourism destination. With our food producers and chefs here in Ireland preparing some of the finest food in the world and our national tourism promoters and partners investing in international advertising of that fact, I really believe we are on the cusp of a new dawn in Irish Tourism - Food Tourism.

And like I always say, A Rising Tide will Lift all Boats. Well done Colin!

Zack

All-Ireland Food Photography Competition is open to International Entries

The deadline for Ireland's first international Food Photography Competition is 8 May!

As part of its 21st programme which runs from 18-21 June, the organisers of Listowel Food Festival are inviting amateur photographers to submit original shots based on the theme of  "Irish Artisan Foods".

"Listowel Food Fair is recognised as the people's food festival with its main ethos focusing on encouraging and promoting emerging artisan producers.  It is therefore fitting that the theme of the first year of the food photography competition ties in with this," explained photographer Pat Tobin who will sit on the judging panel.

The top 20 shortlisted images selected by the judges will be on display at an open exhibition in the run up and during the Summer Solstice weekend when Ireland's longest running food festival takes place.

The winning photographer will be officially announced at the festival tasting dinner in the Listowel Arms Hotel on Friday June 19^th 2015 and presented with a prize fund of €200.  The runner up will be awarded €100.

Whether you want to be a professional food photographer, or simply present your images on Instagram to grow your following, there are certain tips and techniques you should use to improve your skills. 

Pixpa.com have put together a Comprehensive Guide to Food Photography to take your pictures to the next level.

Expert Photography have a great guide to food photography, full of great tips and tutorials. You can check it out here - https://expertphotography.com/complete-guide-food-photography-77-yummy-tips/

For full details, criteria and the Irish Competition entry form, visit www.listowelfoodfair.ie - 

Good Luck!

Zack

The 5th All-Ireland Chowder Cook Off takes place in Kinsale This Weekend!

And Kinsale Good Food Circle want your help to choose the chef that makes the Best Chowder in Ireland!

Representatives from all 32 counties will compete for the title of  “All-Ireland Chowder Champion” at the 5th annual All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off 2015. Everyone attending the event will have a chance to vote for their favourite chowder-chef as sponsored by Clona.

Building on the huge success of last year’s Chowder Cook-Off, Ireland’s gourmet capital & Best Small Town is pleased to announce that this year’s event will take place at Actons Hotel, Kinsale on Sunday 19th April from 2 to 4pm. The All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off will feature chefs from 32 professional restaurants, 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 18th and Sunday 19th April. On Saturday, this popular annual event sees areas of the town transformed into an open-air street market, with food stalls and family fun. Local businesses will offer samples and take-home food for under €5, and there will be something for all age groups. A 'pay as you eat' system means you are in control of your spend and not left with books of tickets! This event is supported by Kinsale Chamber of Tourism.

Members of the public will be the judges in the All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off on Sunday. 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 2015.

How to choose the best chowder? Do you like a lobster-stock base, topped with a swirl of cream, or a spicy bowl laden with mussels and a hint of coconut and chilli? You can be the judge! 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 “The All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off has become a much-loved event on Kinsale's annual calendar. A thriving fishing port, famous for its gourmet restaurants, and an anchor destination of the Wild Atlantic Way, Kinsale is the natural home for this prestigious national competition. We extend a warm welcome to visitors from every county in Ireland, and from overseas. May the best chef win”!

2014 Winner - Danny Fitzpatrick - Fitzpatrick’s Restaurant, Dunleer, Co Louth

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 Newport, Rhode Island, Kinsale’s transatlantic twin town, next summer as a guest chef. The 2014 winners, Fitzpatrick’s Restaurant, Dunleer, Co Louth will represent Ireland this summer.

Tickets for Sunday’s All-Ireland Chowder Cook-Off from 2 to 4pm at Acton’s Hotel are available from Finishing Services +353 (0)21 4773571 (office hours) or at the door on the day for €10 each.

Check out the Kinsale Good Food Circle website at www.kinsalerestaurants.com

Zack

2015 Boyne Valley Food Series launched at the Hill of Tara

The Hill of Tara, seat of the High Kings of Ireland, was the backdrop today for the launch of the 2015 Boyne Valley Food Series – a fitting setting for this innovative calendar of events throughout Summer and early Autumn weaving the region’s exciting food produce and cooking into its rich heritage.

Chefs, farmers and food producers gathered at the historic site today to celebrate all that this fertile river valley has to offer in terms of food produce and cooking. They were joined by John McKenna, author of the McKenna Food Guides, who launched this year’s programme of events.

Over 40 unique food experience events will take place over a 5 month period from May to September across almost 50 venues & locations throughout the Boyne Valley region, which stretches across counties Meath & Louth to the Eastern seaboard. This initiative, supported by Failte Ireland and Meath County Council, brings together almost 50 businesses working to create a food tourism offering based on visitor experience and quirky, authentic events rooted in the unique history and landscape of the area. The series will include foraging, farm walks, beer tastings and tapas trails, but also some more unusual events, such as a Mad Hatter’s Dinner Party, Braveheart Banquet and Gourmet Electric Bike Tour, and no less than 6 festivals.

“We are a group of businesses – restaurants, hoteliers, food producers and visitor attractions – who are passionate about food, keen to celebrate its journey from producer to the table, and to link it to the rich heritage of this region”, says Chair of the group and Failte Ireland Food Champion Olivia Duff of the Headfort Arms Hotel & Maperath Farm in Co. Meath,

“We have great farm produce and seafood, as well as incredible emerging artisan food producers and talented chefs, but what makes this series so special is the great bunch of like-minded people working together to tell our food story in a way that is fun and engaging”.

There really is something for everyone in this series, including many free and family events and plenty to get your out in the open air – with gourmet cycles and farm walks providing exercise to balance all the indulgence. Some of the highlights across the 5 months include:

• May offers 2 festivals; the Seafood festival in Kells and the Sheridan Irish Food Festival, as well as a craft beer & food pairing at Bru Brewery and a Dawn Chorus & Artisan Breakfast with Birdwatch Meath and Newgrange Gold farm.
• June there’s a Mad Hatter Dinner Party, Meath Food Safari, a Gourmet & Craft Beer Festival, and a Summer Solstice event.
• July events include Children’s Cookery Camps, a Gourmet Cycle and a 25km Producer Electric Bike Tour, as well as a ‘Dine in the Dark’ dinner, a Barnyard bash and a South American street food festival.
• August kicks off with the Navan Tapas Trail, back by popular demand following its success in 2014, followed by ‘The Boyne Valley Yank hosts a Hoe Down’, foraging on Girley Bog, and a traditional Garden Fete at Slane Castle. The series will also host a number of events for Heritage week from 22-30 August.
• September will incorporate no less than 3 festivals; the Sheridans Harvest Festival, the Slane Street Festival and the Slane Food, Film & Music Festival at Rock Farm

That's just a taste of the diverse array of events on offer. Renowned dining destinations in the region will also offer special events as part of the series, including ‘Taste of the Estate’ Dinner at Tankardstown House, a ‘Braveheart’ Medieval Banquet at the Stockhouse, Trim and a Heritage Dinner at the Vanilla Pod restaurant in Kells.

Food Writer John McKenna with Olivia Duff at the launch of the 2015 Boyne Valley Food Series

Speaking at the launch of this year’s programme of events, food writer John McKenna said “This is an inspired idea…the range of events, covering every aspect of food, cooking and artisanship in the region, reveals the rich fabric of its culinary creativity and reflects the seasons as the year unfolds."

He continued, "Nobody else has ever organised a festival of food in this way, as a series of stand-alone and yet related events with food at the centre of everything, and it's a great tribute to the Boyne Valley area that they have such a wealth of local food and creativity to offer to locals and visitors as part of the Boyne Valley Food Series”

View a larger size Map of events  Here

The Boyne Valley is known as the heritage capital of Ireland with the UNESCO World Heritage site Bru Na Boinne recognised as one of the world’s most important prehistoric landscapes. Now the region is rapidly building a food heritage to match, with its farmers, fishermen and new wave of food producers turning out distinctive foods from the area’s fertile, vibrant green landscape and rich coastline, and its chefs inspired by this natural larder and artisan craftsmanship to cook dishes that reflect the wealth of the region’s heritage.

The Boyne Valley Food Series, now in its 3rd year, brings all of this together, by offering a calendar of food events which weave through the region, embracing the area’s landscape and natural environment, as well as its built heritage and its more recent history allowing the visitor to really taste the region, to follow its trails, to interact with its rich heritage, to shake the hands that make the food..and to eat like Kings!

Head of Food Tourism, Hospitality Education, & Standards at Fáilte Ireland - John Mulcahy

Commenting on the Launch of the Boyne Valley Food Series 2015, John Mulcahy, Head of Food Tourism, Hospitality Education, & Standards at Fáilte Ireland said, "As overseas visitor numbers continue to grow, food tourism is becoming a very important component in the visitor experience with the amazing quality and authenticity of our food offering in Ireland. You’ll find some of the best raw ingredients in the world, expertly prepared then served simply and fresh… it’s as if you can really taste the place."

"I am delighted to see so many food businesses in the Boyne Valley showcasing their food offering in a collaborative way to promote the variety of food related events taking place in their region,” he added.

The events kick-off this May Bank Holiday weekend with Blossom Walks in the Orchards of Boyne Grove Farm, with apple juice & cider tasting with Dan Kelly’s cider, and from there you can munch and taste your way through the months ahead with events every week until the end of September.

So if you are heading to the Boyne Valley Region or just looking for something fun to do make sure you check out www.BoyneValleyFoodSeries.ie

Zack

Major Food Tourism Workshop in Donegal Town - Free Registration

The Wild Atlantic Way is the world’s Longest Defined Coastal Touring Route. Irish people and visitors to the west of Ireland who travel the route, find it really inspiring, renewing, relaxing and invigorating. 

From its northernmost point in Donegal to its southernmost in Cork, the Wild Atlantic Way offers one of the world’s most diverse and spectacular coastlines. You can immerse yourself in the culture, music and food found in the towns and villages along the way, climb the most breathtaking heights and experience a landscape that revives the soul.

In response to the greater emphasis our international visitors now place on food as part of their overall holiday experience, Fáilte Ireland, Ireland's National Tourism Development Authority, has developed Ireland’s Food Story – a resource packed full of engaging content and inspirational advice to help people in business to capitalise on this growing trend.

Fáilte Ireland has recently asked all their Food Champions to host workshops to help people in the tourism business along the route to develop their Food Story using the new Failte Ireland Food Story Toolkit. 

Let's Talk Food on the Wild Atlantic Way is a workshop on how Food Tourism can enhance your marketing and drive sales to your business.

As there are four Food Champions in County Donegal and here being the starting point of the Wild Atlantic Way, we decided to host one central Donegal Workshop to avoid duplication. 

Sliabh Liag sea cliffs are on the Wild Atlantic Way in Donegal

Let's Talk Food on the Wild Atlantic Way will provide practical tips and advice on how to write a food story for your business and how it can deliver additional business.

Workshop Content:

• Food and the Wild Atlantic Way – how and why it’s important to your business
• Examples of the food experiences your target market wants
• Marketing tips to create, promote and deliver your food story 
• Examples of how other businesses have used local food to gain business, stand out and drive revenue 
• Ireland’s Content Pool – How to access the free collection of images, video and copy to use in your marketing material

This three-hour workshop is open to everyone who is interested in building and promoting their business on the Wild Atlantic Way. It will be especially beneficial to managers, marketing managers, business owners and the people who write content for your website, social media, brochures, advertising etc.

This Free Workshop is fully subsidised by Fáilte Ireland and takes place at: 

Donegal Town Community Enterprise Centre, in Donegal Town, 

on Wednesday 22nd April from 10.00am – 1.00pm.

Directions to Donegal Town Community Enterprise Centre

To Register email development@donegaltown.ie

or contact any one of the four

Donegal Failte Ireland Food Champions

Mary McGettigan 087 1777140 (A Taste of Donegal Food Festival)

Hugh O'Donnell 087 7975704 (Kitty Kelly’s Restaurant Killybegs)

Zack Gallagher 086 6632079 (The Irish Food Guide)

Donal Doherty 087 2195577 (Harrys Restaurant & Harrys Shack)

This is a great opportunity for people in business and potential new businesses to learn from and work with some of Failte Ireland's Food Champions and to make the most of this amazing country we live in.

I look forward to seeing you there!

Zack