The food producers at Gubbeen recommend a fantastic Japanese restaurant, their favourite local pub and one of the best farmers’ markets in Ireland
EATING OUT
Miyazaki
1A Evergreen St, Ballyphehane, Cork; www.facebook.com/miyazakicork
“This new Japanese place in Cork is fantastic,” says Clovis. She’s not the first person to recommend it: Justin and Jenny Green at Ballyvolane and chef Paul Flynn also sing its praises.
Good Things Café (pictured above)
68 Bridge St, Carrigboy, Skibbereen, Co. Cork; www.thegoodthingscafe.com
Clovis used to work at this “great” café, which recently moved from Schull to Skibbereen. According to Fingal, the chef-owner Carmel Somers “goes to sleep at night with a cookery book in her hands. She’s travelled the world and lives and breathes what she does. You leave the restaurant feeling healthy, like you’ve eaten substantially, like you tried something you’ve never had before. She’s good that way.”
Hackett’s Bar
48 Main St, Meenvane, Schull, Co. Cork; http://www.schull.ie/hacketts-bar
This pub in Schull does great comfort food, says Clovis. “If you bring an Italian over from Italy and he’s used to the best Italian food, and you take him into Hacketts for a toastie and a chowder and a pint of stout, he’s as happy as punch,” says Fingal.
The Crookhaven Inn
Crookhaven, Co. Cork; www.thecrookhaveninn.com
“Crookhaven is a seaside town about half an hour away. The inn does lots of good seafood – it’s quite fancy pub food. The couple who own it, he’s Swedish and she’s the daughter of the guy who taught us all about the smokers and stuff.” – Clovis
The Mews
Baltimore, Co. Cork; www.mewsrestaurant.ie (Open summer only)
A highly-regarded restaurant in an old coachhouse about 30 minutes east of Gubbeen. It’s only open in the summer and the menu changes regularly to make the most of fresh local produce.
Clovis: The food is amazing, and the owners have got a really nice way about them too – a great camaraderie.
Fingal: They rock up at the market and say: “You’ve got some mangalitzas coming in two weeks. Can you hang on to one of those for six weeks for me, see how long we can hang it for? And can I take all your cheeks and crubeens?”
Clovis: And they head over to Sherkin Island to pick blackberries and get their own cockles.
Pilgrim’s
6 South Square, Townlands, Rosscarbery, Co. Cork; www.pilgrims.ie
“Pilgrim’s in Roscarberry is great,” says Fingal.
BUYING IN
Skibbereen farmers’ market
The Fairfield, Skibbereen, Co Cork; www.skibbereenmarket.com
Fingal says he buys the majority of his week’s food shopping at the market in Skibbereen, where Gubbeen have a stall and which he thinks is one of the best markets in the country. “There’s a really good German baker there who does an amazing spelt – we get five or six of his loaves and stick them all in the freezer. Then we’d go to The Real Olive Co and the veg guy.” Other stalls recommended by Fingal and Clovis include West Cork Pies, who need no explanation, and Peppermint Farm, who specialise in organic herbs.
Rebel Foods
Website
April Danann is a clinical nutritionist who lives locally and has run fermentation classes at Gubbeen. At her market stalls, she sells “just about everything… comfrey cream, shampoo bars, apple cider vinegars, herbal teas, sprouted mung bean burgers, sweet treats, sourdough breads…” The stall can be found in Clonakilty on Fridays and Skibbereen or Dublin on Saturdays.