Hello, I’m Caroline Redmond from Irish Feast, which specialises in delicious food experiences in local towns and villages. I want to persuade you to try a local food tour in the North of Ireland/Northern Ireland, just for the fun of it.
There are nearly seventeen food based tours registered with DiscoverNI (and What’s On NI) – there has to be a reason for that, right? There most certainly is. Our food and our chefs and bakers are among the best in the world right now – from old fashioned scones and whiskeys, to modern free range charcuterie and artisan bread, from grass fed beef to Lough Neagh eels and Gleanarm Organic Salmon, from freshly griddled soda bread to award winning cheeses, gins, beers, preserves… I could keep going, you know. Any local market you go to (and there are so many good ones here now) are bursting with fabulous ingredients. Every good restaurant you hear about has delicious speciality dishes, amazing drinks. In such a burgeoning foodie world, where on earth do you begin? Especially if you’re not even sure you’re going to like half of it!
Well, that’s where food tours come in. For both locals looking to find new foods, different combinations, interesting eateries, or simply experience a really enjoyable morning with friends, as well as international visitors wondering what each area offers in the way of good food and where they should eat it, a food tour solves all those problems.
I host food tours in local towns and villages, currently Ballycastle, Bushmills and Rathlin Island with plans to expand into other towns as well as offering foraging and cookery tours to showcase passionate chefs, exciting food combinations and the beauty of Ireland. Each town in Ireland has its own unique microcosm of food and drink, of eateries and culture as well as history and interesting architecture. It’s only when you take the time to taste all of this, to savour the individuality, that you begin to really appreciate it.
In Ballycastle its the fact that it’s an up and coming recognised foodie destination with an Économusée bake house, award winning restaurants, four world renowned bakeries, the all Ireland retail butchery of the year and a famous chip shop as well as a gluten free hotel and an old fashioned sweetie shop – all wrapped up in thousands of years of history. In Bushmills, its the whiskey, salmon, mills, fine dining eateries and cosy cafes hidden amongst over 80 listed buildings in the shadow of the Giant’s Causeway. On Rathlin, it’s the scenery, beauty, lighthouses, wildlife and welcoming people along with many more good places to eat than people realise. Each village, town, area, county, region of Ireland has awe inspiring views, amazing foods, inspirational eateries – we just have to be reminded now and again.
Add in a knowledgeable, quirky, fun foodie guide and it becomes a winning combination for a memory making experience you’ll never forget.
Have I persuaded you to join in the feast on a local food tour yet..?
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