I went home to visit my family in Athlone this weekend, so we decided to go out for dinner on Saturday night to celebrate my parent’s wedding anniversary.
I grew up in Athlone and my family still live there; without being accused of bias I think I can honestly say that Athlone is generously supplied with good restaurants. If you’re looking for Thai food there’s Kin Khao, definitely one of the best Thai restaurants in the country. There’s a number of good Italian restaurants, including Pavarottis, Di Bella, and Pizza Mama. You’ll also find the usual selection of Chinese takeaways and restaurants - one of my favourites is Ken’s in the town centre. For fancier dining there’s Le Chateau or the Olive Grove, or even the Left Bank Bistro.
This evening my mum chose an of the Italian restaurants near the river called Di Bella that is consistently good, and did not disappoint this visit.
10 Mar, 2010
Special offers and artisan festivals at Supequinn
Posted by: peter in: Bargains & Special Offers | Food Events
There’s a brand new set of great special offers at Superquinn today, including:
- Any three selected meats for €10 (including 1lb mince for €4.99, 480g pork chops for €4.99, and 2 salmon cutlets for €4.49
- Superquinn Irish goats cheese log - reduced from €25 per kg to €16.75 per kg (save 33%)
- Lily O’Briens gift-wrapped chocolates - reduced from €14.99 to €10
There’s cheaper booze for St. Patrick’s Day, special offers for Mother’s Day, and the usual range of Eurosaver deals. All offers are valid until March 23. Click here for details.
To coincide with St. Patrick’s Day, Superquinn is running an “Irish festival” from March 10-23. The supermarket sources over 80% of its fresh foods locally. During the festival, Superquinn will be showcasing the best of Irish food from local producers and suppliers in its 23 stores, with brands such as Truly Irish, Country Crest, Dunns, Gourmet Garden, and Glanbia to the fore.
10 Mar, 2010
Recipe: Trout, Fennel, and Bulgar Parcels
Posted by: rercy in: Food News | Good Value | Healthy Eating | Light Meals | Recipes
Salads are back on the menu!
It was so warm on Monday morning that I had my morning cup of tea in the sun and it was bliss. It has been such a long cold winter, I felt like a cave creature that had just crawled out of the darkness - pasty and squinty-eyed in the bright pure sun. I know it’s still nippy and only the beginning of March but I’ve decided to spring clean my diet.
I’m a big fan of bulgar wheat and quinoa; they are great substitutes for stodgy winter carbs and will keep you going too.
When it comes to bulgar wheat it is important to get the flavour right, otherwise it can taste bland. This is a lovely recipe with spring flavours that’s perfect for lunch or a light evening meal. It is very healthy and simple to put together. Serves two.
Are you ready to ditch the winter comfort food too?
Trout, Fennel and Bulgar Parcels
Ingredients:
- 85g bulgar wheat
- Zest 1 lemon and squeeze of juice
- ½ bunch dill , roughly chopped plus extra leaves to serve
- 4 trout fillets, boneless and skinned
- 1 small bulb fennel, thinly sliced
- 4 spring onions, thinly sliced
Instructions:
- Heat oven to 210C. Heat a baking sheet in the oven. Cook bulgar wheat according to the pack, drain, cool and fork in lemon zest and dill.
- Divide bulgar wheat between 2 sheets baking parchment. Sandwich together 2 fish fillets and sit on top. Sprinkle over fennel, spring onions, lemon juice, and season to taste.
- Wrap the parcels and put on the hot baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 12 minutes or until fish is opaque and feels firm, top with extra dill and serve.
09 Mar, 2010
Recipe: Sweet celery salad
Posted by: jacqueline in: Healthy Eating | Recipes | Starters, Salads & Soups
Surplus celery for a sweet salad
At the weekend, my partner and I catered for a friend’s christening. We had the camera ready to fondly take pictures of our food, and exclaim over how great it all looked, but we seriously misjudged our timings. We didn’t have time to lift a camera, we barely had time to breathe - the evening before and the day were spent running (literally, running) around the kitchen and garden prepping and serving our fine food.
We made a sort of ‘umbrella’ plan, handing our pregnant and not-rich friend a list of ingredients to buy. She forgot to bring the list while shopping and ‘worked from memory’. Now she did well, but the catering turned into a let’s work with what we’ve got event, as opposed to a precision party. I’ll post up more recipes from the day (we did good!), but for now, here’s a celery salad that the christening crowd loved.
Yesterday’s Liveline was buzzing with angry callers complaining about an offer from petrol station Applegreen.
Since last year, customers who spend €10 in Applegreen get a stamp on their loyalty card. Once they accumulate 50 stamps, they can get a three night stay for two people for €19.99 in a choice of hotels around Ireland. I nonchalantly picked up my loyalty card when it was offered by the cashier last month, but quickly realised it’s a rubbish offer.
09 Mar, 2010
€5 Fish and Chips in Burdock’s
Posted by: jean in: Bargains & Special Offers | Takeaways
Peter has pronounced Burdock’s to be the best chipper in Ireland a number of times here, which means that it has now passed into empirical fact. Burdock’s is the best chipper in Ireland, and dissent will not be tolerated.
The Burdock’s outlet in the Epicurean Food Hall on Abbey Street is currently running a pretty sweet lunch offer - Haddock and Chips for €4.99. They were previously running an offer of Buy One, Get One Free on the same haddock meal, and charging around a tenner for it - so the deal is essentially the same, with the added bonus that you can go get it even if you’re feeling antisocial.
Even though the first deal has now expired, I have to include the picture of the Viking who was advertising it outside the shop, because he was so smiley and friendly, and well, it’s always nice to see a Viking, isn’t it?
09 Mar, 2010
Win! One of three Mother’s Day dinners at the M&S restaurant
Posted by: peter in: Competitions | Sponsored Posts
Treat your Mum to something Special this Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day is fast approaching and sometimes it’s hard to know what to get that special lady in your life. Lucky for you, CheapEats.ie and Marks & Spencer are here to help. We’re giving you the chance to win one of three delicious meals for four this Mother’s Day in the Marks & Spencer Rooftop restaurant on Grafton Street.
Mums are always so busy looking after everyone else, so why not let your mum have a day of pampering and relaxation and treat her to a delicious meal this Mother’s Day, compliments of Marks & Spencer and Cheapeats.ie.
Also this weekend, the fantastic M&S dine-in for two offer will be back. It’s perfect for a family dinner this Mother’s Day.
To Win
To be in with a chance to win one of these three prizes, simply click into this post and answer the the following question:
Taqueria El Milagro
This Monday, SnackBox tests out the deep south’s Mexican treats.
There are quite a few Mexican food options in Dublin. Round these parts we have Acapulco, Cactus Jack, Mexico to Rome, The Alamo and El Paso, to name but a few in the capital. I’ve only ever eaten in Acapulco and The Alamo and enjoyed both but am always a bit miffed by the price, as Mexican food has to be one of the cheapest cuisines in terms of ingredients used.
In the US, Mexican food is more widespread. It is also unbelievably cheap. In the small town of Oxford, for example, there were at least five Mexican restaurants. We were told by everyone that Taqueria El Milagro was the best. You couldn’t miss it. With a bright orange façade, the only place more colourful in Mississippi is its interior. Greens, blues, reds cover the walls and each table harboured its own individual and beautiful Mexican folklore mural. I’ve always liked the idea of eating a fajita off the chest of a native American Strongman with a load of feathers in his hair, a spear, and a broad in a torn dress by his knee. Finally my chance had come.
Read the rest of this entry »
Over at Dunnes, special offers this week include:
- Bold 2 in 1 washing powder (50 scoops) - reduced from €16.92 to €10
- Dunnes fresh Irish minced beef (1kg) - €5
- Flora omega-3 plus spread - half price - now 99c
As usual with Dunnes, the offer expiry dates vary - some offers are valid until March 13 and others until March 21. Click here for details.
Special offers this week at Tesco include:
- Bacon, cabbage and potatoes - all half price
- Cadbury Roses/ Milk Tray and Terry’s All Gold - all half price
- Blueberries, strawberries, grapes, and blackberries - all reduced by 33%
Tesco’s special offer leaflet - which may have fallen out of your newspaper this weekend - provides a comprehensive overview of all their current specials, which are valid until Sunday April 14. You can view it online here.
In fairness, there’s a lot on offer there at the moment, although I’m always slightly suspicious of Tesco: sometimes the prices are quietly raised before they fall for promotional offers. Still, if you make your shopping list and put on your blinkers - only buy the specials - you just might beat this retail giant.
Have you ever got one-up on Tesco?
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