Changing times

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

It is a frequent comment among restaurant customers that they would like a particular menu changed more frequently, however sometimes customers do not want a restaurant to change its menu, especially when it has been in place and very popular for 10 to 15 years. This fact was brought home to me recently when I was talking to Charlie Chan, the owner of the original Royal Villa in Shop Street. Two years ago he moved to a new location in Oranmore and called the restaurant Asian Fusion. While it has been very successful and has some dishes that I particularly like, many of his old customers from Shop Street asked him to consider bringing back the original menu.

A dessert with a difference at Glasson Golf Hotel

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Romance and a little bit of mystery are in the air this Valentine’s weekend at Glasson Hotel and Golf Club, Athlone, Co Westmeath. Head chef Mike Stugel has put together a very special menu full of delicious treats for Valentine’s weekend — but the highlight for one lucky woman will certainly be her dessert.

A guide to weight /fat loss supplements

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Calcium/vitamin D: Calcium is clearly great for bone loss, and there is evidence that it can help reduce body fat — increasing dietary calcium can lead to significantly increased weight and fat loss and increase the percentage of fat loss around the trunk region. Vitamin intake affects weight and fat loss, too. The major function of vitamin D is to help maintain normal levels of calcium. This dynamic duo is important for achieving a lean body.

Use trees to wrap your house in beauty, interest, and warmth

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Trees bring a beauty and interest that changes through the seasons. They have a particular beauty at the moment when silhouetted against a bright winter sky, or when they glisten with frost on a cold winter morning. Watch them through spring as their buds develop, their new leaves emerge, and many break into flower. See their fruits grow through late summer and enjoy watching the birds feed on them. Many show a vibrant riot of colour in autumn, then one day the branches will be bare again as they sleep through winter.

Cotton Box completes fit-out of apartment development

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Clarinbridge based interior design company, Cotton Box Design Group, has just completed the interior fit-out of the Cearnóg Nua development, Moycullen, which has been built and developed by Rhatigan Developments Ltd.

With the property market so unsteady, renting has become a more viable option for many developers and we have had a large uptake on our apartment fit-out packages,” said John Mullarkey, sales and marketing manager with Cotton Box Design Group.

Outlook for furniture retail is positive

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Ikea is the most recent company to announce the opening of a new store in 2009. The Ikea store is set to open on Monday July 27 in Ballymun in Dublin. In late December EZ Living at Terryland Retail Park opened up in a new location on the Tipperary road in Limerick.

Fuel problems during ‘the Emergency’

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Because merchant ships were regarded as targets during World War II, the island of Ireland was, to an extent, cut off from the rest of the world, and many products that would normally have been freely available became scarce. Rationing was introduced and each household was given a ration book. Basic foodstuffs such as bread, butter, flour, wheatmeal, sugar, and tea were sold in small amounts... tea was reduced to a half ounce per person per week, which represented hardship for many. There was a black market for this and many other ‘luxuries’, while others tried making their own substitutes like dandelion tea or carrot tea. Some would recycle the tea leaves by taking them from the teapot, drying them, and reusing them. Necessity became the mother of invention.

‘A moment’s memory to that laurelled head’

Thu, Jan 29, 2009

Sir William Gregory, a wealthy widower was 60, 35 years older than Augusta, when he first met her. It was at a cricket match at her home at Roxborough in the summer of 1877, to which he was invited. He was late, and sat at the only vacant place left at the table, beside Augusta. ‘Augusta wore a fashionable dress bought at Bon Marché in Paris, and a black and white straw hat decorated with corn ears and poppies. The usually plain, quiet, girl was noticeable and pretty.’ By the end of the day Sir William was smitten.

During the next few winters as Augusta accompanied her tubercular brother to Cannes, Sir William just happened to be in the same place. He once called to her hotel three times in one day. Back in Co Galway, she was invited to spend a night at Coole, chaperoned by her brother. ‘While Roxborough was associated with hunting and rowdiness, Coole was civilised and scholarly’*. It had a magnificent library, and Sir William not only allowed her to choose any book she wanted to read, but he asked her to choose six titles which he included in his will for her.

Style Counsel

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Q: I have recently joined a gym. What should I wear to look good and still feel comfortable?

Fit for anything at Anatomy

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Anatomy, located at 42 Upper Abbeygate Street, offers beautiful high performance garments of superior quality to take you where you want to go, from the yoga/Pilates studio to the gym, cycling to running/walking in the great outdoors, or just going for a coffee and enjoying some leisure time.

Update your wardrobe at Swap in the City

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Galway’s first Swap in the City will take place on Thursday January 29 at 7.30pm in the Radisson SAS Hotel.

Great value food in Galway

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Last week I asked restaurants to send me an e-mail about any special offers or particularly good value meals available. Coincidentally there were some offers advertised in the same issue and I will list below what is available.

Smoked salmon pasta with Kalamata olives, spring greens, and vine tomato

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Irish smoked salmon is without doubt one of the world’s great foods. Being the most westerly country in Europe gives Ireland the perfect environment for producing this versatile delicacy. Salmon has been smoked for centuries in Ireland using methods and secrets which have been passed down through the generations. The texture and taste of Irish smoked salmon is particularly good due to that extra bit of work the king of fish has to put in around our rugged and unpolluted west coast. Smoked salmon is rightfully considered an expensive food, but when used as an addition to pasta the smoked flavour carries brilliantly. This means that a small amount of salmon can go a long way. Another great benefit to eating smoked salmon is the fact that the oils of the salmon which are high in omega 3 remain very well preserved. Coupled with a healthy selection of spring leaves, this dish makes a well balanced main meal of the day.

Building a rapport with your teenager

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

If you have emerged from another showdown with your teenage son or daughter feeling like the loser with communication lines broken down yet again, maybe it is time to rethink your strategy.

Domestic Bliss

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Help is at hand for sleep-deprived parents struggling to cope with their child's sleep problems.

Rollercoaster

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

The role grandparents play in a child's life is a very special one. With a lifetime of experience behind them, they can offer their grandchildren the gifts of wisdom, love, patience, and time.

Grab some Denby at Anthony Ryan’s

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Anthony Ryan’s homeware site www.shopcookware.ie is currently offering massive reductions on selected Denby ranges.

Massive reductions on kitchens at Surreal Designs showroom

Thu, Jan 22, 2009

Kitchen design company Surreal Designs has reduced to clear its last remaining showroom display kitchens prior to its new showroom renovation which is scheduled to be completed by the end of February.

All the displays are German made and have been reduced with up to 70 per cent off original prices. All displays as well as reception and office furniture have to be sold by the end of January prior to the commencement of the renovation — offering the perfect opportunity to find your dream kitchen at an unbelievable price.

St Nicholas’ Parochial School, a brief history

Thu, Jan 08, 2009

The Church of Ireland school of the Galway parish of St Nicholas opened its doors on July 12 1926, next door to the Town Hall and opposite the Courthouse. This marked a new departure for the primary education of Protestant children in Galway but it also marked the end of a long and sometimes acrimonious struggle for multi-denominational primary education in Galway.

What ‘The Liberator’ said in Shantalla - ‘A magnificent public demonstration’

Thu, Jan 08, 2009

Galway often boasts of the huge crowds attracted to myriad events in this town, but the greatest congregation ever assembled in the west of Ireland gathered at a monster meeting in Shantallow over 150 years ago. The “Slidin’ Rock”, as it is now colloquially known, is the spot from which Daniel O’Connell delivered a towering oration, just two years before the Great Famine began.

The plaque at the site today identifies it as the “Emancipation Rock”, but Catholic Emancipation had been won 14 years before the Liberator spoke in Shantallow. It was a call to repeal the Act of Union, O’Connell’s second great campaign, that brought Ireland’s most celebrated orator to Galway for a mass rally on 25th June, 1843. As in his previous crusade the population of the country was mobilised, this time in a non-violent attempt to win back for Ireland its own parliament, after Grattan’s Parliament had been disbanded in 1800.

E-paper

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