New menus and decor, but the same great quality at Season’s

Fri, Oct 31, 2014

For new menus, updated decor, and a taste sensation that is not to be missed, it has to be Mulroy’s Gastro Pub, Main Street, Castlebar.

An Púcán, a great addition to the east side

Thu, Oct 30, 2014

Many crimes against food are committed by pubs claiming the dubiously desirable title of 'gastro'. Carefully sourced artisan produce are carelessly piled into sub-standard baps. Bags of breaded mushrooms and nuggets are pulled from the freezer, deep fried, and shovelled onto local organic leaves, melting them to pondweed. A sandwich of home baked ham with a fine Irish cheese will sit on the same plate as the mass produced claggy coleslaw from the catering tubs. The intention is there, but the Devil, as they say, is in the detail.

An Púcán does not claim to be a 'gastro' pub, but its food is now so much better than many who do. Located just off Eyre Square on Forster Street, it had in the past a well deserved reputation as a great traditional Irish music venue, sometimes hosting Irish dancing. I had not often darkened the doors of this establishment for fear of one of these displays breaking out in front of me.

James Hack Tuke and his plan to assist emigration from west of Ireland

Thu, Oct 30, 2014

The agricultural crisis of 1879, and growing civic unrest, prompted the Society of Friends in England to send James Hack Tuke to the west to inquire into conditions and to distribute relief. Tuke, the son of a well-to-do tea and coffee merchant family in York, England, published his observations in Irish Distress and its Remedies: A visit to Donegal and Connaught in the spring of 1880. In clear-cut language he highlighted the widespread distress and destitution at a time when the British government questioned the extent of the crisis.

The Quakers were well regarded in the west of Ireland. The work of James and Mary Ellis, in providing practical help and training in agricultural and fishing skills at Letterfrack was well known and appreciated. James Hack Tuke is not as well known. Perhaps because his remedy in assisting an impoverished people was a radical one. His observations concluded that there was no major improvement in the position of the people since the Great Famine, 40 years before. Tuke saw that local resources, and in particular agriculture, could not sustain such a large population. He believed that assisted emigration was the long-term solution. His plan would only work if whole families (rather than individuals) left, as this would free up their lands to allow another family increase the size of their holdings, and make a more viable farm. It was a controversial idea, and initially it won wide-spread approval.

The game of conkers

Thu, Oct 30, 2014

In the days before television, computers, or iPads, children often had to be inventive to amuse themselves. When it came to street games they were well able to use their imaginations as they played games like Jackstones, O’Grady Says Do This, Tops, Queenie Queenie, Rover Red Rover, One Two Three Redlight, Jack Jack Show the Light, London Bridge is Falling Down, Cad, skipping, hobbies, marbles, and slides (in winter). Another traditional seasonal game, usually played in September, October, and November, was ‘conkers’ using the seeds of horse chestnut trees. The term conker applies to the tree as well as the seed and there are several theories as to where the name came from. The nut is found in a prickly case which falls from the tree. It is drilled using a nail, sometimes a compass (be careful not to stick yourself!), and then a piece of string is run through it with a knot tied at one end to secure the conker.

Galway Restaurant Week — a seven day culinary adventure

Thu, Oct 23, 2014

An initiative by the people who brought us Galway Food Festival will see the city’s restaurant owners come together to showcase the variety, quality, and standard of Galway’s restaurant scene.

Delicious dining options at The Latin Quarter Bistro

Thu, Oct 23, 2014

The Latin Quarter Bistro opened its doors in May and has gradually made its mark on the Galway food scene. The bistro offers a diverse menu of flavoursome dishes using local seasonal ingredients served in casual and relaxing surroundings. Chef Patrick and his team carefully source their ingredients to create classical bistro dishes with a modern Irish twist.

Lunch is served from 12 noon to 3pm with traditional favourites such as tartines (open traditional French sandwiches); croque-monsieur (baked ham, emmental, béchamel sauce); the farmer’s tartine (braised beef, cheddar, rocket, horseradish mayo); salmon and chorizo linguini with chilli, garlic, cherry tomato, red peppers; and pie of the day such as chicken and chorizo, and lots more, all for under €10.

Breakfast club

Thu, Oct 23, 2014

Having spent a few years of my teens and early twenties meat free, I am still in the habit of scanning a menu to see what is on offer for vegan and vegetarian folk. As I recall, it was the smell of a smokey bacon burger after one too many fermented apple juices on a student night out that brought me back to being a practising carnivore. Just as well really, as a column featuring vegetarian food in Galway would have been very short lived. The vegetarian option is sadly still all too often the afterthought when planning a menu.

Not so in the Library Cafe, Bar & Bistro at the Glenoaks Hotel. This budget hotel is the unlikely setting for a little bit of vegetarian heaven. The elegant bar, flanked by large, dark, wood bookcases displaying antique tomes and artefacts, provides a welcome and relaxed bolthole for residents and locals alike. Student nights like Toxic Tuesday and Shaggy Sunday (alliteration at its finest I think you will agree) are proving popular with the scholars too.

The gathering storm

Thu, Oct 23, 2014

The threat of another famine in 1879, within living memory of the horror and catastrophe of the Great Famine some 29 years earlier, brought renewed terror to the vulnerable tenant farmers in the west of Ireland. This time it was not just the humble potato, but severe weather conditions which devastated crops and feed stuffs over a three year period. Farm incomes dropped dramatically, landlords fussed that rents would not be paid. Whereas some landlords were patient, others warned that evictions would follow if rents were not paid on time.

Remembering Foggy Spelman

Thu, Oct 23, 2014

Paschal Spelman may have been given that name at birth, but to the many thousands of people (especially old Galwegians) he entertained down the years, he was simply known as ‘Foggy’.

Lowering the old wall

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

Church Lane was a dark place up until 1983 because of the very large high stone wall that ran the length of it. This was part of a wall that was built around St Nicholas’ Collegiate Church and its adjoining graveyard. The removal of most of the wall and its replacement by the railings that once surrounded Eyre Square was one of the earliest ideas for improving Galway as it prepared for the Quincentennial in 1984. This project transformed the area around the church, making it much more attractive and opening it up to the passing public. It let a lot of light into the city centre.

The Dohertys of Carrigan were not ‘land-grabbers’

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

Galway Diary received the following statement from Adrian Martyn (great-great-great grandnephew of Peter Doherty, senior), who was shot dead at Carrigan, near Craughwell village on the night of November 2 1881. I am pleased to carry Adrian’s clarification:

Mexican food — it's so hot right now

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

There is something spicy happening in Galway. Mexican food, one of the biggest food trends of recent years, has gone mainstream, and Galwegians are going loco for it.

Blood pH test available at Health and Herbs

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

Health and Herbs is an integrated health clinic and herbal dispensary situated at No 9 Sea Road, Galway. It was founded in 1999 by Dr Dilis Clare, who is Ireland’s only GP also qualified in herbal medicine.

Physiotherapy that comes to you

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

Homecare Physio is a well established and expanding company set up by local health care professional John Butler.

Great savings on prescription medicines at O’Beirn’s Pharmacy

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

O’Beirn’s Pharmacy, Henry Street, Galway, has recently come under new management, and is introducing a number of price reductions. Prescription medicines at O’Beirn’s are now at similar prices to the UK and other EU countries.

Is your thyroid killing your weight loss and energy?

Thu, Oct 16, 2014

Nothing affects your health and weight loss like low thyroid function. It drastically limits your energy and ages you well beyond your years. It can mean you are operating at 50 per cent of normal power – mentally and physically. It makes weight loss almost impossible because you burn 400 or 500 calories less than normal per day. It can limit or stop your weight loss no matter how much dieting or exercise you do.

The Land War: A desperate duel between Parnell and Forster

Fri, Oct 10, 2014

The continued unrest, murders, and large-scale protests as the Land War careered dangerously through the Irish countryside, led at last to some reform. William Gladstone’s Second Land Act of 1881 proposed broad concessions to the tenant farmer. But Parnell, the very effective leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party, was not satisfied. He said that tenants were still vulnerable to rent arrears and poverty resulting from poor harvests. He urged that the Act either accommodate these concerns, or be rejected.

Eighty years of Jes rowing

Fri, Oct 10, 2014

Maurice Semple’s book Reflections on Lough Corrib has a very good section on the history of rowing on the river and lake. The first clubs were formed in the mid 19th century, and competitive rowing has been a feature of Galway life since. A number of pupils in Coláiste Iognáid came together in October 1934 to ask the school if it would consider setting up a Jes Rowing Club. Happily, it did, and thus began a history of great achievement which continues to the present day.

Banana and oat breakfast muffins

Thu, Oct 09, 2014

Recently I have had to reprimand my children for their overuse of the ‘N’ word. It is something that I, like many others, find deeply offensive. I have, I think, brought them up well and feel aggrieved that this is how they repay me. Such outrageous behaviour goes against everything that I believe to be right. It started off innocently enough with the five year old slipping the odd ‘N’ word into a sentence. I may have turned a blind eye, anything for a quiet life. Then all of a sudden it escalated into using it everywhere, at every possible opportunity, to my complete mortification. Out loud and in front of other people.

Delicious seafood at Mary’s Fish Shop

Thu, Sep 25, 2014

Mary of Mary’s Fish Shop would like to thank all those who attended the shop’s recent fish cookery demonstrations. Building on the success of her first demo day last Easter, Mary was joined by the Galway Bay FM roadcaster and several top chefs, all of whom seemed to be enjoying the day as much as the customers who were happy to eat the fruits of their labours.

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