Corinna Dunne

Sounds great Ian. Had intended getting in there. Unfortunately Richard Gleeson, the ex-Ottelenghi chef who did the supper menu is not there any more. The supper menu was just running for a few months before Christmas. So they're back to doing daytime food only at the moment and haven't decided whether they'll do the evening food again yet.

Yep, I absolutely agree with Simon. My favourite restaurant too. Also, Lorraine Harmon, the sommelier there is very good, and does wine pairings by the glass. Chapter One also excellent... but if I had just one night, it would be the Greenhouse. Lunch there is exceptional value.

Yes, I know it's a bit soon for Mickael, but they know his food well from Gregan's Castle in Galway, and he's a partner in the Greenhouse with Eamonn O'Reilly, so not going to be gone any time soon. Would have been a nice bit of drama to award one so quickly, but then again, we're not short of great surprises this year. Faith restored somewhat.

Aniar in Galway got a star as well... the first one in Galway. Again, a big change in Michelin approach to what merits a star in Ireland, Aniar is very casual. And shows that the foraging trend is not over yet.

Great celebrations in Dublin, Locks Brasserie won a Michelin star, it’s been confirmed their end. So thrilled for them, a brilliant team, wonderful room, food, and service. Interesting move on Michelin’s part. Locks is more Wild Honey than stuffy formal dining, so great to see this type of restaurant get an award in Ireland. The Greenhouse must be disappointed. On my two visits there, I was hugely impressed with Mickael Viljanen’s cooking. Maybe it’s too soon… or maybe Michelin is getting a little bit less Michelin and looking for a more relaxed vibe at one star level.

Hi all - I'm hoping you can help me. A friend of ours is moving to San Fransisco and we would like to give him a farewell present of a gift voucher for a cool restaurant there. So, would really appreciate your recommendations for restaurants that can issue gift vouchers online. Thanks so much.

Hi Leo. Close to Trinity College is Cornucopia on Wicklow Street which is a vegetarian restaurant. Also, there are a lot of inexpensive Chinese restaurants in Dublin that fit the bill. The Parnell Street area is where you'll find most of them and there is also a very good one called M&L on Cathedral Street, which is just off O'Connell Street. These areas can be a little bit dodgy, so be sure to warn your daughter of this.

Has anyone got an update on restaurants in Berlin? Suggestions for reasonably priced top end restaurants would be great, and cool casual places....

Have you been to the Salty Dog yet? Derek Creagh, former head chef of Deanes is there, one on my list to get to. Will be interesting to see what happens on the Bibs in Ireland too...

Yep... just in case you think the rest of us are not replying... Simon has pretty much summed up the culinary options. The road to Cork is much better than it used to be, so a break not really necessary. Hope you enjoy Taste of Dublin, if the weather is good, it is great fun. Iveagh Gardens is a lovely venue.

Great review David thanks so much, and brilliant to have so many pics. Looks like it is every bit as exciting as it was teed up to be. That beetroot dessert with basil ash meringue looks a bit familiar. Think I had something along those lines in Maze two years ago.

The creativity at elBulli really is mind boggling... there's not a single element that was on our menu in 2006. So many things I'd love to try, although I have very fond memories of our meal. It really is hard to believe that elBulli is closing, I had always hoped that I would get back some day. Enjoyed the comment about Adria channelling Santamaria on one of the dishes... and no one else agreeing . And on the wine tour in Can Rocca, I'm with you on that one, I wasn't mad about the music element either. BTW, do you know what lens Nathan uses... looks seriously impressive (no surprises there). Fantastic report FG, thank you so much.

Great list Patrick, good to have an update on the forum. In case you haven’t twigged it JC, Patrick O is the co-owner of Alexis Bar and Grill and Simon’s recommendation is a very good one. I don’t know if you saw Bobby Flay’s Ireland, the St Patrick’s edition, but Alexis was one of the featured restaurants, and the voiceover went something like: “some say these guys are the future of Irish cooking”. It’s great food and great value. Excellent produce that is skilfully cooked. I cannot understand for the life of me why it doesn’t have a Michelin Bib Gourmand. It’s in Dun Laoghaire which is by the sea, a short train ride (on the Dart), well worth the journey… and you can go sleb spotting in Dalkey afterwards. It’s a while since I’ve been to the Pig’s Ear and The Winding Stair, but both are good for ‘Irish’ food, if I had to pick, I’d be more inclined towards The Winding Stair. The Camden Kitchen is also extremely good, great lunch menu (I think early bird too), and more centrally located is Pichet, which is very good. Coppinger Row is also very buzzy and some v nice food. And yes, good choice going to Thornton’s for lunch. Guilbaud is the two star option, but less exciting. As for the boxty... not something us locals are diving into all the time, very much on the tourist trail. If you want to go native, order a pint of Guinness with half a dozen oysters in Davy Byrne's pub. BTW, if you're in Dublin on a Saturday, it's well worth checking out the Farmer's Market in Temple Bar.

Wow FG… you’re living the dream! Really enjoying the pics of Boqueria… even the stall with the fruit drinks, nice touch, the perfect hangover cure, if I remember correctly:) Looking forward to hearing your reports from Can Roca and elBulli, it’s been a while since I’ve been to them, but I’ve wonderful, wonderful memories. BTW, don’t know how you fare on eating overload, but would advise caution if you’re doing Rafas for lunch on the same day as elBulli… the fish is so good there, it will call for a lot of will power to resist trying everything, need to be in top form for dinner. Please say hello to Luis for me at elBulli, he is such a lovely man. I wonder did he ever make it over to Ireland to check out our whiskey, he’s a fan. Oh, and don’t forget to try some turron blando, it’s a traditional Christmas almond and honey confection which is on sale all year round. If you don’t get a chance in Barcelona, there’s a great place selling it in Girona. Can Roca used to do a very interesting turron dish using foie gras, don’t know if it will still be on the menu.

Going here for lunch on Friday, lunch menu looks great value. Good to see Shane Osborn hasn't left yet. Anyone been recently?

Thanks Gary, I'm heading to London for the weekend, and was wondering which to try: Spuntino, Polpetto or Polpo. Anyone been to all three? Bit worried that truffle oil is creeping back onto menus... help!

Sad news... Santi Santamaria has died in Singapore, aged 53. He was a truly wonderful chef and I still remember the fantastic meal I had at Can Fabes quite a few years ago, and my chat with him afterwards when he came out to talk to us in the dining room. He was a genius at sauces and the way he cooked fish was sublime. A few details here

Texture comes to mind, I had dinner there not long after it got a star last year and was very impressed. Surprised Agnar Sverisson didn't get a rising two star considering the Michelin men know him well... but then again, he's not French.

A good piece in the Wall Street Journal by Paul Levy pointing to the irrelevance of a guide which tells people what they already know and not what they’d love to find out here

It really makes you wonder how many visits they made in Ireland. Surely there should have been more Bibs. Have they even heard of Alexis and Harry's Bar? Shame for Deanes, Will be interesting to see how Derek Creagh (former head chef of Deanes) progresses during the year at The Salty Dog, his new venture.

The Belle Isle Cookery School in Northern Ireland is well rated, although I haven’t been there. Another school worth considering is The Tannery Cookery School. Paul Flynn, the proprietor/head chef there is extremely accomplished (he worked as head chef with Nico Ladenis at Chez Nico in London), and he is very involved in the cookery school, so you get the benefit of his experience. He is also an exceptionally nice guy.

Another vote for Hibiscus. Galvin at Windows is well worth considering too, £27 for 3 courses and a great sense of occasion. We were there last week with our two children and they couldn't have been nicer. Outstanding service. The warm smoked skate with braised oxtail, girolle, broad beans and samphire was exceptionally good. We requested a window table and were lucky enough to get one, fantastic views around London, beats queuing for the London Eye!

Just got a call from Seamus Sheridan to tell me not to run with the review I’ve planned for Sheridan’s on the Docks in Galway. It has been closed due to abominably sharp practice by the landlord who exploited a loophole in the law and changed the locks putting a fantastic brigade of kitchen and FOH people out of work!!! They were booked out until September. Seamus has already identified another larger premises and will be open later in the year. Really looking forward to the new place as I think Enda McEvoy is one of the most interesting chefs at work in the country at the moment. No one can match him for his focus on local, seasonal and foraged produce and it is very seldom I read a menu where I dearly want to eat every single thing on it. When it opens, this is the restaurant to watch.

Well, when it comes to getting good food in Ireland, you’re both right. There are pockets of greatness and swathes of mediocrity, but if you know where to go, it can be a great experience. In fact, this was very much the observation of Colman Andrews at the launch of his book The Country Cooking of Ireland over here a few months ago (would be well worth buying before your visit). There has been huge growth in the number of artisan producers around the country, with world class cheese and charcuterie as well as top quality meat Take a look at the Good Food Ireland website. In the northern part of the country, just over the border from Fermanagh, Neven Maguire makes great use of local produce at his restaurant MacNean House in Cavan. It is booked out way in advance, but as you’re planning well ahead, you should have no problem, and I think you would really enjoy it. Other great supporters of Irish produce are the Sheridan Brothers. Best known for their cheese shops, they also have a very good restaurant in Galway, Sheridan’s on the Docks, which has the added bonus of a great view. In Dublin (if you include it in your itinerary), The Winding Stair cooks simple food with great produce and would be well worth a visit. And out on the coast of Dublin in Dun Laoghaire is Caviston’s, a small fish restaurant which is excellent. Without a doubt, you could weave your way through the country and eat handsomely while taking in some of the more scenic and historic parts. Enjoy the planning!

Hi Jean Yes, Cafe Paradiso in Cork is definitely worth a visit, you probably know that it’s vegetarian food, but it’s happily patronised by plenty of carnivores, so not a smug veg type vibe (a few years ago when we were going, my daughter who was about 5 at the time asked ‘are you going to pretend that you’re a vegetarian?’... no such credentials are required you’ll be pleased to hear ). It was refurbished recently (damaged in a major flood last year), so is looking quite smart. A reasonably new place in Cork which is well worth checking out is An Cruibin, which is a pub with small plates/tapas style food downstairs and a restaurant called The Silk Purse upstairs. I’m just finishing up a review I’m doing of it for Irish Tatler, so can’t go into too much detail, but in brief, it has to be the coolest place in Ireland and the food is great too. Have a look at their website here, I particularly like the biere et sandwich video on their website, a culinary Gilbert and George. The pub next door is well worth a visit too. Not to miss in Cork is a visit to the English Market, a food market in a wonderful Victorian building which is open every day except Sunday. Lunch in the Farmgate cafe upstairs, which is on a mezzanine level overlooking the market, is a must. The food is simple but top quality, using produce from the market and the atmosphere is deliciously relaxed. It’s a while since I’ve been to Ballymaloe, but I’m sure that it is still a very enjoyable experience. Another place well worth checking out is the Tannery in Dungarven, Waterford, which you could visit on your way down to Cork. Also worth visiting is the Cliff House in Ardmore, a beautiful historic town with an incredible cliff walk (not dangerous, don’t worry), but avoid the formal restaurant (v disappointing) and opt for the bar food which you can have out on the terrace overlooking the sea, stunning on a good day. And as you can imagine, there are plenty of good places in Dublin if you decide to include it in your itinerary. In Belfast, James Street South is probably the leading restaurant at the moment, it’s a smart, white linen type of place, but not stuffy, and also there’s Deane’s which I love, but they’ve made a few changes following a refurb and I haven’t been there since Derek Creagh, the former head chef left (the former sous chef is now running the kitchen). Also in Belfast is Mourne Seafood Bar, which is a lovely informal place for fish. The original Mourne Seafood Restaurant is a bit out of town in Dundrum, but well worth a visit. As suggested upthread, you’ll adapt to driving very easily, but if you’re looking for a guide, PM me and let me know the specifics. Hope you enjoy your trip, and I’d love to hear how you get on.