Belfast & Irish Stew

[StevieHolland]

Hi,

Many years ago I worked for a time in Limerick. I remember fondly walking into numerous pubs and being able to get a steaming hot bowl of Irish Stew. These were most definately pubs and not psuedo restaurants - much Guinness and craic went along with the stew.

I've been to Dublin on many occations since - and have failed to find anything quite so authentic - moreover the pubs are very touristy and serve very expensive bowls of, in my opinion, not very authentic stew.

I'm now working for a few months in Belfast. I've read all the interesting debates on the state - or not - of Belfast food (Cayenne last week - great menu - but where was the wham factor in the taste...a bit weak given it was suposed to be Asian based).

So, given Belfast is 'less touristy' than Dublin - is it possible to get a good authentic Irish Stew - to be chased down by some excellent Guinness?? Or am I being terribly naive and should only be expecting this South of the Border.

Any tips would be appreciated.

Steve

[Andy Lynes]

I was going to tell you that I had a decent stab at an irish stew at Rumpoles near to the law courts a few years ago, but I find that it has been transformed into The Advocate, with an ex-Nick's Wharehouse chef dishing up classic Irish fare such as chilli beef wrap with guacamole and fried spiced squid. Oh well.

[Corinna Dunne]

I'm afraid, I don't have any recommendations for Belfast, but if you do head down south again, The Roundwood Inn, up the hills in Co Wicklow, does a very good Irish stew... and a nice pint of Guinness too.

[Simon_S]

Sorry for the OT post, but...

Corinna, that's interesting as I expect to be in Roundwood on Saturday. Would you recommend the Roundwood Inn for a spot of lunch prior to paintballing for 18 "gentlemen" on a stag party...?

Si

[Corinna Dunne]

Absolutely. I love the Roundwood Inn, but I should have been more specific. There's a formal restaurant (which is quite expensive) and a bar area (with a big open fire) which serves food. The bar is the one you want. Great native oysters in season, goulash, venison stew... and of course, Irish stew. They don't take bookings, just put your name down on a list when you get there. So if the bar looks any way full, be sure to get your name on the list before you order your pint.

So... I'll cross that quiet country walk in the Wicklow hills off my lisst for next Saturday.

Edited May 3, 2006 by Corinna Dunne (log)

[Emma M]

So, given Belfast is 'less touristy' than Dublin - is it possible to get a good authentic Irish Stew - to be chased down by some excellent Guinness??

Any tips would be appreciated.

Steve

←

Try here. My hubby takes anyone who's visiting us there as he says the Guinness AND the stew's mighty fine. A guy was killed right outside their front door last week, but I wouldn't let it bother you, as they caught him.

[StevieHolland]

Emma,

Thanks for the tip. Damn shame - I'l just got back from this weeks trip - and turns out I was staying a couple of streets away (Malmaison - nice hotel - shame about the food - could have played football with the salmon fish cakes)

I've only just read the post - but it looks great - I'll be posting a review when I've been.

Thanks

Steve

[Emma M]

Yikes! Belfast's Malmaison? Shoddy service, condescending and patronising staff and pretty awful food.

[StevieHolland]

So...spent the weekend and found a great Irish Stew.

We did indeed find the Whites Tavern - as part of the Historic Pubs of Belfast tour. Worth the money just to get the leaftet of the pubs.

However, we ended up having a fantastic stew in the Falls Road Community Centre - of all places! We did the politcal tour of West Belfast, and was recommended this place by the guy that took us around. Suppose it depends on your politcal persuassions as to wether you'll find yourself in this place - but it was quite fabulous.

Steve

PS: Finally found a decent Dhal Makhini in the The Moghual Tandoori. Been looking for ages since overdosing on a recent tour of India. A Very good rendition..even tough we waited almost an hour for it....

[HannaBanana]

Absolutely.  I love the Roundwood Inn, but I should have been more specific.  There's a formal restaurant (which is quite expensive) and a bar area (with a big open fire) which serves food.  The bar is the one you want.  Great native oysters in season, goulash, venison stew... and of course, Irish stew.  They don't take bookings, just put your name down on a list when you get there.  So if the bar looks any way full, be sure to get your name on the list before you order your pint.

So... I'll cross that quiet country walk in the Wicklow hills off my lisst for next Saturday.

←

Hmmm. Myself, Simon and my mother went for lunch in the Roundwood In on sunday last. The bit about the bar, roaring fires etc etc is all true. Hover, the food was pretty abominable. Also, the services was, at best, dour, uninformative and at times, quite rude.

I has goulash soup to begin which was admittedly fairly tasy, although there was an oil "slick" at the top of the bowl. Mother had veggie broth, again, tasted ok (was homemade) by with oil slick effect too. Simon had smoked ducked, This was thinly sliced, fairly tasty, and served with grated onion.

All the above was accompanied by margarine-smeared "soda bread"

Mains: I had poached lobster. While cooked....er...just while it was cooked, it was tasteless. Totally tasteless. It was served with....er....plain melted butter and a miserable lemon "slice". All in all it was pretty dire. The "side salad" consisted of grated onion, 2 lettuce leaves and a small portion of potato salad. Just as well i ordered the side of chips.....

My mother and Simon had pork. This was served in an overpowering celery and red pepper sauce. The pork was very tough and was accompanied by 2 (over)boiled potatoes and saurkraut. Which was inedible.

Desserts: I had blueberry pancake. This was basically a (pretty good) pancake filled with what appeared to be blueberry jam. i was ok, but very sugary and "jammy". Simon had either a: shop bought or b: very stale apple pie.

All in all, with 3 coffees, it came to over €100 (not including tip).

Perhaps winning the Georgina Campbell pub of the Year award 2007 has gone to their heads, but i found this to be a bitterly disapponting meal.

I'm not a bit impressed, and I will not be returning.

[StevieHolland]

Hi all

So I've finished working in Belfast after about a year.

I am quite a saddo and keep a record of all my meals out (1867 and counting) - so below is an extract of all the meals in Belfast that I recorded in my dB.

Sorry for the formating - but I've just pasted it from Excel - not sure how to attach a file to this entry.

Steve (the originator of the post)

PS: Molly's Yard. By far and away the best place. Food superb and not overpriced (Mr Rankin take note) and the service exceptional...we ended up staying and drinking with the staff until 1am on my Birthday

Restaurant Type Address City Starters Main Main Rating Cost Est Overall Rating

Archana Indian Belfast Road Belfast Chicken Chilli Balti OK 20 OK but wouldn't recommend

Archana Indian Belfast Road Belfast Lamb Dhanzak Good 20 Fine

Beatrice Kennedy Irish 44 University Road Belfast Celeriac Soup Filler of Beef Very Good 35 Very Good

Beatrice Kennedy Irish 44 University Road Belfast Carpaccio of Scallops with crab meat Roast Duck Breast with cabbage mash and parsnip puree Superb 40 Very Good

Bourbon American 60 Great Victoria Street Belfast Rib-eye steak Bad 30 Fine

Bourbon American 60 Great Victoria Street Belfast Chicken Wings Pork Ribs Good 20 Fine

Cafe India Indian 42 Malone Road Belfast Lamb Madras OK 25 Fine

Cayenne Asian Shaftesbury Square Belfast Chick Pea Soup Fillet of Cod on Goan Curry Sauce Superb 30 Very Good

Cayenne Asian Shaftesbury Square Belfast Rare Beef hot 'n' sour soup Korean Spiced Lamb with Kimchee Very Good 30 Very Good

Cayenne Asian Shaftesbury Square Belfast Potato Dumplings Fillet of Beef Very Good 30 Very Good

Cayenne Asian Shaftesbury Square Belfast Black Bean Dumplings Fillet of Beef OK 30 Fine

Clandeboye Hotel Hotel Bangor Fillet of Beef OK 20 Fine

Clandeboye Hotel Hotel Bangor Monkfish Tempura Fillet of Beef OK 20 OK but wouldn't recommend

Deane's Brassiere Irish 36-40 Howard Street Belfast Foie Gras Rib-eye steak Very Good 30 Very Good

Deane's Brassiere Irish 36-40 Howard Street Belfast Mussels in cider cream Pork Belly with mustard white beans and black pudding OK 30 Very Good

Deane's Brassiere Irish 36-40 Howard Street Belfast Haddock and Chips Very Good 30 Very Good

Deane's Deli Modern British 44 Bedford Street Belfast Fillet of Beef Very Good 30 Very Good

Deane's Deli Modern British 44 Bedford Street Belfast Smoked Roast Cod Very Good 30 Very Good

Deane's Deli Modern British 44 Bedford Street Belfast Filler of Beef Very Good 30 Very Good

Deane's Deli Modern British 44 Bedford Street Belfast Fillet of Beef Very Good 30 Very Good

Falls Road Community Centre Irish Falls Road Belfast Irish Stew Superb 3 Exceptional

Fontana's Irish Holywood Wild Mushroom Soup Pan fried Sole Very Good 30 Very Good

Gerry's Golf Club British Belfast Garlic Mushrooms Fillet of Beef Very Good 20 Very Good

Harbour View Japanese 1 Lanyon Quay Belfast Sushi Tepenyaki Very Good 35 Very Good

Harbour View Japanese 1 Lanyon Quay Belfast Sushi Tepenyaki Very Good 35 Very Good

James Street South Modern British 21 James Street South Belfast White Onion Soup Saddle of Rabbit with wild mushrooms Superb 30 Exceptional

Lee Garden Chinese 14 Botanic Avenue Belfast Crispy Beef OK 25 OK but wouldn't recommend

Lee Garden Chinese 14 Botanic Avenue Belfast Won Ton Soup Banquet for 6 Superb 30 Very Good

Malmaison Modern British Belfast Filler of Beef OK 20 Fine

Moghul Indian 62A Botanic Avenue Belfast Chicken Dupiaza Very Good 15 Very Good

Moghul Indian 62A Botantic Avenue Belfast Dhal Makhini Very Good 30 Very Good

Moghul Indian 62A Botantic Avenue Belfast Dhal Makhini Very Good 30 Fine

Moghul Indian 62A Botantic Avenue Belfast Chicken Vindaloo Very Good 15 Very Good

Moghul Indian 62A Botantic Avenue Belfast Chicken Dupiaza Very Good 15 Very Good

Molly's Yard Modern British 1a College Yard Belfast Penne with Confit Duck Beef Sausage and Champ Superb 30 Exceptional

Molly's Yard Modern British 1a College Yard Belfast Wild mushrooms on toast Beef Sausage and Champ Very Good 25 Very Good

Molly's Yard Modern British 1a College Yard Belfast Leek Soup Carbonarra and Chicken Pasta Very Good 25 Exceptional

Molly's Yard Modern British 1a College Yard Belfast Penne with Confit Duck Cod and Potato stew OK 30 Very Good

Nick's Warehouse Modern British 35 Hill Street Belfast Saddle of Rabbit Sausage and Beef Bolognese Superb 35 Very Good

Pizza Express Pizza Belfast American Hot Very Good 20 Very Good

Pizza Express Pizza Belfast American Hot Very Good 20 Very Good

Roscoff Brassiere Irish Belfast Fish Chowder Pork Belly and Lentils OK 25 Fine

Scalini Italian Belfast Lamb Steak with Beans Very Good 25 Fine

Serai Asian University Street Belfast Thai Beef Salad Rendang OK 20 Fine

Serai Asian Belfast Rendang Very Good 25 Very Good

Serai Asian Belfast Singapore Noodles Very Good 25 Very Good

Serai Asian Belfast Chicken Yakatori Singapore Noodles Very Good 25 Fine

Tedfords Modern British 5 Donegall Quay Belfast Smoked Cod Chowder Roasted Bass with Lite Curry Sauce Very Good 30 Very Good

Ten Square British 10 Donegall Square South Belfast Tomato Soup Rib-eye steak Very Good 25 Fine

Ten Square British 10 Donegall Square South Belfast Rib-eye steak OK 25 Fine

Thai Village Thai 50 Dublin Road Belfast Green Chicken Curry Very Good 10 Fine

Thai Village Thai 50 Dublin Road Belfast Grilled Mussels with chilie sauce Green Chicken Curry Very Good 20 Fine

Thai Village Thai 50 Dublin Road Belfast BBQ Ribs Green Chicken Curry Very Good 20 Fine

The Beaten Docket Pub Food Belfast Filler of Beef Good 10 Fine

The Crescent Townhouse Hotel Belfast Penne Pasta with smoked chicken Very Good 15 Fine

The Crescent Townhouse Hotel Belfast Smoked Mussels with Chorizo OK 20 Fine

The Crescent Townhouse Hotel Belfast Rib-eye steak OK 20 Fine

The Crescent Townhouse Hotel Belfast Rib-eye steak Very Good 20 Fine

The Ginger Root Indian Belfast Chicken Jalfreizi OK 20 OK but wouldn't recommend

The Ginger Tree Japanese Belfast Sushi Sukiyaki Very Good 40 Fine

The Wok Chinese 126 Gret Victoria Street Belfast Five Spice Lamb Sezuan Beef Very Good 30 Fine

Tony Romas American Belfast Fillet of Beef Bad 25 Fine

Tony Romas American Belfast Rack of Ribs Very Good 20 Very Good

Tony Romas American Belfast Rack of Ribs Very Good 25 Very Good

Tony Romas American Belfast Rack of Ribs Superb 25 Very Good

Villa Italia Italian University Road Belfast Lasagne Very Bad 30 OK but wouldn't recommend

Zen Japanese 55 Adelaide Street Belfast Sushi Platter Zen Banquet OK 35 Very Good

Zen Japanese 55 Adelaide Street Belfast Sushi Platter Beef with Enoiki Mushrooms Very Good 25 Very Good

Zen Japanese 55 Adelaide Street Belfast Sushi Platter Chicken with Kimichi Sauce OK 25 Very Good

Zen Japanese 55 Adelaide Street Belfast Sushi Platter Chicken with Kimichi Sauce OK 25 Very Good

Edited May 16, 2007 by StevieHolland (log)