While the permanent population of Kinsale on Ireland’s southern coast in County Cork is well under 6,000, it seemed hectic, bustling and crowded when we arrived last month. That was partly because we were coming from a two-night stay in the three-bedroomed Fastnet Hotel at the end of a cul-de-sac west of Schull (population a few hundred).
There we were treated to nothing noisier than birdsong, with very French food prepared by our very French hostess, and wine served by her Northern Irish dental professor husband.
This was also partly because Kinsale’s narrow, colourful streets (pictured above at an unusually quiet time by John W Banagan via Getty Images), the harbour, the boats, its many pubs and bars and the overall charm of this small Irish town attract visitors from all over the world, particularly in the last week of July. And this is without mentioning the music, the numerous places to enjoy a coffee and a snack (one of which, The Flying Poet, was opened by a former pilot from South Africa), as well as the weekly Wednesday market which, with its numerous food stalls, is like a miniature version of London’s Borough Market.
It came as no surprise, therefore, that when I analysed the two excellent dinners we enjoyed in Kinsale that the influences behind them came from far afield: from South Africa, San Francisco and Spain.
The input from South Africa came at the outset of our dinner at the straightforwardly named Fishy Fishy, whose owners, Martin and Marie Shanahan, bought what was a gallery in 2008 and have been operating the space, close to Kinsale harbour and obviously extremely popular, ever since – to high culinary standards.
I began with a cup of seafood chowder (topped with cream of course – Irish dairy produce is generally superlative) while JR revelled in a seafood platter which included an artfully dressed oyster, some cured salmon, a miniature fish pie with shellfish, really good mayonnaise and a beautifully dressed salad. We then ordered a whole, steamed local lobster for the two of us that was just the job, as was our bottle of Juliusspital Franken Riesling for €39.95. We skipped dessert to listen to the traditional Irish music being played in the Blue Haven hotel.
But what left the biggest impression on me was how they served the bread and butter.
This is an issue that always challenged me when I was a restaurateur – in particular how much of each to deliver. In those days (the 1980s), the butter that was returned from the table went to the kitchen for reuse. This is no longer possible. Today’s environmental health regulations stipulate that anything that has been to the guest’s table must be binned. This makes Fishy Fishy’s custom of serving delicious bread – a moist dark-brown bread made with Murphy’s stout – with the butter wrapped in individual portions like lozenges, an extremely intelligent ploy. This very practical custom is one which Martin Shanahan first came across while travelling in South Africa. It should be copied widely. It looks good too, especially before some greedy diner has started to undo the wrapping …
At the tiny restaurant St Francis Provisions, the San Francisco connection did not seem obvious at first. But that was before I had had the pleasure of meeting its creator, inspiration and front-of-house, Barbara Nealon. And the even greater pleasure of eating and drinking there.
This oddly named restaurant occupies the most unlikely of spaces. When we first put our noses in, it looked like nothing more than a rather scruffy natural-wine bar. As Nealon explained, ‘it was October 2018, two months after we moved to Kinsale, and I saw a sign on the window advertising [the site as] a “turnkey café”. It was most certainly not turnkey! I took a picture of the ad and sat with it secretly for a few weeks until a spontaneous discussion with my husband over coffee a while later led us to making an offer – and here we are. We opened in June 2019, although Rebeca Recarey Sanchez has only been head chef for two years so I would rather say we are two years old.’
The postage-stamp-sized space seats just 13–16 inside and 14–16 outside, depending on the unpredictable Irish weather. The kitchen is big enough for two to work in. One beneficial consequence of this compactness is that Nealon is everywhere on the floor: greeting customers when they walk in; taking orders from the tables outside; and carrying plates of food wherever.
She may not create the food herself, but Nealon seems to get as much pleasure in explaining and serving as it will give anybody fortunate to snag a seat in this restaurant (bookings are taken only a few weeks in advance). The menu, simply printed in black on white paper, looks familiar: half a dozen nibbles plus bread; four first courses; half a dozen dishes which span both first and main courses; a fish of the day and a bavette (at €30, the most expensive dish); a selection of three Irish cheeses; and three desserts. All very clear and straightforward, with the Spanish influence obvious in the presence of ‘grilled radishes + ajo blanco’ and ‘grilled French beans + romesco’.
We began slowly, with a plate of deliciously accurate focaccia with romesco and a look at their wine list which includes quite a few interesting wines although none with their vintage. We ordered and enjoyed a bottle of Cabernet Franc, La Dilettante from Pierre & Catherine Breton 2022 (€55) that proved versatile with all that we ordered.
We then moved on to a dish of Kerry coppa served with broad beans that had, unusually, been ‘confited’ and topped with slices of Cáis na Tíre, a local sheep’s milk cheese, and a mouth-wateringly soft burrata laced with slices of courgette, pine nuts and Aleppo pepper. We followed this with grilled ox tongue, beetroot and horseradish cream (pictured above); some smoked potatoes with aioli and a wonderful dish of fried aubergine from Gortnacrusha (a local farm) on a plate of Macroom buffalo ricotta and honey. This was so delicious that I asked for the recipe (see below). I, like many other chefs, adore cooking aubergine, whose texture resembles that of meat. We followed this with a dish of chilled rice pudding into which slices of peaches had been integrated and a luscious pistachio baklava with whipped cream (pictured below with a rosemary biscuit we forgot to take away for our early departure the next morning). I happily paid my bill of €190 including service.
These many dishes – which each arrived as they were ready – allowed me to watch Nealon and her staff waltz around her guests and wonder how she ended up here. ‘I trained and worked as an artist but left that world to work for a food and drink company in Dublin’, she told me. ‘Then in 2010 my husband, I and our three children left for San Francisco where I ran a small artisan sausage business called Meitheal Meats. Meitheal is a Gaelic word that describes when a community comes together to help someone complete a task. The warmth and support of the food community in San Francisco is why I’m doing what I’m doing here’, she ended with a smile.
Hence the name, St Francis Provisions.
Fishy Fishy Crowley’s Quay, Kinsale, Ireland; tel: +353 (0)21 470 0415
St Francis Provisions Short Quay, Town Plots, Kinsale, Ireland; tel: +353 (0)83 016 8652
Rebecca’s fried aubergines
1. Cut a round aubergine in half across the middle, creating two circles.
2. Roughly peel with a sharp knife, then cut into thirds or quarters, depending on size.
3. Pop into a bath of sparkling water for 3–4 minutes.
4. Drain and put the chunks into a bag of flour (one part cornflour, two parts plain flour) and shake.
5. Take out of bag, shaking off excess flour, and drop straight into a deep fryer at 190 °C for about four minutes or until the pieces have nice colour.
6. Turn out onto a paper towel and season with fine sea salt.
7. Ideally, place onto a bed of Macroom buffalo ricotta, drizzle with honey, sprinkle with smoked paprika and finish with flaky sea salt.
Every Sunday, Nick writes about restaurants. To stay abreast of his reviews, sign up for our weekly newsletter.
