Your Favourite Restaurant in Sligo

Gillie · 03-04-2008 8:19am

Suppin Hell!

Xiney · 03-04-2008 9:43am

takola wrote: »

I lived on soup for about 6 months a couple of years ago. You'll never hear me order it in a restaurant if there's something else on the menu. It's now used as a curse word in my house!

for weight loss or for oral surgery!?

I always found that when on a diet (which, sadly, I perpetually am) the easiest, most likely to be healthy, thing on the menu is soup. It's just a calorie density thing. And before I moved to Sligo, I didn't really get bored of it, because it was usually a different soup each time. But in Sligo, it's always vegetable! Maud's had chicken & chive on the menu last time we were there but I'd already resigned myself to the fact that it was probably vegetable and picked out a sandwich.

I suppose I haven't canvassed all the restaurants every day, as we don't eat out all that often (despite what it might seem in this thread!) but I can honestly count the number of times the offered soup hasn't been vegetable, and I remember because I nearly died of shock: the chicken and chive at Maud's, and Tomato & Basil at the bagel place on Grattan St. - which they only told me about after they told me "vegetable" and I sighed and said, "It's always vegetable in Sligo... I'll just have the bagel then"

takola · 03-04-2008 10:13am

Xiney wrote: »

for weight loss or for oral surgery!?

Neither, We were just incredibly incredibly broke!

I was out of work so we were living on his wages and more than half was going on the rent. Our weeks shopping consisted of soup, bread and tinned spagetti which I hate!

They were dark days! I can't even look at soup without shuddering. It's never mentioned. My friends always find it amusing because it's referred to as "that which we don't talk about". Dramatic I know but it was a really really awful 6 months.

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 10:35am

basquille wrote: »

Loathe The Bistro myself for so many reasons.

The most recent being a few months back. I went just before 6pm on a quiet Thursday evening with girlfriend. We were due to go to Tommy Tiernan in The Hawk's Well at 8pm so we had plenty of time as we had our tickets booked and all that.

Took them 15 minutes (after sitting us down) to take our order (fair enough we did get a good look at the menu and all that). A further 25 - 30 minutes to get our starters out to us and we were sitting down to eat our main course (pizzas shockingly enough) after 7.30.

Had to actually "wolf" down my food (well, eat it faster than usual) and go up and ask the waitress for the bill.. then rush out the door.

Absolute joke!

2 hours for a two course meal is fairly normal I would say. You should've told them you were in a hurry before you sat down. Next time you want fastfood, I'd suggest McDonalds.

TequilaMockingBird · 03-04-2008 10:38am

starbelgrade wrote: »

2 hours for a two course meal is fairly normal I would say. You should've told them you were in a hurry before you sat down. Next time you want fastfood, I'd suggest McDonalds.

45 minutes from arriving to Starter? Thats not normal service.

Basq · 03-04-2008 10:41am

starbelgrade wrote:

2 hours for a two course meal is fairly normal I would say.

That's normal!

Every restaurant i've been to has been abnormal so.. 75 minutes to 90 minutes tops would be the norm.

If i had wine and a dessert, possibly closer to the 2 hour mark.

starbelgrade wrote:

You should've told them you were in a hurry before you sat down.

Why should I need to? I wasn't specifically in a hurry.. 2 hours is hardly a hurry. It wasn't a busy service..

starbelgrade wrote:

Next time you want fastfood, I'd suggest McDonalds.

Yeah, I do love the cardboard artificialness of it all!

CountingCrows · 03-04-2008 10:45am

sueme wrote: »

45 minutes from arriving to Starter? Thats not normal service.

... only if you ordered a dinosaurs egg!

Madge · 03-04-2008 11:00am

I don't know if the 'Crozon Inn' up at Crozon has been mentioned.
I went there for my graduation dinner. I found it to be a nice warm homely place. Had chicken goujons (main); there was a lot in it so actually took some of it home and had it as a snack the next evening!

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 11:01am

basquille wrote: »

That's normal!

Every restaurant i've been to has been abnormal so.. 75 minutes to 90 minutes tops would be the norm.

If i had wine and a dessert, possibly closer to the 2 hour mark.

Why should I need to? I wasn't specifically in a hurry.. 2 hours is hardly a hurry. It wasn't a busy service..

Yeah, I do love the cardboard artificialness of it all!

OK - I might have been a tad harsh.. I'm a bit hungover today... didn't mean to have a go at ya! But I do like to take my time when I go out for dinner - by the time the woman decides what she wants, we're usually sat down at least 30 mins! Then, there's nothing I hate more than being rushed between courses - some places will clear up the starters plates and serve the main course at the same time... I like them to take their time. As long as I've a bottle in front of me, I'm happy out! Never have dessert, but still manage to make a 2 course meal last 2-3 hours. (I chew slowly!)

CountingCrows · 03-04-2008 11:08am

Madge wrote: »

I don't know if the 'Crozon Inn' up at Crozon has been mentioned.
I went there for my graduation dinner. I found it to be a nice warm homely place. Had chicken goujons (main); there was a lot in it so actually took some of it home and had it as a snack the next evening!

Its up for sale at the moment

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 11:14am

CountingCrows wrote: »

Its up for sale at the moment

The food there was **** anyway. Glorified pub grub.

TequilaMockingBird · 03-04-2008 11:18am

starbelgrade wrote: »

The food there was **** anyway. Glorified pub grub.

It IS pub grub.

Madge · 03-04-2008 11:27am

No there's a restaurant operating in the evenings with a separate menu.

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 11:30am

sueme wrote: »

It IS pub grub.

That's what annoys me about it & a lot of other pubs.. they set a room up in the pub like it was a restaurant, complete with leather covered menus & tablecloths, waiters in white shirts & ties etc, yet they still serve up pub grub slop with frozen chips & charge near-restaurant prices.

There's some pubs in Dublin that used to be great weekend drinking holes in the daytime, that over the past few years, transformed into half ars*d restaurants. I was in one a few weeks back on a Sunday looking for a recovery pint, only to find the place over-run by families out for Sunday lunch & their brats running all over the place. Got a round in, sat down at a table & was told by the waitress that we couldn't sit at a table unless we were ordering food. In a PUB?!?!? WTF?!?!

Whatever happened to the toasted hangcheese sambo & the bowl of soup?!?

Madge · 03-04-2008 11:38am

starbelgrade wrote: »

That's what annoys me about it & a lot of other pubs.. they set a room up in the pub like it was a restaurant, complete with leather covered menus & tablecloths, waiters in white shirts & ties etc, yet they still serve up pub grub slop with frozen chips & charge near-restaurant prices.

So do you think for example that steak Diane and Chicken Maryland and Salmon are in the realm of "pub grub slop" as you put it?

starbelgrade wrote: »

There's some pubs in Dublin that used to be great weekend drinking holes in the daytime, that over the past few years, transformed into half ars*d restaurants. I was in one a few weeks back on a Sunday looking for a recovery pint, only to find the place over-run by families out for Sunday lunch & their brats running all over the place. Got a round in, sat down at a table & was told by the waitress that we couldn't sit at a table unless we were ordering food. In a PUB?!?!? WTF?!?!

Whatever happened to the toasted hangcheese sambo & the bowl of soup?!?

Well that was in Dublin wasn't it.

TequilaMockingBird · 03-04-2008 11:52am

To be fair The Crozon Inn is a pub. They have a day and evening menu, but I don't think they are trying to be a restaurant, just a pub that serves food.

Donaghys, however, have a bar and a restaurant. What gets me, is when they have overbooked the restaurant, and they just set up a table in the bar with a table-cloth. I have eaten there 3 times and twice was plonked in the bar, very uncomfortable - felt like a knob, I would have rathered a toastie at the bar. The only time I ate in the restaurant, I wanted a well-done steak (I know, I know! Ex veggie, so can't handle bloody meat) and there wasn't much else on the menu, so I thought I'd chance it. Such a drama, sent it back twice, chef won't cook steaks well done etc etc. Pompous, overpriced, and a dull menu.

I do accept that I seem to be the only person who doesn't like Donaghys though!

I've worked in lots of good restaurants, here and abroad, and know what I like, and it bugs me when I don't get it.

I did work in the Crozon briefly, many moons ago. Nightmare!

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 11:54am

Madge wrote: »

So do you think for example that steak Diane and Chicken Maryland and Salmon are in the realm of "pub grub slop" as you put it?

Well that was in Dublin wasn't it.

Yes to both questions. I just never got into the whole pub food idea.... it's the same in places like The Belfry. Maybe I'm simple, but if I wanna drink I go to the pub, if I want to eat, I'll go to a restaurant. If I want pub grub, a toasted hangcheese sambo will do. I don't want some badly seasoned, overcooked meat, frozen chips & a week-old limp piece of lettuce & a slice of tomato beside it.

lightening · 03-04-2008 12:00pm

starbelgrade wrote: »

I just never got into the whole pub food idea.... it's the same in places like The Belfry. Maybe I'm simple, but if I wanna drink I go to the pub, if I want to eat, I'll go to a restaurant..

The pubs have had to be a bit more dynamic than just putting up the prices everytime they have had problems. Pub grub has become a big earner for them lately. They have no choice, less and less people boozing.

Some pub grub is excellent. Try most of the pubs along the shannon, around Athlone. They have been serving it up to price conscious German and Dutch river boaters and anglers for years.

Mind you, it is pub grub, not fine dinning and the price reflects. (frozen chips are out of the question)

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 12:44pm

lightening wrote: »

The pubs have had to be a bit more dynamic than just putting up the prices everytime they have had problems. Pub grub has become a big earner for them lately. They have no choice, less and less people boozing.

Some pub grub is excellent. Try most of the pubs along the shannon, around Athlone. They have been serving it up to price conscious German and Dutch river boaters and anglers for years.

Mind you, it is pub grub, not fine dinning and the price reflects. (frozen chips are out of the question)

I get your point. I suppose that if the Sligo pubs had the same standards (and real chips!*) as the ones you mention along the Shannon, I wouldn't have a gripe.

* = How hard is it to peel & chop a few spuds?!?

YeatsCounty · 03-04-2008 12:48pm

starbelgrade wrote: »

OK - I might have been a tad harsh.. I'm a bit hungover today... didn't mean to have a go at ya! But I do like to take my time when I go out for dinner - by the time the woman decides what she wants, we're usually sat down at least 30 mins! Then, there's nothing I hate more than being rushed between courses - some places will clear up the starters plates and serve the main course at the same time... I like them to take their time. As long as I've a bottle in front of me, I'm happy out! Never have dessert, but still manage to make a 2 course meal last 2-3 hours. (I chew slowly!)

But that's the thing, it wasn't a personal decision on basquille's part. When a two course meal takes two hours to complete due to the fault of the staff, this is a problem. It wasn't a personal choice by the diners, it was the staff.

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 12:55pm

YeatsCounty wrote: »

But that's the thing, it wasn't a personal decision on basquille's part. When a two course meal takes two hours to complete due to the fault of the staff, this is a problem. It wasn't a personal choice by the diners, it was the staff.

Nah - yr right there.. fair point. I'd a few cobwebs on the head earlier.

lightening · 03-04-2008 1:36pm

starbelgrade wrote: »

* = How hard is it to peel & chop a few spuds?!?

Dead right... If your going to do it, do it properly. The only way things will improve in these places is if people complain. I got "home cut fries" in Dublin and they were frozen. I pointed it out to the waiter and got the meal for free.

The area around Lahinch and Ennistymon is becoming a bit of a foodie area, lots of good seafood joints, both cheap and fine dining, all good. There is no reason why Sligo and the hinterlands couldn't be the same. God knows, you have the scenery, the coast and the tourists. We have to be fussy though!

Xiney · 03-04-2008 2:17pm

Oh!

One time we went to the Stables. I ordered a Chicken Ceasar Salad.

Now, I've had Ceasar Salad about a million times. I know it's not healthy at all, I just like it. But this... was not Ceasar Salad. I'm pretty sure Ceasar Salad is a North American invention (despite it being a mainstay at "Italian" restaurants there) but this was so far off it wasn't even funny. Even the dressing was wrong - more like a ranch dressing than anything resembling Ceasar. And there was not a piece of Romaine lettuce in sight - it was chicken and quartered tomatoes smothered in fried rashers on a bed of whole lettuce leaves that appeared to be a garnish rather than part of the salad.

I mean, anything with that much bacon is certainly edible, don't get me wrong... but they really shouldn't call it a Ceasar Salad!

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 3:04pm

Xiney wrote: »

Oh!

One time we went to the Stables. I ordered a Chicken Ceasar Salad.

Now, I've had Ceasar Salad about a million times. I know it's not healthy at all, I just like it. But this... was not Ceasar Salad. I'm pretty sure Ceasar Salad is a North American invention (despite it being a mainstay at "Italian" restaurants there) but this was so far off it wasn't even funny. Even the dressing was wrong - more like a ranch dressing than anything resembling Ceasar. And there was not a piece of Romaine lettuce in sight - it was chicken and quartered tomatoes smothered in fried rashers on a bed of whole lettuce leaves that appeared to be a garnish rather than part of the salad.

I mean, anything with that much bacon is certainly edible, don't get me wrong... but they really shouldn't call it a Ceasar Salad!

An Italian born mexican called Cesar Cardini created the Caesar salad. The original salad contained few of the ingredients that now pass for a Caeser salad... there was no chicken, bacon, mayonaisse, capers or anchovies as many include nowdays. Instead the salad comprised of romaine lettuce and croutons dressed with Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, olive oil, (coddled or raw) egg, Worcestershire sauce, and black pepper. In it's proper form, it's actually a fairly healthy dish (presuming you don't get salmonella from the eggs of course!).

It's amazing how such simple & effective recipies become bastardised by ignorant chefs. I'd a similar experience in Mardees recently when ordered a plate of spaghetti carbonara.. I make this a lot myself & having lived in Naples for a year, I know for a fact that it's nothing more than spaghetti, parmigiano, eggs, guanciale & black pepper. I've had some variations in Italy that used linguine instead of spaghetti and pancetta in place of the guanciale ( a cured fatty pork).

That really didn't prepare me for the slop that Mardees chef served up (& later swore to me was from an authentic Italian recepie). The bowl consisted of a mountain of over cooked tagiatelle drowned in a sickly cream sauce (heated cream - not a sauce at all really), with the following ingredients thrown randomly over - chopped red & green peppers, mushrooms, sliced ham and sprigs of parsley and a few shavings of parmesan.

I refused to eat it, let alone pay for it & when I complained & asked to see the chef, he seemed very upset. He couldn't understand why ham was not a good substitute for guanciale... I know it's not the easiest ingredient to get, but smoked bacon you can get in ANY supermarket. Not the same at all, but a lot better than ham. He then tried to convince me that carbonara was in fact a sauce & that eggs weren't necessary to the recepie. He must have learned that from seeing the "carbonara" sauces in Tescos! When I told him that there was no such thing as a carbonara sauce and that there wasn't one ingredient in his "creation" that any repectable italian would use, he told me "that's your opinion".

Ridiculous - when the customer knows more about the food than the chef, you gotta worry!!

Xiney · 03-04-2008 3:24pm

The Ceasar dressing I'm familiar with (and have made myself) is a lot like what you're describing - but it has anchovy paste in it as well. I say that it's not healthy because of the ammount of parmesean I have a tendency of using...

That said, I've very rarely complained about the quality of the food at a restaurant. Every chef has their own interpretation of a recipe. If it is truly bad food, or just way off, I'll remember and not return. I complain if service is bad, or if I get the wrong order altogether, but I don't believe in being an asshole to the chef. A lot of the time, when they make a recipe differently than what it's "supposed" to be, it's because they are adapting it to local tastes - someone used to bottled "carbonara" sauce from Tesco would probably be disappointed with the real thing!

Basq · 03-04-2008 3:39pm

Hmmmmmm..

Madge · 03-04-2008 3:51pm

starbelgrade wrote: »

Yes to both questions. I just never got into the whole pub food idea....

Well I still don't agree with ye that it was pub grub, to me it was a fine dining experience but tbh I don't eat out a lot. The last time was late 2006.
I heard the Cromleach Lodge is good but it's very expensive.

starbelgrade · 03-04-2008 3:59pm

Madge wrote: »

Well I still don't agree with ye that it was pub grub, to me it was a fine dining experience but tbh I don't eat out a lot. The last time was late 2006.

Cripes! :eek: If I don't dine out at least once a week, I get cabin fever.

Madge · 03-04-2008 4:30pm

starbelgrade wrote: »

Cripes! :eek: If I don't dine out at least once a week, I get cabin fever.

Well I have certain dietary requirements since last year so I must be careful what I eat

takola · 03-04-2008 8:24pm

basquille wrote: »

Hmmmmmm..

Hmm. We need that for the first post of the dining out thread!

Your Favourite Restaurant in Sligo

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