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The Midlands town of Birr may be known as the "belly button of Ireland" because of its central location, not because this region is regarded as one of the cuisine centers of Ireland. No matter that Ireland's best restaurant (according to some)—Neven Maguire's MacNean's, near Cavan town—is in the Midlands, nor the fact that the r
The Midlands town of Birr may be known as the "belly button of Ireland" because of its central location, not because this region is regarded as one of the cuisine centers of Ireland. No matter that Ireland's best restaurant (according to some)—Neven Maguire's MacNean's,
The Midlands town of Birr may be known as the "belly button of Ireland" because of its central location, not because thi
The Midlands town of Birr may be known as the "belly button of Ireland" because of its central location, not because this region is regarded as one of the cuisine centers of Ireland. No matter that Ireland's best restaurant (according to some)—Neven Maguire's MacNean's, near Cavan town—is in the Midlands, nor the fact that the region is also home to Wineport Lodge, Ireland's first "wine hotel," you'll find that most restaurants here are simple eateries, ranging in price from inexpensive to moderate.
Nevertheless, there are those restaurants that will entice you right in off the street, especially those offering beef—Mullingar, in the center of the Midlands, is the beef capital of Ireland—and fish specialties, as the many lakes and rivers of the region provide an abundance of fresh salmon and trout (in fact, since no place is more than an hour and a half from the sea, expect to find lots of fresh ocean fish).
Run by Neven Maguire, one of Ireland's top chefs, MacNean's is one of the best restaurants in the country; in fact, there's a waiting list of up to two years for weekends. The Menu Prestige, at €98 (€153, including wine), delivers a staggering selection of courses. Winning appetizers include partridge breast, quail, or Castletownbere sea scallop. Top mains include quail, strip loin of dry aged beef, or hake; for dessert, strawberry plate or chocolate crémeux will linger long on the palate. An eight-course vegetarian menu is also available for €98. Maguire also opened a cooking school featuring classes for all skill levels. Breakfast is served.
Given the remoteness of this Cavan town, consider reserving one of MacNean's 19 guest rooms as well as a table. The 65-km (40-mile) detour to Blacklion makes a lot more sense if you are heading from Dublin northwest to Sligo or Donegal.
One of Athlone's culinary highlights, this bistro is noted for its early-bird menu, which runs through the evening (except Saturday, when it ends at 6 pm), filled with such delights as bacon and colcannon mash with cider sauce, or chargrilled pork fillet. Later on, the beige-on-brown dining room fills up for the main dinner menu, which favors steaks, monkfish, duck, and rack of lamb. For lunch, the most popular dish is tandoori chicken breast on focaccia with sautéed potatoes, although the open sandwich of French brie with tomato chutney on brown bread (€9.95) runs a close second. Irresistible desserts include mud cake, banoffee pie, and lemon-and-lime cheesecake. Ask joint-owner Annie McNamara about the Left Bank dressing, a specially bottled vinaigrette that people come from all across Ireland to buy.
A restored, stone former post office in an elegantly landscaped garden, the Olde Post Inn has won a clutch of awards and, as a result, is often booked solid. Sea bass, steak, game, and bacon and cabbage terrine are main-course favorites and highlight local and seasonal ingredients. The wine selection will appeal to Europhiles: Valpolicella, Pouilly-Fuissé, Sancerre, or if you feel like a splurge, try the flamboyantly fruity Puligny Montrachet at a cool €85. Artwork by some top Irish artists decorates the redbrick and stone walls. Staying overnight is strongly advised; six guest bedrooms, all in the original part of the postmaster's residence, have been modernized with fabrics in bright jewel tones alongside contemporary bathrooms. Special events such as gin evenings or a French wine and game night are held and are available for guests as part of a package.
Originally a standard public house with low ceilings, this Shannon-side resting place on the main street of a tiny village to the west of Longford Town has been transformed into a gourmet's delight—a special gastropub, bustling with locals and tourists alike. Specialties include Thornhill duck, baked sea bream, and renowned John Stone steaks from an artisanal butcher specializing in Irish grass-fed beef. Potatoes and vegetables are abundant and even served al dente. The good-value early-bird menu stretches from Tuesday to Thursday 5 to 9:15 pm, Friday and Saturday 5:30 to 7 pm, and Sunday 4 to 6 pm (when the restaurant is also open for lunch). It's worth leaving space for the Toblerone cheesecake, which has become the sweet talk of Longford and has been a fixture on the dessert menu since 2000. An upstairs gallery has work by some of the finest and best-known Irish artists, including Paul Henry, Graham Knuttel, and Kenneth Webb, the latter noted for his expressionistic, thickly painted landscapes of Connemara.
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