Terrace drinking and dining in a secret garden now open to the public

Secret garden

The Shelbourne Hotel’s secret garden, a comfortable outdoor space right at the heart of the hotel on St Stephen’s Green in Dublin, opened quietly, for residents and private events only, last summer. But it has now been launched as a public space, The Terrace, serving drinks and light meals.

The Terrace is adjacent to the new 1824 Bar, at the top of the central staircase leading off the entrance foyer. Sharing platters of Irish cheese and charcuterie platters are a speciality of the new outdoor space and will be served from noon to 7pm daily. For the month of June, a sharing platter for two, with a sommelier’s selection of wine by the glass, will be on offer for €50.

In other food and beverage news from The Shelbourne, which celebrates its 195th birthday this year, head sommelier Nisea Doddy has introduced a “sparklers” menu of Champagne, cava and crémant, by the glass, at No 27 Bar & Lounge.

Executive chef Garry Hughes has introduced two sharing dishes to his menu in The Saddle Room – Angus beef wellington, carved tableside and served with pommes Anna, cépe purée and Madeira jus (€60 per person, 24-hour advance notice required), and French "black-leg" chicken, pot roasted crown and confit legs.

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An after dinner whiskey trolley has been introduced in the restaurant, and in The Horseshoe Bar, dedicated whiskey sommeliers will guide guests through flights of Irish whiskey.

The Mindful Kitchen

Annette Sweeney and Denise Murray, culinary lecturers at Technological University Dublin's Tallaght campus, have been awarded the Jennifer Burke Award for Innovation in Teaching and Learning, for a mindfulness module they introduced for first year culinary arts students.

The Mindful Kitchen introduces students to a range of resources including yoga and breathing techniques, and puts self-care top of the agenda. “It challenges young chefs in an experiential way, through exploring in the practical kitchen, ways in which the modern chef can be mindful in food production and use mindful tools to benefit his/her health and well-being in the modern kitchen,” they say. Students are also encouraged to be more mindful with regard to food sourcing, food production and food waste, and to explore issues relating to stress, mental health, nutrition and diet, and kitchen culture.

Nurture and Nourish

Tara-Lee Byrne, a certified raw and wholefoods chef, and Anthea Grimason, a San Francisco-based Irish yoga teacher, are teaming up to offer a Nurture and Nourish weekend at The Elbowroom Escape in Donard, Co Wicklow, on June 28th-30th (Friday-Sunday). As well as yoga classes, there will be workshops, including one on plant-based living. Byrne, who is a professional cellist as well as chef, will be designing the weekend's menus around local, organic wholefoods. Further details at the-elbowroomescape.com.

Food and drink related experiences

Good Food Ireland has launched an online collection of food experiences that can be browsed by date, destination or type of activity. You can sign up for a wide variety of food and drink related experiences, including a chocolate factory tour and make your own bar at Wilde Irish Chocolates in Co Clare (€40); learn about farmhouse cheesemaking on a farm in Co Galway (€50), or tour a craft brewery and have a three-course lunch with beer pairings in Co Kildare (€29).

Good Food Ireland founder Margaret Jeffares, whose husband Des hosts a tour of their blackcurrant growing and horse breeding farm in Co Wexford, says the experiences will appeal to staycationers as well as tourists.

"We have worked tirelessly with the best food producers and chefs in Ireland to carefully develop, inspect and bring to market food experiences which are now available on one platform, easily searched and navigated by various criteria." See goodfoodirelandexperiences.com.