Tag: Food NI

Legenderry Food Festival 2018

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Friday 17th – Sunday 19th March

12noon – 6pm

Guildhall Square – Guildhall

Derry – Londonderry

If you are considering where to go for St Patrick’s weekend, then look no further than the LegenDerry Food Festival. A free family event, being held over two days on the 17th and 18th March from 12 mid-day to 6pm at Guildhall Square Derry/Londonderry. With picturesque views over the city there will be lots of food, music and entertainment to experience, including the juggling and singing waiters and the opportunity for the little ones to decorate their very own cupcake!

There will be a huge number of food choices to taste, ranging from the sumptuous artisan cheese, chutneys and relishes, fresh fish from the Donegal shores and how about chocolate & honeycomb sausages!?

The event will be headlined by celebrity chef Rachel Allen, while MC for the weekend will be chef and writer Brian McDermott who will be launching his new book.  The festival is part of the larger Spring Carnival programme designed by Derry and Strabane District Council and takes in lots of free entertainment for all ages to experience.

When asked about attending the event, Rachel said, “I will be providing two demonstrations for the public to experience the importance of eating local produce and just how simple I keep my recipes for everyone to enjoy. I am looking forward to being there on the Sunday afternoon of the St Patrick’s weekend, as the audience will be amazing.”

For those with a sweet tooth, all things chocolate will be available from Morelli’s award winning Italian recipe ice-cream with the addition of hot waffles and the new Affogato; Mallow Mia has developed extravagant flavours in Marshmallows including Guinness & Chocolate Swirl; and Ni Cho Chocolatiers has the chocolate fountain for an extremely enjoyable experience.

Ian Orr, renowned chef of Brown’s on Bonds Hill & Brown’s in Town has been an avid supporter of the award winning LegenDerry Food Festival since Council developed the concept. Due to an amazing opportunity on St Patricks Day to be a guest chef on BBC’s ‘Saturday Kitchen’ Ian will be out of the country but his heart and his team in his restaurants will still be active supporters of the event said, “the great tastes from the up and coming chefs and the opportunity for local producers to engage with the public and promote themselves brings an extra element to the city. LegenDerry showcases just how good we can be, attracting an increased interest in food tourism.”

For foodies with a taste further afield, Mekong Street Food Restaurant specialising in Vietnamese and Thai food the only one in N.Ireland will be educating visitors in their new dishes, while Indian food restaurant Saffron will be making and filling freshly made Naan breads

The award winning LegenDerry Food Festival is part of the Spring Carnival Programme supported by Tourism NI and DAERA’s NI Regional Food Programme and organised by Derry and Strabane City Council. For more info go to www.derrystrabane.com/food   @islandskypr

Shortcross Gin Available Across All UK World of Duty Free Outlets

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Craft gin expands presence after arriving on shelves at Belfast City Airport

Shortcross Gin, produced in Northern Ireland, is now being stocked in all World Duty Free stores across the UK, a year after first becoming available in a select number of the airport retailer’s outlets.

It means the craft gin is now available at 21 airports across the UK including London Heathrow, London Gatwick and Manchester, showcasing the product to well over 100 million passengers each year.

The success comes just a year after the awarding-winning gin first arrived on the shelves of World Duty Free at George Best Belfast City Airport.

The gin is produced at Rademon Estate Distillery, founded in 2012 by husband and wife team Fiona and David Boyd-Armstrong at their historic family estate just outside Downpatrick, Co Down.

David Boyd-Armstrong said:

“Sales of Shortcross Gin have increased each month at all the World Duty Free outlets which is a great reflection of the partnership between our team and staff at each of the airports.

“We are very grateful to Belfast City Airport for its assistance in establishing the connection with World Duty Free and are focused in further developing that link over the months and years to come.

“Our contract with World Duty Free offers passengers the opportunity to sample something truly unique and which has won global acclaim, including a gold medal at the 2017 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

“With plans to launch of our Irish Malt Whiskey 2018, it is an exciting time for the company and our customers.”

Shortcross Gin was first stocked at World Duty Free in Belfast City Airport in late 2016.

Katy Best, Commercial and Marketing Director at Belfast City Airport, commented:

“This is a fantastic success story for one of the most exciting new brands to come out of Northern Ireland in recent years.

“Belfast City Airport was proud to help facilitate Shortcross Gin’s entry to World Duty Free in 2016 and we are delighted to see how the relationship has developed.

“The gin has been extremely popular with passengers at Belfast City Airport, across our domestic routes and direct European services to Amsterdam and Iceland.

“The platform provided by World Duty Free is huge in terms of the exposure it provides for Shortcross Gin to both outgoing and inbound passengers at the UK’s leading airports.

“We wish them every success in the future as they add new products to their portfolio.”

Ciara Hamill, World Duty Free.

“Shortcross Gin proved to be a hit with tourists arriving and leaving Belfast City Airport so the decision to expand its offering to all outlets across the UK was an easy one.

“The product has played a major part in boosting our own growth in the past 12 months and we look forward to continuing the relationship into 2018.

“Providing locally produced food and drink is a key part of the offering of World Duty Free as we seek to showcase the best of local goods throughout our stores.”

In addition to availability in World Duty Free outlets in the UK, Shortcross Gin can be access at airports across the world through the World Duty Free online Reserve and Collect Servicewhereby passengers can pre-order their items for collection upon travel.

On the 7th Day of Christmas..

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On the seventh day of Christmas, Food NI gave to me..

A delicious Traditional Christmas Pudding from Holmes Bakery

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Holmes Bakery has perfected the Traditional Christmas Pudding. Holmes has created a delicious, richly fruited pudding with flavours of Guinness and Rum that is the ideal dessert for Christmas Day.

In 1937 Holmes Bakery began creating the finest bakery products in Portadown Co. Armagh.

Since then, they have been handcrafting award winning bakery products using the very best ingredients and traditional methods. Holmes Bakery is more than a bakery, it’s a family tradition.

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Join us again tomorrow to see what Day 8 of our Festive Foodie countdown has in store!