I have a dream holiday destination, and, like many dreams, it can’t be bought, planned or booked online. It just has to happen, out of the blue, and that is a sunny Irish summer. We all remember those legendary ones, like 1995 when we had a small baby and spent a glorious week on the Aran Islands. I come across the photos every so often and they are like scenes from Santorini – the blue sky, deep azure sea and stone walls shining white in the sun. 1989, living in Dublin and cycling out to the Forty Foot every day after work for a swim, a can of beer and a sandwich in my pannier. The rarity is what makes it, and why we value it and treasure it when it comes along. Of course, there is a darker side to the current heatwaves all over the world, but in the moment, basking in the manageable high 20 degrees, I’m making the most of it while it lasts.
West Cork is wonderful at any time of the year, but in the sun, it’s pure magic, with a wild and wide variety of beaches to explore, and plenty of beautiful sea-facing cafés, pubs and restaurants in which to refresh afterwards, shaking sand from our feet.
Last Sunday, an Instagram post from St. Francis Provisions in Kinsale, telling of a South American food pop-up, was all the encouragement we needed to head eastwards for the day. From her kitchen set up in the little courtyard outside the restaurant, Francisca from La Latina served enpanadas, ceviche and croquetas, with beer, wine and homemade lemonade on hand from the restaurant. Spicy Chilean beef empanadas with Blacks of Kinsale lager was the perfect street food snack, sun filtering through brightly coloured parasols.
After a gorgeous swim at the Cove, the holiday feeling in Kinsale needed to be kept going, so we headed for the balcony in All Apologies cocktail bar, overlooking the marina. This is a great spot to watch the comings and goings from the 200-odd yachts moored in the harbour, while sipping a martini infused with hand-foraged botanicals.
For me, a trip to Kinsale usually revolves around a meal in The Black Pig wine bar. Gavin and Siobhán were among the first of the new generation of Kinsale restaurateurs, opening their stylish restaurant in 2013, and two seats at the bar here had our names on them. There’s a cosseting, cobbled-lane-in-a-warm-city feel to the place, food which celebrates the best of local ingredients with all kinds of exotic touches, and a wine list with over 100 wines by the glass. Yes, 100.
We rounded off the evening in the cool, book-lined interior of Prims. It’s a bookshop by day and wine and sherry bar by night, with dark wood, sheepskins and chill tunes to go with our nightcap and good coffee.
Kinsale is a great shopping and browsing town. Mamukko is a personal favourite, making bags from recycled boat and aeroplane materials. I have one of their creations featuring an aeroplane seat buckle, whose satisfying ‘clack’ I used as therapy during the grounded days of a few years ago.
Many a Sunday morning sees us in OHK, an arty, quirky café, buzzy and full of character with a warm welcome, amazing brunch (maybe a glass of pet-nat) and top-notch coffee. Michelin starred Bastion restaurant is an understated, calm room, in which to treat yourself to a full tasting menu, or just grab a small, delicious bite at the bar with a glass of champagne. Of course, if you’re in the mood for fish and chips, a tasty snack from a food truck by the river, or fresh Italian panini from the Wednesday market, casual, on-the-go dining is sorted too.
Kinsale has a holiday feel to it all year ’round, and is justly popular with tourists. In the last 15 or so years, I feel it has shed its somewhat stuffy ‘gourmet capital’ label, and is now a place you’ll find really exciting, creative food and drink.
When this all happens on a sunny Sunday afternoon, spicy, smoky aromas wafting in the warm air, that’s the dream right there.
