Café Paradiso in Cork

Ireland is not known to be a culinary highlight, but if you spend time researching you can find some gems. Of all the places we ate at the two weeks we were there I would have to say that Café Paradiso in Cork was my favorite. I knew about the café well before ever planning the trip as I had bought one of Denis Cotter's, the owner's, cookbooks called "Wild Garlic, Gooseberries and Me...". So it was a given that I would have to visit the café when in Ireland. It turns out that they also have two rooms above the café to rent so we went ahead and got their midweek special which included two nights' stay with two breakfasts and one dinner.

Café Paradiso is a vegetarian café that focuses on serving regional, seasonal produce. All the food we had at Café Paradiso was very fresh and tasted amazing. The flavor compositions of each dish were astounding and the presentation of the food was beautiful. On top of that the staff was always friendly and the atmosphere of the café was relaxed. The name Paradiso is well deserved.

Breakfast is only served for the overnight guests so when we got to the café the first morning we were the only ones there. A table by the window was set for us and the Irish Times was waiting on the table next to ours. We got to choose two courses each, but I could unfortunately only handle one. Here's what we got for the first breakfast.

Obligatory toast, salted butter and jams

Macroom oatmeal porridge with whiskey sultanas, cream and brown sugar

Yoghurt with fresh cherries, honey and granola

Poached eggs with warm sungold tomato and avocado salsa, spinach and toast

For dinner we could also choose as many courses as we wanted. We made sure to only have a light lunch that day so that we could enjoy all the food we wanted in the evening!

Dinner snacks: pumpkin seed crisps, olives and spiced cashews

Roasted baby aubergine with chilli, cardamom and honey marinade, sugar snaps and sesame-yoghurt dressing

Vegetable sushi with tempura of carrot and scallopini squash, pickled ginger, wasabi and a dipping sauce

Deep-fried summer squash flowers with Knockalara sheep's cheese and caper filling, panfried courgettes, grilled polenta and a tomato, oregano and citrus broth

Recipe

Risotto of fresh peas and broad beans with Oisin goat's cheese, roast beets and lemon parsley oil

Strawberry trifle with lemon mascarpone cream and pistachio praline

For breakfast the next day we tried two new dishes from the menu.

Panfried king oyster mushrooms with chives, sour cream and grilled sourdough bread

Buttermilk pancakes with vanilla mascarpone cream, strawberries and maple syrup

I urge everybody who goes to Cork to visit this café!