Cheese Melts at McDonald's UK

I agree with that wonderful observation about Europe by Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction: "They got all the same shit we have over here, just somehow it's a little bit different." For that reason, I always end up going to McDonald's whenever I'm in a foreign country just to check out what's different.

On this trip, my favorite non-American McDonald's find was Cheese Melts. Crispy on the outside like a hashbrown, with soft melty cheese on the inside, they are served with sweet chili dip, which was exactly like Thai Mae Ploy sweet chili sauce. Much better than mozzarella sticks in my opinion.

I've noticed that while Americans are purists who only like ketchup on their French fries, the Brits will put anything on chips -- all kinds of flavored ketchups (made by Heinz no less), gravy, curry, chili sauce, etc. Why are we so boring back home?!

Another McDonald's observation: I love McDonald's ice cream cones, but here in Ireland and the UK, you could only get McDonald's ice cream in sundaes, no cones. Odd especially because you can get soft serve ice cream in a cone in just about every gas station or convenience store...

Leo Burdock's, Dublin, Ireland

Leo Burdock's is famous for being Ireland's oldest chip shop. Whether this is true or not, I don't know. We did see at least 2 pubs claiming to be Ireland's oldest pub...

I have to say, the chips were great and flavorful, but I was a little disappointed in our fried cod. Maybe it suffered some extra sogginess in the journey wrapped in paper, walking a block and a half from the chip shop to the courtyard of Christchurch Cathedral, but beyond that, I thought the batter could have been more flavorful. I also should have asked to add my own salt and vinegar as I would have liked a lot more yummy malt vinegar.

Leo Burdock's Fish and Chips
2 Werburgh Street
Dublin
+353 1 4540306

Ulster Fry, Belfast, N. Ireland

In Belfast, we ducked into a kind of depressing market because I had spotted a second-hand store (which turned out to not have great vintage Fred Perry/Ben Sherman finds as I was hoping, but instead was all American duds - Wranglers, Levi's, Aloha shirts, etc.)

But in the market, we also spotted a food court with a counter serving all day fry-ups. Redneckhunter opted for a small fry (egg, bacon, sausage, and fried soda bread) - this was the small, can't even imagine what the large fry was like. And I got beans on toast -- classic British comfort food. At something like 1 pound 50 for each plate, we could see why this seemed to be a favorite of high school boys after school, judging from our fellow food court diners.

Moran's Oyster Cottage, County Galway, Ireland

Redneckhunter saw Moran's Oyster Cottage listed online in a Top Ten Pubs in Ireland list, so since we were staying in Galway, we decided to take the short drive outside of the city to find it. Thank god we had a GPS, otherwise we never would have found the thatched cottage located on the tidal Dunkelin river, across from the old stone wall that's known as The Weir. It was well worth the drive.

In business since 1797, seven generations of Morans have run the restaurant. We were greeted at our table, in fact, by current owner Michael Moran.


We ordered the specialty of the house two ways: fresh, on the half-shell; and grilled, with garlic breadcrumbs. Both were delicious -- big, briny, meaty oysters, expertly shucked. Apparently the shuckers at Moran's are world champions of the craft.

We rounded out the meal with seafood chowder (more refined and less chunky than others we had had in Ireland) and more locally smoked salmon on brown bread. The smoked salmon we had in Ireland is milder, less salty than its American counterpart. And homemade brown bread is addictive -- dense, chewy, nutty, slightly sweet... I miss it now that we're back at home!

Moran's Oyster Cottage
The Weir
Kilcolgan, County Galway
Ireland
+353-091-796113

Gus O'Connor's Pub, Doolin, County Clare, Ireland

We picked Doolin on the West coast of Ireland as our base to see the Cliffs of Moher and the Aran Islands. This teeny coastal village is known as one of Ireland's top music towns, and Gus O'Connor's Pub, established in 1832, is famous for its nightly live music.

It also didn't hurt that it was within stumbling distance of our B&B (which had a spectacular castle view). Yes, there were a lot of Americans there, but who really cares when the food is good and the Guinnesses are properly pulled, right? We went back 2 nights in a row for Traditional Bacon and Cabbage (served with mashed potatoes, as well as mashed sweet potatoes and turnips), Award winning Smoked Salmon, Beef and Guinness Stew, and their delicious, delicious homemade brown bread.


Gus O'Connor's Pub
Fisher Street
Doolin, Co. Clare
Ireland
(+353) 065 7074168

The English Market, Cork, Ireland

Redneckhunter and I just got back from a trip to Ireland, Scotland, and London. Trying to pack in over 2000 miles of driving around the islands and seeing the sights, we stuck mostly to pub grub. Pork and potatoes were pretty much daily fare, and of course we also tried as much as we could to take advantage of the wonderful fresh seafood!

The first culinary-related stop on our journey was in Cork -- to pay a visit to the historic English Market. Claiming to be the oldest market of its kind, the English Market dates back to 1788.

Charming inside and out, the market was filled with stalls selling fresh meat, seafood, and other delectables. We also had our best cup of coffee in Ireland at the Coffee Central stall.

It's always the dilemma with visiting markets when you're traveling - so much food, and nowhere to cook it! But we did get to sample some of the English Market's sausages at nearby Clancy's Pub -- our first plate of bangers and mash in Ireland!

The English Market
Grand Parade
Cork, County Cork, Ireland