St Patrick’s Night

Monday 17 March 2008
£35pp for 3 courses, Black Velvet and Irish coffee

Saint Patrick was kidnapped at the age of 16 by pirates and sold into slavery. During his 6-year captivity he found strength in his religious faith. After he escaped he studied religion in Europe then travelled to Ireland to spread the Christian word there. He used the shamrock which resembles a three leaf clover as a metaphor to explain the concept of the trinity - father, son and Holy Spirit. Legend has it that Saint Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland - they all went out to sea and drowned. We don’t know why he did this except the snake was a revered pagan symbol and perhaps this was a figurative tale alluding to the fact that he drove paganism out of Ireland. To be sure, he was such a good bloke we Irish drink to his memory every year and it’s an undisputed fact that Paddy’s day is the only global booze-up involving snakes and Guinness; to be sure it will be grand!

Aperitif
Black Velvet (an Irish cocktail of Champagne & Guinness)

EXAMPLE MENU

Irish-Inspired Starters
(V) Celery and apple soup
Oysters on creamed leeks with Guinness hollandaise
Mushrooms stuffed with Cashel Blue and bacon & topped with herbed crumble

Traditional Irish Main Courses
(V) Dubliner cheese & leek tart with new potatoes
Bacon & cabbage (braised joint of local gammon, white cabbage & new potatoes)
Irish stew (free-range mutton slow-cooked with carrots, onions, potatoes & herbs)

Puds
Strawberry and Bailey’s fool
Jameson Whiskey chocolate, walnut & caramel tart

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