In a place like The English Market, shoppers expect top quality as a matter of fact. Hmm, that must…read morebe why On The Pigs Back has done so well. Anchoring the centre of Cork's busy English Market for over ten years, this outstanding fine foods specialist offers an incredible international selection of beautiful cheeses, meats and homemade pates and terrines (oooh, and lovely crusty bread to pile it all onto). The cheese case is almost a tourist attraction in itself -don't be afraid to ask your cheesemonger for a taste before buying, and do ask what her favourites are if you're stumped. Add a few slices of saucisson or cured jambon and you're bound to even impress yourself when laying it out on the table later. Prices are reasonable here with a round of good Camembert around €5. Fresh, organic sausages are also available for a real breakfast treat -the lamb and rosemary is divine.

(11/12/2017) Delicious, interesting, and a voluminous array of local farmstead cheeses and some…read moreimports at this vendor in the English Market. The staff are very knowledgeable, friendly, and patient, and will even let you have a little taste of a cheese or two so you know what you're getting into. Perfect for snacking or to take to a fancy party. Wander around the market for the perfect accompaniments, like fresh baked bread, fruits, olives, pate, cured meats. Definitely high quality.

Great Cheese shop right in the heart of Limerick. Place also has delicious Sicilian coffee and some…read moretables just outside. Sat in the sun and had a coffee then took my Lough Derg cheddar and some Morbier to have with some wine this evening, the samples the owner provided helped make the choice. Definitely check this place out.

On a recent visit to Ireland we had the opportunity to tour Cooleeney Farm and see the cheese…read moremaking process. We finished with a tasting in the farmhouse occupied by the farm owners. There's a cheese shop on the grounds where you can purchase cheese without appointment. The tour, however, called for advance reservation and a prepayment of 10 Euro. Once greeted, we met the husband and wife who own and oversee operations. We were handed off to our guide who got us the required hair nets, booties and smocks. We were then walked through the cheese making process able to observe curd being separated from whey, the aging and packaging stations. It was interesting and all the employees were cheerful and friendly. Of course the highlight was tasting! A combo of cow and goat's milk varieties including a brie. The cow's versions were creamy, buttery and earthy. The Daru was a universal favorite.The goat cheeses were more firm but robust and equally flavorful. I recommend making arrangements to visit the farm and tour the cheese making operation as a unique way to spend a morning or afternoon.

SUNVIEW GOATS CHEESE In Terleton (West Cork), Anne and Brian…read moreBond make a terrific Kilmichael Soft Goats Cheese from the milk of their Sunview herd. This is beautiful and mild, easily spreadable. If you've never eaten goats cheese before, then this is the one to start on. But that doesn't mean that those of you experienced in goats cheese should give it a miss. Far from it. There is something in this great product for everyone! The cheese is available from the Mark's Cheese stalls in local markets. I bought mine in the coal quay on Saturday. When I got home, combined it with some leaves, rye bread (by Tom's Bakery), an organic tomato salsa (Just Food), and had a great open sandwich.

GUBBEEN SMOKEHOUSE SAUSAGES 22.12.09 Many of you will be…read morefamiliar with Gubbeen cheese products. But how about the sausages from their smokehouse? Bought a couple of packs from their stall in the Mahon Point Farmer's Market today and tried out the ones with Sun Dried Tomato, Basil and Garlic. Absolutely lovely. Great texture, great flavour, all preceded by a lovely smell while cooking. Looking forward to the second pack - tomorrow! GUBBEEN CHEESE 07.12.09 Gubbeen farmhouse cheese is one of the best known in Ireland and marketed internationally by the small family company from West Cork. Picked some up recently at the Farmers Market in Mahon Point and it is really really good, up there with the best of them. They also do a smoked version and, more recently, have produced other smoked items such as rashers, sausages and salami. Will be calling again!

MILLEENS CHEESE Charles De Gaulle (1890-1970) once said that…read morethe French had 365 different cheeses. The French politician was familiar with the southwest of Ireland but when he visited the country he would have found it difficult to locate any real cheese. Milleens is generally credited with producing the first modern Irish Farmhouse cheese in 1976 and the company improved it over the following years. It is still going strong. Picked one up recently at On the Pigs Back in the English Market and enjoyed it. It has a mottled peach, and sometimes orange, washed rind and within is a paste that goes from semi-firm to spilling cream. The flavour is a complex mix of delicate herbs along with a spicy tang. That spicy tang doesn't suit everyone but personally I have no problem with it and is in any case tamed when mixed in with a salad. My piece was marked Milleens Dote. Wasn't too sure about the Dote but it is simply the term use to indicate a 200g round, the smallest size. The soft cheese is made by the Steele family from the milk of Freisan cows on the rugged Beara peninsula. It is a regular award winner and features regularly on the cheese board of top class hotels and restaurants.

Amazing cheddar cheese with one of the weirdest names ever:…read more Poets and Writers of Ireland. Who named this thing? It's tasty but the fact that Oscar Wilde's mug is on the packaging is kinda creepy. Good thing this Irish cheddar has flavor to make up for it.

FERMOY CHEESE Met Frank from the Fermoy natural Cheese…read moreCompany at the Cork Good Food Week and meant to get around to their products before now. The small company is found in Strawhall, Fermoy and makes Raw Cows Milk Specialty Cheese. Frank and Gudrun Shinnick are members of Good Food Ireland and CAIS (Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers Association). They make five different cheeses: Cais Dubh, Cais Rua, Saint Brigid, Saint Gall and Hibernian. Hibernian is not easy to find but the others can be bought at the farmers markets (at Mark Hosford's stalls) and at the Pig's Back in the English Market. Nash 19 also use them in their restaurant. And indeed it was Mairéad from Nash 19 that directed me over to the Pig's Back where I bought a wedge of St Gall. This is a hard Swiss type cheese and was certainly a hit in our house and I immediately added it to my short list of favourites. St Brigid didn't go down as well - let's say we had a disagreement. It is a semi-hard smeared ripened cheese and, though described as mild, is somewhat more pungent than St Gall. I certainly didn't find it overpowering, or anywhere near it, and would love to have it on my plate at anytime. Still, if forced to make a choice I would go for the five and a half star St Gall. The Gudruns are an award winning couple as they picked up a Gold Medal double in the 2008 World Cheese Awards. The cheese is made from the milk of their pedigree Friesians who graze in the fertile valley of the Blackwater. Now for the Cais Dubh and the Cais Rua!

I found Fermoy Natural Cheese Compnay cheese a number of years ago when organising my husbands and…read moremy engegement party. A deli in Mallow, since closed, had a great selection of irish and internationally renouned cheeses. We sampled the Fermoy offering and quickly became fans. I love the Cais Dubh and St. Brigids, while my husband is a lover of the St. Galls cheese. Unfortuantely with the closure of the cheese and deli counter in O'Crualaoi Buthchers in Fermoy we have to go to the Pigs Back in the English Market to get our supplies. But it's worth the trip!!

BANDON VALE FINE CHEESES Bandon Vale is dedicated to…read moreproviding quality products and offers a selection of shredded, block, sliced and pre-packed products, ranging from cheddars to bespoke blends and mixes. But this fairly large producer, a member of the West Cork Regional Branding Initiative, under the Fuchsia logo, also sells some speciality packs, mainly cheddar. The one I bought recently was their Glandór Red Leicester. I was very happy with it. It had a mellow yet distinct flavour and is quite a nice change from the usual cheddar.

I bought pork sausages and chicken to roast for a potluck-dinner-party-debrief for 10, the last…read morenight of the HearSay17 Festival, in Kilfanane, Ireland. We were a bunch of tired and starving international radio/audio makers and I wanted create a solid, comforting and satisfying main dish that held cross-cultural appeal. After an in-depth conversation with the proprietress, Deirdre, I bought my meat and several giant carrots and parsnips as well. I was happy to learn that all of the fresh foodstuff they carry are sourced from local farmers. I made something like a butterflied chicken and sausage tray bake with the meats layered upon a pile of chopped onions, carrots, parsnips, whole garlic, dried apples, liberally doused with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. My spice choices were a bit limited as I hadn't thought to bring any from Brooklyn, and was staying at the Ballyhoura Mountain Lodges (review to come) which while perfect, super comfortable, and packed with every single eco-certified modern convenience possible, didn't have a spice rack. Next time, I'll know what else to pack! Still, the product from Hennessy's was so fresh and gorgeous that I shouldn't have worried at all. The roast/tray bake earned top points from all who helped themselves to seconds and thirds. I also made a couple of frittatas with farm eggs given to me as a gift (!!! OMG !!!) local mushrooms, tinned Cerignola olives (from Malta!) and my housemate's handmade stale, crumbled, savory brown soda bread (WTF SO GOOD), with loads of chopped, crisped Irish bacon and teeny cubes of local seaweed cheddar; and a massive, four-heads-of-butter-leaf-lettuce-salad with a quick pickled onion and fried tomato, cider and olive oil dressing. Folks brought tins of pate (France); crunchy South East Asian rice cracker-based snacks (Vietnam and Malaysia); some tinned headcheese-in-aspic-with-leeks-and-celery (Wales); a cold prawn salad with apples and prosciutto (Australia); a savory green onion and stinky cheese custard (Brussels); and a couple of ice-cream-flake-cakes (purchased by an Italian at the local Amber gas station grocery store); plus candied persimmons (Iran) and dates (Saudi Arabia); and whiskey and maryjane (Los Angeles--LOLOLOLOL)--guys, it was interNATIONAL. We hung. We ate and drank a ton. We laughed our faces off. Maybe there was some dancing and a rap-off? And as the evening wore on and the wine and beer bottles piled up, I tossed the chicken carcasses into a pot with lots of cold water to make a quick and simple stock for congee in the morning with random leftovers for my cabin mates and those who crashed on our couches.. Can you say #favorite #HearSayFestival #attendee? :) I think you can!

Purchased Beef on the bone for Christmas instead of Turkey . Cost much the same but beef so tasty…read moreand succulent . Hennessy's have a long tradition of sourcing their meat locally over generations of butchers Service so courteous, friendly and fast.