Oonagh's Kitchen is one of those hidden gems you wish you had known about before. Whenever I go…read moreaway, I try to take some local cooking classes ... and here is this incredible den of flavour, on my doorstep! Oonaghs cooking classes are delivered in a very accessible way - no fuss or tom foolery - she is the real deal. I heard someone locally refer to her food as "Like a high class Avoca, only better...." ... and I can only but agree! The kitchen itself is custom built with the biggest island I have ever seen! I learned a huge amount from her in a very short space of time and am looking forward to going back again to learn new tricks and stretch my foodie skills a bit more! Highly recommended as a treat to yourself, or a place to go with a group of mates (Hen parties anyone? ... oh dear....)

Five stars for a first class experience!…read more I was in town with a girlfriend for the Rock-n-Roll Dublin Half Marathon and we wanted to take a cooking class to become more intimately acquainted with the local cuisine. We found this cooking school on-line, and felt that the availability/variety of classes, price point, and location would be worth the investment. We hopped onto the Green Line and traveled to the last stop (Howth) and walked 5 minutes from the train station to the Deerpark Golf & Spa, where the cookery classes were held. The cooking school is located in a beautiful rustic castle in Howth. The class is ~2 hours long, followed by a sit down dinner with your classmates. There were 9 total participants and we made four fish courses (mackerel, cod, haddock, skate wing) and sides. We made several preparations which was a great way to learn different methods for preparing fish: pan fried, en papillote (steamed in own juices), and baked. Chef Eleanor was very knowledgeable, and patient; answering all of our questions while keeping the cooking service moving along. Everyone got a chance to participate in every component of cooking: from skinning the fish, cutting fresh herbs and peeling cucumbers for the relish, to dicing peppers, pounding herbs in the pestle/mortar for the spice rub and putting the potatoes thru the ricer for the olive oil mash; it was all great fun!!! When the cooking ended at 9, we sat down and feasted on the food we prepared; we killed several bottles of white and red wine, and our food was served with fresh bread and salad. The only downside was that Chef Eleanor wasn't able to dine with us, but all in all, this was a wonderful experience and I would gladly come to another class; the olive oil mash recipe alone made it well worth the time :-) Definitely worth a trip if you're ever in the city!

Went here last night for a work team building cookery class. I would highly recommend anyone coming…read morehere to learn the basic skills of cooking or I believe they have courses specialising in cuisines aswell. On arrival we were welcomed with wine and some DELICIOUS finger food. We ate the beautiful food we prepared out in the courtyard and even got a tour of the lush herb garden in the beautiful surroundings! With the sun shining, I felt like I was in France.

Just completed a cupcake course tonight can't say enough good things. The girl who taught us was…read morevery helpful and gave great tips on decorating them. One thing I would have liked was to be able to buy cake cutters and piping bags. I did suggest it to owner and he said it would be something they will think about. Might go back and do another course on detailed decorating. All in all a fun night for group of girls. Would be nice if they served wine lol

Just finished my course in sugarcraft and I have to say it was wonderful. I feel I learned an awful…read morelot over the course and moreover it was great to be in a room with people who I could ask loads of random baking/ sugarcrafting questions of. Definitely a great experience

I cannot sing high enough praises for Cloughjordan House!!! I broke my ankle while on holiday, and…read morewhen I finally made it out to the wedding, they made my life so much easier. Not only did they lend me better crutches with padding, they also allowed me to use the golf buggy to get myself around the property. On top of that, one of their cooks, Chelle, is also a nurse and she bandaged up my hand a couple times during my stay. Broken ankle aside, Cloughjordan House is absolutely stunning! The grounds were incredible and the lodgings were adorable. The minute you enter the gates, your breath will be taken away by the beautiful scenery; and the minute you leave, you'll miss the serenity of the surroundings. I will 100% be returning, hopefully with two working ankles this time.

Went right before my flight home to the US and I greatly enjoyed this little cafe! I found it as a…read morerecommendation on tiktok and was a short walk from where I was staying at Trinity College. The menu was the perfect size, the seating was comfortable outside on a cool July day, and the food was delicious. My matcha was so foamy and earthy and while I had to add some sugar to make it sweet to my liking, I really enjoyed it! Then I got their version of beans on toast and it was very good- fresh, yummy bread, perfectly pickled onions and a runny poached egg. My big complaint was the chorizo. It was impossible to cut and even too gummy to bite into. I ended up not eating it which was so frustrating and disappointing! The bite I was able to get was delicious, but so chewy and way too big because I couldnt cut/bite it properly! My other complaint My other complaint was our water. In their defense, we were there for a packed saturday morning breakfast hour and our table was a bit tucked away, but even the tables right next to us got personable and timely treatment. We waited over 10 minutes to be asked if we even needed water. After we ordered our food and drinks and the drinks came, I asked for sugar. He asked if I wanted brown or white and I said white. 5 minutes later, after witnessing him visit a couple other tables multiple times, I still had no sugar. I ended up getting up and going to the bakery/pay section and when he saw me coming he grabbed the sugar and met me at the door and said "I was just coming to bring this to you." And it was brown sugar! Even though I had asked for white. A simple mistake anyone can make in a stressful time, but contextualized by what I felt to be at the neglected table, I was a bit peeved. Despite this, I actually would recommend this restaurant. My food was delicious, the staff actually seemed great and I think we just caught the brunt of it, and they have some classically Irish breakfasts for tourists and we were among the few tourists so if you're Irish, you likely won't find this annoying and filled with too many tourists. Bummed I didn't try their pastries, so I'm excited to go back to do so!

this place was a vibe. we absolutely downed this food. everything was so freshly made and the set…read moreup was beautiful. i can't wait to come back here

This is a cute little pub off the beaten path of the Liberties section of Dublin. I sat at the bar…read moreand it didn't disappoint. Service was friendly and efficient. I got the bone marrow and fish of sea bream. I washed down both with a pint of Guinness. I thought it was a bit pricey, but would recommend a try.

First, reservations a must! We lucked out and got same day at the 5:15 sitting…read more Very cozy, home like setting. Two levels. Noise level was pretty low considering the restaurant was full. You are required to order three items from the menu, which is no problem with all the delicious options. One of our dining guests got the scallop starter and kind enough to share a bite. It was fantastic. I had the deviled egg. Nice but not over the top. In hindsight, I'd would do double scallops. Round two was marinated tomatoes with ricotta cheese and peaches. A very good options for two of our guests. I had the Beef cheeks and ox tail in a Parker House roll with bone marrow gravy. Wow! Delicious! And another guest had the bone marrow with chimichurri and toasted brown bread. Fantastic! For mains, one couple shared the beef specialty, a sirloin roast cooked a perfect medium rare. My wife had the White Pork which is a thick cut pork chop. Very good, well seasoned as well as moist and tender. I had the pork schnitzel. While good, it was pretty basic. In hindsight, should have gone for the halibut. Wine list gave you ample opportunities to select from French wines and a few Italian. With one American. Would like to see this area of the restaurant expanded a bit. All in all a wonderful dining experience.

That's the perfect night out for your team or if you are looking for something different with a…read moregroup of friends: an Italian cooking course We booked here for 18 people and had so much fun learning to make homemade tagliatelle, a chocolate cake and kinda pizza dough roll stuffed with veggies, meat and mozzarella at The Italian School of Cooking. Thank you Giuseppe & team for a great interactive class!

I booked a homemade pizza class today for my friend and Myself and we both enjoyed it. The class…read morewas fun, we learned so much and the chief was hilarious. Every thing was great but one thing, the fact that my friend and I are vegetarians and even though we were provided with plates of meat and vegetables, each station has 5 working together so every one will try working on the same dough. And i couldn't stand the meat or taste what we made at the end because every one was making meatballs for pizza bianca with their hands then they will work on the dough. Of course we didnt just get one dough but we made 4 pizza and each were different and we all had to work together on each pizza to learn the techniques. Anyway, It would be great if they had a station only for vegetarians so we don't have to worry about the meat.

We recently tried Alix Gardners cooking class and here's how it went -…read more As a group of 11, we arrive at a beautiful old Georgian house on Wateeloo road,apon arrival we where welcomed by the amazing smell of food coming from the old, vintage style kitchen. As we took our seats around the massive wooden table Alix introduced herself and gave us our Menus for the meal we would be cooking. The menus included full cooking guide lines and ingredients. Alix made the cookery lesson feel very relaxed. Whilst listening to her explain and demonstrate how we would be making our main course we where treated to mini pancake with salmon and cream cheese and a glass of wine! We spent 2 hours making Moroccan chicken and chocolate brownies from start to finish, the evening was so much fun. We finished off by having a lovely meal and drinks (BYO) and chatting around the table!!

I attended the cooking class as part of a work event. In advance of the lesson, we were able to…read moreselect 2 recipes to practice as part of our class..... I thought this was a great idea, there is nothing worse than going to a class to learn something you would never cook at home upon arrival we were greeted with a glass of wine, for the remainder of the event we consumed our BYO drinks. The recipes were surprisingly easy to make which meant the atmosphere was very casual and relaxed.... We were put into pairs and worked on our masterpieces, at the end, we were all able to enjoy what we had created as part of a sit down meal. Would definitely recommend this to others as a group activity, we were a group of 11, I wouldn't recommend a group much bigger than that.

I got a voucher for a day course ( petite patisserie) from 9 am to 4 pm and it was the best gift…read moreever. I enjoyed the experience so much and I definitely learned a lot. Starting from basic stuff and difficult on how to make desserts. We made different one like ; sticky cinnamon and peacan minis) , lemon drizzle cake with poppy seeds, Chocolate hazelnut cake, Ganache, Mini Tartlets with lemon curd and italian Maringue, Coconut tuiles , passionfruit mousse and Vanilla Crème brulee. We also had a delicious lunch on a big table and had a nice chat with the other participants. It is so much fun and the chef is a real expert. #DublinShopsLocal

HIghly highly recommend the Dublin Cookery School in Blackrock. I recently took the intensive 1…read moremonth course and was more than impressed with the course and the instructors. Expect many guest appearances by top michelin starred chefs (My class included Oliver Dunne of Bon Apetite in Malahide, Matthew Albert of Nahm in London, and Sunil Gai of Ananda in Dundrum)---there are only 6 or so Michelin star restaurants in all of Ireland so to get this caliber of guests is quite impressive. Head instructor and owner Lynda Booth is extremely passionate about food and it shows in her teaching. The curriculum for the 4 week course was varied and covered everything from french bread-making to mastering butter sauces to filleting a John Dory to making the perfect hot lemon soufflé. Every day you make 3 or 4 courses and get to eat the results during lunch. It's an intensive course and by day 2, we were all making bearnaise sauce with confidence---I know now how to bring back butter sauces once they split! yes it's very pricey, but considering the quality of the instructors and the types of food you're making it's well worth the cost.

On a recent trip to Slane we were looking for somewhere to get my mum a gift as she was looking…read moreafter our dog while we were away on our jollies. We didn't really want to get her anything too touristy like a postcard because we were only about an hour down the road but we did want to get here something unique to Slane so when we stumbled upon the Slane Craft Creative we knew we were in luck. The shop itself is made up of crafts made by different creative folk. There's everything from up-styled furniture, candles, diaries and framed pictures of the beautiful Slane. Each section of the shop is divided up in to different categories and each category has a cute wee biography explaining the creators of the pieces and the history. We ended up looking around for about an hour until we finally found a locally made candle set for my mum. The lady working in the shop that day offered to gift wrap the candle at no extra cost which was a nice touch. She then explained the concept of the store - she said that each person who exhibits/sells there does one day a week working in the store and they each support their fellows designers products. We thought this was just lovely and it really made an impression on us. The shop is lovely and serine and there's absolutely no pressure to purchase anything if you just want to browse. I can't find a single fault with the Craft Collective and I highly recommend popping in if you're in Slane! An easy five stars!

'Last summer some of the local Artists and Crafts people (14 in total) from the surrounding areas…read moreof Slane got together as a Collective (Co-op) to run one of the many empty shops in Slane and bring some life back to the village with some help with Slane Local Heroes.' Their shop stocks paintings, ceramics, stained glass, textiles, paper crafts, up-cycled furniture, stunning photography, jewellery, wood turned pieces and much more. It is a great mix of arts and crafts and their stock seems to change and update regularly.