olivemagazine
type: channel
link: https://www.olivemagazine.com
date: 2026-01-23T12:50:30.000Z
update period: hourly
update frequency: 1
update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
items: GastroGay's Patrick and Russell share their best restaurants in Belfast
items: Why I love Derry, Northern Ireland's foodie haven
items: Why I love Northern Ireland, the home of famous whiskey and traditional icons
items: Foodie road trip along the Causeway Coast, Northern Ireland

GastroGay's Patrick and Russell share their best restaurants in Belfast
type: item
date: 2025-07-15T16:22:22.000Z
creator: Patrick Hanlon
subject: Northern Ireland
subject: Restaurants
subject: Travel
subject: UK
description: Discover the best restaurants in Belfast with everything from poutine to pizza on offer in Northern Ireland’s foodie capital
encoded: Looking for the best restaurants, bars and cafés in Northern Ireland’s foodie capital? Patrick Hanlon and Russell Alford, aka GastroGays, the restaurant critics of the Sunday Times Ireland, share their their top recommendations alongside suggestions from Caroline Wilson, founder of Taste and Tour, Belfast’s premier food tour company. For more Ireland inspiration, discover the best Irish holidays. For more city dining guides, check out the best restaurants in Dublin, best restaurants in Cardiff, best restaurants in York and best restaurants in Liverpool. Jump to: Best places to eat and drink in Belfast 5 of the best Belfast pubs Where to stay in Belfast Best places to eat and drink in Belfast Neighbourhood – for an indulgent breakfast On Donegall Street, this handsome cafe styled like a plush sixties-bureau-meets-modern-Scandi-restaurant serves some of the best brunch dishes and coffee in the city. Don’t miss the croissant eggs benny or the seasonal French toast. neighbourhood.cafe Established – for coffee When Established opened the doors of its industrial-chic cafe in the Cathedral Quarter in late 2013 it sparked a revolution in Belfast’s coffee scene. Over a decade on it remains a beacon of quality and consistency, sourcing and roasting. Their food menu is also a massive draw, changing regularly with the seasons. Their bakes are similarly legendary, particularly the ‘pie and drip’ special, a slice of pie and a drip coffee for £7.50, available only on Sundays until sold out. established.coffee St George's Market – for a food market Saturday is the day the city’s historic Victorian covered market properly springs to life, packed with stallholders, street food traders and food and drink producers aplenty. Snack on dried dillisk/dulse and gulp oysters, try Young Buck blue cheese, pick up some Belfast Brew from Suki Tea and try Armagh apple juice, among other local delicacies. One floor up is the restaurant, Stock Kitchen and Bar, led by chef Danny Millar, where the me…

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Why I love Derry, Northern Ireland's foodie haven
type: item
date: 2025-05-15T10:38:55.000Z
subject: Northern Ireland
subject: Travel
subject: UK
subject: 10 things
description: From super fresh seafood and award-winning pork to local distilleries and cider, there's a wealth of great food to discover in Derry, Northern Ireland
encoded: Learn all about what makes the cuisine of Derry in Northern Ireland so special from Leigh Thurston, head chef of the Oak Room at Ebrington Hotel. From renowned oysters and pork to local cheesemakers and Irish whiskey distilleries, there is plenty for foodies to enjoy. Plus, we share some of the top places to eat on the island and our picks of the best places to stay. Want to learn more about regional cuisine? Check out our guides to the cuisines of Trentino in Italy, the Algarve in Portugal, Cork in Ireland or Istria in Croatia. 10 things to love about the food in Derry Award-winning pork Northern Irish pork is known for its quality and flavour. William Grant and Co in Derry has been producing and curing bacon, pork and ham since 1911 using traditional methods handed down over the years. It does many great award-winning products but one of the best things is the classic drycure bacon which we always have on the menu. We’re lucky to have it on the doorstep. Foyle Bia Mara oysters These sustainably grown oysters benefit from the waters of both the Atlantic Ocean and River Foyle’s freshwater tides to give them their own unique flavour. It’s a small family-run business – I visited a couple of weeks ago and it’s an incredible place. They are doing really hard work down there but the quality of their oysters is incredible. Local breweries We’re spoilt for choice here. We have Walled City Brewery, which is on the Ebrington side of the Peace Bridge – it does great stouts, the classic being an oyster stout using the left-over shells from local Lough Foyle oysters, and it also has a taproom where you can try all the brews. You have Northbound Brewery which does a great bottled pale ale. Rough Brothers microbrewery makes red ale, oatmeal stout and pale ales, Dopey Dick Brewing (named after a killer whale who lost his way and swam into Derry in 1977) is known for its bold, experimental flavours, and the brewery has its own sister pub, The Guildhall Taphouse, and there’s Lacada …

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Why I love Northern Ireland, the home of famous whiskey and traditional icons
type: item
date: 2024-10-18T13:14:19.000Z
subject: Guides
subject: Northern Ireland
subject: Travel
subject: UK
subject: 10 things
description: Stevie McCarry, head chef at Lir in Coleraine marina, reveals what makes Northern Irish food special, plus top activities and places to stay when visiting
encoded: For more travel inspiration, check out our guide to the best Irish holidays and the best Irish whiskeys to buy. For more cuisine guides, check out our guides to Athens cuisine, Austrian cuisine or Icelandic cuisine. Northern Ireland cuisine: 10 things we love Potato farls Potato farls are a beloved staple in Northern Ireland – a type of potato bread made from a simple mix of mashed potatoes and flour, cut into quarters (or "farls") and cooked until golden. Popular in Ulster, they’re a fry-up essential, often replacing toast or enjoyed with butter and jam at teatime and even paired with smoked fish for supper. Due to their versatility and familiarity they're the perfect base for experimenting with new ingredients as people are more open to trying something different when served with a comforting classic like a farl. Champ Another must-try Northern Irish classic is champ. This dish combines seasoned mashed potatoes with scallions (spring onions), milk, and a generous amount of butter for a silky-smooth side. It's great paired with meat or fish – but just as good enjoyed on its own. Locally sourced produce In Northern Ireland, diners are fortunate to have access to an abundance of incredible local produce. You can find artisanal bread from nearby bakehouses like Ursa Minor in Ballycastle, fresh vegetables from Rhee River Organics, and the coast teeming with foraging opportunities, from exquisite seaweed to a bounty of berries, nuts, seeds and mushrooms in nearby forests. This reliance on seasonality is a driving force, fostering a strong sense of community and resulting in beautifully cohesive menus as chefs have to adjust their dishes based on the local catch or produce in season. Therefore, it’s popular to have traditional dishes reimagined. For example, the classic sausage roll at Lir was transformed with fresh, locally sourced monkfish. Dulse Dulse is a red seaweed cherished in Northern Ireland. Foraged from the shoreline, it’s traditionally dried and enjoyed as a …

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Foodie road trip along the Causeway Coast, Northern Ireland
type: item
date: 2020-01-31T14:53:47.000Z
subject: Northern Ireland
subject: Travel
subject: UK
subject: Road trips
description: Explore Northern Ireland’s impressive Causeway Coast via steaming bowls of mussels with white wine, cabrito goat meat burgers and fluffy friands
encoded: The Causeway Coast stretches around the top of Northern Ireland from Belfast in the east to Derry/Londonderry in the west. Along its 120-mile reach it takes in some of the country’s biggest tourist attractions (including the Giant’s Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge and the Glens of Antrim) as well as golden beaches, rugged cliffs, fishing villages and castles. Tear your eyes away from the views, however, and you’ll also discover craft breweries, third-wave coffee joints and street-food pop-ups on one of Ireland’s best foodie road trips. Now discover the best Irish holidays. The Giant’s Causeway, Bushmills Fondly dubbed the “eighth natural wonder of the world” by loyal locals, this ancient rock formation is composed of a series of interlocking basalt columns rising from the sea. It’s the most popular tourist attraction in Northern Ireland, and the guided audio tour (which mixes legend with fact) and visitor exhibition are well worth exploring. The Giant’s Causeway also makes a perfect Instagram shot but be careful on those slippery rocks! nationaltrust.org.uk/giants-causeway Maegden, Bushmills Just outside the town of Bushmills, literally steps away from the Giant’s Causeway, Maegden is a cute 1950s caravan that, for our money, serves the best grilled cheese sandwiches on the island. The mix of local sourdough, regional farmhouse cheeses and charcuterie, homemade pickles and cleverly sourced extras (think truffled mushrooms, honeyed walnuts and red onion confit) is magic. It also serves a killer Bonfire Hot Chocolate (with extra salted caramel and marshmallow fluff) and cookie sandwiches filled with Draynes Farm ice cream. Maegden’s season runs from March to October and it’s usually open from around 11am until 5pm (every day except Tuesday). There are a couple of benches nearby if you want to take your time. cheesemaegden.com Ursa Minor, Ballycastle Bread, pastries and cakes are fabulously fresh at Ursa Minor, in Ballycastle. Owned by a local husband-and-wife duo…

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