Chef Darian’s Blog

The Times, They Are A Changing

As I sit here thinking about going to work (yes, sometimes you have think about it before you can get out of bed) I am staring out of my bedroom window. The view is amazing. I have the biggest chestnut trees in my view and their leaves are changing color. It is beautiful. I grew up in rural Ohio with Maple trees dotting the landscape (they are my favorite tree, if you can have a favorite tree). Autumn brought the most magnificent landscape changes. It was as if God was easing you into the winter with an apology for the bitter cold that was to come. I have to say, living in Texas we don’t get the color changes that our friends in the North are blessed with. Of course they have the freezing temperatures, snow and sleet that we are lucky to see only occasionally. (Thank God for that!) Back to the trees – So as I walk up the hill towards the castle, I am reminded how beautiful the seasonal changes can be. The road up the hill is lined with stone walls that are covered in ivy and blackberries. Trees changing colors seem to stand behind the walls as if to say, “look but don’t touch” with leaves of gold and orange. Behind the trees lies Dublin Bay. Most days it looks as smooth as glass and if I head up the hill early enough I can see the ferry headed for Wales. The occasional sailboat will glide past as the wind fills the sails to almost bursting. Even when the weather isn’t so nice and the sheets of rain pelt me till I am wet to the skin – well, that is not nearly as beautiful, but Wow! that rain can be cold! Like ice.

Did you realize that it is only six more weeks till Christmas? I did. I was counting the weeks till my last day working at the castle (this was while the owner was explaining how bad things are at work and I was thinking – do I have a prayer) and I realized that I had only six weeks left. It really went quickly. There were days that I never thought would end – we all have those, but 2 and 1/2 months really flew by. Oh, and speaking of Christmas, they put up the Christmas tree on O’Connell street. I have Monday and Tuesday off and will make sure to head to the city center and get a picture. Apparently, the tree is from France and has a few hundred thousand energy efficient lightbulbs on it. Should be pretty cool. Those French. Hollandaise sauce and now this! What will they think of next?

The following pictures are of my recent trip to the Boyne Valley. You will see Trim Castle and the Abbey Ruins.

Well, off to the Dungeon! The Irish Rugby team is having dinner at the hotel tonight. That means that they all order two of everything! And since they lost to the All Blacks (not an all black rugby team – of course I asked!) they will be drinking too! Should be a fun time for all!

The Credit Crunch

Well, in case no one in America knew, the financial crisis that has hit the US has really hit Europe pretty hard lately. As an American it has been a little tough. We get blamed for a lot of things and this is no different. I promised myself that I would not post political viewpoints on my blog. This will be no exception, although you must know that America has been blamed for this whole mess. You get a lot of abuse (complaints really) from Europeans about this. Thank goodness I have broad shoulders and can carry the burden (as if I caused the whole problem)! The hospitality industry is not immune from the fallout. People don’t travel if they have no money and they certainly don’t go out to each! Ouch! That hits home when you work in a restaurant. There are many hotels in the area that are closing their restaurants during the holidays. It is cheaper to give your employees a paid vacation for 10 days then to pay gas and electric, food bills, and so on, just to stay open. Oh what a mess!

I went to Belfast this week and it was pretty gloomy there. Actually, it was just as I had imagined it. Everyone was very nice, don’t get me wrong, but it was not the cheerful Dublin that I live in. It just looked gloomy. Only a couple of blocks south of the Europa Hotel there were many shops that were closed up. Tourism is not as big there as it is in Dublin. I know that the war there over the past few decades put a stop to that and it is taking a lot to get tourists back. The economy is not helping.

Anyway, back to me…….I see that restaurants are now doing whatever they can to lure customers back. Whatever it takes. This brings me to my point in all of this. You know that favorite restaurant of yours? The one where the waiters know what you want to drink and have it ready for you when you go in…..well, please show them your appreciation for that. They need it now more than ever. It is a way of saying “thanks for taking care of me and now I will help take care of you”. You have no idea how hard they might be struggling and in a day they might have to close their doors. I know that here I see regular customers and they know that we are grateful that they keep coming back. We try and show them that too. A little extra here and there lets them know that we really do appreciate them hel

That is so Cheesy!

Well, just got back from a fantastic trip to Burgundy. I have some friends that are restoring a 200 year old mill in Toutry, France. It is called Moulin du Foulon (the Felt Mill). It used to make felt, cut lumber and grind wheat. They even have a restored bread oven that the workers would make bread in from the flour they made. Oh so incredible. It was a very relaxing trip which entailed a lot of wine, cheese and even a little gardening.

After being picked up at the train station in Montbard, I was driven cross-country to the mill. It is an incredible 4 story stone building. On the table awaiting my visit was a buffet of various cheeses, cold meats and bottles of local wine. Can I tell you, we started eating around 10PM and after I’m-not-sure-how-may bottles of wine we realized that the cheeses and meats were almost gone. It was 3AM and there was a graveyard of wine bottles laying around. I slept so well that night. My bedroom was right over the mill race, which goes through the house. The wheel is housed within the mill and you get the constant rush of water through the entire house. It is so hypnotic. In fact, every night was a good nights sleep.

In the morning Stefan ran to the village and brought back some fresh bread, pain au chocolat and more cheese. We had a great breakfast followed by a little work in the garden. As anyone with a yard full of vegetation can tell you – there is always plenty to do. This meant clearing debris from the locks, a wade out in to the river to clear trees stuck on the dam, pruning the hedges along the mill pond and cutting up a tree that had fallen over. The work was followed by some incredible steaks procured from the village butcher. It was melt-in-your-mouth tender! Tanya grilled them on the terrace overlooking the river. If it weren’t so cold it would have been perfect to have dinner out there!

The next day we went to a village nearby and walked through an old fortress built to keep the Norman’s out. Apparently, the village is quite popular as Joan of Arc even came through a time or two! Then it was back home to work……followed by some wonderful pasta with truffle paste, artichokes and another steak! I could never be a vegetarian. Oh, did I mention there was more wine!

Thursday was spent working at outside while the sun was shining. Then we headed in for more cheese and a glass of wine. Tanya was treating us to dinner at a wonderful restaurant in a local village and she was worried that I would ruin my appetite. fat Chance! After some more wine and a few games of Scrabble we took our showers and headed in to town for dinner. I have to tell you that by the end of the night I was in gourmand heaven. I wanted to meet the Pastry Chef and kiss him! We started dinner with a glass of Champagne. Starters of Goat cheese with a tomato relish and balsamic reduction. There was fresh bread and savory tuilles filled with egg salad. My dinner was a roasted red pepper flan, potato puree and young duck breasts. Divine! Cheese course came next. Our young waiter brought a tray of French cheese to the table and if you had any questions about any of the cheeses – he was there to help! He knew everything about that cheese. I had some wonderful blue cheeses and a few goat cheeses! Heaven. But wait – dessert was next. I had ordered (and you must order at the beginning of the meal as the pastry chef makes everything fresh for each person) macaroons with pistachio butter cream and homemade chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce and creme anglaise! I hardly said a word during dessert. My friends kept asking me if I were alright as I was a silent as a church mouse. I was thinking that I might ever eat macaroons that tasted so much like heaven! The owner came to our table and asked if everything was alright. I explained that I felt like crying as I was overcome with emotion – over dessert! I asked him to pass on my compliments to the chef and that if there was anyway he could find one more macaroon in the kitchen. He laughed and said that the chef only makes what is ordered at the time it is ordered. There are never any left-overs. Apparently, he was really amused by this and when he left his wife came in to tease me about the macaroons. I can tell you that the chocolate ice cream was like a frozen chocolate mousse and that when the dining room was empty of guests I picked up the bowl and licked it clean. I was not ashamed – I would have felt ashamed to let any of that go back to the kitchen.

Well, it was an incredible trip – a much needed holiday with some very close friends. Tomorrow is back to work at the hotel. Seven weeks to go – and winter is pounding on our door! It is getting cold here. I wonder if they can mail those macaroons to Dublin?