The annual Long Table Dinner in Tipperary started in 2007 with a simple challenge: could they host a summer banquet where only food produced in Tipperary would be served? The answer: a resounding yes. The process of putting together that first dinner brought together 30 of the county’s artisan food producers and ultimately led to the formation of the Tipperary Food Producers Network to celebrate food and prove the viability of the local food economy.
What started as a single event held on the Apple Farm of Con Traas in Cahir has morphed this year into a pan-county event, with four chefs simultaneously preparing different menus at four venues on the same night, 7.30pm next Wednesday: Broca on the Water in Nenagh (Ann Gernon); Inch House in Thurles (Michael Galvin); Chez Hans in Cashel (Jason Matthiae); and the Old Convent Restaurant in Clogheen (Dermot Gannon).
Expect to find food from network members such as those pictured above, (left to right): butcher Pat Whelan from James Whelan Butchers; Cate McCarthy, The Cookie Jar; Nuala Hickey, Hickey’s Bakery; Mairin Byrne, Inch House; Annmarie Walsh, Holy Cross Good Foods; and chef Dermot Gannon, The Old Convent Restaurant.
Tickets cost €75 per person and are available from any member of the Tipperary Food Producers Network – see tipperaryfoodproducers.com.
