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6th February 2018
09:31pm GMT
Do you think about where your food comes from? Living on an island with such a rich farming industry as Ireland means that incredible food produce is – often literally – on our doorstep.
You shouldn't have to seek out obscure farmer's markets to find it either, with more and more restaurants taking the initiative to source organic ingredients and bring them straight to our forks.
Irish people are more interested than ever in eating locally grown, organic produce and ccording to Bord Bia, 30% of people who currently buy organic produce would like to buy even more, with vegetables coming out on top.
So why aren't we all eating organic?
Dela restaurant in Galway city's West End first became known for their award-winning seven day brunch and cosy dinners and is now launching their evening "pre-supper club."
Their menus are inspired by the Scandanavian style of eating with an Irish twist but it's their dedication to Irish produce that makes Dela stand out from the crowd.
Passionate about the farm to fork movement and already growing the majority of their produce on their own Dela Farm just outside of the city, their new supper club is cultivating new attitudes towards cooking.
The notion? That eating organic food tastes great but at extra cost to the consumer. What if, Dela co-owners Mags and Joe Bohan believe, eating organic, home grown food was actually priced more than competitively?
While organic produce is more expensive, by taking out the middle man and growing their own grub in their 3,000 square foot polytunnel at the Dela Farm in Moycullen, Dela Restaurant has been able to create a menu that is casual, more than affordable and – the most important part – delicious.
The Dela Farm has been supplying the restaurant with in season produce since early 2017 and upon building their 3,000 sq ft Polytunnel, Mags and Joe had already devised how they wanted eating at Dela to be.
Dela means to share and now Dela has been sharing their seed to feed ethos and menus for over 15 months.
As the west of Ireland draws on its foodie experience and ideals, Dela finds itself nestled in a new world of conscientious cookery.
The addition of the Commercial Polytunnel under the guidance of Dermot Carey (who creates and develops vegetable kitchen gardens) has had a very positive effect in the restaurant, from the kitchen right through to the customer experience.
"If we don’t grow it stops with them. We are working on a program to bring some of the local school along with our project," Joe Bohan says.
“Certain crops like organic leaves, and artichokes have a limited availability with local suppliers - when growing our own we can stretch the window of availability and ensure supply of harder to get veg & leaves.
Last year we were harvesting our own organic tomatoes right up until Christmas," he added.
The evening menu will change according to availability week to week. For example, there has been an abundance of Jerusalem artichokes in the Dela Farm Polytunnel, so Head Chef Sylvain has put this to good use by making it a headline act in a Feta Tartlet.
The pre-supper mid-week club is making pork sexy again with John Herterich’s trio of Slow Cooked Pork Belly, Pork Fillet with Homemade Sausage Savoy Cabbage and Parmentier Potatoes or if you're more interested in the sea, Gannet Fishmongers Grilled Seatrout, Cauliflower Puree, Kelly’s Black Pudding Crisps all served with a Walnut and Dela Farm Kale Butter is a way to enjoy beautiful fresh fish in Galway.
Sweet tooth? Indulge in the Créme Brulee served with homemade vanilla biscuits or Chocolate Trio, a combination of dark chocolate lave, white chocolate & hazelnut cookies with double chocolate ice cream.
We're tempted by the Dela firm favourite: a Warm Toffee, Apple and Pecan Tart, Caramel Anglaise with Rum Raisin Ice Cream.
Ordering all three might just be best... Purely for research purposes of course.
The Dela Pre-Supper Club is inviting diners to join them from Tuesday to Thursday until 7pm and on Friday and Saturday evening until 6:30pm.
On an island this small it's only right that you do know where your food comes from, and Dela is the perfect place for that to start.
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