When in Ireland, eat as the Irish do.  Ireland is not only famous for its castles, museums, and music.  One must simply try out their traditional and popular dishes.  Locally grown crops and animals have influenced the Irish cuisine.  Popular dishes include potatoes and beef.  For starters, try out four of their tasty meals.

Irish Breakfast

No tourist should leave the Irish shores without trying the famous Irish breakfast which can either be a grilled or fried meal consisting of bacon, sausage, egg, tomato, black and white pudding.  Sometimes, this is served with fried potato slices called fried potato farls, brown soda bread, and liver.  Black tea and milk go best with this hearty meal.

Boxty

One traditional Irish dish popular in the north midlands is called Boxty which is a kind of potato cake.  There are many recipes for Boxty but all includes fried finely grated potatoes.  A popular version includes buttermilk, mashed potato with flour, and baking soda.  This is readily available in shops in pancake or dumpling form.

Ulster Fry

Tourists in Northern Ireland should try out the Ulster Fry.  Traditionally, this sumptuous dish fried in lard consists of eggs, sausages, bacon, tomatoes, potato bread, and farl form of soda bread.  The sausages can either be pork or beef.

Colcannon

Colcannon means white headed cabbage in Irish.  This simple dish is a mixture of cabbage or curly kale, wild garlic, mashed potatoes, butter, salt and pepper.  Sometimes other ingredients are combined with Irish bacon or boiled ham, leeks, milk, cream, and onions.

Ireland is a country where every aspect of a person is appreciated. The culture of the country is diverse and very rich and every part of it is celebrated. The arts is one of them and in a lot of bars around Ireland, music is celebrated.

Here are some of the best bars in Ireland which you might want to check out when you come over for a visit.

1) Bleu Note Bar and Club – The Bleu Note Bar and Club at Capel Street is one of the most exciting places to be in these days. Dublin’s history is riddled with jazz and blues and the past few years, it has seen a reemergence. A lot of clubs therefore has sprung out to cater for the sudden interest and there is no better bar than the Bleu Note. Taking inspiration from the sounds and music of New York and New Orleans blues and jazz, The Bleu Note is definitely the place to be.

2) Café En Seine- Jameson’s bar of the year is located down at Dawson’s street and is definitely amazing in terms of nightlife and music. The interior of the place has incredible features that seem to suggest turn of the century France. With the bust of King Louis the XIV, it cannot be mistaken what its influences are. Other than decorations and architecture, it hasn’t forgotten what people have come here for: the music.

3) The Cobblestone - Traditional Irish music is found here in probably the most Irish of all Irish Pubs. Downstairs the music is free but there are also some mini concerts held in the music halls on the second level. The focus on this place is the music and not the people. Do not expect a lot of mingling and flirting around.

4) Eamonn Doran’s - Known for live bands that perform rock and alternative music, Eamonn Doran’s is located at the Temple Bar in Dublin. The place has an energetic vibe into it and it is a great place to spend your nights with your friends. They have great food and fantastic beer as well and, coupled with live music, it is a surely potent recipe for having a great time.

5) Crawdaddy - From live bands and rock and roll, we head on to the club scene. The Crawdaddy is the it places when it comes to house, electro, techno and hip hop music. While it features the country’s and the world’s best club djs, they also feature up and coming superstars showcasing their talents and energy and adding to the flavor of the Crawdaddy club scene.

6) Fitzsimon’s Temple Bar - Another place for hot, live music is Fitzsimon’s. This bar is frequented by top djs who perform anything from Pop, R&B, Funk and Soul music. If you notice, Temple Bar is always mentioned in this piece. Temple Bar is the place where all the great bars and clubs are located. Fitzsimon’s is easy to go to as it is but within walking distance from Dublin’s shopping areas. Even if you’re trying to follow your football club’s game, you can still have fun here as the games are shown in big plasma TVS in the bar premises.

7) Irish House Party - Here’s something different. Irish House Party is very different from every club seen there is in Dublin or anywhere else in the world. As the name discloses, it is a house party.  All ages are welcome here and they will seve you a four course meal as delicious as the history that the Fear an Ti will tell you upon your entrance. You will be taught various Irish Dances and you will surely jump in with the crowd.

The Isaac Butt - Yep, it may not be as inviting as it sounds but once you try out this Irish Pub, you will always come back. The place is rather small but the quality of the music is enormous here as the country’s upcoming bands showcase their talents here every night. Located in the middle of Dublin, it has three levels with different themes in each one.

9) JJ Smyth’s – One bar that has withstood the year s is definitely JJ Smyth’s. It is a wonderful Jazz bar that first opened its doors in the 1730’s and has evolved in some ways but has remained constant in terms of the quality of food and of music. For groups who are only stating to hit their notes in the jazz and blues scene, JJ’s is their haven and many of the famous musicians right now have passed through its doors and performed on its stage.

10) Red Box - Wild is the name of the game here and if you’re up for it, come and get it. The Red Box is built for concerts, live events and other occasions but everybody knows it as the site of Dublin’s wildest and craziest club parties. It can fill in more than a thousand people in its 9,500 square foot party area and it has three levels for people to go crazy on. While the house is virtually packed every night, for an extra exciting experience, visit on a Saturday night when the world’s top disc jockeys perform their arsenal.

Do you want a quick stop tour of Ireland?, we have a special itinerary that would suit those visiting Cork and Kerry! Ireland is one of the best places to go to if you want to see a lot of extraordinary things and you want to experience a country with a very rich history. They have a lot of tourists and most of them want to go to a lot of places in Ireland. The problem is Ireland is so big and so equally beautiful and historically significant that one can have a big problem choosing. For these purposes, here are the best places to visit if you have a limited time only.

1)    The Dingle Peninsula- Located in the most Western part of Ireland, the Dingle Peninsula mixes the magnificent glistening coastline as well as the towering mountains and forms a picturesque scenery. There is the Fort Dunebag that that was used as a fort from the 9th to the 10th Century BC. There is also the especially beautiful Slea Head section and the Basket Islands that have only recently been uninhabited.
2)    Blarney Castle- According to the Blarney legend, if you kiss the Blarney stone, you will be gifted with “blarney”. This is the “gift for gab” or the gift for talking. The castle itself is not famous and may only be known because of the legend.
3)    Cork- is a particularly popular place although it pales in comparison when it comes to the other places of significance in Ireland. It is mostly an industrial city although there are also some attractions as well. Blackrock River on the River Lee is one of the attractions that this place has and the same was built in the 19th Century.
4)    Kinsale- This highly-significant port of call is particularly famous for its pair of star-shaped ports in the harbor. Historically speaking, Kinsale is very rich. Many wars passed through here involving many combatants from Spaniards to Englishmen to Germans.
5)    Gougane Barra- The Gougane Barra National Forrest Park is a very quaint and scenic place in the Beara Peninsula. Those who like walking trips and areas that are not so crowded would definitely enjoy this place.

All these places are located close to each other, ideal for people on a quick stop tour of Kerry and Cork. Picture above of the beautiful harbour at Kinsale.