My Flashback Food Memories in Ireland

I have been taking food photos before it became popular. Way back to the days when it was not trendy, and several friends as well as on-lookers made fun of me. I recall one of the first times that I was recording what I ate, it was a plate of Fish and Chips in Salem, Massachusetts back in 2004. It was with a 35mm film camera, and the photo turned out very bad by today’s standards. I did not care, and over the years I just kept taking food photos with whatever camera came my way- film rolls, digital with a flash, and bad phone cameras prior to 2015.

I became obsessed with food photos because I loved the dining experience very much. Dining in whatever setting, street food or fancy food, it was an experience that I wanted to remember. Also my food pictures always triggered memories, read on and see what I mean.

I have been to Ireland three times, and this food journal records my pictures from the years of 2011 and 2015- Enjoy!

September 2011 Trip to Ireland

Morning Guinness in Dublin

I do not even enjoy beer! My friend and I had just arrived early morning into Dublin, and The Clarence Hotel did not have our room ready. Since the Guinness Warehouse was open, we did our morning tour, and had a pint. I look absolutely drained.

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Cheese Plate on the Aran Islands

I obviously turned the flash on for this cheese board. Even back then, I was a cheese enthusiast as this was my dinner. My friend who is lactose intolerant said, “I can’t believe you ate that whole plate of cheese for dinner!” My response, “I CAN!”

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Supermac’s in Galway

Supermac’s is an Irish fast food chain that is similar to McDonald’s. We kept seeing them around Ireland and our curiosity got the better of us. I typically do not eat fast food when I travel nor ketchup on a burger, but it happened- It was alright.

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Soup and Sandwich from SPAR in Galway

If you are not familiar with SPAR, it is a convenience store that is found throughout Europe. Do not snub the food especially when you are cold, tired, and hungry. SPAR actually makes great freshly packaged sandwiches, especially the Chicken, Stuffing, Lettuce & Mayo sammie that I ate. Plus the Beef & Tomato Pot Noodle was an interesting flavor of instant noodles, and the package was quite clever.

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Jameson Distillery in Dublin

A decade ago before Jameson in Dublin remodeled their tasting experience where everyone now gets a tasting, this was it. Back then a handful of eager people were chosen for a tasting while the others were as green as the placemats. I was one of those few selected to do the tasting. I suppose I looked like a very eager American when I waved my hand around, “Choose Me!”.

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First time at Beshoff Fish & Chips in Dublin

While in Dublin, my friend suggested that we eat at Beshoff Fish & Chips. Since that one visit, I have been back to this chippy every time that I visited Dublin. Although, on my last visit the chips were not as good, but maybe I just had a bad batch. I still say that Beshoff is a solid place for Fish & Chips.

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Late Night McDonald’s Run in Dublin

This is why I take food photos, to remember crazy moments like this one. We had just finished a literary pub crawl, and we may have drank too much, especially my travel friend. She suggested we do a late night McD’s run so she could have something familiar, like their cheeseburgers. I on the other hand was interested in their Chocolate & Banana Shake because we did not have it in the States. It was pretty good actually.

As for the second picture, if you look closely at Molly Malone’s basket there is a McD’s bag inside. My friend was so crunk that she walked by, and put the bag in her basket. I snapped the picture and my drunk-ass friend, who will remain nameless “JENNIFER”, stated loudly, “Bitch, give me my cheeseburgers back!”. Ahhh the memories!

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Lunch at Kylemore Abby in Connemara

This food photo turned out quite nicely, even without editing. I was sitting by a window that had great natural light. The angle was good and unintentional, meaning that the carrots were not in the front and center. I really did love this meal! I had just finished walking through Kylemore Abbey on a chilly Connemara day, and this hot meal was very comforting.

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Irish Coddle in Dublin

Yes, I tried to edit this photo, and it still turned out looking like a bowl of soup from a 1970’s Better Homes & Garden magazine. What I was eating was a delicious bowl of Irish Coddle, which is a thick stew that is commonly made with leftovers. Although, it is common for a bowl of Coddle to include pork sausages, rashers, potatoes, onions, and possibly barley. I think this Coddle may of had a thickener because it felt like my stomach was filled with concrete after. Even though this dish tasted good, sadly it was a one hit wonder for me. I like to stand up after my meal.

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Starbar on a Bus to Northern Ireland

We were on a bumpy mini bus to Northern Ireland when I took this blurry picture of a favorite of mine. I love a Starbar with the peanut butter goodness inside. I took this picture before I unwrapped it and happily ate it, while watching Ireland’s costal scenery go by.

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Drinking with Eleanor

Everyone, this is my Blythe doll, ‘Eleanor’. She is named after, you guessed it, Eleanor Rigby! I have taken her on several trips with me, and photographed her with lovely background landscapes. In this case, we were on a literary tour and I may had too much to drink, so did Eleanor.

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February 2015 Trip to Ireland

Two Coursed Meal in Dublin

The restaurant was a bit dark, and the lighting was quite bad. I was able to touch up the bread and the mussels to make them look recognizable. For my two course dinner, I had a couple of Irish favorites: A crock of fresh mussels, and Emigrants Corned Beef with a recipe that dated back to 1847.

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Irish Breakfast in Dublin

The lighting was good at this café in Dublin, as I did not have to do a lot of editing. My cousin and I were walking around, and decided to pop in a random café for an Irish Breakfast. I quickly took a snap of this hearty meal before I demolished it. I love Irish, English, or Scottish breakfast sans the black and white pudding.

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White Mice in Dublin

While inside Aunty Nellie’s Sweet Shop in Dublin, I asked the young man behind the counter what sweets are favorites amongst the youth. He pointed me to the ‘White Mice’, as these were a favorite of his. Then out of nowhere, a drunk man stumbled into the sweet shop, and spied the colorful candy jars behind the counter. He asked the young man for a pint. This fellow thought he was in a pub, and the candy jars were bottles of booze – Classic.

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Bono’s Octagon Bar

This was my second time at the Octagon Bar which is inside The Clarence Hotel, owned by Bono, who is the lead singer of U2. It is a cozy space that is in the shape of- yes, an octagon. While there I had a nice glass of Chardonnay, and a bowl of potato and leek soup with brown bread. It was all very delicious. although there was no Bono and Edge sighting.

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Chocolate from Burren

If I was not on a day tour to the Cliffs of Moher, I would have never come across the boutique chocolatier in Burren. Hazel Mountain Chocolates is one of the remotest chocolate factories in the world creating award winning sweets. They are true chocolatiers, as they practice bean to bar.

The glare of the flash was pretty intense, so you cannot tell that there is rich sweet hot chocolate in that cup. Although I am sure you can tell that I purchased a lot of gourmet truffles.

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I saved the Worst Photo for Last – Somewhere in Ireland

Although I did try to edit this picture, I honestly could not tell what I ordered except for the potatoes and possible carrots. Luckily I took a photo of the menu, and I believe that I ordered the Roasted Darne of Salmon. I still cannot tell if I ordered a second meat dish, but I might have been given both the boiled and mashed potatoes. 🤷🏻‍♀️

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Although some of the photos are not too shabby, I am grateful for new camera phones, small handheld lights, and editing apps. Going through the food photo process is a personal choice for me, as I do not care if others just snap and post. It comes down to that we are all doing the same thing, right? We are photographing food memories.

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📸 All photos are taken by me and are my intellectual property – Trixie Navarre