Patrick Street will become an open-air food market to celebrate the Slow Food movement on Saturday, followed by a "slow pub" trail that evening. Artisan producers, organic farmers and chefs and restaurant proprietors will be out in force, following Friday night's Cork Schools Dinner at the Millennium Hall.
This is a €55-a-head feast to raise both awareness and funds to promote the Cork Edible School Gardens Project, and the 300 guests will be offered a menu prepared by Darina Allen, Seamus O'Conaill, Denis Cotter, Clodagh McKenna and Simone Kelly, with a welcome address by John Bowman.
UCC holds Saturday morning workshops on the production of wine, raw milk cheeses, breads, chocolate and coffee, wild Irish salmon, meat and seeds, while the Patrick Street farmers' market opens at 10am. Three hostelries will have artisan producers selling their goods at €5 a platter.
A city tour is scheduled for Saturday, taking in Arbutus bakery, the old English Market and Lenihan's sweet factory, and on Sunday the east Cork county tour visits Adrian's Bakery in Cobh, Ahernes Organic Farm and Ballymaloe Cookery School gardens. The west Cork visits include Caherbeg Free-range pigs, Ummera's smokehouse, Schull's market and Gubbeen's cheese-making and smokehouse.
Kino art cinema will screen a series of short food-related films on Sunday afternoon, with appropriate snacks available (they already do rather good coffee). Be warned there are limited places left at €15 each for the Slow Food Ireland awards to be presented by Michael D Higgins at the Glucksman Gallery at UCC on Sunday at 7pm.
