Tipperary food lovers should note that a most talented young cook, Mark John Anderson, is now in charge of the skillet and the grill in Mr Bumbles Restaurant in Clonmel. I first ate Anderson's food last year, when he was working at the nearby Raheen House, and he has a light touch and a devoted aspect to his cooking which echoes the work of the acclaimed London chef, Sally Clarke, in whose restaurant Anderson spent a few years.
"My food is based on simple ideas such as the uncompromised freshness of produce, seasonal fish, organic vegetable produce and local meat, and I am delighted with the response and praise we receive," he says - a neat summation of his principles and ambitions. The menus look utterly lip-smacking: fritters of field mushrooms with a salad of rocket, chicory and a light garlic mayonnaise; Mediterranean sandwich of chargrilled aubergine with roasted red peppers, buffalo mozzarella and pesto; pan-seared brill with a potato galette and a sauce of lemon, herbs, capers and estate olive oil; rod-caught sea bass with aubergine fritter and a sauce antiboise; caramelised lemon tart with a berry coulis. Charming.
Mr Bumbles Restaurant, Richmond House, Kickham Street, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, tel: (052) 29188.