lovely things for a weekend in caherciveen

this is the last saturday we are open at the factory before we go back down to our 5 day autumn week. call in if you are around to take advantage of our last saturday extended opening hours (10am-5pm). as much as i love the chocolates i am relishing the idea of all the relaxing weekend treats that will be my oyster again.

first thing to do is get the coffee brewing while we pop out to 'petit delice' the spectacularly good french patisserie that opened up in town this summer. light, buttery croissants and gooey, sticky pain aux raisins are the choice for breakfast. we stock up for lunch with goats cheese on black olive and walnut bread and afternoon delights, usually consisting of fresh fruit tarts and proper french style chocolate eclairs (with the thick chocolate custard inside rather than waffy cream). as you see we don't skimp on treats at the weekend!

a trip to the library and the park is usually rounded up with a drink in the welcoming arms of qc's or the anchor (if the football is on...)

qc's is quite possibly my favourite restaurant ever. it holds its own in terms of character, atmosphere and food against any restaurant i've eaten in (and that is a rapidly growing number). many a rainy evening has been spent sat in front of the fire bankrupting ourselves on fine wine and seafood. my addiction to the prawn cocotte and lola's penchant for deep fried squid rings is hard to finance.

i still remember when we were just moving to the area, it was paddy's day 2007 - the weather was wild. against squally winds and lashing rains - we took refuge in qc's amid the throngs of locals, soon to become our friends and neighbours, and gently steamed in front of the log fire while jack plied us with mackerel pate and homemade brown bread for lunch. as dusk set in coffees and hot whiskey saw us right until finally we succumbed to locally reared steak with colcannon and the wonderfully named 'orange roughy' from the evening specials. we tottered back to the b&b content, well fed and eager to return!

sundays will see us lazing in the
spectacular setting of the lighthouse cafe on valentia island. perched on the hillside above knightstown the lighthouse cafe offers a simple menu of excellently executed local food made breathtaking by the amount of produce grown in the cafe's garden. The salad is an explosion of colour with homegrown lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, onions and nastursiums. The bread is speckled with fennel seeds from the huge fennel plants protruding through the other vegetation. Delicious mussels in a chilli flecked broth, mackerel fillets, seafood chowder, followed by homebaked fruit crumble and pancakes with sugar and lemon. food like this can't fail to impress me when it is this quality in these surroundings. and i don't know whether this little corner of valentia is cultivating its own microclimate but every time i have been up there this year the rain clouds part and the sun sparkles across the sea, warming us enough to sit out in the fresh air and admire the view. should the rain force you in though the cafe itself is a simply and beautifully decorated barn conversion. even the toilets in the outhouse are a pleasurable experience - as you walk past the bursting greenhouse, past swathes of mint and homegrown potatoes for sale. at the bottom of the hill through the 'insects, gnats and nasties' of the long grass is a treasure trove of outdoorsy games to keep the family entertained through a lazy afternoon. not to be missed.