On Wednesday, 5th March, TY students—Grace Keating, Vetra Norbutaite, Taylor Cooney Cantwell, Alexandra Roche, and Holly Aherne—visited TUD Grangegorman for a menu taste-testing course. We took the G2 to Liffey Valley and then the 26 from Coldcut all the way to Stoneybatter. From there, we walked 15 minutes to the campus, where we met the lecturer, Conor O'Malley. He brought us into a small room, where we learned how to make mocktails and had the chance to taste-test them. The third-year culinary students had prepared lemonade mimosas and sangrias for us to try.
We then moved into the trainee restaurant, where we were given menus listing starters, mains, and dessert options. The waiters explained that we would all share the three starter options, but we had to choose between two mains and two desserts. We also ordered drinks, with a choice between 7UP and Rock Shandy. First, the waiters brought out a bread platter featuring brioche, English muffins, and tomato bread.
The starters included sea bass with grapefruit, pork belly tostada, and chilled vegetable soup. For the mains, we could choose between halibut with chickpeas or beef tacos. For dessert, the options were coconut ice cream or cinnamon churros. Once we had sampled everything, we provided an honest review of the food and staff, rating the experience out of five stars.
Once we finished, we were free to head home.
Grace Keating, Alexandra Roche & Holly Aherne - TY Press
