Conor's Bandon Blog

Running, Food and Local stuff from a blow-in

Bandon Farmer's Market now has a web-site

I’m always happy to see local initiatives get an online presence to extend their reach. My attempt to create a blog for Bandon Farmer’s Market three years ago fell flat due to my lack of consultation with the standholders to ensure buy-in. So it is great to see the new site launch with all the details you need. Check it out here and don’t forget it is on every Saturday morning.

Bandon.ie revamp

Trevor and crew have done a big revamp of the bandon.ie. Tons of useful information about the town and area and the beginnings of a local business directory. You should definitely be subscribed to the blog if you want the latest news. I push all their blog updates to Twitter here too. The best way you can help the site is to make sure you let them know about everything that is happening in the town.

Chambers Organic Pork from West Cork

I haven’t tried their meat yet but the thought of locally-reared organic pork has me salivating. They sell directly to the consumer and are based in Teadies near Enniskean. The pigs are a mix of Old Spots Gloucester & Saddleback. Give Liam a call on 086 604 1208 if you want to order. More details on their web-site. Rough location here: [View Larger Map](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=qandsource=embedandhl=enandgeocode=andq=teadies,+enniskean,+cork,+irelandandsll=37.0625,-95.677068andsspn=44.60973,71.542969andie=UTF8andhq=andhnear=Teadies+Upper,+County+Cork,+Irelandandll=51.739511,-8.926324andspn=0.034227,0.069866andz=14)

Michael O'Leary is my hero

Just watch him take apart this Panorama interviewer. It’ll be impossible for me to take the show on the BBC tonight seriously. oleary He is not only hysterically funny but completely accurate too. Flying Ryanair is simple, you make yourself aware of the rules and work within them. I don’t think I’ve ever paid more than €60 for a Ryanair return flight. Treat it as a bus, set your expectations correctly and you’ll find them the perfect short-haul operator.

Vids and Pics of Engage Arts

I put up some vids and pics of Friday night on the Engage Posterous Blog. If you have similar from all the other events on Friday/Saturday, would you email them to me and I’ll post them there too (with full attribution of course)? conor AT loudervoice DOT com

Whatever way you are voting

You have to admit these are both great and show what a little imagination can do in political advertising. Or if you want real belly-laughs just head over to Jim Corr’s site.

I'm in Far Eastern Foodie Heaven

The recent review of CX Oriental by Messy Chef was the final push I needed to check this place out today after months of saying I must. It’s just fantastic. If you have ever raved about Asia Market in Dublin, this is 10x better. If you have driven past Kinsale Road Roundabout in the past few months you can’t have missed the huge signs for CX Oriental Cash and Carry. Whilst Cork has had the brilliant Mr Bell’s in The English Market for years, it suffers from lack of space and the awkwardness of getting to it so this morning I finally made the trip to the Cash and Carry.

Malt House Granary shows to to fill a restaurant in a recession

We were recently taken out to dinner by my parents and decided to try the Malt House Granary in Clonakilty. We had only been once before, 5 years ago, and had not liked the heavy food. Buta recent review which highlighted the new ownership made us want to try again. And oh boy were we glad we did. We like eating very early and sat down at 7.30 to a totally empty restaurant which had me worried.

Engage Arts Festival this weekend

The second year of the Engage Arts festival is fast approaching and it looks fantastic. Something for everyone, no matter what their interests or age. engage_biglogo I’ve put together a simple mini-blog for the event over here on Posterous. The aim is that people can upload information, pictures, videos etc very easily over the weekend.It has the full line-up for the two days and contact details too.

Raise a glass of wine tonight

Keith Floyd, RIP. keithfloyd A brilliant TV chef who made great cooking look easy and enjoyable. He’ll be missed.