Although reached through an entrance just inside the foyer of the Headfort Arms Hotel and in common ownership, this attractive bistro-style restaurant is run as an independent entity. In contrast to the hotel, it is very modern, with lots of pale wood, recessed lighting and sleek, informal table settings
Efficient staff show you straight to your table to choose from an extensive and contemporary menu – options are an early bird or value menu, set dinner or a la carte.
Good-quality, carefully sourced ingredients – right down to the honey – are used from named suppliers, many of them local. The cooking is excellent and the presentation delightful, without being at all fussy or over-decorated.
Enjoyable starters might include a Clogherhead open crayfish lasagna with a lemon and Gruyere crumb or a teriyaki pulled pork cigar with pickled vegetables and hoi sin sauce.
Similarly interesting main courses might include a good vegetarian choice – a grilled veggie burger with halloumi, chickpeas and Provencal vegetables, perhaps – a honey-glazed duck breast with crispy duck confit rosti, shaved fennel and orange sauce, a grilled fillet of salmon with buttered cabbage and chervil cream, and (as this is beef country) a really good steak, such as a perfectly cooked fillet with balsamic onions and a choice of sauces.
The choice of homemade desserts is similarly extensive. A fun option is the mix and match pod pots – choose your own assortment of little tastes of things like Oreo creme brulee, banoffee Eton mess, rhubarb and custard or a Coole Swan chocolate cup with biscuits, all served in mini Kilner jars.
Special evenings are sometimes held and the all-in price for these specials is particularly good value, as is the early bird menu, which has lots of choice. And in a move that is sure to appeal to families, kids eat free on Monday to Saturday, 5:30–6:45pm and Sundays 12:30–6:45.
