Oh hello there, November. With all your post-Halloweeny, almost-Christmas, nights drawing in vibe off you.
The business end of the year has landed, last night’s fireworks and perfectly carved pumpkins laid to rest while kind neighbours pick up discarded mini Haribo packets on their Friday walks. November has indeed landed and with it come a number of events and happenings on the food scene in Ireland.
If you’ve got something you’d like to share, whether it’s to have it included in the calendar of events or simply to shout about it, get in touch here or via Instagram / Facebook / X. Regular visitors may notice a slight shift in calendar layout as we head into the end of the year, but more about that at a later stage.
Here are some events taking place this month…
2-3: Cork & Kerry Food Market
One of the largest events of its kind, the Cork & Kerry Food Market returns to Cork’s City Hall today (2 November) and tomorrow, showcasing the very best of both counties’ local and artisan food and drink producers. There are tastings, chef-led cookery demos, entertainment and more across both days.
Get the full programme details here.
7-11: Listowel Food Fair
One of the longest-running festivals in the country, Listowel’s about to be taken over by anything from tapas nights to oyster tastings, pig and porter nights to all things food, craft and beyond. The festival also holds an annual awards ceremony to recognise the best emerging artisan food producers, food writers, food innovators and food heroes. A seminar on brain health along with a signing and demo with chef Mark Moriarty are among the highlights.
Get the full programme details here.
7: Irish Food Writing Awards
Originally touted for an online event in September, this year’s Irish Food Writing Awards heads to Dublin’s RDS on Thursday night to celebrate the very best of Ireland’s food writing, along with a sprinkling of photography and podcasting goodness.
From restaurants to magazines, beer to seafood and more, it’s all covered.
Check @irishfoodwritingawards on Instagram for nominees and highlights.
9-10: Samhain Festival of Food & Culture
This one’s a big one for Kells, Co. Meath, as it now incorporates the annual Sheridan’s Irish Food Festival, meaning you’ve got a two-day event with around 100 traders and food businesses involved, taking over Kells.
Samhain Festival is a celebration of Irish food and culture, past, present and future. The Boyne Valley was home to Ireland’s first farmers over 5,000 years ago and remains synonymous with farming, food and drink production to this day. The festival showcases the very best of Irish food and drink, food culture and history through a weekend-long series of events from food & drinks tastings, cookery demonstrations, and cocktail masterclasses, to food safaris, farm visits, kids workshops, and debates with Ireland’s foremost culinary experts.
All in, you’ll end up with one of the largest food events of the year taking place across 9 and 10 November.
10: Food & Wine Restaurant of the Year Awards
On Sunday 10 November, Ireland’s hospitality sector will gather in The Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin for this year’s Food&Wine Restaurant of the Year Awards. The annual awards celebrate the talent, resilience and determination of the Irish food and drinks sector.
The Michelin-star duo of Campagne and The Lady Helen are among the Kilkenny nominees (both as restaurants and for respective chefs Garrett Byrne and John Kelly). Nóinín, Arán, Statham’s and Ristorante Rinuccini also feature across casual dining and wine experience categories this year.
Check the list of nominees here.
11: Good Food Ireland Awards
The Good Food Ireland Awards celebrate businesses at every layer of our island’s food and drink industry. From primary producers, manufacturers, and chefs, to shops, hotels, tourism experiences, and restaurants, those businesses who make the shortlist are regarded by the judges as embodying all that makes Ireland’s food offering so standout.
On the Kilkenny front, finalists this year across a range of categories include O’Shea Farms in the south of the county alongside the O’Neill family who oversees Mountain View in Ballyhale.
Winners will be announced as part of a five-star dinner at The K Club, Kildare, on Monday 11 November. Check out the full list of nominees here.
11-17: Chef Network Open Kitchen Week
From 11-17 November, professional kitchens across Ireland and Northern Ireland will throw open their doors to students and career changers interested in finding out what is really involved in a career as a chef, or to parents, teachers and educators who are curious about the opportunities in professional cookery.
Guest slots are available to book in a huge variety of kitchens from fine-dining restaurants to hotels and local cafes, to bakeries and chocolate makers, as well as the workplace kitchens of tech giants, and castles. Slots are booked on a first-come first-served basis and vary from kitchen tours to hands-on service opportunities.
30: Yulefest Kilkenny
Sneaking in right at the end of the month, the last of the festivals for the year in Kilkenny gets underway with Yulefest kicking off on 30 November.
It also marks the start of the Christmas markets in Kilkenny with food and craft producers set to take over The Parade on weekends in the lead up to Christmas. Events run up to 21 December.
Get the programme details here.
Got something to share?
As mentioned above, if you’ve got something to share on the events front, whether it’s for November or further afield then be sure to let me know.
You can email ken@kenonfood.com any stage, drop me a note here, or seek me out on social media wherever you find @kenonfood.
