Country Sports and Country Life – Grace Neill’s

Fine Dining in The Bistro Great Food in The Library Bar Live Music Great Atmosphere The Choice is Yours
established 1611 ireland’s oldest pub 33 high street, donaghadee, co down, bt21 0ah bar tel: 028 9188 2553 restaurant tel: 028 9188 4595 e-mail: [email protected] website: www.graceneills.co.uk

John McClelland experiences the tradition of Ireland’s oldest
bar – in Donaghadee

Grace Neill’s is listed as “the oldest bar in Ireland”
in “The Guinness Book of Records”, as it was almost
four centuries ago in 1611 when “The King’s Arms”
first opened its doors for business in Donaghadee,Co. Down.
Today the bar is firmly established as a popular tourist
attraction within the North Down area and visitors from
every continent have sampled Irish hospitality and an obligatory
pint of Guinness within these walls.

However, this is only the very beginning of the remarkable
story of one of the most famous pubs in the country, which
was renamed “Grace Neill’s” in the last century.
Grace Neill (1818-1916) was a former landlady who is remembered
today for various reasons.
Obviously her name is kept alive by the name of the premises
but the nature of some aspects of her lifestyle are also
of interest today.

Grace apparently adhered to a custom of the period, which
involved greeting visitors to the inn with a welcoming kiss
while her passion was an indulgent puff from her clay pipe.

The Old Bar

The existence of Grace Neill has taken on a more mysterious
guise in recent years – it is asserted that her ghost haunts the
building. Many members of staff have witnessed unexplained events
including the scattering of books and glasses throughout the bar
and the switching on of appliances such as the kettle and television.
These inexplicable occurrences and the curious creaking of floorboards
above the old tavern culminated in an actual sighting of a Victorian
lady contained within “a puff of steam”. It should however
be noted that customers have nothing to fear from Grace – she is
a friendly spirit and we are happy to have her still with us if
only in ghostly form.

Taking a step into the front bar is truly taking a step back in
time. This area retains its quaintness and charm today; the beams
are constructed from the timbers of old ships and the two pine doors
at the rear of the bar provide the only clue as to what the remainder
of the building contains.

This dark tavern has played host
to many famous names of centuries gone by; it has welcomed
visitors as diverse as the aristocrat Peter the Great, who
stayed in the ” Emporer’s Room when traveling to Warrenpoint
to study ship building. John Keats also paid a fleeting visit
in the early 19th century. More recent tourists have included
Tina Turner, Daniel O’Donnell and the former Beirut hostage
Brian Keenan who enjoyed a pint here after his release from
captivity. The two snugs contain many antique glass and stone
bottles (including Comber Whiskey and Belfast mineral water
bottles) that maintain the character of an era gone by.

Pictures of various guns serve as a reminder of the criminal
element – the smugglers and horse-thieves who plotted and
schemed in the old bar during the past century when Donaghadee
was the main sea port to both the Isle of Man and to Portpatrick
in Scotland.

The
Library Bar

The Library Bar

The staff of Grace Neill’s endeavour to welcome you
as warmly as a visitor to Ireland’s oldest pub today, as has been
the tradition for the past 390 years. The staff strive to continue
to “serve good food and excellent ale” as observed by
the Marquis de Vere in the seventeenth century and that this cherished
example of living history is preserved in its un-spoilt condition
for many centuries to come.

The current owner Steven Jeffers is well known throughout the province
as one of Northern Ireland’s finest chefs. Steven has developed
the Library Bar into a restful and pleasant place to meet for a
quiet chat with good friends or to listen to the very best in jazz
music. He was delighted when the bar was rated amongst the prettiest
in the whole of the UK when it was awarded the top Jubilee Heritage
Award in recognition of the role it has played in safeguarding the
Province’s national architectural heritage. Pride of place must
however go to the restaurant where fine cuisine is served daily
and where that special touch of “Jeffers magic” can be
experienced.

Stephen
Jeffer’s Game Recipe

When asked to give a recipe for Irish Counrysports and Country
Life , that would fit in with the theme of the article on
Lord Dunleath refurbishing the Pigeon House at Ballywalter
, and John Bourke’s article on “Pigeon’s Galore”
, Stephen was delighted to oblige.

Throughout his career as a chef, he has extensive experience
of cooking wild game and organic produce in both his own restaurant
and country houses. Prior to taking over Grace Neill’s, he
was personal chef to Lady Dufferin of Clandeboye Estate and
also cooked and catered at other country establishments.

It was against this background that he was introduced to a
variety of game, wild duck and venison etc and it was to satisfy
these very discerning palates that his knowledge of game cookery
was broadened and firmly established.For this season’s recipe,
he has combined local pigeon with exotic Asian spices. He
trusts you will enjoy both cooking and eating this dish.

Estate pigeon
with shiitake mushrooms, truffle oil, pomme puree & jus
of ginger

For 4 servings
4 pigeon crowns
12 shiitake mushrooms
1 thumb of ginger
1pt of veal stock
3 fl oz. red wine
3 fl oz. port pomme puree
1 fl oz truffle oil

Remove the breast of the carcasses. Heat some butter and oil
in a frying pan and cook the pigeon on each side until golden
brown, this should take about 3 mins. In the same pan saute
shiitake mushrooms, and season to taste. Now re-heat pomme
puree and put into piping bag.

Pipe potato into middle of the plate arrange three mushrooms
around the plate. Place two breasts of pigeon neatly on the
pomme puree and pour sauce around plate.

Sauce method:
Small pot, sweat off some ginger, now add red wine and truffle
oil and reduce by half, add port and reduce by half. Finally
add veal stock and roasted pigeon carcasses. Let this sauce
reduce until syrup consistency, this should take at least
half an hour.

Set Price Menu £21.50
Potage of potato & leek w buttery croutons
Goats cheese w pear chutney, parma ham & toast
Salad “Nigoise” (3.00 supp)
Irish smoked salmon w celeriac remoulade, watercress
& horseradish
Soup of lentil w langoustine & white crab (2.00
supp)
Fresh pasta w wild mushrooms, lemon grass & coriander

Grilled dame of salmon w cous cous provengal, parmesan
biscuit & tapenade
Rack of lamb (served pink) w black pudding, pomme puree
& jus of rosemary (3.00 supp)
Roast cod w crisp pancetta, basil pomme pure &
sundried toma to vinaigrette
Chicken w crostini of wild mushrooms, bok choi, curry
oil & soya
Chargrilled ribeye of beef w pomme anna, braised cabbage
& roquefort butter (3.00 supp)
Grilled duck breast (served pink) w toulouse sausage,
new potatoes, fava beans & truffle oil

Pavlova w kiwi, mango & passion fruit
Chocolate & Guinness flavoured brownie cake
Cribme brulee flavoured w prune & armagnac
Baked espresso & amaretto cheesecake
Dunleath Estate strawberries w lemon sorbet & sable
biscuit
Cashel blue cheese w grapes & oat biscuits (2.00
supp)