In Cork City last week I found a little treasure near City Hall. It’s called L’atitude 51 and is situated in what used to be The Lobby Bar. Indeed throughout the 1990s and I remember upstairs at the Lobby for the hundreds of great music gigs held there.
Outside hasn’t changed much from those heady days of single life visiting Cork but the inside has been transformed by the clever use of a pale colour palette with plum accents. Stylish but not in the least pretentious, it is a Wine Café as opposed to a pub or a wine bar or a café or a restaurant – but with all the best elements of those types of establishments. While the philosophy hangs on the wine offering it had everything I love about traditional European restaurants while still retaining the charm of an Irish pub. You could easily spend all day in L’atitude 51 as they open for morning coffee right through to light evening meals seven days a week. They have a huge selection of wines with over 25 varieties available by the glass. Along with wines you can try craft beers and interesting ciders along with gourmet coffee. So if you are visitingCorkit is only a short walk from the main shopping area and it’s the perfect place for a little breather. Even if you are just after a coffee in the middle of the day L’atitude 51 is worth the extra few steps. It is the antithesis of your typical chain coffee shop. It’s got character that would be hard to replicate and roll out across the country. Sitting there, as I was, on a quiet afternoon accompanied by just the paper, you got that wonderful feeling of discovering a little oasis that you will return to again and again. 
However as I glanced at the flyers for the evening events on offer one in particular caught my eye. Along with wine tastings and wine workshops they also, throughout the winter, have a film night specialising in films about food and or drink. What a great idea, it’s a food and or tasting event followed by a movie. It got me thinking about the movies I’ve seen where food is one of the main themes. The mainstream films come to mind immediately, Julie and Julia – a film based on two real people in different times. Julia Child the famous cook who taught America the art of French cooking and Julie Powell the food blogger who attempted to cook and document 365 Julia Child recipes in a year. The film combines both the book that stemmed from those efforts and Julia Child’s memoir, My Life inFrance. The result is a movie that might just make you want to cook beef bourguignon for dinner. Sideways with Paul Giamatti is another favourite. For anyone interested in wine this might be the movie, although it may be difficult for you to watch a 1961 Chateau Cheval Blanc being downed from a disposable cup rather than the finest crystal. I’m convinced that Ratatouille is not just an animation for kids. It’s probably food preparation at its most charming. Linguini, the kitchen boy and Ratatouille the little country mouse who together cook amazing food. It’s a Pixar classic and one for all the family. If you’re looking for something a little more art house then Like Water for Chocolate might tick some boxes. This is all about food at a sensual level and the power of food on the emotions. I’m sure you’ll find it on Netflix, but make sure you’ve eaten before watching it.
There are many more films and documentaries that hang their core around the food arts and let’s not even mention the novels and books that have food and eating as a central theme. There’s no doubt about it, food and drink are so much part of every facet of our culture that it never ceases to amaze me how many people are willing to eat just for fuel.
Even if you are having a quick snack, it should be important. I’d go far as to say if we all ate with such consciousness there would be less obesity. We eat tons and tons of processed food each year almost unknown to ourselves. Yet the taste that is compromised in these chemically laden, manufactured substances is off the scale. There is also the great myth about processed food being cheaper and so you get more for your money. In quantity, perhaps, but in satiety, nutrition and taste the numbers don’t add up. Less is more where real food is concerned and your body and taste buds will thank you for it in the long run. The magic lies in paying a little more and eating a little less to treble the satisfaction levels. This rule could be easily applied to how the French eat. On the face of it the French diet could be derided for having too much white flour and fat but they win on the quantities. The French eat smaller portions, don’t tend to go back for seconds and have no real snack culture. When we try eating a ‘French’ diet we pile on the pounds because our portions are far too big. French sticks, croissants, cheese, red wine, rich sauces, wonderful pastries; the list goes on. The French don’t get fat on French food but the rest of the world does.
Whenever you eat, choose the best and choose less of the best rather than more of the mediocre or poor and cheap. It should be a rule for life, insist on only putting something truly worthy into your mouth and your priceless body. Cook something simple but delicious with real food. For great ideas check out the mini how to videos and the great recipes at www.JamesWhelanButhers.com or drop by the store in the Oakville shopping centre for a little food inspiration. I welcome your feedback to [email protected]
We hope you enjoyed reading this post by Pat Whelan of James Whelan Butchers. Pat is a 5th generation butcher, cook book author and the director of James Whelan Butchers with shops in Clonmel, the Avoca Handweavers Rathcoole and Kilmacanogue, Dunnes Stores Cornelscourt, Rathmines and Swords in Dublin. Sign up to our newsletter for more updates from James Whelan Butchers
Tags: Cork Restaurant, Food in Film, foodie articles, French Cooking, Irish Online Butcher, James Whelan Butchers, Julia Child, Julie and Julia, Julie Powell, L’atitude 51, Pat Whelan
