Posts Tagged ‘James Whelan Butchers’

I’m being constantly asked by customers as they place orders “What size turkey do I need?” I can’t help thinking to myself I’d love if Christmas were more often because we’d all know exactly what we need and how to cook it but maybe that would take the magic out of Christmas. I can understand […]

On the 5th December will be launching our new shop in the Avoca Food Market in Monkstown, Co. Dublin. To celebrate this momentous occasion in the story of James Whelan Butchers, we are giving away five €100 vouchers to spend in our new shop. To enter our competition and be in with a chance of […]

  Winter has arrived and all eyes are now firmly focussed on the festive season. Now before you throw the paper down in horror at my nerve of mentioning the ‘C’ word in the third week of November, hear me out. Normally I’m with all the people who say “the long lead in is ruining […]

We are delighted to announce that we are bringing our craft butchery excellence and expertise to Dublin as part of the exciting new Avoca Food Market in Monkstown. This will be our first retail venture outside of Clonmel and an exciting  new chapter in the James Whelan success story. We will have a 550 square […]

  I was saddened to hear of the recent passing of the actress Betty Driver who, for forty years, portrayed one of the best known barmaids on TV. As Betty Turpin from the Rovers Return on Coronation Street, she made a simple North of England lamb stew into an iconic dish that we all associated […]

  I received a glorious gift of fresh carrots from a friend’s garden last weekend and decided to make carrot and coriander soup. Once October hits I love making fresh soups for these cooler days and I always feel very smug indulging in something so irresistibly tasty, safe in the knowledge that it is so […]

  I got a little verbal rap on the knuckles from a customer the other day. Although good natured, she rightly pointed out that I have a tendency in this column to concentrate on families or large groups. She accused me of being oblivious to the singles and couples out there who also had to […]

    “During the war years and beyond culinary skills were tested to the limit. Housewives were proud to play their part in helping with the war effort. Many, self taught, embraced the art of cooking enthusiastically. They used limited resources ingeniously, respecting the available ingredients and avoiding waste. Above all, they were prepared to […]

Pat Whelan is a member of a dwindling brotherhood, independent butchers. In the 21st century world of supermarkets, it’s getting increasingly hard to find these food artisans who thrived in a bygone era when people  moved away from farms and no longer raised their own meat. His shop, James Whelan Butchers, in Clonmel, County Tipperary, Ireland, […]

Yesterday, I was delighted to attend the official opening of the Cashel Blue Dairy at Beechmount Farm, Fethard, Co. Tipperary opened by Simon Coveney, Minister for Agriculture, Marine and Food. It was an amazing event and what was more amazing as I travelled through the lush pastures of Tipperary hidden behind mature beech trees on a […]

  In conversation with a friend recently I found myself wading into the murky waters of food and weight loss. We would both find ourselves in that rather tricky position of having a desire to fit into a smaller trouser size but possessing an even greater desire for a steak pie, nice wine, good sausage, […]

The last time I checked, most human adults were in possession of a decent enough brain. The brain, that vital organ that sits between our ears, helps us survive, work and raise our young without doing them too much damage. It is our ability to assess and make choices using the brain that largely separates […]