'The Cuailleach pattern day - that is the Sunday after the feast of Mary, four of us had a meal with Fr. Séamus Hennebry. We had boiled leg of lamb, carrots and turnips, roast goose with green peas and stuffing, a dish of tripe boiled in fresh milk, port and punch, and tea. We also had melodious songs in Irish, and spent a merry night till eleven o'clock in peace and good cheer'
The Diary of an Irish Countryman 1827 - 1835
A Translation of Humphrey O'Sullivan's Cín Lae Amhlaoibh
Tomas De Bhaldraithe (1979)

Farmgate Café embraces a simple, strongly regional and uncomplicated menu, ensuring fresh ingredients. We still serve "boiled leg of lamb, carrots and turnips, dishes of tripe boiled in fresh milk" and other traditional fare, albeit sometimes with it a more modern twist perhaps!

So, using good quality flour, bread soda, water and a pinch of salt, we bake traditional Irish soda bread each morning, as Irish households would have done for many years. At lunch freshly baked savoury tarts and classic dishes such as Shepherd's Pie, Irish Lamb Stew and Fish Pie are served alongside more traditional dishes such as Tripe and Drisheen and Corned Mutton. We served boiled jacket potatoes everyday (local of course), and sometimes we roast them, or mash them, adding cabbage for Colcannon, and scallions for Champ.

We serve our fish very simply with a slice of lemon; Tripe is cooked in milk with onions, adding Drisheen on request. The traditional Corned Beef is cured over a number of days in brine, then boiled and served with parsley and mustard sauce. Poached leg of Mutton and caper sauce also makes a regular appearance on the menu.

Against the backdrop of a bustling market, freshly shucked oysters are brought straight to the dinning room table from the fish stall downstairs (it is worth the wait!). Cork cheese-makers deliver directly to the Market and the Café. Our meat, locally reared, comes from trusted Market butchers.

We also have vegetarian options, and accommodate dietary needs where possible (such as providing gluten free options). Children are always welcome at Farmgate, and are offered smaller dishes (and smaller prices) off the main menu.

Farmgate Café is exactly as described - a busy café in a historical, vibrant working market in Cork city centre, providing simple unfussy food which perhaps blurs the line between traditional home cooking and eating out.