The Irish Gormand

So this is just sort of a fun post, because classes haven't really started and other than walking around the city I spend most of my time eating. Plus I know my mother is probably curious about what I am finding to eat here as a vegetarian. I can't speak a whole lot on traditional irish food as most of that does have some sort of meat in it and as I have not dined out a whole lot, although I should add from the menus I have looked at Galway is VERY accommodating, at least one vegetarian option on each menu. This post will mostly discuss the little quirks of food here that I love such as...

THE ELECTRIC KETTLE

Probably my favorite thing here. It is a plastic kettle that you plug in and have boiling water in minutes. With this great novelty I have been eating a lot of instant meals of the cup of soup variety. Although the meals are not all soups, I had a tasty pasta instant meal that used the water left over to create a thick spicy sauce. These instant meals are not particular to Europe I'm sure but the convenience of the electric kettle (which it appears everyone has here) probably is, I may invest in one back in the states.

HALF PAN BREAD

Sandwiches are always an easy cost effective meal, but buying a whole loaf of bread for one person is not. But here you can buy half pan presliced bread. It gives you ten slices, just enough so that your not stuck eating bread at every meal so it doesn't go to waste.

PORTION SIZING

It is smaller here, and at first it can feel like your getting gipped, but once you realize how little you can actually subsist on you can be grateful. I am not just talking the portions on the labels, but also on bakery goods, drinks, everything.

SUITABLE FOR VEGETARIANS

Probably my favorite thing about buying food here is that it comes with a little decal that says whether or not it is suitable for vegetarians (not vegans, just vegetarians), and its on everything including candy bars. But I love this label most on the instant meals I buy, because while at home I admit I cheat and eat chicken flavored Ramen noodles, here most of the meals with chicken flavoring actually have no relationship to meat whatsoever. I have been eating chicken and mushroom instant soup without any guilt, and I bought a vegetarian friendly Southern Fried Chicken soup today so we will see how that goes.

HEINZ SANDWICH SPREAD

Without meat everything counts in a sandwich, so back home I try to find interesting spreads to liven up the taste, usually that means hummus or miracle whip, I didn't look for hummus but there is no miracle whip here. Instead I found Heinz Sandwich Spread. It smells like coleslaw and actually has chunks of carrot, onion and cabbage in it. It seems to be a good substitute for miracle whip, and is almost similar in taste.

WALKER'S SENSATIONS CRISPS

Crisps, for you Americans, are potato chips. Chips here are more like french fries, only thicker cut. Sensations crisps are delicious and have the weirdest flavors imaginable, my favorite so far have been Thai Sweet Chili, but I recently tried the Buffalo Mozzarella and Herb chips with mixed feelings. Other flavors include: Roasted Chicken and Thyme, Vintage Cheddar and Onion Chutney, Balsamic Vinegar and Caramelized Onion, and Oriental Red Curry.

KINDER BUENO BARS

We have been sampling a lot of the chocolate offerings here, and so far our favorite a million times over is the Kinder Bueno Bar. Its a German named chocolate bar from an Italian manufacturer, so while steeped in a fascist history, its also filled with a delicious hazelnut center, surrounded by wafer and covered in chocolate.

I was delighted to find the frozen fake meat section today in the grocery store, I haven't tried anything yet, but will keep you posted. I bought some fake ground chuck which I have used at home, but am curious about the fake garlic butter kiev I bought and more so the vegetable sticks which look like fish sticks filled with veggies. We went to the local farmer's market here on Saturday but other than buying delicious savory crepes made no purchases. I am hoping to buy some fresh things there this weekend. The market featured three all vegetarian food carts, an olive bar, and a stand that sells fresh hummus, I am sure it will become one of my favorite places.