Wind, rain, snow, sunshine, roadtrip, beautiful landscapes and vegan food. This is how I can sum up this mini trip to the West of Ireland a month ago.
For the vegan food part, no, I have not changed my diet but traveling with guests who are vegan meant trying to find delicious things that would suit them.
As for the beautiful scenery, driving along the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland will provide all this and more.
For the vegan food part, no, I have not changed my diet but traveling with guests who are vegan meant trying to find delicious things that would suit them.
As for the beautiful scenery, driving along the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland will provide all this and more.
Five of us squeezed into a rental car, we made our way towards the Cliffs of Moher after a night in St Mullins in County Carlow. On the weather agenda: wind, rain and even a little bit of snow. But because this is Ireland, bursts of blue sky and sunshine also made an appearance among it.
The Cliffs of Moher are located along the Wild Atlantic Way in County Clare (77kms or one hour and a half by car from Galway City). We made it our last stop before heading to Galway. The last time I had visited these impressive sea cliffs was back in the summer of 2012. The blog was barely a month old at the time so there was never a mention of it before today.
It was just like I remembered, beautiful and grandiose, with the same amount of very strong wind and rain. We all walked around a bit from one part of the top of the cliffs to the other, and sometimes even ran for cover in between showers.
After the stop at the cliffs, we made our way to Galway where we had booked a small apartment for the night.
For dinner that evening, I suggested we all go to The Dough Bros (1, Cathedral Building, Middle Street) as I had heard a lot about their delicious pizze and also knew there were vegan options. The moment we walked in, the smell of pizza baking in the wood-fired oven welcomed us and made us really hungry. I ordered the Irish Margherita which was topped with san marzano tomato sauce, fresh basil, grated parmesan, extra virgin olive oil and Toons Bridge mozzarella. It was pizza at its best, probably one of the nicest I have eaten in Ireland so far. And the creaminess of the mozzarella, just wonderful!
Our friends ordered the vegan options: tandoori pizza (tomato sauce, violife vegan cheese, tandoori roasted cauliflower, pickled chilli, corn, mint and cucumber soy yogurt, coriander and lime) and marinara pizza (topped with tomato sauce, extra virgin olive oil, fresh garlic, fresh basil and oregano). Both seemed very appetising and I know they really enjoyed it.
The next day, we grabbed some breakfast before taking a small walk around the city. After having researched breakfast and brunch vegan options in Galway, we decided to go to the Light House cafe (8 Abbeygate Street Upper). We ordered teas and coffees and then all chose the same breakfast: weekday vegan fry. For our friends, it was a way to taste a plant-based Irish breakfast. For me, I admit it was curiosity as I really wanted to see what vegan white pudding and scrambled ‘eggs’ would taste like.
The plates were filled with home made vegan white pudding, tofu scramble, roast tomato, mushrooms and toasted vegan brown bread. There was also a dollop of the most delicious tomato chutney. It was surprising how much the plant-based white pudding tasted like the meat version. And the tofu scramble was incredibly delicious, creamy and flavoursome.
We could not resist having some sweet treats after all this. The array of desserts on display was way too appetising to skip it. I got a slice of vegan chocolate brownie with frosting topped with tiny dried rose petals and it was just wonderful. It was what chocolate brownies dreams are made of.
After this delightful vegan breakfast, we walked around the pretty streets of Galway lined with colourful house and shop fronts and made our way back to Dublin shortly after.
It was short and sweet, the right amount of beautiful scenery and delicious things. Because sometimes, it feels good taking a small break and revisiting places you have already been to.
The Cliffs of Moher are located along the Wild Atlantic Way in County Clare (77kms or one hour and a half by car from Galway City). We made it our last stop before heading to Galway. The last time I had visited these impressive sea cliffs was back in the summer of 2012. The blog was barely a month old at the time so there was never a mention of it before today.
It was just like I remembered, beautiful and grandiose, with the same amount of very strong wind and rain. We all walked around a bit from one part of the top of the cliffs to the other, and sometimes even ran for cover in between showers.
After the stop at the cliffs, we made our way to Galway where we had booked a small apartment for the night.
For dinner that evening, I suggested we all go to The Dough Bros (1, Cathedral Building, Middle Street) as I had heard a lot about their delicious pizze and also knew there were vegan options. The moment we walked in, the smell of pizza baking in the wood-fired oven welcomed us and made us really hungry. I ordered the Irish Margherita which was topped with san marzano tomato sauce, fresh basil, grated parmesan, extra virgin olive oil and Toons Bridge mozzarella. It was pizza at its best, probably one of the nicest I have eaten in Ireland so far. And the creaminess of the mozzarella, just wonderful!
Our friends ordered the vegan options: tandoori pizza (tomato sauce, violife vegan cheese, tandoori roasted cauliflower, pickled chilli, corn, mint and cucumber soy yogurt, coriander and lime) and marinara pizza (topped with tomato sauce, extra virgin olive oil, fresh garlic, fresh basil and oregano). Both seemed very appetising and I know they really enjoyed it.
The next day, we grabbed some breakfast before taking a small walk around the city. After having researched breakfast and brunch vegan options in Galway, we decided to go to the Light House cafe (8 Abbeygate Street Upper). We ordered teas and coffees and then all chose the same breakfast: weekday vegan fry. For our friends, it was a way to taste a plant-based Irish breakfast. For me, I admit it was curiosity as I really wanted to see what vegan white pudding and scrambled ‘eggs’ would taste like.
The plates were filled with home made vegan white pudding, tofu scramble, roast tomato, mushrooms and toasted vegan brown bread. There was also a dollop of the most delicious tomato chutney. It was surprising how much the plant-based white pudding tasted like the meat version. And the tofu scramble was incredibly delicious, creamy and flavoursome.
We could not resist having some sweet treats after all this. The array of desserts on display was way too appetising to skip it. I got a slice of vegan chocolate brownie with frosting topped with tiny dried rose petals and it was just wonderful. It was what chocolate brownies dreams are made of.
After this delightful vegan breakfast, we walked around the pretty streets of Galway lined with colourful house and shop fronts and made our way back to Dublin shortly after.
It was short and sweet, the right amount of beautiful scenery and delicious things. Because sometimes, it feels good taking a small break and revisiting places you have already been to.
Camera used on this trip: Olympus Pen E-PL8
Playlist listened to: Spring Hygge on Spotify
Book read: ‘On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft’ by Stephen King
Playlist listened to: Spring Hygge on Spotify
Book read: ‘On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft’ by Stephen King
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