Dining

Best for foodies:

English Market

Don’t be fooled by the name, Ireland’s best covered market stocks the finest locally sourced meat, fish, vegetables, and fruit. Our advice is to assemble your lunch in the market (the olive stand is particularly good) and have a picnic in the nearby park... weather permitting, of course! Upstairs the “slow food” Farmgate Café & Restaurant is one of the few places in the city you can still sample traditional Cork foods like hot buttered eggs, tripe, crubeens (pigs' feet), and drisheens (blood sausage) – be warned they’re not for the faint-hearted!

Where:Entrances to English Market on Princes Street, Patrick Street and the Grand Parade. Farmgate Café, English Market, Princes Street, Cork City, Tel: +353 (0)21 427 8134.

Website: www.corkenglishmarket.ie

Best pub for a pint of stout:

Mutton Lane Inn

Ireland is synonymous with Guinness, but in Cork the stout of choice is Beamish, a local brew made with roasted barley and water from the river Lee. For a real taste of Cork (and a great pint of Beamish), head straight to Mutton Lane Inn. Closeted away down an alley that was once a pathway for sheep going to market, this cosy old-school bar is perpetually bathed in candlelight – just bright enough to see your fellow drinkers and the 1980s Pogue tour posters that decorate the walls.

Where: Mutton Lane Inn, 3 Mutton Lane, Off Patrick Street, Cork City, Tel: +353 (0)21427 3471.

O’Connail’s Chocolate Shop

Chocoholics will love O’Connails. Located on a city centre side street, this boutique chocolatier boasts 12 different varieties of intensely rich and satisfying hot chocolate – our favourite is chilli, but don’t take our word for it, sample some for yourself! You can even buy hot chocolate mix and make it at home as well. The shop also sells high-quality chocolate bars of varying cocoa strengths – the 70% is to die for. 

Where: O’Connail’s Chocolate Shop, 16b French Church Street, Cork City, Tel: +353 (0)21 437 3407.

Music

Best music store:

Plug’d Records

One of the few remaining independent record stores in Ireland, Plug’d Records is a must for all music fans. Legendary owner Jim prides himself on stocking the best local sounds – the ground floor sells new and used CDs, while upstairs is a vinyl junkie’s paradise with stacks of rare and bargain LPs and 12”s. Check out the intimate gallery space on the first floor. If you’re lucky a band will be playing – if not, just kick back and enjoy the contemporary art.  

Where: Plug’d Records, 4 Washington St, Cork City, Tel: +353 (0)21 427 6300.

Culture

Best bizarre thing to do:

Ringing the Shandon Bells

It’s not just the religious who flock to the Church of St Anne in Shandon, one of Cork’s oldest and most distinctive districts: the views from the clock tower are great, and you get a chance to ring the famous Shandon Bells. “Final Countdown”, “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina”, and “All Out of Love” are just some of the less than holy tunes visitors have rung out across the city! The bells themselves were celebrated in the popular song The Bells of Shandon.

Where: Church of St. Anne, Shandon, Church Street, Cork City, Tel: +353 (0)21 450 5906.
Website: www.shandonbells.org

Day trip

Best day trip:

Kinsale

Barely a half hour drive from Cork city, this picturesque fishing village, surrounded by luscious green hills, is the gateway to Cork’s western coast. The town’s narrow, winding streets are full of little art galleries and craft shops, not to mention excellent pubs and award-winning restaurants. South west lies the remarkable Charles Fort, a star-shaped fort built to prevent foreign (specifically French) naval forces from entering the harbour. Pack a picnic and spend an afternoon exploring this unique structure, which remained in military use until 1922 – but be careful not to get blown off those high walls!

Where:Kinsale, 30km south of Cork, follow the N27 out of the city and at Airport Road roundabout take the 2nd exit onto the R600. From there Kinsale is just 15 minutes away.

Website: www.kinsale.ie