homegrown is the brand new GIY series of seasonal long-table dinners, which is set to take place at GROW HQ in Waterford starting from October, 2018.
The series features visiting chefs who share the homegrown ethos. The event showcases their talents and gets them to build on the HQ story by delivering a very special seasonal feast for just 55 diners. GIY invite them to take over the kitchen and the garden to prepare their meal and Head Grower Richard Mee is available to help them graze, harvest and forage.
Commenting on the series, Founder of GIY, Michael Kelly, says: “Seasonality is a buzzword in food and hospitality but very often it’s about lip service rather than genuine commitment. GROW HQ is the home of the GIY movement in Waterford City, is the ultimate expression of homegrown seasonality, with a restaurant run on what’s grown in a one-acre vegetable garden that is 112 paces from the kitchen.
“Here at GROW HQ, we have a 100% commitment to only using seasonal, hyper-local, chemical-free food that nourishes body, mind and soul. With that as a starting point, we are so excited to see what these amazing chefs will do with that canvas. For our customers, this is a rare opportunity to see these amazing chefs in action outside their own kitchens.”
Darina Allen feeding her free range chickens
homegrown kicks off on Thursday October 4 with Ballymaloe Cookery School founder, broadcaster and author, Darina Allen. Darina needs little introduction; she established Ballymaloe Cookery School in 1983 with her brother Rory O’Connell. Author of over 10 books and presenter on six television series, a passionate and committed teacher, a tireless ambassador for Irish food both at home and abroad, and heavily involved in the Farmers’ Market Movement, Slow Food and was an early advocate and patron of GIY. Tickets are €65 and are available at giy.ie.
On Tuesday, November 13, Wade Murphy from Bib Gourmand’s award-winning, Restaurant 1826 Adare in Limerick will take over at GROW HQ. Voted Best Chef and Best Restaurant in Munster by Food & Wine Magazine, Chef Wade Murphy has worked in some of the top kitchens in London, Chicago, Egypt and Ireland, including Lisloughrey Lodge and The Lodge at Doonbeg. In 2013, Wexford native Wade, along with his wife Elaine decided to take a leap of faith in 2013 and open 1826 Adare in her native county of Limerick. John McKenna called 1826, “one of the defining examples of the modern creative casual Irish restaurant with cooking that is serious and ambitious but without a jot of pretension.”
On December 5, GIY will host a very special multi-cultural homegrown night featuring Ellie Kisyombe, the founder of Our Table. The event will highlight the challenges faced by residents of direct provision centres, particularly in relation to growing, cooking and eating their own food. Ellie Kisyombe is a direct provision resident herself and founded Our Table to create nurturing and empathetic events and spaces where people from Direct Provision can gain skills, a wage and knowledge of the Irish food industry. It is a non-profit, non-denominational organisation that aims to build an awareness of food in multicultural Ireland and to highlight that the current system of Direct Provision is deeply flawed.
In 2019 the homegrown series will continue with events featuring Russell James Alford and Patrick Hanlon, Gastro Gays as homegrown will take a turn towards the anarchic, food-obsessed home-cook with Eurovision and travel-obsessed food blogging duo Russell James Alford and Patrick Hanlon. Chef Katie Sanderson will also feature; a chef who specialises in pop-up experiences and happenings that are fleeting and exceptional, including her Living Dinners Project, a series of monthly happenings where diners were served only raw food in a varying series of spaces. Born in Hong Kong, trained at Ballymaloe Cookery School, chef at The Fumbally, GIY can’t wait to see what she magics in GROW HQ.
For further information and tickets for all of the homegrown events at GROW HQ see giy.ie.
