“The one thing that I can tell you about the night,” Aishling Moore told the Irish Examiner when she was asked about the chef collaboration at Goldie Chapel, “is that this is never going to happen again. Not in that format. Not with those people. And I think it’s very special to be involved in things like that.”
And she was right. The four-course meal at Goldie Chapel, the Victorian Gothic Revival chapel at Nano Nagle Place, one of the sell-out highlights of the Cork on a Fork festival, felt once-in-a-lifetime.
Three of the city’s most exciting chefs — Irish Examiner columnist Aishling Moore from Goldie, Michelin-starred chef Rob Krawczyk of Chestnut and Eric Nolan of Good Day Deli — collaborated on a stellar menu. The four-course meal saw Krawczyk cook the first two courses, Good Day Deli look after dessert, while Moore’s Goldie oversaw the main.
Aishling Moore of Goldie speaking to diners. Picture: ThaliaGreaux
Snacks included Raw Langoustine and Caviar, while the starter, inspired by Krawczyk’s father’s recipe, was spiced beef with pickles and hen’s egg. Moore stepped in for the main course: ‘Whatever the boat brings’ (it was plaice on the night) with courgette, smoked tomato and chilli butter sauce, alongside new potatoes and Churchfield Community Garden tomatoes.
Dessert included caramelised apple with local Beezi honey with petit fours and coffee.
The chapel, named after the architect who designed it, also shares its name with Moore’s award-winning seafood restaurant. “It’s a great name for a chapel,” Moore quipped as she introduced her main course, “but an even better name for a restaurant.”
Chefs preparing food at Goldie Chapel. Picture: ThaliaGreaux
The night was also a unique opportunity to experience Krawczyk’s Michelin-starred creativity, as he prepares to close Chestnut later this year. Cooking for more than 50 people in a listed building wasn’t a straightforward ask — right down to accessing electricity. But the team rose to the occasion.
Cork on a Fork began five years ago with 30 events. This year, there were 150 options across the city on the programme.
The opening night — Wednesday’s Shared Table — was a highlight as always, but there were other showstopping firsts on the programme line-up this year, from the black-tie Cathedral supper to last night’s Goldie Supper, the closing event at this year’s festival.
A view of Goldie Chapel during Cork on a Fork Festival. Picture: ThaliaGreaux
As she acknowledged the vast scale of the event this year, festival organiser Niamh Murphy received a standing ovation.
“When Niamh floated the idea of Goldie Chapel, she had me at Goldie,” Moore told the Irish Examiner in the run-up to the festival. Who knows what Murphy will have in store for the city with Cork on a Fork 2027.
Fiona and Dara Quinn, and Carole and Mark Nolan from Cork. Picture: Miki Barlok
Grace Kelly and Declan O’Driscoll from Cork. Picture: Miki Barlok
Evan May and Emily Thompson from Cork. Picture: Miki Barlok
Liz and Ger Ryan from Rochestown. Picture: Miki Barlok
Gillian Kelleher from Whites Cross, Carol Brick from Whites Cross, Fiona Lemasney from Carrigtoohill and Hazel Dolan from Tivoli. Picture: Miki Barlok
Julian Power and Caoimhe Moynihan from Watergrasshill. Picture: Miki Barlok
Susan and Gillian Seigne from Bandon. Picture: Miki Barlok
Tom Ahern from Kerry Pike, Gina Ahern from Model Farm Road and Noel Lynch and Cathy Jackson from Kilcrea. Picture: Miki Barlok
Josephine O’Driscoll from Failte Ireland, Neil Murphy from Coolagown and Mary Houlihan from Failte Ireland. Picture: Miki Barlok
The Irish Examiner is a proud media partner for Cork on a Fork Festival.