Despite my misgivings (sharing a meal with 55 folks from a tour bus isn't quite my idea of fun), I have to say that the Dunguaire Castle Banquet was a very entertaining evening.
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| Ye olde hall...with lots of olde people. |
The castle is certainly legit; I've never eaten in a 15th-centrury stone banquet hall before. Its dank and drafty--I can't imagine this being much fun in the winter. The actors knew what they were doing, and took their jobs seriously. The post-meal entertainment in particular was diverting.
The food? Well, it was surprisingly reasonable. (No, you don't have to eat with your hands.)
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| Smoked salmon salad. |
We started with clay goblets of mead served on the ground floor to harp music. The mead was as musty, cloying, and sweet as other meads I've tried, but I don't have enough experience to evaluate it.
Next, we moved to the main hall, where we were served bread, salads, butter, wine, and water. All was unremarkable, but hearty.
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| Potato and leek soup. |
The appetizer was a potato-leek soup poured from jugs. Hot, well-seasoned, and suprisingly good. We really enjoyed vegetable soups in general across Ireland.
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| Chicken, veggies, and potatoes. |
The main course was chicken breast in cream sauce, green beans, carrots, and boiled potatoes. Again, unremarkable, but hearty.
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| Pie and fresh whipped cream. |
Dessert was some sort of mass-produced apple crisp, with bowls of fresh unsweetened whipped cream.
Overall, for the price I can't recommend the Banquet for the food. Combined with the entertianment, well, I'm still not very high on the experience. But--add in dining in a geniune 15th century stone castle, with all the good and bad that entails, and suddenly I'm much more comfortable giving this event a tentative thumbs up. If you're curious, try it. I think you'll get your money's worth out of the evening.
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