A Blog by PRO- Paula Hawes
Nestled smack in the hub of the picturesque village of Ballyvaughan, the Ballyvaughan Farmer’s Market immediately delights the visitor by its quaint, rural coastal location sheltered by the awesome limestone escarpments of the Burren Highlands and Black Head and nuzzled by the lapping waters of Galway Bay. “There is no love sincerer than the love of food”- George Bernard Shaw. At Ballyvaughan Farmers’ Market, food lovers meet food harvesters and producers who simply love what they do. And indeed, the market truly provides the ideal pit stop for weary Wild Atlantic Way pilgrims, walkers, cyclists, gourmands and locals alike to slow down and taste typical North Clare village life and sumptuous food.
The fruits and spoils of the Burren’s rich fertile rock are proudly displayed each Saturday in St. Johns Hall from April- October 10am- 2pm. Meet the producer, sample the products; there are 18 stall holders selling Fruit & vegetables, meat, fish, homemade breads and delectable cakes , hot snacks and beverages in addition to artisanal preserves, crafts and horticulture.
Grab a quick tasty wholesome lunch to take away or eat there and then at the sheltered picnic tables whilst tapping your toes away to local live traditional Irish music. Attend a cooking demonstration, enter a competition. Purchase the basis of quick summer meal; Nolan’s ‘balls of flour’ potatoes, Neil Hawes Burren lamb cutlets , Deborah Ever’s Clareville House mint jelly served with Fahy’s Celtic Salads rockets and chives, of which are lovingly grown pesticide -free in the shadows of the medieval Corocombe Abbey ,just a few kilometres away.
For a fast hot snack try a mouth-watering German wurst in a soft bread roll or Boo’s delicious range of Thai foods. In fact all food available at the market is passionately grown and produced within a 30km radius of the market right in the heart of the Burren.
Indulge your sweet tooth with crepes by Diane Rogerson , lovingly homemade cakes, scones, biscuits and tarts from Finola Costello or indeed Burren honey by Frank Benson or Ailwee Cave garlic and nettle cheese. All grown and harvested within a few kilometres of Ballyvaughan. To sum up, you are guaranteed organic, sustainable and additive free food in abundance at the market every Saturday.
The Burren’s fertile rocks is indeed the epicentre of food culture in Clare and when you visit, make sure you make the Ballyvaughan Farmers’ Market an essential part of your Burren Food Trail and Wild Atlantic Way experience
