Spice Bag Newsletter | March 2025
Our spicy lil' monthly mailer full of delicious little chunks, from recommendations, suggestions and updates to exclusives and insider tidbits –– free for all our readership!
Welcome to the March 2025 edition of Spice Bag, our main monthly newsletter (we operate both a free model and paid model on Chip Paper but this goes out to everyone) which acts a sort-of highlights reel: where we have been eating/what we’ve been cooking, where we have been travelling, the things we’ve streamed or tuned into and other updates, insight, tidbits and news.
What & Where We’ve Been Eating…
We queued for 2+ hours at the Scéal x Bambino pop-up slice shop last Sunday in Greystones. We ditched it probably with an hour in the queue to go… there’s no doubt if Bambino are scouting other slice shop locations around Dublin and the surrounds that there is a massive market in Bray/Greystones 👀
Sunday roast at The Legal Eagle is knock-out, we had it with friends a few weeks ago and have been thinking of it ever since… Book yourself in!
On a recent very short trip to Belfast for an event we dropped into pan-Asian, mostly veggie spot Jumon (for the first time) and Hero Subs (for the second)
We made a hybrid Jambon x Crispy Pancake, and you should too
We went to Orwell Road for the first time (long, LONG overdue) and had a stellar meal, particularly love their industry nights — the next of which is on 31st March, details here
Have you seen our new Instagram/TikTok sandwich recipe series Sandwish?
RECAP: Sunday Times Ireland Reviews
As most of you already know (but there are about a hundred new recipients so far this month) we are the restaurant critics of the Sunday Times Ireland - which is the Irish print edition of the UK paper The Times, not a Sunday edition of the Irish Times (which is a totally different paper and is published on a Saturday anyway)
Our five most recent Sunday Times Ireland reviews have gone from Monaghan to Wicklow, Down to Dublin, in case you missed any find them all linked below!
Feast, Rostrevor, Co. Down
HERA, Dublin 1
The Courthouse, Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan
Caladh, Greystones, Co. Wicklow
We put on Instagram earlier in the month how heartening it is to get messages not only from readers but restaurateurs around the country who appreciate and encourage the expanse of coverage we give around the island, north and south. It’s challenging at the best of times but when we took on this role we took it upon ourselves to shine a light outside of the M50 as often as we possibly could.
Spice Blend: A Mix of Industry Updates
Glenlo Abbey’s Pullman restaurant (the fine dining one on the duo of Orient Express carriages) has re-opened under Greek chef Angelo Vagiotis and it’s clear they are gunning for a Michelin star with this reinvention. 7-course tasting menu is €130pp and you can get overnight packages including that for around €600 for two total.
Lena has officially replaced Locks on Windsor Terrace. We ate there last week and… 👀 it will be the subject of this coming weekend’s review in the Sunday Times Ireland 👀
Bootleg on Dublin’s Drury Street seems to have been shut and replaced with a Brazilian-inspired chicken, grill and caipirinha concept called Rei Momo which will have a menu of feijoada, pastel, coxinha and pao de queijo.
Parnell Street Bakery, from the same team behind Russell Street Bakery is now open in the former 147 Deli premises on Parnell Street…
Today marks the return of The Pig’s Ear to Nassau Street. Lotus Eaters, which replaced the original is now moving elsewhere and the pig is back..
Fawn in Oranmore is set to open in the first week of April from Ervin Vamoser and Jay O’Neill, who we believe are an ex-Ashford Castle chef and manager. Not to be confused with another Fawn, at the Chancery Hotel in Dublin, which opened recently.
The Irish Food Writers Guild, of which we have been members of since 2020, had its annual awards earlier this week, a round-up of all the worthy winners HERE
Reading, Watching, Streaming…
delicious. magazine becaaaause we have a recipe in the latest issue, on news stands now! The team compiled an Irish recipe spread from five different Irish chefs and cooks, which includes coddle, Fifteens and a sticky Guinness pudding and our Dingle Pies!
Anyone struggling MAJORLY with The White Lotus S3 [NOW]? We love that it shifts continent each season and it is beautifully shot on location in Thailand but the story is so…. slow…. moving….
Still going on Great British Menu and this week’s Central & Eastern region — maybe the strongest heat EVER?! Such talent. One of the competitors is also a client of Patrick’s PR copywriting business, too!
We are OBSESSED with Hacks [NOW], if you haven’t seen it WHAT are you waiting for? Jean Smart is phenomenal as Deborah Vance and a treasure of an actress, fully deserving of her three-time Outstanding Lead Actress Primtime Emmy in her seventies! There are three seasons available right now and the writing is very clearly heavily influenced by the life story of Joan Rivers — if that doesn’t draw you in we don’t know what will!
SNL 50: Beyond Saturday Night [NOW], we loved this documentary on the inner workings of Saturday Night Live to celebrate its 50th year and season. In particular the ‘Five Minutes’ episode is super fascinating, an insight into the short auditions all cast members have had to go through and all the emotions that go alongside, plus an insight into those famous faces who didn’t receive a call back
Big Boys [Channel 4], a great watch of quick, 30 minute episodes, we somehow missed S2 and the final season, S3, is out already so we’re playing catch-up
We’re going to dive into the German Language period drama The Empress [Netflix] (AKA ‘Die Kaiserin’) as our next binge. In our minds it seems it will fill a The Crown-shaped space…
Listening to author and fellow Substack writer ’s podcast You Had Me At Hello, particularly the episode featuring her own husband, Joe Carlyle.
Reading Jamie Oliver’s latest book, Easy Air Fryer [#AF]. Yes, it’s dedicated to air fryer cookery but it is really surprising and very pared back for his style, which in the past has been ‘more is more’ this is reduced to bare basics and very easy to follow with so many simple weeknight recipes to try.
ICYMI: Our chats with Danny Africano, Adam Nevin and Richard Picard-Edwards…
Patience, Consistency and Sacrifice: What Clinching a Michelin Star Really Requires
That’s it for this month — thanks for reading! Chip Paper is brought to you by Patrick Hanlon and Russell Alford, also known collectively under our brand name: GastroGays. Irish food and travel writers, Sunday Times Ireland restaurant critics, broadcasters and content creators, this is our home of food long-reads, deep-dives and guides. You can find us elsewhere on Instagram, TikTok and our website GastroGays.com
