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al influences including ongoing concerns about climate change and events such as the pandemic have massively impacted our dining out habits over the past two years. On the food front, the shadow of Covid-19 has brought with it vaccination passes for entry to restaurants, shorter menus and the extension of street architecture to accommodate the city’s increasing move towards outdoor dining. The coronavirus is also credited with accelerating the use of integrated technologies, with cooking robots, QR codes and ‘Food ATMs’ now used in dispensing everything from pizzas to hot drinks to salad bowls. So what’s new for twenty-two? Futurologists tracking changes in our food and drink consumption patterns tell us that the preference for plant-based foods is likely to continue unabated. We’re already seeing this reflected in global takeaway menus offering meat-free options such as meatless chicken nuggets and burgers, while dietary lexicons have been updated with two new ‘isms’ to describe those still tentatively eliminating animal products from their diet. ‘Flexitarianism’ is the term currently in vogue to describe those who follow a mostly vegetarian diet, but occasionally eat meat or fish, while ‘Reducetarianism’ references the practice of reducing the amount of animal and dairy produce. Drinkswise, the popularity of bottled cocktails looks set to grow further as barflies increasingly opt for imbibing at home over boozing in public houses. Conversely, ‘sober-curiosity’ is fast becoming a thing, with added interest in low or no alcohol bevvies. Watch out too for Cold Coffee and Potato Milk, both of which are likely to feature more prominently on shopping lists as the year progresses. Retro food and big brekkies are also back on the menu, while Mushrooms, Moringa, Hibiscus and Yuzu (the citrus fruit not the Nintendo Switch emulator) are all about to have a moment. CBD, Levantine food, and Japanese flavours are also set to trend in 2022, but on the downside, expect a continued escalation in the cost of the food we eat, and a proliferation of irritating TikTok Food trends. WE’RE LOVIN’ … The approach of Rialto based Imbibe Roasters, where they like to do things differently. The zero waste advocates donate 1% of turnover to Women’s Aid, 1% to projects at their coffee’s origin, with a further 1% shared amongst their staff. And of course, their coffee is awesome too. Imbibe.ie ACRES OF BRUNCH AT O’NEILLS OF PEARSE STREET SHAKE, RATTLE AND STROLL – PIZZA BY PRAM Vicar Street has been given a nice new makeover, with new flooring in the auditorium, and a superb mural behind the bar paying homage to the various performers who played there down the years. The Thomas Street venue has also joined forces with neighbouring pizza makers The Lab on a dining collaboration they’re calling ‘Pizza by Pram’. Explaining the story behind their new baby, Harry Crosbie tells us, “Next door to Vicar Street, Lab make delicious woodfired sourdough pizzas, but they only have one table. We have fifty tables in an empty, well-ventilated room literally three meters away, so I thought we could do something together that would be fun.” And so, Pizza By Pram was born, along with a tasty new deal to help wet the head of the new arrival. Grab two pizzas and two pints or two glasses of wine for €35 on Fridays and Saturdays between 12-6pm, with daily raffles for tickets to a Vicar Street gig also taking place. @vicar_street @the.lab.dublin It may be a traditional Victorian pub and townhouse, but thanks to a collaborative pop-up venture with ACRE, the Brunch menu at O’Neills on Pearse Street is bang up to date with nouveau Flexitarian trends. A self-described ‘plant-based eatery with meat add ons’, ACRE caters for all-comers including vegans, veggies and their meat-eating mates. Their delicious pub brunch menu is now a regular weekend fixture at O’Neills, where the bill of fare features a range of dishes made using sustainable ingredients. The choice includes Full Irish, Full Vegan, Avocado Toast or Fried Potato Hash, and we’re particularly looking forward to checking out their substantial Sourdough French Toast. It comes coated in cinnamon sugar, with maple syrup, caramelized banana, toasted peanuts, and a side of vanilla ice-cream. Available Sat and Sun, 12-6pm. O’Neills 36/37 Pearse Street Dublin 2 @acredublin Pssst – Got some food ’n’ drink nuggets you’d like to share with Totally Dublin readers? Feed them to us for consideration… Email: MM@hkm.ie 46