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PROUDLY SPONSORED BY CHOCS AWAY: PASCALE VAN RIET
– PHOENIX DELITE The recent cancellation of an order for over two hundred kilos of chocolate without payment came as a huge blow to small artisan chocolatier Pascale Van Riet, but an appeal to the Twitter goddess helped bring her work to a whole new audience. The one-woman dynamo specializes in making luxury handmade Belgian chocolates suitable for diabetics, as well as dairy and gluten free bars for vegans and those with PKU. She issued a plea for help on the social media platform Twitter and was astounded by the response. “I have no words,” Van Riet says, “A customer who had purchased from me before and loved my vegan, gluten free range placed a huge order for 216 kilos of chocolate.” Then suddenly the order was cancelled. “I had already made all the chocolates, it was a lot of money, and for a couple of days afterwards I was really down. Then I reached out to Samantha Kelly on Twitter, and she said, ‘if you tweet about it, people will help you’. So, I put a tweet out, she retweeted it and the post exploded.” Within three days Van Riet had secured over 100 orders. “It felt like Christmas had come early,” she laughs. “As soon as people received their chocolates, they were taking pictures and putting them online.” The Belgian woman is used to overcoming all kinds of adversity, having initially developed the business following redundancy from a job in 2009. “I had just moved into a place by myself, and I was really panicking about how I would pay the rent,” she recalls. “After three nights of not sleeping, I opened a box of sugar-free Belgian chocolates. As I was eating away, feeling sorry for myself, I was also thinking; these are really nice, there’s nothing like this in Ireland.” Van Riet now works at home from her HSE approved kitchen. Her sugar-free chocolate range contains a third less fat and 40% less calories than regular chocolate. Her products are organic, vegan, gluten-free and free of palm oil, making them especially appealing to those with coeliac disease. The products have been endorsed on social media by the Coeliac Society of Ireland and will feature in their next printed guide. The chocolatier is currently creating a bar code for their app, while her products have also been endorsed by PKU Association of Ireland. The Phoenix Delite range also includes jams, jellies, and vegan fudge, with a number of new products including vegan cooking sauces, crisps and egg replacements also in development. Vegan and gluten-free hot chocolate sticks are already being designed with coffee shops in mind. A member of Dublin Chamber of Commerce and Boyne Valley Flavours, Van Riet is currently making an early start on her Christmas Hampers, while corporate orders are always welcome. “Everything comes with nice gift wrapping and a personalized card, so it would be great if people could take a look at the website and get those all-important orders in!” phoenixdelite.ie THE OLD HAMMOND LANE MARKET Here at Totally Dublin we love a good market, so we were delighted to hear about the launch of a new community based not-for-profit venture located in the heart of Ringsend. Specialising in local crafts, art and flowers, the founders of The Old Hammond Lane Market have also succeeded in bringing an impressive range of food traders onboard. Artisan stalwarts Bread 41, Cloud Picker Coffee and Ciao Cannoli will be joined by Just Chubby’s, the shiny new 147 Deli food truck, which gets its first outing at the market on Sunday August 1st. Organised in conjunction with Ringsend and Irishtown Community Centre (RICC) the market is set to launch over the August Bank Holiday weekend, with a celebratory event that includes live music, comedy and seating areas overlooking the scenic Dodder. @theoldhammondlanemarket WE’RE LOVING… Great tasting artisan soft cheeses such as Cavanbert from Corleggy and Boyne Valley Bán. Their soft, gooey texture and delicious flavours work brilliantly with leaves, beetroot and all kinds of condiments, making them the perfect addition to Summer Salads. Gorgeous on their own too… @corleggycheeses THE CHEF SUPPER CLUB Fancy enjoying Michelin star restaurant dining at home? Yearning to make the ultimate sourdough, fashion desserts, worthy of a French patisserie or learn more about beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages? Then the advent of The Chef Supper Club, a terrific new initiative from the imaginative culinary brains of Mark Wooderson and Damien Grey, is likely to be right up your epicurean alley. Featuring three key experiences; ‘Bring the Restaurant Home’, ‘From Scratch’ and ‘Potions’, the new venture promises to deliver a special Michelin-style experience while offering diners a unique opportunity to learn and interact with some of the most creative people currently working in the world of food and beverage. Marrying great quality ingredients with high-production virtual experiences, The Chef’s Supper Club uses a combination of live interaction and hands-on culinary action to recreate the atmospheric thrill of luxury restaurant dining in the comfort of your own home. Diners will be guided through the origin and inspirations behind some of their favourite dishes, with menus designed by some of the best chefs operating in Ireland and Europe today. The exciting cheffing line-up includes such culinary giants as Ciaran Sweeney, Grainne O’Keefe, Mike Tweedie and Killian Crowley. Each will participate in multi-episode experiences, including the creation of dishes ‘From Scratch’ through guided live tutorials, with wine pairings by accomplished, wine-roving, sommelier, Cathryn Bell. Each of these unique one-night-only dining experiences start from €120 for a five-course tasting menu for two; and include great food and wine alongside a rare opportunity to get to know something about the creator behind your meal in an intimate, yet cinematic, way. Roll it there, Chef! @thechefssupperclub 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 44