Tuesday, April 1, 2014

An Irish Lunch and Tea

  Last  Thursday my friend  and I finally were able to get together to have my birthday lunch (thank you LuAnn!). We went to our favorite Celtic place in town-Granny McCarthy's Tea Room which also houses my favorite shop-Donegal Square. This is where I bought my Scottish mug I shared in a post a few weeks ago.

 The first thing you see when you come up the stairs from the shop is the bakery/dessert case :)




                                                                  I KNOW!!!!
 These are THE best-very traditional in flavor and taste and not very sweet-my favorite kind of indulgence.




  But we did have lunch and tea before splitting a little something:
  We both had the turkey melt on brown bread and shared a sponge cake filled with strawberries and cream. The tea we shared was a pot of a berry/herbal blend called Casablanca and it was so good! (We both have to have decafe). You can buy the loose leaf teas they have on the menu. More on that next week:)

  Here's a collage of the tea area, the tea menu and the bar/pub:

  Then we meandered around the shop. So much to see!


  The bottom right photo is of the owner Neville Gardner with one of the two Glen of Imaal terriers he and his wife own and show. This is Fergus. Cormac was with his mum that day. Often when I visit the pups are somewhere either in the shop or out at a table with Neville on a nice day. I love that many of the shops in town are doggie friendly and that they put out bowls of water in the warmer weather.


   I was tempted to buy one of those pots I took a close up of-just because it makes me giggle. But I didn't. LuAnn loves the color pink and she adored the pink teapot with the piggies on it. But she didn't buy it. We both did however buy something else which I will share next time with Bleubeard and Elizabeth and friends for T Stands For Tuesday! I think you got your fill of things for this week:)


       " It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like 'what about lunch?' "     Winnie the Pooh
                        

23 comments:

  1. I was instantly impressed with the Celtic crosses during your tour, but of course, the pots were what had me rolling on the floors in tears. And since it's early morning, I'm ready for some of those baked delights. What a fun day the two of you must have had. I would have been mesmerized by all that tea in jars just waiting to be taken home.

    Thanks for taking us on your belated birthday lunch and T today. What fun to follow you around the gift shop area, too.

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  2. Looks like the perfect place for lunch and TEA. What a lot of things to choose from in the shop. I will be watching to see what you bought.

    Darla

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  3. What a wonderful lunch, gift shop, and DESSERT case! So many delicious choices of tea, too! Looks like you had a great time. Happy T Day!

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  4. that food looks sooo good! what a treat!

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  5. oh my, what a fun lunch date! Bakery cases are my downfall, so good thing I don't live near you! Looks like an amazing place and love your photos...the pot made me smile too! I adore Celtic crosses...so much to enjoy...thanks for sharing tea with us. Happy T Day + April Fools Day! ♣

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  6. umm what about lunch indeed :)
    You had me at scones!
    that is a very fine array of treats and what a great shop...
    Lucky you to have it close by and to get to enjoy a special lunch with your friend!
    I find myself doing a lot more looking than buying these days and I used to be such a good shopper...guess it's a case of too much 'stuff' I am feeling lately
    Happy T Day to you dear Linda
    oxo

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  7. Lovely treats for the eyes and stomach!!
    Happy Tuesday!

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  8. I feel I should have been there with you as I would have felt right at home among all those Celtic goodies. Great you and LuAnn managed to have such a gorgeous and yummy outing.

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  9. Love looking at all these photos. Happy Happy Birthday!

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  10. Happy Birthday and what a fun time and great photos ~ Colorful! ~ xoxo

    artmusedog and carol

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  11. What a wonderful time you had with your friend Linda! Those treats look so yummy. And yes, the quote on the pot is indeed so funny.
    Have a great week.
    Susan

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  12. You go to such interesting places...but how you got past the dessert case is beyond me.

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  13. Oh gosh....the food looks fabulous.... sounds like a perfect trip out :)

    Karen x

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  14. Wow the food looks very tasty and the shop looks like I could spend lots in there :)
    Vic x

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  15. I am so glad you had such a great birthday lunch! Yay! What a wonderful place to go to, especially for you! The food looks wonderful! Oh my! I would have trouble deciding. May this next year be full of opportunities for JOY.
    Hugs,
    Terri

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  16. Hello and Happy T Day! I'm so glad you got to go out and celebrate. What a cool place to shop and eat at. The food looked yummy to me! I love the Celtic crosses, so pretty! Glad you had fun.
    Thank you for the nice comment on my post. Like you I did enjoy being with my friend and hope we don't let such a long time pass between visits.
    Have a great week!

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  17. Looks like you and LuAnn had a glorious day, Linda! What a cute shop and all of those sweets just make me drool!

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  18. Happy T-Day!
    Oh Wow oh Wow ... looked like such a great place ... and all those dessert! I'll take one of each type of scone. Sounded like you had a great day.

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  19. Happy Birthday dear Lina although I'm a bit late! I hope your special day was full of joy and that you got to enjoy some of that absolutely beautifully yummy food.
    I hope the coming year will be full of much inspiration and wonderful new creativity for you.
    Sending belated birthday hugs,
    Suzy

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  20. I love the photos :) your lunch looks delicious! And Celtic crosses are beautiful (says in a wistful voice) Oh how I wish I had a store like that to mosey around --lunch with a friend is the best :)

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  21. Wow, sounds like you had a wonderful birthday, Linda! Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful day!

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  22. Sounds a lovely place to visit and enjoy your birthday. I love the enamel chamber pots in your montage. They reminded me of an antiques TV programme the other day they showed one which had a message inside "Keep me clean and use me well, what I see I'll never tell!".

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  23. Happy Belated Birthday Linda...so sorry I missed it! Love this little lunch you had...sweet goodies and very cute store! Just like me and my bestie we often have a lunch exactly like this! I love it!

    Hugs Giggles

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Thank you so much for your comments; it's a pleasure to connect with you!