Award-winning chef, restaurateur and Irish News columnist Niall McKenna will serve up his debut cookbook next month.
Irish News readers have been treated to a selection of Niall’s recipes every weekend for many years, but the book, called What’s It All About?, offers a carefully curated collection of dishes from his 20 years at the top of the trade.
“It’s a journey across 20 years of cooking in Belfast — at my first restaurant in the city, James Street South, its Bar and Grill sidekick, the Great British Menu TV show, Hadskis, Cast and Crew and now finally in my new place, Waterman,” he explains.
“The recipes in this book are customer favourites from that time - mine too.”
They include dulse and clam chowder, from the James St menu, chili crab linguine - a fixture in The Bar & Grill at James Street South and Waterman for the last 12 years - honey madeleines, as served in Waterman, and the moreish Guinness wheaten bread from James St and Waterman.
In all, there are 140 recipes in the book, which Niall says is “not just about making food you’ll enjoy eating”. “It’s about making time you’ll enjoy having,” he explains.
“It all starts with the great ingredients you can find within a few miles of your front door and as you flick through the pages, you’ll discover where I get mine.
“But remember, this isn’t just a cookbook. This is a trail, a trek, a dander through 20 years of Belfast hospitality; the people, places and craic.”
This isn’t just a cookbook. This is a trail, a trek, a dander through 20 years of Belfast hospitality; the people, places and craic
— Niall McKenna
As for the title, Niall says ‘What’s It All About?’ is “not a catchphrase, more an expression of my curiosity - a throwaway line that sparks up a bit of banter, reveals something interesting, funny or new and maybe even helps anyone within earshot to have a better day.”
The 300-page book is also a love letter to Belfast, he says. Indeed, it is dedicated to the city: “For Belfast, I couldn’t have done it without you.”
What’s it All About? by Niall McKenna will be released in October, priced £25. It will be available to purchase at James Street and Waterman, via the Waterman House website, and in selected local stockists including the Belfast Welcome Centre, Maven and JN Wines. The book is now available for pre-order.
