21 March 2022
A short drive from the city to the suburban countryside town of Celbridge, Co. Kildare lies the Cliff at Lyons, with its long open driveway and manicured gardens set on 22 acres. A boutique hotel and country retreat with a bonus of Aimsir a two-star Michelin restaurant nestled into a food garden, (Aimsir meaning weather in Irish, covering all seasons). This exquisite restaurant which achieved two Michelin starts in less than five months of opening in 2019, is the brainchild of Jordan Bailey, the head chef and his wife Majken, the general manager.
Jordan guided us around the restaurant and gardens with his shy demeaner. There were plenty of questions asked throughout which I believe eased him into conversation. Con the gardener was at hand for more questions throughout the duration delivering his expertise when asked. The restaurant was a building of beauty with simple clean lines throughout and every detail thought out precisely even down to the new island in the centre of the reception/ bar area. The entrance into the main dining room is lined with preserves and ferments along with special dry aging units. There was fish in one and a seven-year-old beef quarter hanging delectably on a hook for the last 80 days having already being aged 30 days prior to the restaurant receiving it. Jordan hopes to leave it there for a year. Imagine the taste, my mouth is salivating at the very thought. There were deer hearts hanging like socks on a clothesline which are grated and used in some of the tasting dishes. Moving along into the main dining room were six round tables with navy coverings and cosy chairs surrounding. The kitchen is open plan and polished within an inch of its life, sparkling, just the way I like it and the way any kitchen should be. There were no extraordinary pieces of equipment and as Jordan said what we saw was what there was. An island pass in the dining room allows him and his sous chef to plate up the dishes for the guests. This area is also used for testing new dishes for the menu. Another service pass for cutlery, crockery and other hidden treasures was cleverly designed by Majken.
Oh my word! the cutlery and the thought that went into the design of each piece was incredible. The steak knife handles were made from bog oak while other spoons had Newbridge silverware and handles made from seaweed. They looked like bone, nobody guessed it was seaweed. Then there was the ladle host spoon resting on its own unique pieces of timber each numbered to match its partner. The list goes on, we were blown away by the attention to detail and the research involved in each. I could talk forever about the beautiful crockery and cutlery. When asked where he gets his inspiration for his dishes, surprisingly, he hesitated and then said he didn’t read recipe books. He took time to deliberate further, we waited for a moment and eventually I asked him was it through nature, so he agreed, this along with the garden and whilst driving.
We were escorted out to the sustainable gardens and given a tour. The pigs were high on the list of what to see. I’m not sure if it was Jordan’s love for them or it meant our tour was over, let us hope it was the first. There was lots of work going on in the garden but so much achieved. This project was started during COVID- 19 lockdown whilst the restaurant was closed. Beds were made, tunnels erected, trees planted and the food garden is growing rapidly.
The restaurant will use 80% of the foods from the garden and the rest will be bought from suppliers that a rapport has been built with over time. I thought this was a great thing to do. It also gives the option of buying some foods that are best bought from others that do them better than themselves. As much as possible everything served in Aimsir is grown on the island. The motto for the restaurant is ‘Celebrating what can be grown and harvested, fished and foraged on the island of Ireland’.
This was a real treat having a look around the restaurant of such calibre and its exquisite food gardens (current and in planning) along with spending time with its creators. Thank you Jordan.
It was a very different experience to the one in Aniar the week before. Two very different chefs both with a great vision for Irish food, inspiring the next generation and the future of food and convincing me that botanical cuisine is where it is at!
My next visit to Aimsir must be
to sample the menu!
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