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The Wild Onion

The Wild Onion is an American style bakeshop and café on High Street, near the Milk Market. If you were to judge restaurants on the queue outside them then the Wild Onion would win every time. My mom and I had booked in advance so we were seated straight away, but there were a number of people waiting outside the door (in the lashing rain) for a space to open up. A waiter brought us over menus, a jug of water and two glasses almost immediately. I ordered some coffee and again this came to our table very quickly. It comes in a jug so you get an automatic top up and is possibly the best coffee in Limerick City!! You can see the kitchen from the restaurant floor so you really get the feel of a busy American diner, the atmosphere is like no-where else in the city that I’ve been.

I ordered the Tex-Mex chicken with salsa and swapped the sides (you have a choice of two of the following; hash browns, pasta salad or coleslaw) for a large salad, my Mom had the same. We were both very pleased with the meal, the chicken was really spicy and the salsa really complimented it. The salad dressing came on the side, which is a nice touch because not everyone is as big a fan of salad dressing as I am. My mom was even impressed and it is very difficult to impress her!!!!!

Notes: the portions are very very big, that’s why I swapped the sides for salad, if you are calorie counting this is something you should consider. Also, this is an American style restaurant run by an American couple, if you are looking for “irishized” American food ( like the “Texas Steak Out” et al) then this is not the place for you!!!!!!!

Mini disclaimer: I included a link to the website above, but I've been advised that the website hasn't been updated recently and the menu might vary ever so slightly from what you see on the website.

Holiday Tip

Everyone has read multiple scare stories about flying - fecal matter in the water you are served, blood clots developing in the legs, and screaming babies in the next seat. Combine this with the discomfort of airline seats, and the general horror of airline food, and anyone would be forgiven for wanting to stay at home.

It's easy to improve the situation though. My first step is always to ensure you have a fairly large bottle of water with you. I think 1 litre for European flights and at least 2 litres if you are flying to the US is essential. For the rest of the problems associated with flying, there are a few strategies that prove very effective. Take your own sandwich. I know it's a pain, but better eat something you bought at the airport than starve (with budget airlines) or have to eat what tastes like re-constituted cardboard. An mp3 player or earplugs will sort out the screaming child if you can't move seat.

As regards blood clots, take half an asprin before take-off and this should be effective when combined with some simple exercises. Get up and walk up and down the cabin at least once per hour (if you're drinking all that water, you'll have to anyway). When you think of it, rotate your feet from the ankles - first clockwise five times, then anti-clockwise. Pressure socks (though somewhat inelegant) are also very effective.

I'd also take a pashmina or comfortable sweater on any overnight or long flight, and an inflatable pillow to combat neck pain. Apart from that, all you can do is stock up with a good book and several trashy magazines.

Contributed by Margaret

Pia Bags....

My Mom gave me a voucher last Christmas, which entitled me to a custom made bag by Pia Thornton who runs Pia Bags. You can see some of her designs on the website or you can visit Perfect Pairs shoe shop in Listowel which stocks some of her bags. The pictures on the website don’t do the bags justice at all. They are bigger than you’d think and generally far more impressive in real life. Pia gives you the option of creating your own bag or choosing an existing design. Either way, once you pick the one you want, she makes it from scratch for you. If you chose to design your own, Pia will help you put the design together. I picked one from the website called “Butterfly Delight”, Pia said it will take about 3 weeks and she’ll post it out to me. As soon as I get it I’ll post a picture!!! But for the time being the picture from the website is above.

Pia's number is 087-6128662 and you can email her at piathornton77@yahoo.co.uk

Plush Beauty

I first tried Plush on the recommendation of a friend late last year, I’ve been to both the Dooradoyle and the Castletroy branches and I’ve found both of them excellent. There are loads of treatments to choose from, both “essential” and pampering. I haven’t tried that many of the pampering treatments but I did have a pedicure in the Dooradoyle branch, more about that later. First the boring stuff. Waxing, some say painful others say mild discomfort, either way; anything the therapist can do to make it easier on you is an advantage. At Plush they use a special type of wax on sensitive areas like, eyebrows, upper lip and bikini line. It’s a hard (hot) wax, which does not require a strip, it hardens and the therapist can just pull off the wax. The brochure says that it can reduce discomfort by up to 70%, I can’t confirm that it’s 70% but it definitely reduces it. A word of warning though, in Castletroy they use hard wax automatically on sensitive areas but in Dooradoyle you need to specify if you want hard wax.

Now, for something more enjoyable. I recently decided to treat myself to a Pedicure, this was the first time I’d had a professional pedicure so I was really looking forward to it. They sit you down in big leather massage chairs and you pop your feet into a mini Jacuzzi. They exfoliate the skin on your feet and legs (as far as your knees) as you keep yourself occupied with the magazines that have been placed beside you. I resisted the urge to have a coffee when it was offered. After they exfoliate your skin they get to work on your toenails, pushing back your cuticles and applying more lotions and potions. (To be honest I have no idea what half of them were for and I was too relaxed to ask). The therapist then removed the hard skin on my feet. Before she expertly applied my French polish I received a fabulous foot and leg massage. I was nearly asleep by the time the polish was applied. I was left to relax on the chair and read the magazines as the nail polish dried. All in all it was a lovely treatment and I felt fantastic afterwards.

You can find them at Castletroy Shopping Centre, Limerick (061-339590) or Racefield Centre, Dooradoyle, Limerick (061-424049).