Enjoy it

NORTHERN IRELAND’S Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster recently announced that 2016 will be Northern Ireland’s Year of Food, citing world-class produce, talented chefs, restaurants, skilled cookery schools and a rich food heritage among the reasons why international visitors are flocking to this part of the Emerald Isle.

To see what the buzz is about, Travel Editor Susie Ellison spent a week on the road in Northern Ireland, talking to chefs, farmers, shopkeepers, innkeepers and artisan food producers; eating, drinking and touring the country she described to us as “an undiscovered gem.” Follow Susie’s footsteps in this issue and I’m sure you’ll be as intrigued as I was to learn about Northern Ireland’s gorgeous scenery and fabulous food.

Closer to home, Anita Stewart has the low-down on the vibrant dining scene in Halifax, where young chefs are cranking up their stoves and making the most of the fine Canadian ingredients available on their doorstep. If you’re heading east this summer, Anita’s tips will lead you to some very fine nosh indeed.

Meanwhile, Nathan Fong explores the remote Magdalen Islands, where charm and tradition go hand-in-hand, and where a growing population of artists and artisans are finding creativity, inspiration, and good, wholesome food.

Beer and bourbon are the libations of choice in this issue and we’re learning about some interesting ingredients — taro and jamón Iberico. We eat Mofongo in Miami, discover an awesome sandwich in Porto, go tuna fishing in Mexico, and explore the sweet side of New York.

Read it, cook it, eat it — and most of all — enjoy it!!