Newstalk’s Susan Keogh

My life in food

“I try not to eat too much bread, but it’s my one true love”

What was your favourite childhood meal?

My Nanny Lil’s pancakes on Pancake Tuesday. I don’t know what her secret ingredient was, but no pancakes have ever lived up to them.

What is the meal you will always remember?

Toast, marmalade and tea after I gave birth to my daughter in Holles Street. Believe the hype.

What was your defining food experience?

I still remember tasting my first Chinese takeaway from Kingsland Chinese in Kildare town in the late 1980s — 30 years on, and it’s still as good. Sometimes, you can’t beat a good takeaway.

What’s the first dish you ever cooked?

I worked in a restaurant from the time I was 16 and the chef there taught me how to make chicken and broccoli bake. And I still make it the same way.

How important is food to you?

Very. Nothing beats sitting down to a nice meal with family or friends. I’d hate to be so concerned with what I eat that I couldn’t enjoy that.

What is your comfort food?

Bread. I try not to eat too much of it, but it’s my one true love.

What is your hangover cure?

All of the beverages. Tea, orange juice, sparkling water and Diet Coke. You cannot get enough fluids on those days.

What’s your sweet treat?

Creme brulee with shortbread on the side.

What do you refuse to eat?

Steak tartare. Not in a million years.

What do you drink?

I actually haven’t had alcohol since March, when I started presenting

Newstalk Breakfast on Saturday and Sunday mornings. It feels weird to have a glass of wine on a Monday. But you can’t beat a chilled glass of rosé.

If you could only eat three things for the rest of your life, what would they be?

Prawns; chips; and cheese.

You can go anywhere and have anything to eat with any one person. Where, what and who?

Fishy Fishy in Kinsale, Co Cork, on a summer’s day with my husband, Stephen, and a big bowl of mussels. And bread.

What’s always in your kitchen?

Pasta, peppers and garlic.

What’s your favourite restaurant in Ireland?

Hartes of Kildare in Kildare town.

It’s laid-back, and family friendly, with delicious locally sourced food.

And abroad?

Los Bandidos in Puerto Banus in Spain. My mother-in-law lived in Marbella, so we’ve spent a lot of time there over the years. Some of my fondest memories are of being there. Worst meal ever? I once got food poisoning from an omelette. I was sick for days and didn’t eat eggs for about a year.

Even thinking about it now makes me want to hurl. Susan Keogh is the presenter of ‘Newstalk Breakfast’ on Saturdays and Sundays, from 8am to 9am In conversation with Chloe Brennan