The Scottish poet Robert Burns was born in 1759 in Alloway, Ayrshire. Around the world tributes to him are held through the ritual of the Burns Supper, originally started a few years after his death by a group of his friends and acquaintances to honour his memory; the suppers are now celebrated annually on the date of his birth, January 25.

The first ever West Cork Burns Supper will take place in The West Cork Hotel on Wednesday 25 January.  This event will be open not only to Scottish ex-pats but to all local residents as a celebration of Scotland’s most famous bard and our wider, shared Celtic Culture.

For the Foodies there will be the very best of Cork Produce lovingly crafted into a Traditional Scottish Meal with the Haggis course itself being specially flown in from Scotland. The menu will use some of Sally Barns internationally-acclaimed produce from the Woodcock Smokery, while the Haggis will be from the famous McSween’s of Edinburgh, a company that has been making award-winning haggis for over 50 years.

Burns himself wrote a famous poem in praise of haggis, a poem often recited at Burns night suppers. Here’s a taster with the first verse:

To A Haggis

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great Chieftan o' the Puddin'-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy of a grace
As lang's my arm.

Musician Ronnie Costly will provide the entertainment for the evening and there will be recitals of Burns Poetry ending up with a session in the West Cork Hotel Bar to which all are welcome.

As well as drawing in some of the many Scottish ex-pat’s in the area it is hoped that intrigued West Cork residents and foodies will see this as a great night out to lift the January gloom and doom!


“You don’t have to be Scottish to attend and you don’t even have to wear a kilt,” said Neil Grant, General Manager of The West Cork Hotel. 

The event is being run in conjunction with West Cork Food, the local organisation of artisan food producers and providers, and is as much to do with showing the diversity of the unbelievably good West Cork Produce as it is a celebration of Scottish and Celtic culture.

“Ronnie Costly will treat everyone to some of the famous Burns songs and he will air a couple of songs he has written about Scotland too, so there will be something for the music lovers also,” Neil also explained.

Neil Grant and chef Martin Shanahan

Neil very much hopes this event will grow and become a yearly event. In partnership with West Cork Food it is planned to build a short break holiday for food enthusiasts around the Burns Supper in 2013.

Also at the West Cork Hotel this year will be another Celtic themed event on 12 September, The Celtic Cook Off.  There are already 3 top Celtic Chefs confirmed for the event, Shaun Hill of The Walnut Tree in Wales, Jack Stein, son of Rick Stein representing Cornwall, and Nick Nairn, BBC Celebrity Chef from Scotland.  The Celtic Cook Off will take place as a part of the A Taste of West Cork Food Festival which runs from 10 to 16 September 2012.

The West Cork Burns Supper:

Where:         The West Cork Hotel
When:        Meal 7 for 7:30 PM
Price:        €30 inclusive for a 5 course Menu, music and “A Wee Dram”

The whole event can best be summed up in the words of Rabbie Burns himself:

Selkirk Grace

Some have meat and cannot eat,
Some cannot eat that want it;
But we have meat, and we can eat,
Sae let the Lord be thankit

More on:

The West Cork Hotel see www.westcorkhotel.com
West Cork Food see www.westcorkfood.com
West Cork Guide see www.westcorkguide.com
Woodcock Smokery see www.woodcocksmokery.com
McSween's of Edinburgh see www.macsween.co.uk