Home Ireland My Favorite Irish Food Experiences

My Favorite Irish Food Experiences

by Juana Escobedo Bermudez
Making Irish soda bread | AIFS Study Abroad

Ireland has so much history, such lively people, and beautiful scenery — but the thing I miss the most every day since returning home from my summer abroad is Irish food.

Here are a few of my favorite experiences with Irish food during my summer in Maynooth:

Irish Breakfast

Irish Breakfast in Maynooth, Ireland | AIFS Study Abroad

My program at Maynooth University had free breakfast everyday Monday through Friday at 8 AM. I never skipped out on it because I could not resist the meal. It was a traditional Irish Breakfast, which would become one of my favorite meals to have ever met my taste buds.

This Irish breakfast included hash browns that were to die for, beans, eggs, soda bread, brown sauce, and orange juice. Later on, mushrooms were also added to the menu, a personal favorite of mine. I also found a small little café that served the best Irish breakfast ever located in Dublin! I would go back to Ireland for the breakfast in a heartbeat.

Irish Soda Bread

I was really excited that I was able to experience traditional Irish food while studying abroad in Maynooth because I was able to get a sense of the way locals made food and, in turn, got a sense of the Irish people. I was able to make traditional Irish soda bread at an excursion to Causey Farms. It was fantastic because I was able to bring an Irish recipe back home with me to the United States that could make when I missed Ireland. The Irish bread reminded me of how warm and welcoming the Irish people are to newcomers like myself.

Irish Pastries, Coffee, and Tea

Coffee and dessert in Maynooth, Ireland | AIFS Study Abroad

One of my other favorite delicacies from Ireland were definitely the pastries and coffees. I am not a big coffee drinker, but I relied on it when I would get tired from traveling abroad. I was never disappointed with my mocha or my chai latte no matter where I got the coffee from. I also learned more about teas while I was abroad, which is a more popular drink than I had imagined. I’m thrilled I was able to bring some tea varieties from Europe home with me — it makes me feel as if I am still abroad.

I also found myself very enamored with the pastries that I would find everywhere. They were my favorite to go-to foods because they were freshly made everywhere I went! While abroad, I was able to taste pastries from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. 

I am thankful I was able to submerse myself in the culture of Ireland, especially Irish food. These experiences remind me that the people who make it help keep the culture alive. I hope to make Irish food for years to come in order to carry on the traditions of this beautiful culture, no matter where I go.

Irish Food in Maynooth, Ireland | AIFS Study Abroad

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