An Siopa Nollaig and the French Quarter Café in Portarlington

This post is a bit of a mix of things, I wanted to update a little on my candles and I absolutely have to recommend the lovely French Quarter Cafe in Portarlington, so I'll tell you a little bit more about that further down.

First of all, as I mentioned in my previous post A Crafter's Guide to Selling at Christmas, this is a crazy busy season for anyone who makes their products - it's a busy season for everyone, but making products by hand is time consuming and rushing to get stock done and have everything organised can be a bit fraught!

I'm feeling reasonably on schedule and this Saturday I dropped stock off at An Siopa Nollaig in Portarlington. This is a pop up shop run by the lovely KellyAnne - she and her friend Kimberly ran it last year, also, in the run up to Christmas, and I was very happy to be asked to give some stock for the shop again this year.

Here's a little glimpse of some products now in An Siopa Nollaig:

Strudel & Spice Soy Jar Candle by Purity Belle Candles
Strudel & Spice Luxury Jar €18.00

Spiced Nutmeg Soy Tin Candle by Purity Belle Candles
Spiced Nutmeg Soy Tin €12.00

I was also due to head to the Tea Rooms at Duckett's Grove for 2 p.m so we had a little bit of time to spare and Mark and I decided to get some lunch at The French Quarter Café. We had been before so knew that it was really nice and we weren't disappointed!
Here's the menu, a nice selection of lunch items:


French Quarter Cafe Portarlington Menu


I ordered the warm Chicken & Bacon Salad:

Chicken & Bacon Salad at the French Quarter Cafe Portarlington


It was delicious, with crispy bacon and lots of crunchy veg and leaves, so good.

Mark got a vegetarian Burrito and it looked really substantial and full of vegetables, I kind of wished I had ordered the same:)

French Quarter Cafe Portarlington Vegetarian Burrito

We got some coffees too and water and the coffee arrived before food which was great as I needed a caffeine fix fairly urgently :)

Cappuccino at the French Quarter Café in Portarlington


The decor is simple and tasteful and very much to my liking.

Dresser and Decor in the French Quarter Cafe Portarlington

Tables and Chairs in the French Quarter Cafe Portarlington

Flower in a vase in the French Quarter Cafe in Portarlington

French Quarter Cafe Portarlington Wooden engraved holder


Best of all though, is the wonderful presence of the owners, Eamon and Richard. They really couldn't be nicer or more welcoming and this is what I feel local business encapsulates -  that genuine warmth and personal touch is what it's all about for me.
We had a great chat with Eamon, he is a big supporter of local business and very much has the same ethos I have about developing local economies and keeping our towns alive.

All was going swimmingly and we said our goodbyes - however something unforseen happened. I inadvertently stole Eamon's phone and we ended up having to drive back with it!  :) 
Luckily we weren't gone too far and Eamon and Richard couldn't have been more charming about my gaffe.  I'll be very careful to leave with just one phone next time!

We headed off to Duckett's Grove then, Madeleine of the Tea Rooms had kindly offered to display some of my products and she was in the full throes of organising things for Afternoon Tea (which was due to start the next day) when we arrived.  She still made time to offer us a delicious cup of coffee and we had a lovely talk. Madeleine is one of the many people who were supportive and sent good wishes when I was feeling truly ill and she's such a lovely person and a whirlwind of energy. 

I'm planning to write a full blog post on the fab offerings of the Tea Rooms at Duckett's Grove soon so keep an eye out :)

That's all for now but I'm hoping to keep you updated on Candles and lots more over the next while,

Cliona





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9 Comments
  • Unknown
    Unknown 10 November 2015 at 17:46

    This looks super cute! I could use some cute coffee right about now!

  • Unknown
    Unknown 10 November 2015 at 19:16

    That chicken and bacon salad looks divine! Love your candles too. Nice packaging.

  • Ana
    Ana 11 November 2015 at 05:47

    I love the candles. It looks awesome.

  • Joanna Victoria -x
    Joanna Victoria -x 11 November 2015 at 11:02

    The candle looks fab I am obsessed with candles.
    I love your photos of the food the tea room looks like a lovely place to go.

  • analyn razon
    analyn razon 11 November 2015 at 12:03

    I can't help but to drool over those food. It looks so delicious. Glad you had a great time and the place seems inviting.

  • Angela Milnes
    Angela Milnes 11 November 2015 at 22:04

    Hi there, the candle sounds lunch. I love seeing all those tasty looking meals too! thanks for sharing! Angela

  • Autumn @ Autumn All Along
    Autumn @ Autumn All Along 12 November 2015 at 02:19

    I worked in a candle factory one summer and it was a hard job!! I always loved how I smelled when I came home and I imagine these smell amazing!!

  • Ana De-Jesus
    Ana De-Jesus 12 November 2015 at 09:46

    The decor is beautiful and I love the look of the vegetarian burrito. What was in it?

  • Unknown
    Unknown 12 November 2015 at 21:30

    The cafe looks and sounds lovely. Both your meals look amazing, will look forward to your next post

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