Head Chef, Enda McEvoy of Aniar Restaurant on Dominick Street was recently announced as Chef of the Year by the prestigious Bridgestone Guides.
Mr McEvoy heads up the kitchen in Aniar which is owned and operated by Jp McMahon and Drigin Gaffey of Cava Spanish Restaurant and Tapas Bar. The Bridgestone Guide Megabytes Awards 2011 judges described Enda McEvoy’s cooking at Aniar as a highlight of the year in restaurant terms “What McEvoy does is quite different: his cooking is avant garde, yet steeped in Irish tradition, and it's this combination that makes Aniar such a thrill”. Bridgestone also give credit to the service at Aniar, headed up by front of House Manager Alex McMahon stating “The service is as good as the cooking, and that is really saying something”.
Owner, JP commented, "I'm thrilled Enda has received this prominent accolade, he is truly deserving and an amazing chef. Enda's attention to detail is not surpassed in the West. Although his attitude towards food encapsulates the overall philosophy of all three of the restaurants that make up EATGalway, that of producing excellent food using seasonal and sustainable products, in Aniar this is taken one step further”. EATGalway is the newly launched umbrella brand which consists of Cava Spanish Restaurant, Eat at Massimo, and Aniar.
Drigín Gaffey commented: "Managing Aniar has been a very different experience to Cava or Eat at Massimo. Enda and Alex and the rest of the team in Aniar work tirelessly to make sure that the complexity of the food and preparation is made clear to each customer while explaining how the simplicity in paired flavours is a core aspect of all dishes.
“What Enda is doing can be radical at times and it takes a lot of explaining on our part to build up a sense of trust with our customers. We have enjoyed this challenge and feedback has been wonderful. This award adds to an exciting start of 2012, already this year Aniar was cited as offering the best starter of 2011 by Catherine Cleary in The Irish Times, and Lucinda O’Sullivan of the Sunday Independent described Cava and Aniar as the hottest restaurants this side of the Shannon.’
Jp, Drigín and Enda have been friends for many years and are very excited about sharing their philosophy about food and their passion about allowing quality ingredients to ‘speak for themselves’.
Aniar is situated in Dominick Street on Galway’s West End. Bookings can be made by phoning 091 535 947. See www.AniarRestaurant.ie for more details.
‘Eat Galway’ is a new brand behind some of Galway’s three favourite restaurants; Cava Spanish Restaurant and Tapas Bar; Aniar Restaurant; and recently opened gastro pub, Eat at Massimo. The Eat Galway brand has been launched to communicate the unifying philosophy that guides the three restaurants: good food, local suppliers and artisan produce.
