The Gourmet Greenway, Mayo’s only food trail, celebrated its second birthday last Thursday night with a premier screening of Ireland’s first spaghetti western—Once Upon a Time in Mayo.
Once Upon A Time in Mayo is a five-minute spoof western in the style of cult classic Once Upon a Time in the West and the cast of five are local Gourmet Greenway members who star as American cowboys. They are: Ollie O’Regan (head chef, Mulranny Park Hotel ), Dermot Madigan (general manager, Mulranny Park Hotel ) , Andrew Pelham Burn (Carrowholly Cheese ), Sean Kelly (Kelly Butchers ), and James McDermott (Murrevagh Honey ).
The screening took place at a showcase dining event at Mulranny Park Hotel at which three new Gourmet Greenway members were announced, bringing the collective to 15. The new entries are: The Blue Bicycle Tearooms, Newport; Westport chocolatier Marlene’s Chocolate Haven; and furnace-based jams, relishes and sauces producer A Taste of Days Gone By. They join: Kelly’s Butchers, Keem Bay Fish Products, Murrevagh Honey, Carrowholly Cheese, Curran Blue Trout Farm, Croagh Patrick Seafoods, and The Greenway Farm, as well as hospitality providers Mulranny Park Hotel, An Port Mor, Newport House, Rua and Café Rua, and Newport’s Grainne Uaile.
Collectively, the Gourmet Greenway members provide employment to more than 145 people and it is estimated by its creators that the Mayo food trail has contributed more than €1.5 million to the local economy in increased tourism, local regeneration, and positive publicity since its launch two years ago.
Following the screening, a showcase seven-course dinner was held in the hotel’s Nephin Restaurant which highlighted the various Gourmet Greenway produces and producers.
The new-edition Gourmet Greenway guide featuring a map, information, and contact details for all 15 members is available from Mulranny Park Hotel, tourism offices, food producers, and select retail outlets. A pdf version is also available on www.mulrannyparkhotel.ie
