Lemon Tree Café (The)

Seaside Café, Restaurant & Catering Company

Fancy sitting outside a seaside café and hearing the gulls wheel overhead. Then, after you’ve eaten a delicious plate of home made food produced from local ingredients, you might want to take a short stroll down the lane, and over to the harbour, where a small fleet of colourful fishing boats is moored at the quay.  If that sounds like bliss too good to be true – we can tell you now that such a place really does exist.

That place is The Lemon Tree Café, run by chef Joan Power. Her cooking skills were gained as a child, at the elbow of her mum, also a chef, when she cooked for the bustling small hotel in the village, which was Joan’s family home. The hotel is now no longer in the family, but Joan’s skills are alive and well and producing great results in this, her first venture into the restaurant business. The café was born in summer 2008, and in its opening two seasons, it has wowed locals and tourists alike.

Surroundings here are relaxed and casual. Outside, there’s a convenient off road parking area, leading down steps to tables and chairs under a cheerful yellow striped awning, and also on the decked area out front. This is the place to sit and hear those gulls singing their happy songs. Inside, a pleasant entry space has service counters packed with salads on one side, desserts and pastries on the other, and take away cabinets which provide Joan’s homemade frozen or chilled ready meals for the time-pushed, or self catering holidaymakers who can’t be bothered cooking. This leads to the open plan café area, where chunky beech wood tables and chairs and modern artwork on the natural coloured walls lend a contemporary air. Lemon Tree is very child friendly, so there’s always a lively buzz in the daytime with families dining together at lunch. When we visited, there was a group party for a new teenager, who was celebrating with family and friends. Smallies have their own little gallery up a couple of steps from the café floor. Here, comfy banquette seating and tables at low level allow them to sit and read, play, chat to one another and do some colouring when they get bored with sitting at the table.  

Like the setting, food is also casual, and welcome in its homeliness. Breakfast here is a treat with Fresh Fruit Scones, or Brown Bread served with Lemon Tree Jam, Porridge with honey and fresh cream, and Lemon Tree Granola or Fresh Fruit Compote with natural yogurt for light eaters. You can also enjoy Lemon Tree’s Honey and Mustard Baked Ham or that delicious Smoked Salmon with free-range eggs, and follow with Pancakes with fruit and yogurt or French toasts with Bananas and Cinnamon Cream. Freshly squeezed orange juice and Mixed Berry Smoothies make healthy drinks, or there’s s a selection of teas and coffees.

Joan cooks in the small kitchen behind the serving counters, producing an array of home cooked meats, quiches, and salads, as well as daily hot lunch specials, all written on the blackboard. We indulged in the warm Lentil loaf, studded with nuts and packed with flavour, served with a selection of salads Waldorf, sweetcorn and rice, fresh green beans, tomatoes and olives, local leaves, and Lemon Tree Chutney and Brown Bread. If you want a sandwich, choose from fillings like the home cooked ham, or roast stuffed chicken, fresh Crab and Mayo, Poached Salmon or Smoked Salmon, served on home made brown soda, doorstep white or crisp baguette. We noticed the party guests seemed well pleased tucking into a selection of the specials, including Pan fried Fresh Hake, Moussaka, Steak and Kidney Pie, all accompanied with big help yourself bowls of roasted veggies, salad, and fluffy mashed potatoes. Afterwards, the birthday group and the rest of us trooped off to check out the dessert cabinet, with no less than nine puds on offer. It was a toss up between the Triple Chocolate Cake, Lemon Tart, and Seasonal Fruit Pavlova, but the Pavlova won out for us.

On Friday and Saturday evening, the café turns into a grown up restaurant, with the help of subdued lighting and candles on tables. Waitress service takes over for a more formal menu, which includes a good selection of firsts with a seasonal theme. There’s always a soup, which could be hearty Mushroom or French Onion depending on time of year. We were there in the height of beetroot season, and this humble veg was used in a salad with Knockdrinna Goats Cheese and Hazlenut dressing. Mains include fresh fish of the evening, according to availability. Naturally it’s as fresh as fresh could be, since the harbour of Dunmore East is walking distance away. Fresh Lobster caught by a local fisherman was on the menu too, cooked au gratin with herbs. Meat eaters will love the Noisette of Coolum Lamb with Devilled Lamb’s Kidneys on Toast.  The lambs are reared by Joan’s husband, a farmer who also raises the flock on the family farm nearby. Irish Rump Steak is also a good choice, or Silver Hill Duckling with Sage Stuffing, Apple Sauce and Game Chips. Puddings are posher too – Velvet Chocolate Torte with Wexford Strawberries, or Roasted Pineapple with Black Sesame Ice Cream are just two selections. And for cheese lovers, Knockdrinna Goats Cheese comes with Lemon Tree chutney and Biscuits, small but perfectly formed wine selection highlights France, Italy, Spain and Chile in both red and white.

Click here to see a Sample Evening Menu >>>

News:

As members of Good Food Ireland the Lemon Tree Café are passionate about their commitment to using local Irish Food Producers and they are proud to tell you where their produce comes from and are also proud to be associated with the 

Bord Bia Just Ask! Campaign

Click here to see their Breakfast Menu >>>

Click here to see their Evening Menu >>>

Click here to see their Just Ask! Food Producers List >>>

Contact Details

To Contact a Member Directly, please click on the email or website below

Dunmore East
Co Waterford
+353 (0)51 383164
Email: lemontreecatering@eircom.net
Web: www.lemontreecatering.ie

 

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