Cillian Murphy and Mary Redmond, who also own the well known Kilkee seafood restaurant Murphy Blacks, opened their delightful daytime café here in the former Buttermarket Gallery in 2011.
Situated just off the Square, it’s a lovely space with an old-meets-new atmosphere which is charming and relaxing – and suits the down-to-earth good home cooking very well.
The building is very old, quite low-ceilinged and atmospheric, with beams and quirky additions (such as a pair of old garage doors used as room dividers) giving it character. But the café itself is modern, with simple wooden tables and chairs in the main seating area and a section at the window end - beyond the garage doors, there are low tables and sofas making a comfy spot for a quiet chat or an informal business meeting.
The display counter is laden with tempting goodies including home baked loaves to take home, quiches and fresh salads – and gorgeous meringues, piled up on a stand to remind you not to forget to have some dessert before you leave...
All well worth a good look, but there is a nice little menu with table service too. Beginning with breakfast (served to 11.30 am) you can have treats like Kelly’s sausages, bacon and pudding with tomato and free range eggs, and the range then changes for lunch and the afternoon.
The offering is carefully thought out to include quite substantial dishes, such as a homemade quiche or pie of the day with two salads (well under €10), or something small and inexpensive, such as soup of the day with the house brown bread, or maybe homemade chicken liver paté with fig and onion relish.
A range of baps – local St Tola goats cheese, perhaps, with roast red pepper, sundried tomato and basil pesto - available with or without side salads, is good value, and there’s a range of gourmet sandwiches too, all with homemade breads.
Baking is a special strength and this would be a lovely place to drop in for just for a cup of tea, coffee or hot chocolate and a fruit scone with jam and cream, or a slice of one of their lovely cakes (chocolate tray bakes, for example, or those irresistible meringues).
The staff are lovely and full of local info – all round, it's just what any visitor to these parts will be very glad to find.
: Seats 36 (outdoors, 12). Monday - Saturday 9.30am-5pm. Children welcome (high chair). Closed Sun. No credit cards.
