Back in his home town of Balla in mid-Mayo, after working in top restaurants abroad and in the west of Ireland, Chef Patrick McEllin has fulfilled his dream of establishing a destination restaurant that is also a home from home for local diners.
Oxtail Kitchen, which Patrick owns and runs with his partner Rebecca Miton, is a comfortable and stylishly informal room above The Shebeen pub. The couple met while they were working at Ballynahinch Castle and, while Patrick's experience is in the kitchen, Rebecca - who is from the Cognac region - is a wonderful host, with front of house skills learned at college in La Rochelle and then honed in European fine dining restaurants and leading hotels.
Cooking seasonally and supporting local producers on his ever changing menu comes naturally to Patrick, and what he describes as 'classical cooking with a modern twist' soon earned Oxtail a following over a wide area.
A few outsiders like sea bass and tiger prawns may creep onto the menu sometimes, but the overall experience is very local and named suppliers include their own garden (always a good sign), along with Dozio’s Cheese (an excellent swiss cheese made in Mayo), Balla Beef, free-range chicken from The Friendly Farmer in Athenry, Gary Harty’s Galway Oysters, the famous Clarke’s of Ballina smoked salmon and organic leaves from Joe Kelly's farm. They also have a keen forager in Chef Kevin and, while the results are by nature intensely seasonal, a speciality that is likely to be available is his elderflower cordial.
Starters usually include a soup of the day - and, apart from the well-made soup itself, it's well worth ordering for the accompanying homemade Guinness bread and superb local Cuinneog butter...Chicken and ham hock terrine is a great classic, served with prune & onion jam, charred pickled onions and house sourdough (and you'll find a similar recipe on their website) while other popular starters include Braised beef shin croquette, with parsley orzo, pickles and smoked aioli, and a piquant dish of Smoked ocean trout rillettes, with almond and radish, citrus crème fraiche, sour dough.
Not surprisingly, the 35 day dry-aged Shannon's rib-eye goes down a treat - the meat is excellent and it comes with all the traditional accompaniments including oxtail stuffed mushroom, parsley & parmesan crumbs, onion rings, hand cut chips, and pepper sauce ... Another regular is Duck breast and crispy duck leg with duck fat roast carrot, pistachio crumb, beetroot & grape puree, thyme jus, while fish dishes such as Salmon “en croute” with Swiss Chard, Parma ham, Joe’s potatoes and beurre blanc usually appear among the specials.
Wines include three reds and three whites available in three sizes ( glass, carafe and bottle) and non-drinkers will be pleased to find the delicious sparkling apple juice from Con Traas in Tipperary. One of the house reds is unusual - a Carmenere from Chile - and might be just the thing with that rib-eye steak.
Very tempting modern classic desserts too - an autumn treat of Poached Pear William with blackberry financier, croissant ice-cream and blackberry gel, for example, or perhaps Patrick's signture dessert, Pecan Pie (another recipe given on the website), to round off the evening with a glass of Warre's ruby port or Disznoko late harvest Tokaji, Hungary.
Although mainly an evening restaurant, Oxtail does a great Sunday lunch. The à la carte offers a range of Small Plates and Large Plates including a Ploughman’s plate (Pork pie, Bandon Vale Farmhouse cheddar, piccalilli, Heirloom tomatoes, pickled egg, homemade malt bread and organic leaves) and there's also a Family Roast Platter (with all the trimmings) offered at a very reasonable €45.00.
Offering fairly priced menus, interesting, seasonal food cooked by a classically trained chef and served with charm in a very pleasant setting, Oxtail is doing a great job - one to try next time you're in Mayo.
