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www.celtic-connection.com
MAY 2009
The Three Lions: Authentic British Food and Atmosphere
By CATHOLINE BUTLER VANCOUVER - Each month after distribution of The Celtic Connection is complete, Colleen and myself will generally drop in to one of our local Celtic establishments for some lunch and refreshment.
After the April issue we dropped in to visit the new Three Lions Cafe in Vancouver which is located on East Broadway and Ontario Street. The U.K. type of cafe has only been open for the past five months and has already started to attract many expats.
The name The Three Lions represents the three lions for the English national team and the three owners, Simon Conway and brothers Ryan and Rubin McKeown who were all born in England.
The cafe is U.K. sports orientated with one large and a smaller screen televison over the bar area for watching all the football (soccer), English Premier League, Celtic, Gaelic Games and of course hockey games.
The games can be watched from wherever you are seated in the room and the decor features photographs of famous UK football games and players.
The Three Lions is a cosy cafe with seating for 55. It features wooden floors, tables, and chairs with some padded wall benches on the sides of the room.
There is a small well stocked bar with Guinness and Kilkenny on tap, English bottled, European and local beers, and Strongbow Cider. Just off to one side of the cafe is a small patio which can seat 20 patrons with a fantastic view of downtown Vancouver and the North Shore mountains. The patio also receives all the afternoon sun.
Owner Simon Conway has been a chef for the past 17 years and he designed the menu for The Three Lions. "I really missed the back home authentic food and atmosphere that you get in the U.K. pubs," he said, "the U.K. pubs are like community centres, where people gather in a friendly and social atmosphere. Ninety percent of the food that we serve in the cafe is made-in-house, unmedicated and of organic produce."
The menu consists of some of the really authentic type of hearty mouth watering British food you would expect if you dropped into a pub in London. Lunch hours are from 12 Noon to 3 PM with finger food available from 3 PM until 11:30 PM, dinner is served from 6 PM until 11:30 PM.
For lunch, I ordered the bangers and mash which had two Cumberland sausages in an onion gravy with buttermilk mashed potatoes, all nestled on a pie crust of Yorkshire pudding.. .every bite was heavenly.
Colleen ordered the pesto chicken sandwich of the day, which she thoroughly enjoyed. I couldn't resist the tempting rhubarb and strawberry dessert, which is an ample serving in a breakfast size bowl... it's almost a meal in itself.
While visiting The Three Lions Cafe, I noticed that they served a traditional English breakfast every Saturday and Sunday morning. Since my husband is Irish and enjoys authentic British cuisine, we went back on Saturday morning for the breakfast.
So often authentic British or Irish
TWO OWNERS of the Three Lions Cafe (L-R) Simon Conway and Ryan McKeown, holding a delicious British breakfast. Missing from the photo is the third Lion, Rubin McKeown.
EXTERIOR of the Three Lions Cafe on the corner of East Broadway and Ontario Street in Vancouver.
breakfasts are advertised and when you try them the results are disappointing but at The Three Lions, it's the real deal!
Cumberland sausage, Ayrshire bacon, beans, grilled tomato, mushrooms, black pudding, home fries and toast...just like in the old country. There is no need for lunch after you've eaten this hearty breakfast, and the beauty of it all.. .it
wasn't dripping in fat.
If you have a longing for the taste of some really authentic U.K. meals and atmosphere, then you won't be disappointed at The Three Lions, where the staff are welcoming and friendly.
The Tree Lions are located at 1-1 East Broadway (at Ontario) in Vancouver. For information, call (604) 569-2233.
GAA sparks dispute in Kerry
The GAA, so often at the forefront in generating community spirit, has managed to be a hugely divisive force in the Co. Kerry village of Castlemaine.
For the past 30 years the local soccer club played on what they considered a community ground, but one morning in recent weeks the people of the village awoke to find that part of the playing surface had been ploughed up overnight.
The ploughing was initiated by the GAA, which claims it owns the ground and has planning permission to develop the 5.5-acre site. Once developed into a proper Gaelic football ground GAA rules come into force, preventing its use for soccer or rugby.
Many in the locality dispute the GAAs ownership claim. They say that the former owners, the Spring-Walker family, left it to the community in 1936 and that the only reason the GAA is claiming it is that the organisation's members dominated the board of trustees.
EDDIE EMERMAN (far left) owner of The Blarney Stone with members of Killarney: Ditz, John Lynch, Angus, Marie, Steve, Terry, Mike and John.
A Double Anniversary in Historic Gastown
By CATHOLINE BUTLER
VANCOUVER - A double anniversary celebration will take place at The Blarney Stone in historic Gastown on May 17 over the Victoria Day long week-end.
The Blarney Stone will be celebrating their 37th anniversary while the fabulous Killarney Showband will be celebrating their 25th anniversary.
The Blarney Stone was the first Irish pub in Vancouver and while Irish pubs have come and gone, the Blarney Stone just keeps packing them in with line-ups every week-end.
So many people have told me that they met their future husband or wife at The Blarney Stone, then their children joined the line-up at the door, and now their grandchildren. This grand old building is an icon in the Gastown area.
Owner Eddie Emerman has worked very hard to preserve and restore the original beautiful dark wood beams, tables, chairs and original old photos on the wall.
If you haven't been to The Blarney Stone for some years, now is your opportunity to take a walk down memory lane and you will be surprised to see that not much has changed.
One of the reasons for the success
and the big draw that keeps generations coming back to The Blarney Stone, year after year, can only be attributed to the fabulous Killarney showband.
They will be celebrating their 25* anniversary as the longest playing house band in the world - and the longest performing Irish showband in Canada - what a record, what a band!
Rudy Viktora, the original owner of The Blarney Stone first spotted Killarney playing in Dublin and approached the band to play at the pub during the St. Patrick's Day period of 1974.
Shortly after returning to Ireland, Rudy was on the phone to the band, asking them to come back to The Blarney Stone, since patrons were clamouring for their return. And return they did, on several occasions.
After many flights back and forth across the Atlantic, the band finally became landed immigrants in 1980, and the rest, as they say, is history and Ireland's loss became Vancouver's gain.
The Blarney Stone opens their doors at 5 PM on May 17 for dinner, the Irish dancers will be on at 9 PM, and Killarney will be playing all night. Sounds like a great celebration.
The Blarney Stone is located at 216 Carrall Street, Gastown, Vancouver. For more information, call (604) 687-4322 or visit: www.blarney stone.ca.
THE KILLARNEY SHOWBAND on stage at The Blarney Stone playing as usual to a packed dance floor.