Cucumber pot

A good day. We set out with the intention of having lunch in the Martello restaurant, but their web site failed to tell us that they don't offer lunch on Fridays. A poor alternative was the Eagles for their carvery. It was okay, but disappointing after what we'd intended.

We moved on after that to Fitzgeralds in Sandycove, one of our favourite haunts. It was Carl who spotted this pot on the window ledge near where we were sitting, which is really appropriate since Hendricks gin has recently become my favourite, displacing Gordons and Bombay Sapphire. It is served with a slice of cucumber rather than the traditional lemon or lime, and some places even add a sprinkling of ground pepper on the top. The cucumber in my glass didn't come from this jar, though.

It really is a terrific pub, huge on atmosphere (the unfortunate Eagles is really dull compared to Fitz's), but things got a bit much for us when the work crowd began to fill the place up, especially when the TV volume was increased to an uncomfortable level for the Heineken Cup match between Leinster and the Ospreys. So we left, and went back to the Eagles. There had been only a smattering of people there when we had our lunch, but now it was busier, and we sat at the bar which is our preferred spot.

We aren't at all keen on the nightly 'entertainment' laid on in the Eagles, but it was a change from the usual routine tonight, with a folk group instead of the usual rock group or a DJ or even (help us all!) karaoke. The three guys turned out to be quite good, and we even sang along from time to time. It was quite late by the time we left.