Food & Drink

Where to eat and drink in Fermanagh

Fermanagh people are justifiably proud of their food and drink. There’s a long and distinguished tradition and community of growers, bakers and makers here. It makes for an incredible variety of places to eat and drink, for total food obsessives to casual diners and all types in between. Not only can you look forward to sampling the best on offer here, but there’s also plenty of opportunities to meet the maker and give it a go yourself if you’re up for it.

Fine, and friendly, restaurants in Fermanagh

Tucked away on Church Street, Enniskillen, is one of Northern Ireland’s best restaurants. Café Merlot offers modern cuisine that gives established, classic dishes a global twist that makes all the difference. Locally-sourced and farmed beef, poultry, cheeses and charcuterie feature heavily here, always beautifully presented in a room featuring a vaulted ceiling and exposed stonework.

Glen Wheeler, head chef at Enniskillen’s 28 Darling Street, has worked at more Michelin-starred restaurants than there are stars in the summer night sky above the town. All that passion and experience has been brought to bear in the kitchen here. The finest local ingredients are transformed into exquisitely prepared, cooked and presented dishes such as venison loin with spiced red cabbage or pheasant noodle with thyme jus. Just about the very best of everything Fermanagh has to offer is distilled into this intimate, exacting dining experience.

Of course, given its reputation for the finest of everything, you can expect the Lough Erne Resort to serve up some of the finest food in the county. The Catalina Restaurant here sure delivers on that front, and then some. Carefully selected seasonal menus feature both classic and contemporary dishes with a strong allegiance to local produce. Named after the sea-planes which once landed on Lough Erne, this beautiful dining room overlooks both the Faldo championship golf course and the lake.

Casual dining that really hits the mark

In Fermanagh, casual dining really has cachet. A lot of that is down to the quality of locally-sourced ingredients and the passion of the people who bring all that together to create tasty, interesting dishes everywhere you go in Co Fermanagh.

Dollakis is a Greek-focused restaurant right in the middle of Enniskillen which puts a local spin on classic Greek cuisine. Expect falafel, halloumi, hummus, pita, aubergine and everything you’d want from a taste of the Aegean in the heart of Fermanagh.

Soak it all up in a local bar or distillery

Blakes of the Hollow in Enniskillen, whilst also being home to Café Merlot, is one of the most enjoyable places to while an hour or two away over a pint of Guinness, locally-brewed beers or an Irish whiskey. This beautifully restored and preserved Victorian building draws locals and visitors from miles around, and the late, legendary Irish novelist John McGahern considered it ‘one of the happiest and most beautiful bars in the whole of Ireland’.

Charlie’s Bar is another atmospheric, traditional and character-filled Enniskillen bar in a town that is overflowing with them. This is where many locals and visitors alike settle in, elbow to elbow, to watch the football, hurling or rugby, over a pint or three.

The Boatyard Distillery is an award-winning farm-to-bottle distillery located on the banks of Lough Erne. Local and internationally sourced organic ingredients are chosen for each product – the gin botanical, Sweet Gale, is foraged from the family bog while the wheat used in the vodka comes straight from the nearest wheat fields. How’s that for local? You’ll find their gins and vodkas in bars and restaurants across Northern Ireland, but go to the source for an all-in distillery tour and tasting.

That’s just a little bite and a sip of the world of food and drink that awaits you in beautiful Fermanagh. Now is the time to start building your own bespoke itinerary using your newfound inspiration!