Sally's blog

Truck food - described in the media as “a phenomenon” - is our prediction for the next big thing to happen to Irish food. We’ve bought gourmet pizza from market stalls, we’ve eaten crab linguini at Festivals, there is even a Ballymaloe Cookery School course on the subject, programmed for next September. But there is still much room for more. We talked to truck food pioneer Kevin Pyke, who left a thriving restaurant, Watts & Co, to serve street food in Derry from his van on the banks of the River Foyle: Pyke’N’Pommes.

Some musics occupy you more than others, and insinuate themselves into the everyday round of your life. The following are CDs that preoccupied me mightily during 2013:

Nathan Myhrvold, author of 'The Photography of Modernist Cuisine' is more than a photographer. When it comes to the lens, he is a 'Technologist' or a 'Digital Imaging Editor'. This week the 'New Yorker' described him as a 'technology titan'. His background was Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft, which makes comparisons to Steve Jobs hard to avoid.

From an INCREDIBLY close-fought battle, you and our Editors have come to a decision. The

BEST SANDWICH IN DUBLIN

at this very moment in time is.......

The Pulled Pork from @brother_hubbard

Here is what some of you have to say about the winner:

Man, but that Katz was cool.

And tickets to see him at the Ballyma'LitFest? They, my friend, were smokin' hot.

In a weekend peopled by the great and the good of food and wine - a Madhur Jaffrey here, a Claudia Roden there, and those Allen ladies everywhere - the fermentation faithful flocked to hear what Sandor Katz had to say. Author of the Art of Fermentation - a new testament to an ancient craft - the gospel according to brother Katz was loud and clear: fear ye not, embrace your bacterial brethren and get fermenting.

Breaking a long drive to Mulranny with a dinner stop in Galway was elevated to one of my dining experiences of the year by the spohisticated and elegant cooking at Aniar in Galway. Calm and assured service, a restful room and a stunning beetroot parfait with rosewater and scorched meringues that takes my prize for dessert of the year, had middle nephew and I smiling all the way to Mulranny. http://aniarrestaurant.ie

2013 was a magical year for Ireland's food culture and the brilliant folk who drive it, in particular chefs such as Frankie Mallon in Westport's An Port Mor, Kevin Thornton in Dublin, Bruce Mulcahy in Kenmare, Jess Murphy in Galway's Kai, Aran and Coleen McMahon in Castlebar's Rua and Café Rua, Gautam Iyer of Cork's unique Iyer's Restaurant, Caitlin Ruth of Deasy's in Clonakilty, Paul Williams of Limerick's Canteen, Shteryo Yurukov of Sage in Westport, Stephen Toman of OX in Belfast, Ollie O'Regan of The Nephin in Mulranny, Emma Bowe of Dublin

We eyeballed the hog at the ever-wonderful West Waterford Festival of Food, in Dungarvan, when legendary chef Fergus Henderson joined homegrown hero Paul Flynn in presenting a splendid night of food and frolics, as Flynn cooked a ‘cover version’ of fare from Henderson’s seminal Nose to Tail Eating. www.tannery.ie

The best thing about 2013 for me was the fact that craft beer went mainstream. Not only did we get introduced to fine new beers such as Sam Black's Kinsale Pale Ale and many others, but excellent regional beers became widely available such as Carrig Rowers Ale from Carrick-on-Shannon. www.kinsalecraftbrewery.com www.carrigcraftbrewing.com

Go North for a good thing. The Best of Northern Ireland this year for me was Coppi in St Anne’s Square. Coppi is a restaurateur’s restaurant where nothing has been left to chance, The food was always going to be good with the masterful Gary Bell overseeing the kitchen and the staff have been trained to within an inch of their lives. www.coppi.co.uk