Carluccio’s now delivering to Northern Ireland!
Posted: 22 February '10 by Niall
Carluccio's delivering to Northern Ireland
When Kelly and I visit London our itinerary always includes at least one meal (and a bottle of wine or two) at a Carluccio’s restaurant. Aside from the delicious, authentic Italian food, the friendly staff, and the pocket-saving prices, the in-store deli is a treasure-trove of mouth-watering treats: from truffle butter to dried porcini, imported Italian liqueurs and wines to specialty chocolates.
Carluccio’s was founded in 1991 by chef Antonio Carluccio and has flourished ever since, with 43 locations across mainland UK. When we noticed that they had opened a branch in Dublin (March 2008) Kelly and I were over-the-moon, hoping that a Belfast location was on the cards.
While we’re waiting, however, we can now get our Carluccio’s “fix” online. Until recently they couldn’t deliver to Northern Ireland – but that has all changed! So, as a special treat for Kelly, I ordered a box of Italian delicacies..
You can see more photos hereImage 1Image 2
The delivery from Carluccio’s
- Limoncello Di Sorrento 70cl – £19.50
- Vin Santo D.o.c. 37.5 Cl – £16.50
- Cantucci Al Cioccolato (Chocolate Cantucci Tuscan Biscuits) 300g – £4.95
- Burro Al Tartufo (Truffle Butter) 80g – £4.95
- Sugo Al Nero Di Seppia (Cuttlefish Ink Sauce) 140g – £2.95
- Limoncello Di Sorrento
- Limoncello is a lemon liqueur from Southern Italy, and Sorrento in particular. Served after a meal, it’s an intensely lemon-flavoured digestif that was particularly to Kelly’s liking.
- Vin Santo and Cantucci Al Cioccolato
- A Tuscan dessert wine, and similar in some ways to sherry. We followed the directions from Carluccio’s an dunked our Cantucci biscuits into the sweet, fiery drink which really enhanced the almond flavour of the biscuits. Delicious, and a nice way to finish a meal when you have guests for dinner.
- Burro Al Tartufo
- The truffle butter is the one product that we longed for when Carluccio’s didn’t deliver to Northern Ireland – we’d lament the delivery policy as we salivated over the thought of the white, creamy butter infused with the dark, earthy flavours and aromas of the truffle. We enjoyed ours on toasted crusty bread, which was delicious – but I have a feeling that the scrambled eggs with a dollop of truffle-butter melting over the top that we have planned will be amazing.
- Sugo Al Nero Di Seppia
- We haven’t tried this yet – but I have a great recipe for Spaghetti in Squid Ink Sauce. Make sure you check the blog in the near future for the recipe and photos of how I got on.
What we thought
Finding ingredients and specialist goods in Northern Ireland can be frustrating – impossible, at times – but with the change in the delivery policy at Carluccio’s a world of authentic Italian tastes are a mouse-click away.
We both loved the various products – each and every one was delicious and had us looking up the site to see what else we could order.
The delivery charge was £5.60 – it sounds a lot but, considering the weight of our parcel, I thought that it was fair enough.
You might have already picked up on the fact that we love Carluccio’s.
Other information
You can visit Carluccio’s online at: www.carluccios.com/.
After some wrangling over their rental agreement for the Dawson Street premises in Dublin, and after the reported closure of the Dublin branch, I’m pleased to report that all is well. A week after closing it’s doors an agreement was reached between the restaurant chain and the landlord, saving around 60 jobs and ensuring the future of one of our favourite restaurants in Dublin.
You can find Carluccio’s in Dublin at:
Carluccio’s
53 Dawson Street
Dublin 2
T: (01) 6333957
W: www.carluccios.com
You can also find Carluccio’s – Dublin on Google Maps.
Tags: italian food, News
Categories: Local Food Heroes > News > Product Reviews
