JP McMahon may well be the least starry Michelin starred chef I have ever met. He’s warm, chatty and down to earth, with a delightful sense of the ridiculous and a tendency to minimise his many achievements. In fact you could be fooled into thinking it’s simply his irrepressible energy that carries everything along, but JP is thoughtful, learned and delicate when he needs to be. He draws an incredible calibre of speakers to his Food On The Edge festival each year, has written a wonderful book on Irish food and even found time to study for a PhD. His Galway restaurants range from freshly baked pastries and coffee at Tartare and tapas at Cava to more curated plates at Aniar (meaning, ‘from the west’). What ties them all together is a focus on supporting and celebrating what is local. It’s what all restaurants could and probably should do to help preserve the uniqueness of the place they are in. The pandemic has hit restaurateurs hard, but particularly so in Ireland where sanctions have remained longer than in the UK. I hope that JP can hang on in there, because we need more of his passion and compassion to help us see what is wonderful around us.
Photo credit for the image of JP McMahon: JANE FOLEY/ED SCHOFIELD
Check out links to JP’s work and if you find yourself in Galway then visit one of his eateries. If you’re very lucky, you might find him flinging himself seaward off a diving board as you stroll along the coast after supper.
Food On The Edge festival
JP McMahon on Instagram
JP McMahon on Twitter
