We had the pleasure of being guests of Fodder Cafe at Finnebrogue Woods in Northern Ireland. All opinions in this post are our own and we couldn’t have been more impressed.
Near to Belfast is a hidden treasure that we had the pleasure of visiting today. Fodder is a cafe, farm shop and deli. In the beautifully picturesque woodland setting, is a magical tipi, complete with fairy lights, flowers and wooden seating.
It is here we ate, at the Fodder cafe in Finnebrogue Woods and I am so pleased we did.
The large tipi houses the majority of the tables with more outside. We were given menus and seated inside the tipi. Because it was almost 12 midday when we visited, we were allowed to choose from the breakfast and the lunch menus.
We ordered drinks first. The staff were incredibly friendly and patient, even when our youngest guest couldn’t choose a drink, we never felt rushed and they helpfully suggested he could go and look at the pictures if he wanted to. We had tea, hot chocolate and iced coffee with caramel. The hot chocolate was delicious and came with perfectly toasted marshmallows on the top.
For food we tried the Dexter Burger – this signature burger made of pedigree Dexter beef, raised on their own farm, was BBQ’d to juicy perfection.
We also had an egg and bacon bap from the breakfast menu which got the thumbs up from our fussiest child.
Lastly, my daughter and I tried the amazing sharing platter. Served on a large wooden board this platter came with olives, ciabatta, cold meats, salad, grapes, chutney and cheeses. The cheese, again produced locally, was absolutely delicious and was complemented well by the chutney and grapes. The dips were lovely and we especially liked the carrot dip.
We also had sides of fries and seasoned fries which were very nice.
I was really impressed that Fodder uses local small businesses as much as they can to source their ingredients. Everything from the sour dough bread to the hot chocolate is produced nearby and is obviously quality food. I loved the ethos of Fodder and the fact the business strives to be sustainable.
We found the food to be absolutely delicious and to the quality you would expect from a top restaurant. You can see why the locals return again and again to Northern Ireland’s best kept secret. To read more about the amazing things on offer at Finnebrogue Woods, please click here.
Visiting Fodder cafe with an autistic child?
The cafe is relaxed and friendly with seating inside and outside. There are woodland trails for customers to use also.
Staff were very friendly, patient and helpful.
We were given the option of taking menus home to make choosing easier on our next visit.
Staff offered to show pictures of drinks when one of our party couldn’t decide from the menu.
Weekends can be very busy, it is best to plan your visit during the week.
There is no background music as it is set in a peaceful woodland location and there are fairy lights on the marquee.
The chairs are benches.
Most food and drinks (not the sharing platter) come wrapped in paper so if you needed to make a quick exit you could easily take your food with you. Staff will also wrap any leftovers for you to take if wanted.
There is so much more than the Fodder cafe on offer at Finnebrogue Woods. Please see my other post about Finnebrogue Woods for more information about taking an autistic guest.
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