Meet the Chef – Pa Brophy from McGettigan’s Cookhouse and Bar

By Mary Dennehy

HEAD chef Pa Brophy is creating healthy dishes that don’t compromise on taste as part of the home-made, fresh and locally sourced menu on offer at McGettigan’s Cookhouse and Bar in the Kingswood Hotel.

Living in Blessington, Pa oversees the McGettigan’s three Cookhouses in Kingswood, the city centre and Cork, with the experienced chef bringing a fresh take on classic dishes – which are created from locally sourced, seasonal produce.

In 2015, the McGettigan Hotel Group transformed the Kingswood House, located on the grounds of its 129-room, boutique hotel, into a stylish, open kitchen, restaurant and bar, which has a relaxed New-York warehouse vibe to the interiors.

Speaking with The Echo, head-chef Pa Brophy, who was the food consultant for McGettigan’s five-star, 40-story hotel in Dubai, which has six restaurants on site, explained how modernised classics is at the core of the Cookhouse menu.

“We have an emphasis on modernising old classics”, Pa said.

“For example we have a fish and chips on the menu but when we were creating our version, we wanted to make sure it was the best fish and chips.

“We use only fresh fish and wrap it in our own homemade tempura batter, which is gluten free and light and crispy.

“We also worked hard to make our burger the best burger around.

“The burger is made fresh to our spec by a local butcher in the Greenogue Business Park in Rathcoole and the bun is the best burger bun on the market, a brioche bun made by a local company in Citywest.”

Alongside carrying a range of steak, fish, seafood, free range chicken and pizza dishes, the Cookhouse menu also has a strong emphasis on healthy food, which will include dishes from a new wok station soon to open on site.

According to Pa: “We have the freshest of ingredients from local, small suppliers, and use a lot of seasonal produce, with all our eggs organic and our chicken free range.

“We’re all about offering healthy food and bringing it forward… and showing people that choosing healthy food doesn’t mean you have to compromise on taste.

“We have made salads into complete dishes and one of our signature dishes is our super-food salad, which has 14 ingredients and ticks all of the boxes nutritionally.

“We’re trying to open up our menu and make it easier for people to take the healthy option while still enjoying a tasty meal out.”

Alongside creating dishes for the Cookhouse, Pa also meets with couples who are planning a wedding at the bespoke Kingswood Hotel, which provides a full, in-house, tailored menu for special days and events.

Serving food seven days a week, McGettigan’s Cookhouse and Bar is located on the Naas Road and for further details visit www.mcgettiganscookhousekingswood.ie, visit the restaurant’s Facebook page or call 4619966.