He’s been tantalising the taste buds of Belfast diners for the past 20 years, and inspiring Irish News readers with his weekly recipe column, now chef and restaurateur Niall McKenna is sharing his passion for food with his debut cookbook.
What’s It All About? is a carefully curated collection of 140 dishes that have been customer favourites in his five restaurants. It’s a beautifully embossed white hard-backed book, which Niall says he wants readers to “not keep clean”.
“I want people to use it, to put notes down the side and adapt recipes for their palates,” says Niall, who confesses to owning about 600 cookbooks.
“I don’t have the time to read them much now, but as I tell the apprentices, you need to learn, learn and learn more.”
From favourites of chili crab linguine and honey madeleines to apple and blackberry crumble tart and soda farl, as well as a range of stocks, sauces and dressings, Niall believes the recipes are achievable for all ages and that people shouldn’t be afraid to give it a go.
“I make mistakes daily. I tell my chefs if they aren’t making mistakes, they aren’t trying hard enough,” adds Niall, who also runs the Waterman House Cookery School in Belfast’s Hill Street.
Inspired by his grandmother, Niall’s passion for cooking began at a young age. At 15, he knew this was a path he wanted to follow - so much so, he moved schools to De La Salle College – the only boys’ school at that time that offered home economics.
“Brother Dominic started it all and then Brother Vincent came in and ate it all,” laughs Niall, proud of his Belfast roots.
He is keen to stress that What’s It All About? isn’t just a cookbook, but “a dander” through 20 years of Belfast hospitality, including striking images of iconic Belfast landmarks and the art that has adorned the walls of his restaurants, and most of all it’s a homage to the often-underrated simplicity of enjoying good times together.
“I genuinely believe that there are few places in the world more perfectly suited to making and enjoying great food. We have all the ingredients right here — the produce, great people and awesome places. ‘That’s what it’s all about’,” adds Niall, explaining the inspiration behind the book’s title.
Niall credits Belfast chef Paul Rankin for the burgeoning food scene in the north of Ireland and thanks him for giving him a start as a 17-year-old in his Roscoff restaurant.
“He opened my mind. I was so lucky to get a career jump-start by tapping into Paul’s worldly-wise technique.”
Niall went on to spend 12 years in London training under Michelin-starred chefs Nico Ladenis, Marco Pierre White and the late Gary Rhodes, whose bread and butter pudding recipe he features in his book.
“That dessert put about two stones on me, and brings back all the memories from that amazing guy,” he recalls.
After returning home, in 2003 Niall, and wife Joanne, opened James Street South in a disused former linen mill.
He soon gained widespread acclaim for his outstanding food and creative menus and in 2010 made the final banquet in BBC’s Great British Menu.
The following year, Niall opened a more casual dining experience with the Bar and Grill and cookery school. Hadskis in Donegall Street and Cast and Crew in Titanic Quarter followed, before with the opening of Waterman Bistro in 2022.
Fostering new talent and inspiring the next generation of chefs is a tradition Niall has carried on. He launched his own Chef Apprenticeship Scheme in 2014, in collaboration with Belfast Met.
Those he has helped on their way include Steve Toman of Ox, Gareth McCaughey of The Muddlers Club and Aaron McNeice who heads up his Waterman Bistro.
“It’s about training, being generous with your time and wanting people to do better.
“If money is your god, then you are dead in the water. It definitely helps, but with the buildings, the book, and everything I’ve done, it’s about passing on the passion,” he says humbly.
I genuinely believe that there are few places in the world more perfectly suited to making and enjoying great food. We have all the ingredients right here — the produce, great people and awesome places - that’s what it’s all about
— Niall McKenna
Post-Covid the hospitality industry has suffered staff shortages and Niall isn’t immune to that, admitting he is still “working to pay back the government” for furlough staff who left the industry.
“Like everywhere, it’s about motivating people to work. But it’s also about changing the perception of the hospitality industry because it is a great one to be in.”
Despite numerous challenges – recessions, flag protests, Brexit and Covid, which he says “have kicked the hell out of us”, Niall has managed to not only survive, but to stay ahead.
“It’s not about how long you have been going for. Restaurants naturally have a cut off.
“Richard Corrigan said to me, “if you can do business in Belfast, you can do it anywhere”. I honestly believe there’s nowhere harder, but the benefits in terms of the quality of product, the people, the clientele, the craic and the banter are amazing.”
Waterman is a recipient of a Bib Gourmand - attributed by the Michelin Guide, it distinguishes the good restaurants that offer a refined cuisine at an affordable price.
However, when it comes to measuring success, Niall says he’s more interested in customer satisfaction.
“I’d be a liar to say I didn’t want a Michelin star at the start with James Street South. But then I saw too many of my chef mates in London sell their life to Michelin and not make profit. That pressure is not good for your health.
“Success is about watching a customer run their finger across an empty plate and licking it. It’s about creating flavour, texture and atmosphere. It’s about quality produce cooked well.”
Niall, who lists all his food suppliers in his book, is keen to build up a new generation of ‘foodies’ with young people here open to tasting the abundance of good food produced on the island of Ireland.
“Kids are getting fit nowadays, but they’re not putting the right food in their bodies.
“If we educate our young people and get them to try new foods, it will feed the industry in the future,” he enthuses.
Niall takes this to another level by suggesting “working within the hospitality industry should be compulsory for all young people”.
“It’s the biggest life skill training you’ll ever get. You learn how to read people, how to communicate with people, you discover what good food is and what bad food is and importantly you learn what good service is.
“Nowadays with phones, communication skills are dying. We need people who can chat and look people in the eye.”
Practising what he preaches, Niall’s 16-year-old son Conrad works in James St one or two evenings a week.
His 13-year-old daughter Charlotte “is a great baker”, though he is keen to allow them find their own vocations in life.
Surprisingly, in the McKenna home, where cooking is shared, you will not find many gadgets and no air fryers.
“Pots, pans, knives, forks, a blender and a couple of roasting trays. I’m a simple home cook,” says Niall, who in what precious little spare time he has enjoys nights out at concerts with wife Joanne.
As well as hosting a series of immersive events, including new What’s it All About Cookery experiences, the entrepreneurial couple are already looking ahead to 2025 and the opening of a new restaurant.
They will be returning to the site of their former restaurant Hadskis in Belfast’s Donegall Street where they will serve what an enthusiastic Niall describes as “really bog standard casual good food”.
“Neighbourhood Café is moving to another site, and then we’re going to do another venture there next year. Then that’s me done. I’m 53 now and we’ve got a team in here now to push things on.”
Proud to have played his role in making Belfast a top destination for local, national and international visitors, Niall still believes more could be done to improve the Belfast food scene.
Referring to the stalled Tribeca project, which gave planning permission for a regeneration of a 12 acre site close to St Anne’s Cathedral, as well as numerous empty buildings in the Cathedral Quarter area, Niall says: “People must be told, if you’re not doing the buildings up or using them then you must sell them. It’s a brilliant city, but to me, this area hasn’t changed in 10 years.
“We have the new university building on our doorstep with many international students which should be the catalyst to get this street pumping. There must be investment, and the centre of Belfast needs to be sorted at night time too,” he adds.
What’s It All About?
Four of Niall McKenna’s favourite recipes from his new book for you to try at home
Baked Scallop
Serves 4
Ingredients
12 large scallops in their shells, roe removed
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
100g smoked streaky bacon, finely sliced
2 shallots, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
250g herb butter, cut into 12 slices
Sea salt and white pepper
The juice of 1⁄2 lemon
Method
Preheat oven to 200C/Fan 180C/Gas mark 6.
Remove the scallops from their shells and clean under cold running water. Wash the shells.
Heat the butter in a frying pan and fry the bacon until crisp; add the shallots and garlic and cook until soft and translucent.
Arrange the shells onto a roasting tray, return the scallops to their shells, spoon over the bacon and shallot mixture and top each with a slice of herb butter. Season with salt and pepper and bake in a hot oven for 6 minutes until golden. Squeeze over lemon juice and serve immediately.
Guinness Wheaten Bread
Makes 24 small rolls
Ingredients
You will need 2 x 12 hole cupcake trays.
150g white all-purpose flour
10g bicarbonate of soda
600g wholemeal flour
75g oats
10g salt
40g butter
480ml buttermilk
140ml Guinness
200ml treacle
Method
Preheat oven to 170C/Fan 150C/Gas mark 3
Sift white flour and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl and mix with wholemeal flour, oats and salt. Add butter to the dry ingredients and mix by hand until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Use a wooden spoon to stir in buttermilk, Guinness and treacle and mix to a loose dough.
Remove the dough from the bowl to a lightly floured work surface and cut into 24 pieces, approx 70g each and roll into balls. Lightly oil the trays and place a dough ball into each hole. Bake in a hot oven for 12 minutes.
Insert a metal skewer into the centre of the bread to test; if the skewer comes out clean, the bread is baked. Remove from the oven and leave in the tins for 10 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool.
Can be stored in an airtight container for 2–3 days.
Potato and Fennel Gratin
Serves 4
Ingredients
You will need a large ovenproof dish
350ml whole milk
300ml double cream
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 sprigs fresh thyme, picked
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
4 fennel bulbs, trimmed and finely sliced
600g Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and finely sliced
1 tablespoon Parmesan, grated
Method
Preheat oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas mark 4
Bring the milk and cream to a boil in a medium pot and add the garlic, thyme and seasoning. Simmer for 2 minutes and set aside.
Use half the butter to grease an ovenproof dish. Arrange layers of fennel and potato slices into the dish, pour the cream mixture on top, and sprinkle with Parmesan. Dot the remaining butter over the top and cook in a hot oven for 45 minutes until golden and bubbling.
Salted Caramel Chocolate Mousse
Serves 4
Ingredients
To serve
50g nibbed almonds
1 teaspoon icing sugar
For the chocolate mousse
150g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped
50ml cream
The grated zest of 1 orange
4 large eggs, separated
1 large yolk
1 tablespoon sugar
A pinch of salt
For the salted caramel sauce
200g caster sugar
80g unsalted butter, diced
150ml double cream
1 teaspoon Maldon salt
Method
Preheat oven to 180C/ Fan 160C/Gas mark 4
Arrange the almonds onto a tray and roast them in a hot oven for 5–6 minutes until golden brown; when cool, dust with icing sugar and store in an airtight container.
To make the mousse, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pot of barely simmering water. Heat the cream in a separate pot, add the orange zest, and pour it over the chocolate; mix with a spatula until smooth and shiny. Set aside to cool.
Pour the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk slowly to create air bubbles. When frothy, increase the speed to medium, sprinkle with half the sugar and whisk until the whites thicken slightly. Add the rest of the sugar and whisk until medium peaks form. Be careful not to over-whisk the egg whites.
Gently fold 1⁄3 of the egg whites into the chocolate and repeat twice until all the egg whites are evenly mixed in. Pour the chocolate mousse into 4 glasses and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
What’s It All About? by Niall McKenna will be released later this month. The cookbook will be available to purchase at James Street and Waterman and in selected local stockists including the Belfast Welcome Centre, Maven and JN Wines. For pre-orders visit www.waterman.house
