The Chopping Block

Our guest this week is Matt McGuirk, manager of Luvida Restaurant in Navan, and founder of The Pandemic Pantry, a new online resource for food businesses.
Join us for an hour as we chat about moving from the kitchen to the front of house, the challenges of running a busy, successful restaurant, and what made him set up "The Pandemic Pantry".
Listen as we hear Matt's simple but utterly delicious death row meal, hear about the book that he's writing to encourage better behaviour when dining out, sympathize with the pain of finding out your career is officially "non-essential”, and be as shocked and horrified as us when Matt reveals the ingredient he hates most in the world.
Available now wherever you get your pods...

On this week’s pod we sit down with the inimitable Podge MacNamee from one of our favourite Irish bands- Ham Sandwich.
We spent an hour talking all things food, drink, and music, from his humble beginnings with a literal shedload of gone-off chocolate, to how his perfect meal would bring him on a tour of all the world’s culinary hotspots- and Athlone.
Listen as we find out what’s on Ham Sandwich’s rider these days, why his bandmates have given the nickname “Are you finishing that?”, how he was prescribed a pint of Guinness a day by doctors when he was just eight years old, and he gives me the recipe for one of his favourite dishes, his chocolate, coffee and bean casserole (yes, really).
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This week on the Chopping Block we have a blend of beef, booze and beer, and cattle, casks and cocktails We sit down with Dave Cummins, the Irish brand ambassador for Dingle Whiskey and the Porterhouse Brew company, who also somehow finds time to breed pedigree cattle. Sit with us for a little over an hour as we chat about his passion for continuing the family farming tradition, and life selling some of the country’s most sought after drinks.
Discover why he approved of a brother and sister using Midleton 1989 to make their Irish coffees, how he once ate nothing but cornflakes for a month for the sake of his cattle, why for the first time I wouldn’t be able for my guest’s perfect meal, and learn how you can get involved with Dingle whiskey by buying your own cask
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On this week’s Podcast our guest is podcaster, photographer, and friend, Brian O’Neill.
Join our lockdown enforced Zoom chat where we talk all about his life in food and drink.
Hear why jelly beans caused a barrage of listener complaints to his podcast, how his first drink at 14 was actually legal, learn the reason his kitchen smelled of yeast for 6 weeks, and discover the name of the undisputed best beer in the world.
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Our guest on this week’s episode of The Chopping Block is Clare Wilkinson- Photographer and Food Stylist.
We spent just over an hour together by her open fire, sharing coffee and cookies, and chatting all things food.
Join us as we talk about how a life altering “summer camp for grown ups” in the famous Ballymaloe House changed her life for the better.
Hear the most sensible answer yet as to why Jaffa cakes are actually biscuits, what’s really in that beautifully photographed glass of wine you see in the ads (clue- it’s not wine), why a pint of stout and sitting on a wall in Connemara always means holidays have begun, and how it’s Christmas all year round for food stylists.
Stream or download the episode now on Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, or wherever you get your pods...

This week’s guest on The Chopping Block Pod is James Dorrigan, Home Cook & Instachef.
We spent an hour sharing a couple of pints and talking all things food.
Join us as we chat about how he comes up with his delicious dishes, getting the grand tour of a surprisingly tiny Michelin starred restaurant kitchen, being blackmailed after his first time drunk, and how his dad has possibly settled the great Jaffa cake debate once and for all...
Available now wherever you get your pods.

Our guest on this week’s episode of The Chopping Block is Joanne Gribbin, Nutritional Therapist and founder of Lifeforce Nutrition.
We spent a highly enjoyable hour together discussing her life in food.
We chat about how Joanne took the massive step to forgo her career in financial services to found and run her own nutrition business.
Along the way we find out the dish she rightly thinks has no place in the world, how her work with 121 Fitness has literally helped to change lives, how her mammy’s cooking makes up most of her perfect meal(though definitely not the dessert), and also her two simple golden rules to make an instant impact on your life.

Our guest on this week’s special "Anniversary" episode of The Chopping Block is my wife Dee Stapleton!
We spent an indulgent hour together over a glass of wine, talking about her relationship with food, me, and our daughter.
Along the way we discover how oranges became her go-to hangover cure, why her friends all thought her Christmas dinner was weird, how her terrible waitressing eventually led to us meeting, and how she lost over four stone after seeing a photo from a vintner's ball.
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Our guest on this week’s episode of The Chopping Block is Barista & First Dater Eoghan Newman.
We spent just over an hour together, talking all things food, drink, and of course making coffee.
We chat about Eoghan’s progression from making possibly the worst cup of coffee ever, to his role today as one of the country’s leading baristas.
Along the way we discuss the pressures of having a first date broadcast to hundreds of thousands of people, the joys of oysters, how his favourite pub smells of farts, and why his perfect meal finishes in a pizzeria at 3 in the morning.
Stream or download the episode now on Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, or wherever you get your pods...

Our guest on this week’s episode of The Chopping Block is Micky Brennan, footballer, podcaster and wine salesman with Tindal Wines.
We spent a highly enjoyable hour together, talking all things food, drink, and sport.
We chat about Micky’s journey from being a picky childhood eater to working in the world of fine wines.
Along the way we discuss the dietary needs of an inter county footballer, how Cavan beats Meath in the press box sandwich championship, how “ailments” made sure he ate better than everyone else in school, and of course, how his life almost came to a tragic end when he ate a single crab cake.