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Food & Drink: The best value for money meals in Ulster are to be had at lunchtime (midday), when many restaurants and pubs offer special menus. Most Ulster families have high tea at about 1800 and many hotels and restaurants offer the same. High tea usually consists of a light cooked meal (an Ulster fry – eggs, sausages, ham or fish with chips) and a wide variety of bread, scones and cakes. Dinner is served from about 1900. Typical Northern Ireland foods include shellfish, home-made vegetable soups, potato dishes, dried seaweed, locally grown fruit and home-baked cakes and pastries. A useful booklet is Where to Eat in Northern Ireland, available from newsagents and Tourist Information Centres, which lists all the places where food is served, a price indication and brief description of the sort of food. It is advisable to book ahead for the more popular restaurants, especially towards the weekend.
The pubs are open all day Mon-Sat 1130-2300 and Sun 1230-2200 with half an hour ‘drinking-up’ time. Popular drinks are, of course, Guinness – a dark heavy stout with a creamy head – and whiskey (Northern Ireland also boasts the world’s oldest whiskey distillery at Bushmills). Irish whiskey is often drunk along with a bottle of stout. Real ale fans can try Hilden produced at Lisburn and obtainable locally.
Nightlife: Northern Ireland has a strong tradition for muscial entertainment, from the toe-tapping live folk bands playing in crowded pubs to the soulful lyrics of Van Morrison and the world-famous talent of flautist James Galway. Visitors will be able to find something to suit, from the latest dance music in nightclubs to opera or classical concerts. Traditional Irish music in ‘singing pubs’ provides a good evening’s entertainment in many places, particularly Belfast and Londonderry. Special musical events include the summer Jazz and Blues Festival in Londonderry and Limavady and the October International Guitar Festival held in Newtownards. Details of bands, concerts and venues are listed in ‘That’s Entertainment’ magazine, found in pubs, record stores and bookshops.
There is also a wealth of theatres and art galleries located in and around Belfast, including the famous Lyric Theatre, where Liam Neeson started his career. There are summer theatres in Newcastle and Portrush, plus the Riverside Theatre at Coleraine. The Belfast Festival at Queen’s (three weeks in November each year) is Europe’s biggest arts festival after Edinburgh. Other main venues for drama performances and concerts are the Grand Opera House, Ulster Hall, King’s Hall, Crescents Art Centre, (all in Belfast), and the Armagh Theatre and Arts Centre, the new Millennium Forum theatre in Derry and numerous regional theatres. Further information can be obtained from the Northern Ireland’s Arts Council’s monthly magazine ‘art.ie’ or from the Northern Ireland Tourist Board (see Contact Addresses section).
Shopping: Ulster is well known for its pure Irish linen; cut-glass goblets, decanters and bowls; creamy Belleek pottery; handwoven tweed; pure wool jumpers and cardigans hand-knitted in traditional patterns; hand-embroidered wall hangings; Carrickmacross lace and silver jewellery. Shopping hours: Shops are generally open 0900-1730 six days a week (late-night shopping Thursday in Belfast city centre). Other cities and towns close for a half day one day a week (it differs from town to town). Modern shopping centres on the outskirts of towns have late night shopping Thurs-Fri to 2100.
Special Events: For a complete list of festivals and other special events celebrated in 2003 in Northern Ireland, contact the Northern Ireland Tourist Board.
Jan 2003 Belfast at Queens; New Year Viennese Concert Ulster Orchestra, Belfast; Northern Ireland Festival of Racing, Lisburn. Feb Heart of the Glens Festival, Lisburn. Mar Third Belfast Film Festival; Coleraine International Choral Festival; Balmoral Show; Belfast City Marathon. Jun Jazz and Blues Festival, Enniskillen; Northern Ireland Game and Country Fair, Walled City Festival, Londonderry (Derry). Jul 12th of July Parades, countrywide; 25th Annual Kingdom of Mourne Festival, Kilkeel. Sep 11th Hillsborough International Oyster Festival; Aspects Irish Literature Festival; European Heritage Open Days 2003, Belfast.
Social Conventions: Due to the political situation in Northern Ireland, visitors should take care when visiting certain parts of the main cities and the border area. No problems should arise providing the visitor follows local advice and avoids expressing dogmatic opinions on political or religious topics.
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