Despite stormy and wet weather, the Sodexo Ireland Christmas Fair in Cork proved an outstanding success, rai
sing over €3,000 for the company’s designated Irish charities under its global 'Stop Hunger'campaign; Barnardos, St. Vincent de Paul and the Irish Cancer Society.
The event was co-ordinated by Cork office manager Martina MacCarthy and guests were greeted with mulled wine
and homemade mince pies upon arrival. Many Sodexo staff from Cork and Limerick had made Christmas cakes, pies, truffles and other delicacies to sell at their festively decorated stalls.
Glen Mullen, craft development chef for Munster and Diarmuid Murphy, head chef at EMC Ovens jointly held a cookery demonstration of mouth-watering festive fare that included a slow cooked Spiced Beef with sweet onion marmalade
and capers; Ham cooked in cider, apples and spices served with a cranberry relish on homemade crackers and great leftover dish of spicy Turkey Madras with coconut milk, dried fruit, and toasted cashew served with saffron rice and toasted coconut.
The guests were able to sample each dish as Glen and Diarmuid prepared it, thanks to the culinary team that included Julianne Forrestal, executive craft chef and chefs John Kidney (Gas Networks), Charlotte O’Driscoll (Eli Lilly), Conor McAlonan (EMC Citygate) and Tomas Pearse (Depuy Ringaskiddy).
Billy Perkins, client relationship director, said, “All our tickets were sold out beforehand and a huge vote of thanks to all our staff who worked tirelessly to make the event such a success. Over 30 raffle prizes were generously donated by clients and supplier and a representative from the Irish Cancer Society spoke about the good uses to which the funds would be put.”
