Everybody’s Irish once a year

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This article was published 15/03/2020 (2228 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, the Irish Association of Manitoba has added some new, olde selections to its pub menu.

Besides coddle, a sausage-based dish that calls for potatoes, onions and rashers, er… back bacon, the club’s headquarters (654 Erin St.) is also serving colcannon, bangers on a bun and shepherd’s pie. Of the four, the latter choice is certain to spark the most debate among members, according to association president Joseph Savage.

“More than any other Irish dish I can think of, everybody seems to have their own idea of what should go into a shepherd’s pie,” Savage says, referring to a hearty offering prepared with ground meat and vegetables topped with mashed potatoes. “While ours has peas and carrots in it, a traditional shepherd’s pie would not. Considered a poor man’s dish 100 years ago, it generally consisted of whatever meat was left over at the end of the week combined with a bit of onion if there was any and, of course, potatoes.”

Never mind a recipe; people also quarrel over what it’s called, he continues. Some maintain that in order for it to be a true shepherd’s pie the key ingredient must be ground lamb. Substitute lamb with beef or any other type of protein — a quick Google search turns up versions done with ground chicken, ground turkey, even tofu — then what you have resting on the plate in front of you is cottage pie, they contend.

“There’s also some dispute over where shepherd’s pie originated. The British, Scottish and Irish all lay claim to it, which is probably one of the main reasons all these different variations exist,” he says, adding if there’s one thing everyone can agree on, it’s what pairs best with the entree come St. Patty’s Day.

“A Guinness, absolutely.”

If you can’t make it down to the Irish Club for a bite, it’s all craic. It turns out there are a fair number of restaurants in the city that serve shepherd’s pie not just on March 17 but year-round. So, as a nod to leprechauns, blarney stones and all things green, here’s a quick, consumer’s guide to shepherd’s pie, Winnipeg-style.

 

FIONN MacCOOL’S (two locations)

 

How popular are the buttermilk mashed potatoes Fionn MacCool’s tops its shepherd’s pie with? Though most people opt for a house salad to go along with their meal, there are others who request a side of mashed potatoes with gravy, instead.

“That’s a lot of starch, for sure, but you know what they say: the customer’s always right,” says Jay Kilgour, owner of Winnipeg’s two Fionn’s locales, 1180 Grant Ave. and the recently reopened Regent Avenue location, directly across the street from Kildonan Place.

Listed under Irish Faves on the menu, Fionn’s shepherd’s pie is made with 100 per cent Canadian ground beef cooked in a beef gravy sauce with peas, corn and carrots. If Kilgour is ordering it for lunch or dinner, he prefers the chain’s premium version, crowned with melted cheese, bacon and sautéed mushrooms.

“It creates this cheese crust that’s awesome and is usually the first thing I dive into,” he says.

And while Kilgour frowns at the idea of smothering Fionn’s shepherd’s pie with ketchup, an accompaniment named for London’s Houses of Parliament gets a passing grade in his book.

“A lot of people of U.K. descent ask for a bottle of HP Sauce to go with it, which we’re happy to provide,” he says.

 

APPLEBEE’S NEIGHBORHOOD GRILL + BAR (three locations)

 

In 2014, Applebee’s Canada’s head office staged an in-house culinary competition fashioned after Chopped Canada, the Food Network Canada program that challenges chefs to create a dish from scratch in a limited amount of time by combining a number of mystery ingredients.

Jim Coram, Applebee’s CPO (that’s Chief People Officer), says one entry, a shepherd’s pie prepared by an employee at one of the chain’s Windsor, Ont., locations, was so well-received it was immediately added to the menu at all 13 Canadian Applebee’s franchises, including three in Winnipeg.

On the phone from his home in Orillia, Ont., Coram says shepherd’s pie is particularly popular with the older set, which is one of the reasons a smaller version of the meal, which features Guinness stout gravy as a finishing touch, was recently added to Applebee’s “55 and better” menu, along with a side garden or Caesar salad.

“It’s so rich and filling, a lot of seniors weren’t able to finish the regular portion,” he says. “Even myself, if I’m thinking of having it for lunch I almost always have to plan ahead because chances are I’m going to need to take a nap when I’m done.”

 

ELEPHANT & CASTLE, 350 St. Mary Ave.

Daniel Henry, general manager of Winnipeg’s Elephant & Castle pub and restaurant, concedes shepherd’s pie isn’t a particularly trendy dish along the lines of fish tacos or avocado toast, but when you’re a no-nonsense, U.K.-flavoured establishment, popular trumps trendy every time, he says with a laugh.

“Our mashed potatoes are made in-house, our gravy’s made in-house. It’s classic comfort food, the same as our chicken pot pie and fish and chips. That’s what people are looking for when they come here,” he says.

Henry says it’s sometimes interesting to observe people diving into an order of shepherd’s pie, as some manoeuvre their way around the edge of the bowl, saving the garlic mashed potatoes for last, while others start at the top and work their way down.

“For me, I like mixing it all together, getting a bit of gravy, a bit of mashed, some veggies and some meat on my fork and having at ’er,” he says.

As to what beverage goes best with shepherd’s pie, while Henry agrees with the Irish Club president’s suggestion of a Guinness, because the dish is so filling, something a bit lighter in nature might be in order, he asserts.

“We have a few cream ales on tap, including Kilkenny, that would probably do the trick.”

 

CANADIAN BREWHOUSE, 1715 Kenaston Blvd.

 

Canadian Brewhouse, with 33 locations across the country, offers a slightly different version of shepherd’s pie than you’re likely to sample elsewhere. Instead of ground lamb or beef, or a combination thereof, its primary ingredient is short ribs, says Peter Kelly, general manager of the chain’s lone, “for now,” Winnipeg location.

“We slow-cook our ribs for six hours. The evening crew throws them in the oven near the end of their shift and first thing every day, our morning crew takes them out to cool,” he says. “The braised meat is then pulled off the bones, not just to use in our shepherd’s pie but also on our poutine, nachos and grilled cheese sandwiches.”

The same way Ukrainian Canadians sometimes compare CBH’s pan-fried, cheddar cheese perogies to their baba’s, customers of British descent often share their opinion on his restaurant’s shepherd’s pie, Kelly says.

“We do get a lot of comments along the lines of how ours reminds them of a family recipe, which, if you’re asking me, is the best compliment you can receive,” he says. “We have regulars who tell us it’s one of the only home-style meals they can get in the Kenaston area. Many of them are here once a week at least, having it for dinner.”

 

KING’S HEAD PUB, 120 King St.

 

While the majority of the food choices available at King’s Head Pub are based on recipes created by original owner Jay Khanuja, the recipe for the Exchange District hot spot’s shepherd’s pie comes from a more unlikely source: a bar regular.

“He’s from England originally and it’s his mom’s (recipe). We gave it a try and he was right, it’s pretty delicious,” says owner Chris Graves.

The King’s Head’s shepherd’s pie is listed on the menu as “blah blah shepherd’s pie.” That’s because the ingredients the kitchen utilizes change on a regular basis, Graves explains.

“Traditionally, we used to always do it with lamb, sometimes ground beef, but the one we’re going to be running with on St. Patty’s will be Triple A beef, with carrots, celery, onion, rosemary and garlic,” he says. “It comes with a side of seasonal vegetables, which right now is a bit of broccoli, onions and cauli.”

Graves adds there’s a good reason bottles of ketchup are kept on the tables, along with glass containers of salt and pepper.

“Dude, that’s so people don’t have to be embarrassed about asking for some to throw on their (shepherd’s) pie,” he says, chortling. “Even better, we don’t have to watch them while they’re doing it. Ugh.”

 

SHANNON’S IRISH PUB, 175 Carlton St.

If you’ve ever wondered why they don’t offer dessert at Shannon’s Irish Pub, here’s your answer.

“Things like our shepherd’s pie, fish and chips and Irish stew are super hearty and perfect for a winter city like Winnipeg,” says owner Gerard Fletcher. “They’re the types of meals that, once you’re done, you push your plate a few inches away, sit back in your chair and go, ‘OK, now I’m good.’”

Prior to purchasing Shannon’s in 2007, Fletcher, a classically trained chef, was the Delta Hotel’s banquet and catering manager. There he helped prepare shepherd’s pie, albeit not as often as he does at a locale that boasts “Irish” as its middle name.

“For sure, making shepherd’s pie every once in a while on a giant sheet pan is a little different than making dozens of individual portions on a daily basis,” he says. He describes his take on shepherd’s pie as “pretty close to basic” — a combination of ground lamb and ground beef, combined with peas and carrots, topped with mashed potatoes and house-made gravy.

“It’s labour-intensive and if you’re making it at home, it might take you a few hours to get through all the steps,” he says. “That’s probably why when people spot it on the menu here or anywhere else in town they’re like, yeah, that sounds good.”

David Sanderson writes about Winnipeg-centric restaurants and businesses.

david.sanderson@freepress.mb.ca