Restaurant: Finnegan's

Floods, floods, floods.. unprecedented levels of flooding all over Ireland, especially in the south, meant that this was the first Christmas in years I couldn't go to visit my friend in Cork! Well, at least I managed to venture as far as Limerick, to meet another old friend in Finnegan's.

As it happened, the road, while damp, was passable, and I got to the city without incident. I remembered it was out the Dublin Road, on the right as you come from the city.. mind you, I also remembered it being better signposted, and had to swing sharply to the right when I realised I was about to pass it!

There's a large car park, and I parked to the side and made my way in - quite early. The bar was completely empty, the restaurant quite full; I mooched around for a bit, then asked for a table for two, and was shown to a convenient one. I ordered a white wine while I was waiting - a bit sharp, but fine. Service in general was quite prompt, despite the volume of customers.

I ultimately had garlic mushrooms and chicken curry - which has always been my favourite here, and which I was delighted to see still on the menu. And do you know, I do believe both dishes tasted exactly the same as when I had them here before, years and years ago! Now, there's consistency.. my companion had (mushroom) soup and a cajun chicken bap, and did them both justice. My Bailey's and Maltesers cheesecake dessert had lots of Maltesers, crushed and added to the mix, but honestly I couldn't taste the Bailey's - it might as well have been just a pile of cream, mixed with Maltesers and sat on a rather hard biscuit base. Chocolatey, but something of a marathon to finish - I was stuffed by the end.

Decent prices, decent food, and enjoyable surroundings. It's also convenient to the motorway, with plenty of parking - not a bad choice, of the myriad of eateries available in Limerick.

Well, I expect a relaxing last couple of days before I head back to London (on what'll probably be a bumpy flight, with the promised rain) on Wednesday. On Thursday, I'm back with Let's Do London - for less!, who are headed to the opera version of Eugene Onegin, at the Opera House. Last performance, apparently.. and do you know, the first week of last January, I was also at the Opera House - for a ballet version of the same story! Fancy that. And I've also booked for the comedian, Stewart Lee, in the Leicester Square Theatre on the 8th. Anyway, I'll be working from home on the 7th and 8th, which will be handy for getting organised.