For all the food and drink lovers out there, look no further than Ireland’s resident food and drink aficionados, GastroGays.
This one is for the true food lovers out there, for those dedicated to finding the best of the best - the crème de la crème, if you will. It’s how to find the best sandwich in Dublin. It’s how to make Korean Fried Chicken in a deep fat fryer. It’s saliva-inducing food photography. It’s Russell Alford and Patrick Hanlon. It’s the GastroGays.
Hailing from North Dublin and Louth respectively, Russell Alford and Patrick Hanlon began GastroGays as a hobbyist blog in 2013, documenting restaurant visits and their travels. It has since grown into a successful business, covering all things food and drink, travel, and often Eurovision. They are well-known aficionados of the food and drink scene here in Ireland, and also in London, and increasingly further afield through their travels.
Whilst they still post occasional blogs and recipes on their website, www.gastrogays.com, their instagram @gastrogays is the real hotspot to keep up to tabs on all their goings on. Most notably, they released a cookbook in 2022 as part of the first series of Blasta Books, at only €15. It is called Hot Fat, and it is full of fun and simple recipes for anything deep-fried.
Their substack page, Chip Paper, hosts long-form food content and features. This is where the real reviews, stories, and foodie thought-pieces happen, but do note that it is mostly behind a subscriber paywall.
However, GastroGays know their stuff, so it’s no surprise that they have a column in The Sunday Times Ireland and regularly feature in other publications, such as Lonely Planet, Irish Times, Gay Times Magazine, and more, so keep a watchful eye out for their names.
Finally, the one for the dedicated foodies, Alford co-hosts Dublin Delish on 98fm with Brian Dowling and Suzanne Kane, in which he locates and reviews the hottest, most delicious food moments happening weekly around Dublin. If you’re not one to listen live to the radio, you can catch up with the 5-minute podcast, or watch the debrief on the GastroGays instagram, like I do.