When we were discussing artisan bakeries last week, yet another of the great specialist bakeries that we could have included was Aroma, Tom and Arturo's small and perfectly formed restaurant and bakery in the Craft Village just outside Donegal town.
Well, I didn't mention it on the grounds that Aroma is more of a café and restaurant than a bakery. Wrong!
“My brown bread is now going out at the rate of 600 per week at present and rising no doubt as the season kicks in”, writes Tom, an astonishing figure when you consider the tiny scale of the bakery.
Why is Aroma such a hot shot success? Here is the answer, as related by Tom:
“I sent some of my brown bread and Tunisian orange cake to President McAleese when attending an Irish Language course in Donegal last summer, and she stopped in for lunch the following Saturday with her entourage!”
So, if it's good enough for the head of state, it is sure good enough for the rest of us. We have always known Mary McAleese was a smart woman, but now we know that she is a smart woman with a smart palate who knows a good thing when she eats it.
By Presidential Approval. Yeah, that's Tom and Arturo's Aroma all right.
Aroma, Craft Village, Donegal town: Tel: 074 972 3222
