This March, Singapore’s dining scene is getting a distinctly Irish twist. In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, Bord Bia — the Irish Food Board — returns with the third and most ambitious edition of A Taste of Ireland, a month-long culinary showcase spotlighting Ireland’s premium produce and craft spirits across some of Singapore’s most dynamic restaurants and bars.

Running from 3 to 31 March 2026, the campaign brings together eight venues — including Tess Bar & Kitchen, Magpie, Carnaby, Santi’s, Meatsmith, Brasserie Astoria, Quaich Bar Wanderlust and Cygnet Bar — each presenting limited-time dishes and cocktails inspired by the Emerald Isle. This year also marked my second time attending the Bord Bia experience, hosted by the Irish Embassy and Bord Bia, and it felt both familiar and refreshingly different. The evening began at Cygnet Bar, where guests were welcomed with refreshing cocktails and freshly shucked oysters, a fitting introduction to Ireland’s coastal bounty. The room quickly filled with a mix of chefs, bartenders and returning guests, many greeting one another like old friends as they prepared for the busy weeks of celebrations ahead. Among the familiar faces was Sarah McGrath, whose warm presence has become synonymous with these gatherings. With her diplomatic tenure in Singapore coming to a close in a few months, the evening carried an added sense of appreciation, not just for Irish food and drink, but for the community that has grown around it.

For the first time, the programme also includes bars, expanding the celebration beyond the plate and into the glass. “We’re so delighted that you’re here to try the very best of Irish food and drinks,” said Lorna Allen, Director of Southeast Asia for Bord Bia, at the launch event. “We’re partnering with some of the best chefs in Singapore to bring that farm-to-fork element to life — showcasing the richness and quality of Irish ingredients like Irish duck, oysters, grass-fed dairy and artisanal spirits.”

She added that this year marks the campaign’s biggest edition yet. “We have eight partners participating — the most we’ve ever had. What we’re hoping to do is give you the full essence of Taste of Ireland, combining our premium ingredients with the innovation and creativity of Singapore’s chefs.”

The event coincides with St. Patrick’s Day, Ireland’s national day celebrated globally on 17 March — a moment historically tied to renewal, hospitality and the arrival of spring. According to Sarah McGrath, Ireland’s Ambassador to Singapore, the occasion has evolved into something much broader than its origins. “Now what St. Patrick’s Day is, is a celebration of modern Ireland,” she explained. “It’s a diverse place, an inclusive place — and a country that loves to look outward to the world.”

Interestingly, Ireland’s patron saint wasn’t Irish at all.“St. Patrick was actually Welsh,” McGrath noted with a smile. “But over time he became a unifying symbol for the island — celebrated regardless of religion.” Today, the holiday is just as much about culture, community and food as it is about history.

While iconic dishes like Irish stew may come to mind, McGrath says Ireland’s culinary identity is less about recipes and more about the raw materials themselves. “For me, Irish food is much less about individual recipes and much more about the amazing ingredients,” she said.

And those ingredients are exactly what A Taste of Ireland aims to spotlight — from pasture-raised meats and creamy dairy to hand-dived Atlantic oysters. “We’ve produced something really incredible,” McGrath said. “But we want chefs around the world to take those ingredients and make something that reflects their own culture, their own flavours and their own stories.”

Singapore, she added, is the perfect place for that exchange. “So many traditions come together here. When Irish ingredients meet Singaporean creativity, you end up with something new — something better than either place alone.”

Across the participating venues, chefs and bartenders reinterpret Ireland’s produce in imaginative ways.

Tess Bar & Kitchen

At Tess Bar & Kitchen, the team highlights Irish comfort flavours with dishes designed for sharing. The standout is a Crispy Suckling Pig Leg (1.2kg), served with aged cheddar mash made with Kerrygold Reserve Cheddar and Avonmore Irish cream, alongside a spiced mustard jus. Dessert comes in the form of a Brioche Bread & Brown Butter Pudding paired with vanilla gelato and salted whiskey caramel. To drink, the Irish Luck cocktail reimagines Irish coffee with a blend of Jameson whiskey, Guinness reduction and house-made coffee cream liqueur.

Magpie

At Magpie, the team brings its borderless culinary style to the campaign. The playful Silver Hill Irish Duck Sate Mochi sees duck confited in almond satay sauce, wrapped in a glutinous rice shell, rolled in sesame and fried until crisp. The dish is paired with The Golden Quack, a cocktail featuring duck fat and Currach Atlantic Kombu Apple Ice Wine Cask Irish whiskey — a bold, savoury creation finished with duck rillette and slivers of green apple.

Carnaby

Modern British restaurant Carnaby presents a refined take on Irish poultry with its Silver Hill Irish Duck Breast. The dish pairs succulent duck with crushed roast potatoes, Brussels sprouts, mandarin crème fraîche and sweet Guinette cherries, all brought together with a glossy duck jus.

Santi’s

At Santi’s, Irish spirits meet Southeast Asian flavours in a quartet of cocktails.

Options include:

• Ben’s Espresso Martini with Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey
• Chrysanthemum Fizz featuring chrysanthemum-infused Gunpowder Gin
• Evergreen Gin & Tonic with pandan and lemongrass syrup
• Thai Tea Old-Fashioned blending Thai tea-infused Irish whiskey with coconut sugar syrup

Each cocktail offers a distinctly regional reinterpretation of Irish distilling traditions.

Meatsmith

American barbecue specialist Meatsmith brings a Southern twist to Irish seafood with its Guinness Fried Oyster with Bacon Jam. Achill oysters are dipped in Guinness batter and fried crisp before being finished with smoky bacon jam — a rich, indulgent bite.

Brasserie Astoria

At Brasserie Astoria, diners can enjoy Duck Frites, featuring aged Silver Hill Irish duck served with brown butter hollandaise, salad verde and spicy pommes frites.

Quaich Bar Wanderlust

Speakeasy-style whisky bar Quaich Bar Wanderlust focuses on Irish spirits with cocktails like Your Tipple, featuring rooibos-steeped Tipperary Watershed whiskey, and Currach For Autumn, which blends kombu-cask Irish whiskey with chocolate bitters and maple syrup.

Cygnet Bar

At Cygnet Bar, the refreshing Sláinte Fizz combines Teeling whiskey with pineapple juice, lime citrate and tarragon syrup for a bright, effervescent highball.

For McGrath, the collaboration reflects deeper similarities between the two island nations. “If you are an island, you have two choices,” she said. “You can stay insular — or you can look out into the world with curiosity.”

Both Ireland and Singapore, she noted, chose the latter. And that openness is often expressed through food. “In Ireland, sharing food is how we show affection,” she said. “Instead of asking someone how they are, we might ask: ‘Have you eaten?’”

It’s a sentiment that resonates strongly in Singapore, and ultimately, A Taste of Ireland is about more than just a seasonal menu. It’s about telling the story of Irish farming, distilling and craftsmanship — and reimagining it through the creativity of Singapore’s chefs and bartenders.

“We’re very excited to bring the story of Ireland’s land, sea and artisan producers to life,” said Allen. The festival runs from 3 to 31 March, inviting diners to experience Irish ingredients in new ways across Singapore’s restaurants and bars. Or as Ambassador McGrath put it: “It’s our way of sharing something incredible from Ireland — and letting the world make something new with it.”

If anything, the night served as a reminder that A Taste of Ireland is more than a culinary showcase; it was also a gathering, a moment where cultures meet, stories are shared, and Ireland’s finest ingredients find new expression in Singapore’s kitchens and bars. And judging by the buzz in the room, this year’s edition may just be the most exciting yet.

Savour the flavours of Ireland throughout the month of March at Tess Bar & Kitchen, Magpie, Carnaby, Santi’s, Meatsmith, Brasserie Astoria, Quaich Bar Wanderlust, and Cygnet Bar.