Well-established Limerick restaurateurs Thomas and Deirdre Fialon have embarked on a new adventure with the opening of their new eatery BIA at The Milk Market.
The couple have spent the last 10 years running the hugely popular Limerick restaurant The French Table, building a reputation for sourcing high quality, local and fresh produce from Ireland’s finest fishermen and farmers,
“We felt the need to renovate The French Table. While the refurbishment was going ahead, we looked into opening a pop-up restaurant to have another establishment open during this time,” explained co-owner Deirdre. “We came across the units at The Milk Market and loved the idea of opening a restaurant there. BIA at The Milk Market was born. We quickly realised that we loved the concept too much for it just to be a short-term project. We are in it for the long haul!”
Nestled in the historic heart of Limerick City, BIA at The Milk Market is set to offer a truly authentic dining experience. While customers can expect the same level of quality food and service from the new establishment, BIA at The Milk Market is completely different to The French Table.
“Service is much more casual. All of our suppliers are Irish, many of whom are in the Milk Market so it is great to be able to work together with them. There is a great sense of community with the other stall holders in the market and the atmosphere on a busy Saturday morning during market day is buzzing!” said Deirdre.
“We always wondered what it would be like to have a restaurant more centrally located. We also toyed with the idea of opening a restaurant serving good honest Irish produce and so when the units at the Milk Market became available it seemed like the perfect opportunity. We also open later on Friday and Saturday evenings serving taster plates and sharing plates with a glass of wine,” continued Deirdre.
The new venture has been very well received so far. “We serve Boxty, an Irish potato pancake which is part potato cake, part hash brown. This dish is mostly associated with the north midlands, north Connacht and southern Ulster and not so common in Limerick. Customers are delighted to try something new for breakfast and the feedback is incredible! We have an open kitchen so customers can see what is going on and have a chat with the chef too.”
Thomas is a graduate of Ecole Hotelier de Strasbourg where he trained as a chef while Deirdre is a Business Studies and French graduate from the University of Limerick. After meeting in Paris they worked in the restaurant business both at home and abroad.
“We married and always had the dream to open a restaurant. An opportunity to open The French Table became available and we took it. We started with a very small team and gradually grew the business over the years.
“Limerick’s food scene is definitely improving. Lots of choice in terms of different food variety available. Customers are also getting much more adventurous in terms of trying new foods which is wonderful,” concluded Deirdre.
Find out more about BIA at The Milk Market here.