I love eating out, it may be my very favourite pastime!  Everytime I have a trip booked, one of the first things I do is check out the local restaurant scene – mostly via the internet.  In many cases, I will already have heard about restaurants and have a list of ones I want to try.  It was strange therefore that I didn’t have many on that list in Cork and after a quick internet browse settled on The Silk Purse on Union Quay for a saturday night dinner.  The Silk Purse is located above the An Cruibin Pub. I had visited their website and was attracted by the quirkiness of it, the handwritten menus and the promise of seasonal local produce.  It was on this basis I suggested to my friend that we eat there – and consequently felt somewhat responsible for the success or otherwise of the visit. The Silk Purse is accessed via a stairs inside the pub and you pass the entrance to the kitchen on the way up to the restaurant.  …