Francesca K.
Yelp
The fudgiest, richest brownies ever- fair trade and gluten-free? Check.
The creamiest milk, from a tiny farm who operates by the cycles of the moon? Check!
Fresh and creative breads from a German who knows what artisan bread is? Check. (Try his zopf, a sweet braided bread known to some as challah.)
Discounted and bulk prices on everything natural, from cleaning products to coffee to tofu sausages? Double check.
You'd be surprised how much stuff you can find in a natural version, and how much stuff you've never heard of before walking in here. Any allergy or deficiency in your diet can be addressed here, and if not, most people there know where to send you.
In the general-store section, you can buy a membership for €25 a year (students and unemployed half-price) and actually own a share of the company, giving you bulk-ordering and decision-making rights. They've also got a credit card machine in there- but for the rest of the stalls you'll need cash.
Another great point is they have five separate fruit and veg sellers here, which keeps both the prices and product competitive. Healy's, Sonairte, Stapleton, Ballinroan and O'Sullivan are here. Healy's has done a good job highlighting which of their products are Irish grown as well as the ones that come from their own farm. Sonairte only sell things they grow themselves, including plants and gorgeous wildflower bouquets (seasonally, of course). Ballinroan also do a lot with their own growing tunnels, but are usually sold out of their own stuff by the time I get in there! You can get eggs from three of the stands, too- now that's a free-range label I trust. The first time I ever willingly ate and enjoyed an egg yolk, it was from a Co-op egg.
Let me tell you about Moonshine milk. It's pasteurized but not homogenized, which means the cream separates from the milk and you gotta shake it before you pour every time. This makes it taste super creamy. Their website describes how they're trying out other breeds of cows at their farm, and has photos of many of their milkmakers. They make a lovely emmenthal-type cheese, a couple flavours of soft cheese, and delectable yogurts sold by the liter. Go for the blueberry and you'll never have a Muller again. This milk won the Gold Award for organic food last year - as in, it was chosen as the best organic product overall of the whole year. Doesn't that tell you something? Even if you already drink organic milk, once you have had Moonshine you'll never go back to Glenisk, or Tesco, or M&S.
Blazing Salads and Natasha's are represented and do good business. There's a cheesemonger affiliated with Ballinroan, too, who I don't get the chance to visit often but looks super promising with loads of varieties you don't see anywhere else (goat brie, sheep gouda!) Three or four homemade food stalls round out the selection before you reach the cafe. Get a samosa, waffles, Greek food or an Indian buffet. (The samosas from North Indian Gourmet are gorgeous, FYI.) Then peruse the organic wine stall, before chilling on the mismatched couches with a coffee. I've left out a few which John H. has gone into in further detail- smoothies, raw foods, grain mills, clothes. There's also reiki/massage upstairs- sign up on the door with your number and he'll call you back when he's available or at a time you specify.
They do events and workshops throughout the week which I'm usually unable to attend, and they now have an open area (where the general store used to be) which is great for events, markets, and I believe a dancing session was kicking off as I walked in last weekend. As also mentioned by John, most Sundays they have an event on, a flea market or bazaar or mingle.
The prices vary depending on the supplier, but they're reasonable for the quality of product you get. Let's take a few examples: The German breads are €3 each, Natasha's is high-priced as always, and half a dozen eggs will set you back €2.40, but these are prices I'm willing to pay for what I get out of it.
It's my favourite place to be on a Saturday because the atmosphere is so chill and everyone is so friendly. There are kids all around and always smiles!