Chocolate-covered Irish potatoes: magically delicious!
You do this every year, right? You wait till the last minute to buy Christmas presents and the people on your list wind up with expensive but impersonal boxes of perfume and bath gel that smell like an alcoholic fell into a rose garden or with bottles of calamari liqueur because you liked the way the bottle was tricked out and you don’t speak Italian (calamari=squid).
We know you’re not going to shop any earlier no matter what we say, so we’re going to encourage you to shop Irish instead. Here are some last-minute gift ideas from the staff of www.irishphiladelphia.com. This is stuff we like, have, or want to have. Don’t forget to check out our Irish Gift Shop finder too!
Sqian dubhs. For the kilt wearer on your list (like our own Jeff Meade), this is a little knife that can be tucked into the tops of their hose. It should only be used for peaceful purposes (opening CDs, slicing cheese) and not if someone insults their hairy legs. You can get your sqian dubhs and other very cool kilt acoutrements such as buckles, dirks, kilt pins and of, course, kilts themselves, at Pipers Way Imports, 109 West Church Street, in West Chester. We personally love sporrans—that’s the Scottish man purse worn with kilts.
Irish Yummies. We recently heard from a San Francisco friend that she ordered Taytos at an Irish pub, thinking they were Tater Tots, and is now addicted to these potato crisps from Ireland that come in flavors like cheese and onion and malt vinegar. Want Taytos? Or Cadbury Dairy Milk Bars? Some bangers for Christmas breakfast? You can find a taste of Ireland right here in the Delaware Valley: Your first stop is the Irish Coffee Shop at 8443 West Chester Pike; the second is (yes, really) an AM-PM Minimart just a couple of blocks away at 8203. What you don’t find in one, you may find in the other. If you plan your trip right, you can hang around the Irish Coffee Shop for a full Irish breakfast. (It’s great.)
Chocolate Covered Irish Potatoes. Okay, what fiendish mind came up with these? That would be Jodi Boylan of Emerald Confections who has a stand at the 263 Marketplace (Booth C3), 700 York Road, Warminster, PA. She has these devilishly delicious candies there—along with other gift items, including local high school shirts with a Celtic flavor—Friday, Saturday and Sunday, so this is your last weekend before Christmas to buy them. Check out her website.
A Civilized Tea. A family member visiting from out of town told us he checked our “Find a Local Tea Shop” page to choose a place for afternoon tea. He and his significant other chose the Mary Cassatt Tea Room at the Rittenhouse Hotel in Philadelphia (on the square) and kindly invited us along. It was heavenly. There were delicious little sandwiches, scone, and sweet treats, and everyone got their own little pot of tea — a twee little pot covered in violets with matching porcelain cups (the only way to drink tea). The Signature Tea is only about $25 per person. You can learn more at their website.
Books! There’s a great treasure trove of books by local Irish and Irish-American authors to choose from. Here are our recommendations:
“You Can’t Get to Heaven on the Frankford El,” by Thomas J. Lyons II is a funny, touching, poignant book about growing up in Philadelphia from the 1940s to the 1960s. If you ever played buck-buck, got your bread from Friehofer’s, were taught by nuns or priests, and know the rhyme that the book’s title comes from, you’ll enjoy this bit of nostalgia. You can buy the book at Magis Press.
“John Barry: An American Hero in the Age of Sail,” by Tim McGrath, chronicles the history of Wexford and Philly’s favorite son, Commodore John Barry from his boyhood in Ireland where he took to sea to his exploits as a ship’s captain in the American revolution. This often forgotten hero, father of the US Navy, has a story worth telling and it is told well in this book which is available at www.amazon.com.
“Mother from Hell,” by Ken and Patrick Doyle, is an unforgettable, horrifying, yet ultimately uplifting story of two young Irish boys who were tortured by their sadistic mother and yet lived to tell this tale. Ken Doyle, now of Gloucester City, NJ, sells the books on his website.
“Confessions of a Second Story Man: Junior Kripplebauer and the K & A Gang” by Allen M. Hornblum, tells the story of a group of mostly Irish burglars known as the K & A Gang who plied their trade (and well) in wealthy suburban neighborhoods from Bar Harbor to Boca Raton. Though not so much in their own blue collar Philly neighborhood around Kensington and Allegheny. Available from amazon.com.
“Past Forward” by Maureen Wlodarczyk will interest all you amateur genealogists who’ve hit a brick wall. Wlodarczyk (who is Irish) spent three decades tracking down her ancestry and shares details of her journey to uncover her family history that may help you. You can order her book at her blog.
“Beat Cop to Top Cop: A Tale of Three Cities,” by John F. Timoney is a fascinating autobiography that takes John Timoney from his boyhood in Dublin to his rise through three major metropolitan police departments, New York, Philadelphia (where he was police commissioner) and Miami. A great gift for the cop on your list (surely we all have at least one!). Also available at amazon.com.
A Cup of Kindness. There are many ways to share the love this season, but we can’t think of anything more worthy than the Hibernian Hunger Project, a nationwide community service program of the Ancient Order of Hibernians that feeds hundreds of needy families every year. We’ve seen first hand the generosity of this organization, which started in Philadelphia: Right now, as you’re reading this, there are volunteers taking time out of their busy schedules delivering food baskets and gift cards to families who might have a sparse holiday without them. If that’s not the spirit of Christmas, we don’t know what is. Visit them at their website and find out how you can help.
We leave you with the last stanza of the Christmas hymn, “Good King Wenceslas,” which celebrates the many benefits of doing good to others.
“Therefore, Christian men, be sure, wealth or rank possessing, ye who now will bless the poor, shall yourself find blessing.”
