Ideal Holmes

rom a very early age, Andrew Holmes had a taste for good food…

And he knew even then that if it tasted good, that was all down to the ingredients, and how they’d been blended together.

Working in kitchens before he’d barely stepped into secondary school, and branching out on his own in 2014 after his friends just kept burping their approval, Andrew – and his trusty sidekick (and wife), Tracy – has been rattling those pots and pans ever since.

First came The Hogfather, a moveable feast that naturally led to Andrew Holmes Catering, and a slew of awards (including Caterer Of The Year three years in a row at the Irish Wedding Awards), before the long-fermenting dream of having his own place finally came true when the couple swung open the doors of their Kitchen 28 deli back in February 2020.

Four weeks later, those doors were slammed shut. Thanks to Covid.

“In a way, if we hadn’t managed to get those doors open before the lockdown, we might not be here today,” says Tracy. “Just getting to open Kitchen 28, and to get the people of Kilcoole, and Greystones and beyond, all give us such positive feedback, it just meant everything to us…”

“It meant that we knew we’d made the right decision,” nods Andrew. “All we had to do now was get it out there to people. Thankfully, those initial four weeks proved enough time for the good word to spread, and we just built up the takeaway side of the deli from there.”

With the couple having met whilst working in Avoca over in Kilmacanogue, it’s fitting that Andrew and Tracy should end up with their own little slice of hideaway heaven, Kitchen 28 being tucked away in the Bullford Business Centre in Kilcoole. With an acre beside them about to be developed fully for outdoor dining, and the upstairs suited and booted to open as a café, the Holmes are clearly ready for a major post-lockdown lift-off.

“We’ve used this lockdown time to basically work on all our plans,” says Tracy, sitting down again, expectant with twins due to pop out and join big brother Harry any week now. “And that’s actually been great, because we came up with some new ideas that just made so much sense.”

“The fact that we love a challenge means that we’ve managed to turn this lockdown to our advantage,” finishes Andrew. “That’s not to say we won’t be very, very, very happy to see the back of the bugger…”

You can find out more about Andrew and Tracy’s Kitchen 28 takeaway options here, check out Andrew’s A Day In The Life here, and more From There To Here origin stories here.