A TASTE FOR CHANGE

FROM RESTAURANT TO RETAIL

Chef Kevin Aherne owner of SAGE pivoted toward packaging his acclaimed Midleton restaurant food into takeaway tubs when COVID-19 lockdown restrictions reshaped the restaurant industry. Along the way Kevin heard that small food businesses were being invited to enter a product in a competition, he took the opportunity, with the winner earning a chance to work with the Simply Better team to develop a product for their collection. Kevin entered Sage’s Buttermilk Ranch dip and, to his amazement and delight, he won! After the initial congratulations, there was one important question: “What else have you got?”. As it happened, Kevin had quite a lot. “We were very artisanal at that stage,” Kevin says. “Small batches, everything done by hand. The relationship grew from there.” Starting with dips and condiments which include his signature Buttermilk Ranch, Cashel Blue Aioli and Hot Honey Ranch, he also moved in to supplying gastro meals for two and premium fresh pasta sauces including Roast Garlic & Pecorino Alfredo, Nduja & Feta and the famous Neapolitan classic, Puttanesca. “We’re a natural company. No preservatives, no shelf-life enhancers, no powders, no pastes. We source the best quality ingredients we possibly can – Irish where possible – and I use my skills as a professional chef to create new products.” Today, Sage crafts a diverse range of lines exclusively for the Simply Better range, a partnership that keeps his production kitchen humming and allows the business to scale seamlessly. From fine dining in Midleton to Dunnes’ supermarket shelves across Ireland, Sage has changed shape many times. But the essential idea has not changed much at all. “It’s still about quality,” Kevin says. “There’s no messing with that.”