Hibernian's new corporate executive chef, Dan Yeager, is a fan of bacon. You can tell by the new menu items he has introduced at both the Cary and Raleigh locations. 

Tasty new additions to the Raleigh menu include barbecue bacon and jalapeno mac and cheese and Irish corndogs (corn-dusted, beer-battered bangers with spicy brown mustard on a bed of kraut). The corndogs are also on the Cary menu. 

The Elvis breakfast (currently available only at the Cary location) is a special delight – an egg roll stuffed with peanut butter, chocolate and bananas, then topped with a caramel bacon sauce.

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Under Yeager's direction, Hibernian is also curing its own corned beef and grinding its ground chuck and brisket in house. They are also fermenting their own kraut in house.

“At Hibernian, I wanted to preserve the traditional Irish fare, while incorporating local ingredients and adding an eclectic twist to everyday classics,” Yeager said in a press release. “My cooking philosophies are simple: make it taste good and think outside the box.”

To try out the new items, the Out & About team took a trip to Hibernian. Here is the rundown of the new and not so new items we checked out: 

Arugula & Watermelon Salad ($8) - This favorite comes dressed with lemon mint vinaigrette and a fried goat cheese crouton. The salad is a great summer entree. The crisp watermelon goes great with the vinaigrette. 

Irish corndogs ($7.50) - Corndogs can sometimes be the victim of too much batter, but these were perfect. The bangers were juicy and went very well with the spicy brown mustard and the kraut. Definitely a great appetizer to share. 

Green Curry & Beer Steamed Mussels ($9) - These are sweated with garlic and then steamed with a succulent wit beer and coconut curry sauce. The mussels were spicy but not overpowering. And the curry was spot on! We found ourselves dipping some bread into the sauce and munching. 

Potato roll sliders ($3 each) - We tried the cod and cheese, Reuben, hamburger and barbecue chicken sliders. All of them are topped with house-made coleslaw. The hamburger was my personal favorite, but the cod was a close second. The barbecue pulled chicken had a great Eastern NC barbecue flavor.

Elvis breakfast ($8) - This dessert blew us away. The melted chocolate and peanut butter inside these egg rolls were warm, gooey and delicious. The flavors almost completely masked the banana. The caramel bacon sauce went perfectly with the chocolate, creating a sweet and salty taste. We definitely hope this gets added to the Raleigh menu permanently, but we aren't sure if our waistlines can handle it! 

Have you tried any of the new menu items?