Irish beef is no longer banned in the US, and it’s a big deal. So much so that Irish Ambassador to the United States Anne Anderson hosted a reception at her residence.

“It’s been a long time coming, but I hope we come to view that it was definitely worth waiting for,” the ambassador (pictured) told us at the reception. Irish Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney added, “To be back in the US market, and be the only European country allowed into that market, says a lot about the standards and the perception of Irish beef.” Irish beef is in large part grass-fed and sustainable not because it’s a fad, but because that’s the way they do it on the Emerald Isle.

Irish beef was served seven ways at the reception, thanks in part to Restaurant Eve’s Irish-born Chef/Restaurateur Cathal Armstrong. We snapped him with fellow countryman Patrick Whelan, who owns James Hoban’s Irish Restaurant and Bar in Dupont Circle. Cathal’s bites included Irish beef tartare; filet of Irish beef with blue cheese; and an Irish beef turnover with mustard. Cathal tells us he expects to have Irish beef on his menu in about four weeks, and that it jives with the restaurant’s sustainable mantra even though it's from overseas because the beef comes from family farms.