Ireland's wild late-night snack combines three favourite takeaways in one bag

I admit it: I have been known to drink too much Guinness and forget to order dinner, and leave the pub to go in search of a cheap takeaway.

But then I'm faced with a difficult choice: I could eat a succulent Chinese meal, or perhaps a curry, or maybe a simple portion of chips.

So I was delighted to learn that the Irish have solved this age-old problem - and their answer is to enjoy all three, mixed together in a single bag.

I had never heard of a "Dublin spice bag" until I saw it on the menu at the Bush Hotel in Carrick-on-Shannon, about 150 kilometers north-west of Dublin.

Most fast-foodies agree that the recipe originated at Sunflower Chinese Takeaway in south-west Dublin in about 2006, but it now (dis)graces the menus of similar establishments throughout Dublin and Ireland - as well as a large number of adulatory Instagram accounts.

At the Bush Hotel, my Dublin spice bag was served in a bowl but still wrapped in its all-important bag.

It appeared to be made up of lightly battered sweet-and-sour chicken on a bed of chunky hot chips, with a gravy boat of glutinous curry sauce on the side.

It was topped with fresh spring onions, lending it that unmistakable "health-food" feel.

When I poured the sauce over the chicken, the meal looked a bit like it had been dropped on the floor.