L'Ecrivain on Dublin's Baggot Steet has been a stalwart among Dublin's top restaurants for more than two decades. Established in 1989 by Chef Derry Clarke and his wife Sallyanne, it has been a hallmark for quality ever since. However, over the last couple of years the restaurant was starting to go a little bit stale. The food was still very good, but it was safe, a little bit dated, the whole experience was a bit unmemorable and you got a sense that the kitchen and front of house were just going through the motions.

Perhaps fearing the same and so he could commit more time to his other pursuits, Clarke brought in Tom Doyle as head chef near the start of the year and with him came a new energy throughout the restaurant. Doyle, who was getting some acclaim for his work as head chef of Mulberry Garden, quickly imparted his own style and modernised the menu.

Clarke and Doyle's food style is quite different and there may have been a concern that this may have led to an incoherent menu, with dishes from both chefs trying to sit side by side. There is still a bit of a crossover at times, but a dish of foie gras, which has been a regular on Clarke's tasting menu, has been changed slightly. Now served with pickled cherries and gingerbread, it has been lightened and enhanced to be one of the best dishes on the tasting menu and shows that the two styles can align. The same can be said for a serving of smoked salmon, served simply with dill and horseradish, lightly smoked under a cloche.

The food in L'Ecrivain is now lighter, not heavily relying on butters or creams, but instead using oils and foams, (flavoursome foams done properly, not those bland types that collapse as soon as they are looked at), to add the moisture to a dish and making great use of acidity. The food is natural and the dishes are uncluttered with the quality of produce allowed to shine through on the plate. A serving of beautiful cooked quail with green beans and kale oil epitomised this pure, almost vegetal, style of cookery. 

Fermentation has started to appear on the menu giving an interesting depth to dishes. A serving of cucumber and fermented cabbage was delicious and it would be interesting to see fermentation explored further as, when done correctly, it has the potential to create a whole new flavour.

A dish of cod with smoked eel and beach herbs was dry, a bit dull and lacked cohesion; the one disappointment on an otherwise excellent tasting menu. Desserts are high quality too, the best being a beautifully light dessert of fromage blanc with apricot which imparted a subtle sweetness which worked well with the salty unami from the fromage.

The changes in the kitchen seems to have created energy and enthusiasm in the dining room too. The young service team are welcoming, knowledgeable and engaging with the right level of formality. L'Ecrivian's 6 course tasting menu for 75 euro represents excellent value for this quality of food.

L'Ecrivain is now a very interesting restaurant again, it has regained some of the relevance it has lost. When a restaurant has a Chef Patron like Derry Clarke, one of Ireland's greatest, and a head Chef like Tom Doyle, the next generation of top Irish chefs, then it already has a lot going for it and we will be watching to see if there is further progress to come.

Click here for a more recent review of Mulberry Garden

At the beginning of the year we wrote that Mulberry Garden was our favourite restaurant of 2013 and commented on the progression that the restaurant had made the previous year. Thankfully, the times we have visited this year have shown that this progression has continued.

We have seen Mulberry Garden evolve over the last couple of years into one of the the best restaurants in the country. We love the philosophy: opening just three nights a week with a new menu devised from seasonal and local produce with just two options on each course. There are very few restaurants we know of that completely change their menu each week and it is great for a diner to go back several times and get different dishes each time.

The food is based around the best local produce available and complemented well with the occasional international ingredient. Not opening until Thursday allows Chef Tom Doyle time to source this produce and concoct a menu to showcase it in it's best light. He demonstrates perfectly cooked produce (he seems particularly a depth at cooking fish), modern cooking techniques, and creativity, but at same time showing restraint, clarity and balance with each item on the plate serving a purpose. His harmonious use of vinegar and lemon, particularly with fish, is evidence of a refined palate. 

Over the last year the food has improved again and part of the reason for this is that it has become more innovative and the menu has shown more invention - gels and powdered fat being just two examples of this. Snacks, amuse bouches and pre desserts are now regulars and Doyle uses these to experiment - they are quite often excellent. Also, the desserts are a noticeable improvement this year.

To develop a new menu each week and maintain consistency is maybe what needs to be applauded most -there are goods restaurants who change their dishes a few times a year and struggle with this. However, whilst many dishes have been excellent (hay baked wood pigeon; cured mackerel; langoustines in stuffed courgette flower; glazed turbot to name a few), the odd dish does not invoke the best memories (a chewy hoggit dish with spiced sheep's curd springs to mind). 

Mulberry Garden is tucked away in Donnybrook and it seems to be in a balancing act between adding innovation and evolving the food whilst remaining a neighbourhood restaurant and not scaring off the loyal locals. Because of this the menu can sometimes feel a little bit restrained, which is a pity seeing as Doyle's food is at its best when he is experimenting and exploring new flavour combinations. But the restaurant's reputation is growing and seems to be constantly winning more admirers.

The service is friendly, professional, personal and knowledgeable, if not a bit frenetic when the restaurant is full. Considering the improved food, good service, along with great value (42 euro for 3 courses or 60 for all 6) means the restaurant must score highly. Hopefully there is more to come and the restaurant can continue it's rise - it certainly gives us the impression that it can still take it to another level.