As we enter the last few months of the year and plan our next restaurants outings we thought we would jot down a short review of some of the restaurants we have visited over the last few months but never wrote a full review of. As for the rest of this year, we have a visit to London next month and then a return to Copenhagen in November to look forward to and we will post some reviews of these trips when we return.
Restaurant FortyOne
An excellent restaurant that cooks consistently good food. The food has steadily improved since our first visit a few years ago. It is uncluttered, showing clarity by usually having just a few ingredients on the plate. It is sophisticated, and shows an understanding and appreciation of the ingredients. Most dishes were in keeping with the season and the weather. The best dishes on our last visit were: courgette flower stuffed with langoustines, which was fresh and light; asparagus, with wild asparagus and roe was beautifully delicate; the dessert, a let down on previous visits, of passion fruit sorbet was of high quality. The most disappointing course was foie gras served with almonds - the foie gras lacked depth and as a consequence was overpowered by the almonds. Chef Graham Neville's food is developing an identity and is becoming recognizable as his. It is an quality restaurant and we will be interested to see if Neville's food continues to improve. We will write a more comprehensive review after our next visit.
Ananda
A very good Indian restaurant, but maybe not as good as it once was. The tasting menu we had was a slightly bizarre experience as each course was a-la-carte size and the matching wines were also far too big. This meant the last couple of courses were impossible to eat, especially since the last savoury dish was served with a large portion of naan bread. The food itself ranged between very good and distinctly average. The best dish was a game platter, and the worst being a dish of pork vindaloo which, as well as being farcically large, was boring and a bit of a mess. The meal was decent, but the whole evening lacked any refinement.
Saison
A decent start for this newcomer on Dublin's Kildare St. Some courses on the tasting menu were good, the best being beautiful and tender halibut that was poached in red wine and a perfectly cooked duck breast served with smoked prune. Warm Camembert with ceps and truffle was delightfully rich and had a rustic but smart feel. Two courses were let downs however. Fruit De Mer had a langoustine that was not de-veined and an extremely overcooked piece of fish. By far the worst dish was the dessert though, which in truth was a complete train-wreck. An icicle filled coffee parfait which tasted of cheap instant coffee, heavy doughy doughnut, gloopy ganache and terrible brittle. If this is the best they can do on desserts a pastry chef is needed quickly. It was a good meal, but currently lacks the attention to detail to be more than that. It would be nice to see some more innovation too - disappointing to still be seeing scallops with black pudding on a menu. But it is excellent value, with good food and a very nice dining room, so not a bad way to spend an evening.
Restaurant FortyOne
An excellent restaurant that cooks consistently good food. The food has steadily improved since our first visit a few years ago. It is uncluttered, showing clarity by usually having just a few ingredients on the plate. It is sophisticated, and shows an understanding and appreciation of the ingredients. Most dishes were in keeping with the season and the weather. The best dishes on our last visit were: courgette flower stuffed with langoustines, which was fresh and light; asparagus, with wild asparagus and roe was beautifully delicate; the dessert, a let down on previous visits, of passion fruit sorbet was of high quality. The most disappointing course was foie gras served with almonds - the foie gras lacked depth and as a consequence was overpowered by the almonds. Chef Graham Neville's food is developing an identity and is becoming recognizable as his. It is an quality restaurant and we will be interested to see if Neville's food continues to improve. We will write a more comprehensive review after our next visit.
Ananda
A very good Indian restaurant, but maybe not as good as it once was. The tasting menu we had was a slightly bizarre experience as each course was a-la-carte size and the matching wines were also far too big. This meant the last couple of courses were impossible to eat, especially since the last savoury dish was served with a large portion of naan bread. The food itself ranged between very good and distinctly average. The best dish was a game platter, and the worst being a dish of pork vindaloo which, as well as being farcically large, was boring and a bit of a mess. The meal was decent, but the whole evening lacked any refinement.
Saison
A decent start for this newcomer on Dublin's Kildare St. Some courses on the tasting menu were good, the best being beautiful and tender halibut that was poached in red wine and a perfectly cooked duck breast served with smoked prune. Warm Camembert with ceps and truffle was delightfully rich and had a rustic but smart feel. Two courses were let downs however. Fruit De Mer had a langoustine that was not de-veined and an extremely overcooked piece of fish. By far the worst dish was the dessert though, which in truth was a complete train-wreck. An icicle filled coffee parfait which tasted of cheap instant coffee, heavy doughy doughnut, gloopy ganache and terrible brittle. If this is the best they can do on desserts a pastry chef is needed quickly. It was a good meal, but currently lacks the attention to detail to be more than that. It would be nice to see some more innovation too - disappointing to still be seeing scallops with black pudding on a menu. But it is excellent value, with good food and a very nice dining room, so not a bad way to spend an evening.
RSS Feed