Chapter One

Went to Chapter One recently, and wow! I really got the Michelin service. We got in ten minutes late for lunch, not a problem. The staff at the front desk were great, our table was ready for us but we were advised that if we had a drink at the bar we would get a much better table within ten minutes; I thought this was a nice start to our meal and it showed that the staff really cared.
So on to the bar, it was very nice, quite small though. It was more a reception area that could hold eight to twelve people. There was a great selection of bottled beer and spirits. It was well stocked with regular beers such as Heineken, Corona and Budweiser along with Asian imports like tiger. The wine list was huge and pretty comprehensive; wines ranged from €25 a bottle to €1000 a glass. I didn’t really study it but it seamed quite good.

We were seated as soon as we finished our drinks, I had tiger, and my cousin had Heineken. We opted not to have anymore because it was quite early, too early to drink really. We ordered and straight after we were served a pre-starter off the menu; Chestnut and chanterelle mushroom soup with chicken mousse. Which to be honest, separately both components were pretty average, but together they were pretty spectacular. The soup was creamy, yet light and had a strong chestnut flavor. Without the light, fluffy mousse it would have probably been to strong. But the combination balanced out perfectly. The chanterelles just added that extra dimension to what was already quite a special soup. There was also a good selection of breads with the soup, wholegrain, white and I think bacon.

For my starter I went for ox tongue. It came out; sliced paper thin with small mounds of watercress puree and crisp endive leaves with a wholegrain mustard dressing. My cousin had Gloucestershire Old Spot pork white pudding with a poached egg, hollandaise, horseradish and lentils. Ii didn’t try the pudding but the lentils were great. They were creamy and full of flavor from the horseradish and vegetable they were cooked with. The egg was also poached to perfection; however the hollandaise wasn’t to his liking.

The bar really had been set high for the mains and dessert. Luckily neither disappointed. I had, Spiced daube of beef with parsnip puree, braised shallot and button mushrooms finished with pepper cream. The daube was a slow cooked cow’s cheek cooked slowly in spiced red wine; it was brilliant, the meat was beautifully tender and the spicing was subtle yet flavorful. The puree was also great, silky and completely lump free and tasting strongly of parsnips. The braised shallot and button mushrooms also went very well with the beef. My cousin had slow roast shoulder of suckling pig with carrots and an orange sauce. He declared it to be great; although, sadly there was no crackling.

Sides of buttery mashed potatoes, and crisp, not to salty homemade croquet potatoes came with our mains. They were both great, and really added to both dishes.

The huge portion sizes (plus that pre-starter) meant a bit of a debate over desert. Despite being quite full we decided that the caliber of food so far meant we really couldn’t decline. I had poached meringue with amaretto crème anglaise, which was fantastic; I expected it to be tough and marshmallow-like but it was completely different. It was light, delicate and cloud like. He got chocolate mousse, with coffee cream, campari jelly and vanilla ice cream which were also excellent. The jelly, was cold and tangy, the coffee cream was light, and not overpowering. The hot chocolate mousse contrasted beautifully with the other cold components of the dish.

Really, Chapter One was amazing. I defiantly had one of the best meals of my life there and couldn’t recommend it more. The staff are excellent and very knowledgeable, the atmosphere is great, and for the set lunch the food is a bargain €38 for three courses. Lunch for two, drinks and a generous tip ended up €100 not bad in my book.

Ross Lewis (Head Chef) and Martin Corbett (Front of house) the co-proprietors really have a gem on their hands. This “sixteen year, overnight success” defiantly deserves its star, possibly even a second.

http://www.chapteronerestaurant.com/

Basement of Writers Museum18 - 19 Parnell SquareDublin 1 - Ireland Tel: 353 1 8732266 - Fax: 353 1 8732330 E-mail:

info@chapteronerestaurant.com

Da Vincis

Every town in Ireland has its institutions; Da Vinci’s in Leixlip is defiantly one of them. Over the years this restaurant has thrived attracting droves of customers from the local area. The question is why? As a people we are, in theory becoming far more discerning about what food we will and will not accept. This emerging food culture obviously hasn’t translated well to north Kildare.

I went to Da Vinci’s on a Saturday night. The place was packed; literally, people filed both dining areas and the reception area. The sheer volume of people meant the atmosphere wasn’t great, noise rather than conversation. By all means the place does a roaring trade. For me the menu set the night up badly. It was loaded with “authentic” Italian regional favourites from Cajun chicken wings to chicken tika pizza.

We opted to share and went for what we though as safe options; Margarita and Roma pizzas with sides of bruchetta, deep fried brie (also not very Italian) and the infamous Cajun wings. I can safely say we were disappointed by every single one of these dishes. The bruchetta was almost completely devoid of tomatoes and the bread was distinctly un-Italian and most defiantly not home made. To be honest I doubt that anything we got was home made. The sauces with our sides were most defiantly bought in, as were the pizza toppings and I think the pizza bases. The wings were bland the brie was still encased in its skin and the pizza bases were soggy.

To be honest this very low, low, low quality food, paired with a poor atmosphere and an argument with our waiter, then the manager over wine meant that really our night was spoiled.

Will not be going back.

http://www.davincis.ie/