RESTAURANTS:Good service, a great wine list, and buzzing mid-week, writes Tom Doorley
I HAD AN e-mail from a reader the other day telling me of an experience in a new restaurant. When she had got to the chip-and-pin stage, she was startled to be asked by the machine if she wanted to add one of three gratuities, 11 per cent, 22 per cent or 33 per cent. As it happened, she wanted to add 15 per cent. Flustered and embarrassed, she hit the 22 per cent option, which is a hefty tip. But does anyone, anywhere, add 33 per cent? The restaurant in question was equally embarrassed when I brought this up. The facility is supposed to be over-ridden by staff, I was told, and you simply input whatever amount you think appropriate. But surely it's a dangerous function to have lurking in the system.
The service at The Wild Goose, for that is the restaurant in question, was very good. This was a pleasant surprise as we were served by at least four different people throughout the meal, something I find a little unsettling.
And the rather cool, modern decor is pleasant. The buzz, too, is impressive. The Wild Goose is clearly a big hit in Dublin 6. I can see why, up to a point. The wine list is very, very good and substantial.
As to the food . . . the cabbage and bacon terrine needs to go back to the drawing board. Where do I start? Well, it was revolutionary in that it was made of equal parts cabbage and bacon. And the cabbage leaves seemed to be the toughest, outermost ones. And the modest quantity of bacon was tough and gristly. And it was sliced so thinly that I suspect they have a microtome in the kitchen. This cost €12. Leaving aside the vast overheads for a moment, I can't help realising that the ingredients here came to less than 50 cent - unless they are having them flown in from Harrod's Food Hall.
Three little cylinders of cucumber contained good crab mayonnaise, each topped with a king prawn that tasted of zilch. A sweetish, slightly minty dressing on a handful of good leaves went reasonably well with the crab. But for €14? Monkfish was cooked perfectly, and the portion was average for €27. The mash on which it nestled was a curious combination of potato, which tasted of salt and water, blended with tartare sauce, which did indeed taste of tartare sauce. I suppose it was a valiant attempt to be a little different.
Papardelle was, up to a point, very good indeed. These broad strips of fresh pasta had the appropriate texture and could have formed the basis of a good dish. Tossed in butter, for example, with some good mushrooms and a dusting of intense Parmesan.
What happened here, however, was cruel. The well-meaning and innocent papardelle strips were slathered in a gloopy sauce that tasted of stock cube, white wine and a lot of salt. The "wild mushrooms" may have been as feral as a gang of street urchins, but they tasted and felt awfully like cultivated oyster mushrooms. I lost the will to persevere and left over half on my plate.
The companion, who is something of a crème brûlée expert, agreed that the version here was well up to snuff.
The point of the Wild Goose, of course, is the wine list, but I can't help thinking that there is something not quite right in the kitchen. Leaving aside the monkfish and the pud, there was little evidence of skill. And at these prices you have a right to expect skill.
I don't know if The Wild Goose does bread, but we were never offered any. Perhaps this is because the tables for two are too small to accommodate any, just as there's not much room for a wine bottle. Which is odd in a place like this.
Things can't be too bad in post-Celtic Tiger Ireland when, notwithstanding all of the above, the restaurant was packed on a Wednesday night.
Our bill, with a bottle of knockout Côtes du Rhône came to €124 before tip, which wasn't quite 33 per cent I should stress. tdoorley@irish-times.ie
Wine choice
This is a very impressive list. There are 23 wines by the glass from €5 for a Côtes du Rousillon to €13 for Château Clarke 2002. The jewel in the crown is a selection of 45 Bordeaux wines ranging in vintage from 1990 to 2004 and in price from €20, for Anthony Barton Bordeaux Superieur, to €490 for Lynch-Bages 1990. Our Domaine de Coulet "No Man's Land" Côtes du Rhône 2006 (€39) was a fabulously intense exercise in dense yet supple Syrah, and a bit of a bargain. Keen buys include the crisp Gaba do Xil (€24), Haut-Rian Bordeaux Blanc (€20), Max-Ferd Richter Classic Riesling (€26) Château Langoa-Barton 1997 (€80), Domaine de la Janasse Côtes du Rhône (€24), Farina Barbera La Traversa (€27), and Alta Vista Malbec (€30). A great selection and fair prices.