Conveniently located in the centre of Naas, this modern smart-casual restaurant is a younger sister of Mark Condron's excellent Zest, in Clane - and fans will be pleased to find that it follows the same successful format of offering quality daytime food and a stylish yet kindly priced evening experience.
Behind a large shopfront window, the big square room is attractively divided into several distinct areas and has a bar with seating along one side - which, together with the buzz of an open kitchen, makes it a welcoming place even at quiet times.
Restaurant Manager Barrie Griffin's smart, casually uniformed front of house staff are friendly and attentive, the decor is pleasantly contemporary - bare floorboards, Donegal tweed banquette seating, comfortable chairs, good lighting and artwork from nearby Punchestown on the walls - and the music is a mixture of classic and modern. All round, a place to please a broad clientèle.
And the day starts early for Head Chef Gavin Lowbridge and his team, with a breakfast menu good enough to travel for offered from 8am (this morphs into a wider brunch menu at weekends), then a super lunch menu running until late afternoon - when the countdown to dinner begins.
All menus are interesting: along with all the traditional breakfast favourites, for example, you'll find little treasures like eggs royale (poached eggs with smoked salmon and hollandaise sause on a toasted muffin), while the weekend brunch extends to 'real meals' like beer battered cod with chunky chips and pea purée, and the wide ranging weekday lunch menu includes everything from a bowl of chowder with homemade brown bread to pastas, salads and a good choice of world favourites.
A separate gourmet Pizza Menu is predictably popular, but it's the seasonally-led dinner menu that really gives the kitchen team a chance to show their paces.
For example, alongside crowd pleasers like warm salad of char-grilled chicken, or Irish ribeye steak, an autumn / winter menu might include some unusual game dishes. Perhaps a well made starter of Partridge and cranberry sausage roll with mushroom jam and celeriac remoulade (a lovely combination, and well priced at about €8.50), and a flavoursome main of Seared venison haunch with glazed parsnips, chicory, truffle mousseline and chestnut jus (very good value at less than €20). Sides include irresistible duck fat roasties and there's an individually priced dessert menu, offering classics with a twist such as camomile and lime brulée or rum roasted plums...
Another real USP is the excellent drinks list. Wines are very good value, starting at about €22 and with nothing much over €30 (some available by the glass, plus blackboard specials), and there's not only a well-chosen range of Irish craft beers and ciders, international beers, high quality gins, whiskeys and vodkas, but also a seasonal cocktail list - and some unusual non alcoholic choices too.
Jolly is a great asset to the area and, like its long-established sister Zest, it offers what people want - quality ingredients, skilful cooking and value.
