Owner Geoff Nordell has already done much to lively up this stretch of Aungier Street with his cheerful and hugely popular White Friar Grill. After significant investment into the next door site, formerly Delaney’s Bar and Off-licence, an extensive renovation has resulted in WFG’s sister, Bow Lane. It’s a stylishly laid-back haunt aimed squarely at ‘creative types’ who want a place that they can nurse a hangover, laze over brunch, gossip over a pint, catch a match, imbibe a cocktail or two, luxuriate in confident comfort food, opt for dessert in a glass and get their groove on to live DJs – and all within the one day if they so wish.
Even if you’re there to dine, you arrive via the bar where little details suggest you’re in good hands: the smartly upholstered and generous bar stools at the marble-topped art deco bar, the thoughtful handbag hooks just below it, the handful of large round lounge tables that look so conducive to a convivial session with friends. The decor is designed for maximum moodiness, its low warm lighting picking out light and shade in the exposed brickwork, polished parquet and geometric tiling.
The bar is peopled by staff who take their craft – and themselves – rather seriously, and with so many creative cocktails to keep them busy, you can expect to wait your turn. But attentive lounge staff are happy to act as go-betweens so that you can maximise the unwinding that you are here for. Head mixologist Dan Mulligan’s cocktail list is worth making time for, with some interesting use of fruit shrubs and liqueurs, house infusions and fresh herbs, and staff are happy to help you navigate should you need guidance. It’s nice to see several well-conceived booze-free options, should you feel that way inclined, including one of the best Virgin Mary’s you’re likely to come across (dubbed the Not so Bloody Bleedin Maire and featuring an expletive-inducing hot sauce and balsamic vinegar reduction).
The bar menu is also worth exploring. It features some of the highlights from the restaurant’s à la carte starters including gloriously spiced and dangerously moreish grilled oysters with nduja rarebit and sourdough soldiers, as well as several bar specials such as Duck Egg ‘n’ Soldiers with bacon jam. But don’t get too comfy or you might miss the real highlight here, which is the main dining room next door and its concise but perfectly-pitched offering of refined comfort food for grown-up palates.
Choose from a pithy but balanced wine list (with good choice by the glass, and a nice scattering of under-appreciated styles such as Italian Fiano) while the informed and assured staff guide you through tonight’s specials, which might include imaginative flavour combinations such as halibut with fennel pollen gnocchi, girolles, ham and scallop emulsion.
The menu brims with well-loved classics with imaginative twists (think buttered asparagus with crispy egg, smoked hollandaise, macadamia nuts). Head chef and New York native Steve Levine clearly has a grá for big contrasting flavours (cauliflower steak with Young Buck blue and pickled grapes), and for showcasing adventurous hero ingredients (charred octopus with baby artichoke, chorizo, saffron, caper purée, or rolled rabbit leg with West Cork pancetta, barley, mixed seeds and goat’s curd). And while there is clearly some considerable skill at play here, it never comes at the expense of the final flavour, which is paramount.
Make room for the clever and tempting side dishes (roast butternut squash with dukkah and sheeps yoghurt) and save room too for the brilliant desserts (such as an inspired roast banana and meringue mille-feuille with salted caramel ice-cream).
Aside from the skill and imagination invested in the food and drink on offer here at Bow Lane, what is really impressive is the way in which it can cater to parties of very different scales, from intimate dinner à deux to big bash celebrations.
The restaurant proper contains a private dining area that can be discreetly curtained off, while the main dining room contrasts a scattering of snug-style booths and banquette-side two-tops with one large communal dinner table for parties which lends the room a thoroughly convivial feel. The glint of the low-hung, metallic grid ceiling reflects the warm lighting and making it feel even cosier, while soft furnishings in muted tones help to sooth both eyes and ears.
A great addition to Dublin dining, and a godsend for a once-forsaken strip of a street.
