Dublin chef Oliver Dunne’s admirably focused offer of (almost exclusively) beef or lobster delivers on its promise to execute a small range of dishes very well, and serve them up by friendly and capable staff.
Located on quite a smart corner of Parliament Street opposite City Hall, with a tasteful grey frontage to complement the blue tones across the street, the restaurant makes good use of the investment of the previous owners who had refitted this long-loved venue at considerable expense, installing a bar that still provides the centre piece for the restaurant.
Dunne’s team have stripped things back and brightened it up with a combination of natural light and a tangle of low-hanging exposed bulbs. A red neon ‘Beef & Lobster’ sign glows on the exposed brick wall, picking out the red leather on the banquettes and bistro chairs offset by bare wood tables of various shapes and shades. Overhead in the main dining space, a red wooden ship’s helm hangs as a nautical nod to one half of the menu.
There’s a good choice of gins & tonics and cocktails (including alcohol-free alternatives) to settle you in perusing the concise menu. This delivers on the restaurant’s two-pronged promise with a choice of grassfed Irish beef or (mostly Irish, sometimes Canadian) lobster, plus one extra seafood offer of ‘king prawns and crab claws’. A short choice of starters includes some interesting twists on the theme such as the crispy (or crumbly) beef adorning a crunchy caesar salad
Mains include a whole lobster or dry-aged Hereford rib-eye alongside well-executed classics such as a suitably tender, satisfyingly savoury Beef Wellington. The ‘lobster roll’ is more of a mini-loaf, with its mayo-dressed lobster served inside a pocket of the thick slice of brioche loaf. Presentation is steak-house casual, with mains arriving on boards or platters covered in grease-proof paper. Each main course is served with fries (thin skin-on potato fries or sweet potato fries for an extra €2) and a ‘secret slaw’ of red cabbage and carrot with a subtle chilli powder kick and topped with cashew nuts and dried cranberries.
A concise dessert section is expanded by the novel addition of boozy or fruity ‘premium popsicles’, while some imaginative Nespresso coffee cocktails bridge the gap into cocktail territory. Meanwhile a mostly European wine list is divided into ‘lobster wine’ or ‘beef wine’, and includes several by the glass, and the selection of international beers is balanced by a handful of local microbreweries brews.
The restaurant opens from 5pm daily, making it a good option for an early pre-show dinner – while a weekend brunch menu entices with the lure of ‘bottomless cocktails’ (within a two-hour timeframe) to wash down treats like a black pudding and lobster Benedict.
