Dinner Tonight! Where to go? - Restaurant & Eating Out Recommendations for NCD

Stheno

Jimdagym wrote: »

Tried to get a table in The Windmill in Skerries at 6 last night but it was booked out. Ollies was a 30 minute wait. So we went down to try Raffs. Boy, did that work out!!

Everything, and I mean everything was top notch. large wings (18) did the 4 of us perfectly and IMO they are up there with Blue Bar's. For mains, I had the Prawn Taglietelle. Full of Prawns and simply delicious. OH had the baked cod, again, lots of fish, very tasty and really light batter. The kids took an adult pizza to share and that was excellent too. Kids menu was decent but they are pizza lovers....
So we didnt mean to go there but really happy we did. I'll be going back, no question.

Added to my list of places to try

cbreeze

Good choice. Way better than 'Blue'.

Pipmae

This is going to sound a bit mad but once I saw Raff's get into bed with Groupon I decided to avoid them.

But good to hear a good review.

I'll definitely try them next. I think Blue is TOTALLY overrated.....

kennyb3

Always been a fan of Raffs.

yknaa

kennyb3 wrote: »

Always been a fan of Raffs.

Me too. The steak on a stone for €17 (Wed-Fri) is a great deal.

PaulD77

We had a special guest in the steakhouse for dinner on Monday night

The Hill Billy

Nice one Paul! He was obviously very impressed as he gave Skerries a very special mention at the gig the other night.

PaulD77

He did indeed, he called us a small drinking town with a big fishing problem! Absolutely fantastic gig too. The man was flying around the stage all night at 71 years of age

Tilly

Ok i'll say it: Who is he?

/i have a funny feeling i should know.

The Hill Billy

Roger Daltry - lead singer with The Who.

Dizzyblonde

He's looking good for his age too!

Uriel.

Somebody mentioned previously that Mint Leaf in Swords was gone and something was to open in its place but I was passing it earlier in the week and it seemed open (menu board outside etc). Any ideas?

Received a menu for the new BBq place (beside Peter Mark) in the door the other day. Seems mainly broadly med style food. Quasi Turkish, Greek, North African etc. Any one tried it? The "BBq" label doesn't fit with the style of food, so wonder if the restaurant itself have a particular style/theme to match the label?

Stheno

Uriel. wrote: »

Somebody mentioned previously that Mint Leaf in Swords was gone and something was to open in its place but I was passing it earlier in the week and it seemed open (menu board outside etc). Any ideas?

Received a menu for the new BBq place (beside Peter Mark) in the door the other day. Seems mainly broadly med style food. Quasi Turkish, Greek, North African etc. Any one tried it? The "BBq" label doesn't fit with the style of food, so wonder if the restaurant itself have a particular style/theme to match the label?

That was me about mint leaf it does seem to be open again

Uriel.

Stheno wrote: »

That was me about mint leaf it does seem to be open again

You lied

Jimdagym

Out and about today and found ourselves hungry in Swords, so decided to try Essence Bistro. Got there around 3 and it was very quiet.

They have an early bird on, €20/25 for 2/3 courses.
OH and I both went for wings which were really tasty and a nice little spice to them. I wouldn't call them hot, but certainly tasty. Good portion too, about 10 in each.
For mains I had Trout, chickpeas, sundried tomatoes and spinach. All i can say is wow. It was simply stunning. Fantastic piece of trout and cooked perfectly, and the pea, tomato spinach was fantastic. OH had chicken, chestnut potatos, and broccoli, which she loved. I tasted it and it was amazing also, the chicken was so juicy.
The two kids had burger and chips. The burgers were real homemade burgers and very tasty. Kids menu gave them some ice cream too.

All in all, everyone lest there delighted. There were no prices on the kids menu so I think they must have been free with an adult, as the total bill including 6 cokes was €54. I have to say its the best value I have had in about North Dublin. Thats about a tenner more than Eddie Rockets would have cost. Will absolutely be back.

Dizzyblonde

Sounds reallly good, we've been meaning to try Essence for a while.

The Black Oil

Man O' War

The service was slooooooow to begin with. Longest wait I've ever had to put in an order. Far too long. Things improved considerably once the waitress took our orders. Very much enjoyed the food. Good weather, relaxed atmosphere.

Stheno

School house is closed till Thursday, we normally go there most Mondays for the Steak Sizzler which is great value and the OH really enjoys.

After a rather unpleasant encounter with the crew of the crane they have hired (they were completelyblocking the road up to Cooldriona Apartments which becomes one way halfway up, and we needed to go up there, and told us to "****ing drive around the truck" which we couldn't as it would mean we couldn't access that road) , we went in and discovered they are not serving food at the moment until Thursday, but regardless, I made a complaint to the manager about the behaviour of the crane crew and their language (they were completely blocking residents access to the Cooldriona carpark!), who in fairness immediately went out and spoke to them as we were leaving, and we went to Rubys.

It was quite pleasant, and we enjoyed it, I'd the Italian pizza (Parma ham, rocket and cherry tomatoes), OH had the burger special, burger, chips and soft drink for €10 which was great value. I couldn't finish the pizza as it was too much food, but it was delicious

Very relaxed, good music, relaxed, but attentive service, just what I needed, I'm currently commuting 130 miles round trip a day, so it was welcome

Stheno

Uriel. wrote: »

Somebody mentioned previously that Mint Leaf in Swords was gone and something was to open in its place but I was passing it earlier in the week and it seemed open (menu board outside etc). Any ideas?

Received a menu for the new BBq place (beside Peter Mark) in the door the other day. Seems mainly broadly med style food. Quasi Turkish, Greek, North African etc. Any one tried it? The "BBq" label doesn't fit with the style of food, so wonder if the restaurant itself have a particular style/theme to match the label?

Having dinner here

Stheno

Stheno wrote: »

Having dinner here

So report

Twas good

It's called Cafe Debran and is very non Italian med, more turkish/Greek/Lebanese? I'm not sure, the best I can compare it to is a Lebanese place in Belfast called Byblos who kept me fed when I worked up there and lived in a hotel.

I'm not fierce familiar with that type of cuisine, so I'll just describe some of the menu and what we had.

Starters - Hummus, Falafel, Chicken Borek (chicken in filo with mushroom, garlic and cheese). Then you've brie tempura, garlic prawns, and the ever present chicken wings

Mains are all variants of charcoal grilled meats with sauces, veg, naan bread, spicy potatoes or rice.

Some examples: Shish Taouk, Charcoal Lamb/Chicken, Kafta in Garlic

We'd one of the specials which is a platter of minced beef kofta, chicken shish kebab, and two lamb chops.

I had the chicken, OH ate the rest. It was very tasty, I like food where the taste evolves if that doesn't make me sound like a pompous food critic, but one bite into a piece of the chicken and you got the charcoaly flavours, then a couple of seconds later you got the very gentle taste of the spices used.

It came with what looked like rice with herbs (I didn't eat the rice) and a filo pastry bowl of roasted veg. My word, the veg was just gorgeous. I detest overcooked veg, these were lovely and crunchy, and like the chicken had "layers of flavours" you tasted the veg first then the spices they were cooked in, they were delicious, I spent a pleasant few minutes figuring out what the spices were, there was definitely cumin in there, and I thought cardamom, but when I asked it was cumin and paprika.

The service was very good, we arrived in and were given our choice of tables as they weren't terribly busy which is logical enough given they are not open long.

If any of you remember it when it was the chinese, it looks like it's had a good makeover, it's very bright and cheerful, lovely music playing in the background as well.

We ordered the special to share as neither of us were terribly hungry given the heat, and were brought a complimentary plate of some form of flatbread (It was like a cross between naan and pitta, think naan, but not as thick as you'd get in the Indian) and a small bowl of hummus

Now my OH refuses to touch the stuff, and anytime I've eaten it apart from in Byblos in Belfast, I've thought it vile. However the bread was warm, I was hungry and it was slightly different, in that the ingredients were chickpeas, garlic, sesame seeds and lime juice) It came out with a dollop of lime juice and was just yummy, I think it's the tahini in most hummus that I've eaten that I don't like, I could have eaten it all straight from the bowl.

Staff are very friendly and courteous, service is relaxed, but prompt, and it was a very pleasant evening out.

We'll definitely be going back

Jimdagym

Great write up.
I'll be trying there out, thanks Stheno

Stheno

Jimdagym wrote: »

Great write up.
I'll be trying there out, thanks Stheno

Thanks, It's very reasonably priced too Jimdagym, forgot to mention that, and they've an offer where you get a menu with two vouchers on it for discounts on future meals.

Jimdagym

More food!!!! Need to put the brakes on the dining out!!!!

Wedding anniversary yesterday so we went to Jaipur in Malahide. It was our first time there, but boy, what a treat.
I had a prawn and chili paste and scallion paste for starters. It was amazing. The prawns were perfect and the paste was just superb. The OH got a tasting platter which had some fish, chicken, beef and the biggest prawn I have ever seen. I tried a piece of everything and it was all superb.
For mains I had laal maas which was a slow roast lamb curry type dish with basmati rice. Could barely get the lamb on the fork it was so tender. One of the best Indian dishes I have ever had in my life. OH had a monk-fish dish with a green, spicy curry sauce. Again, my sampling found it to be top notch. The fish was really well cooked and there was plenty of it.
Service was perfect, and we were a bit too stuffed to try a dessert.
It was a bit pricey, as with a €33 bottle of Riesling, and a €15 half bottle of Merlot the bill came to €130, but I do think it was worth it, its just a treat place and not a regular dinner out place.
One thing though, on Friday evening we could not book a table for Kajjal for Saturday night (only 6 o'clock) and the busiest Jaipur got was only about half full.

Stheno

Jimdagym wrote: »

More food!!!! Need to put the brakes on the dining out!!!!

Wedding anniversary yesterday so we went to Jaipur in Malahide. It was our first time there, but boy, what a treat.
I had a prawn and chili paste and scallion paste for starters. It was amazing. The prawns were perfect and the paste was just superb. The OH got a tasting platter which had some fish, chicken, beef and the biggest prawn I have ever seen. I tried a piece of everything and it was all superb.
For mains I had laal maas which was a slow roast lamb curry type dish with basmati rice. Could barely get the lamb on the fork it was so tender. One of the best Indian dishes I have ever had in my life. OH had a monk-fish dish with a green, spicy curry sauce. Again, my sampling found it to be top notch. The fish was really well cooked and there was plenty of it.
Service was perfect, and we were a bit too stuffed to try a dessert.
It was a bit pricey, as with a €33 bottle of Riesling, and a €15 half bottle of Merlot the bill came to €130, but I do think it was worth it, its just a treat place and not a regular dinner out place.
One thing though, on Friday evening we could not book a table for Kajjal for Saturday night (only 6 o'clock) and the busiest Jaipur got was only about half full.

I've always wanted to try that place, thanks for the review

Think Bon appetit might top it though for a special occasion!

Jimdagym

Stheno wrote: »

I've always wanted to try that place, thanks for the review

Think Bon appetit might top it though for a special occasion!

Thanks.
I agree, I'm a big fan of Bon Appetit myself, and the place is hopping since the switched gears by closing upstairs. The best meal I have ever had in my life was in the restaurant upstairs!

Dizzyblonde

We had a great meal in Masterson's in Swords on Saturday night, there was a large group of us and everyone was pleased with the food. We were last there a few years ago and we didn't like it at all, so it seems to have improved quite a lot

Stheno

Aaaahhhhh I'm like that slobbery picture of homer here minus the belly

Am working in a hotel this week, so I'd a lovely roast beef dinner (said in my best bogger accent) at lunchtime.

To top that off, the Oh who normally goes out and does man things on a Tuesday, is off away to the family home to see his dad for a few days, so he decided he'd devote some time to his beloved.

Said beloved (i.e. me) decided we'd check out Rubys Tuesdays, where there is some serious value, half price on the 14 oz steak, and same for the chicken and ribs combo.

Upon checking facebook, we also discovered they have another flash sale with a 50 euro voucher going for thirty of your finest euros, and a 100 euro voucher on sale for fifty euros.

As both my and OHs sons birthday are coming up in August this added to the incentive to go.

Arrived in close to eight, and there was a queue! (I hate queues) Didn't queue long, got told there was a twenty minute wait for a table, and asked if we could grab a drink at the bar.

Spent a pleasant twenty minutes at the bar watching the barmen doing cocktails, and trying to figure out what the cocktails were (I'm not a cocktail drinker) and perusing the menu. You may remember one of my recent reviews was the new BBQ restaurant where I raved about their hummous.

Having eaten enough to fill a farmer at lunchtime with my roast beef lunch, I decided to just have the hummous with flatbread (two types of hummous, normal hummous then one with basil and what looks like peppers), while OH gorged on the chicken and ribs combo.

Twas only gorgeous, fantastic flatbread, and really really tasty hummous, and a big serving of each, nothing I hate more than stingy bread servings with dips, was just what I wanted.

The OH reverted to childhood gorging on the chicken and ribs, and to my shame, I'd to ask for extra napkins to clean up his mess, and send him to the bathroom when he emerged post-gorge, covered hand and mouth in sauce.

Lovely service throughout as well, both of us are out the wall with work at the moment, so it was a really welcome experience.

We decided to buy two of the hundred euro vouchers which will cover both birthdays, and the lady on the front desk was incredibly patient when I asked about food for the Ohs "allergic to everything" daughter, so that's sorted.

It's a special deal on a Tuesday, but for a very large portion of hummous, a half roast chicken, slab of ribs, coleslaw, fries, and a side of corn, with a coke, three glasses of wine, and a coffee, our bill came to 38.50.

I was gobsmacked, really becoming a fan of this place.

Stheno

So. The New Old Boro

Oh was out on his manly pursuits thing tonight, so I persuaded him when he came back that it would be a good idea to check it out.

So down we went but just for a drink (two in my case)

Parked on main st. and walked up

Lovely beer garden out the front, but there appears to be no smoking area whatsoever.

Got in, anyone who's been before will remember the giant circular bar that dominated.

Wetherspoons have made much better use of the space, it's divided into "rooms" and the bar is right at the back when you come in.

It was fairly jammers, expected slow service, but we were literally five seconds at the bar before we'd someone looking for our order. Glass of Merlot, and a glass of Coke, €5.75, I almost asked if they were sure.

Found a nice seat (on a seating basis, I would estimate this is now the largest bar in Swords, given the work they have done with the space) and sat down to study the menus.

These guys are going to present a serious challenge to food providers/bars in Swords

As a direct comparison, Rubys do a chicken/ribs combo most days for about 25 euro, down to 13.95 euro on a Tuesday.

These guys do the same with more sides, every day with a soft drink for 12 euro, or 14 with an alcoholic drink. They also serve until 11pm every night when it comes to food, this drives me bats a lot in Swords as I travel a lot with work and the 9pm deadline that seems to be de facto drives me nuts

I liked the layout of the place, the service, and the food choice although I didn't eat.

I think their main challenge will be who their core clientele will be, if they get that right, it will be a great addition

I can see myself happily spending a Saturday afternoon perusing the papers and eating brunch in the beer garden there. Nicely laid out, plenty of relaxing space, good service on opening day.

neris

Stheno wrote: »

So. Nicely laid out, plenty of relaxing space, good service on opening day.

there were threads here on their 2 places southside when they opened and alot of giving out about how poor the service was and lack of beers, they must have learned from those 2.

BKWDR

Went to the Old Borough yesterday, only open 24 hours at this stage.

Went by on the way to the Carnegie Court for dinner (which by the by was 110% delish). Old Borough was very busy (5pm) with a lot of families eating and groups drinking, obviously ppl having a nose like we were. Pint of Tuborg and a glass of red wine, 6.75 ...say whatttt! We stopped and had two drinks, and looked at the menus, very reasonable. I took pictures of them to text to friends but suffice to say it is great value. I don't know the quality as i didnt order food but if its anythign like in the UK it will be perfect for what it is.

When we were there the till system and card system went down and a few ppl complained but as i said to the girl working the bar that was getting complained at, you can't be perfect after only being open 24 hours. Lively crowd was gathering and off we went for dinner down in swords. The real kicker was, after leaving our dinner and walking up the road for a 'nightcap' we picked empire and by the time we went to go in we just said feck it and decided to go up to Wetherspoons, why spend 12/13e when we can spend 6or 7. No brainer.

Also the food to 11 is great, i've also been annoyed at the 9pm shut off at eating in swords.

Interesting to see how they are doing when the initial hype wears off but i think its a great addition to swords. Not to mention the 20/30 local ppl we saw working in the place!!