Our Latest Great Place To Eat - Le Comptoir Cafe
Tuesday 25 January 2022
Having started early in the biz, working part-time in his uncle’s hotel in Thurles, Ronan Ryan subsequently trained as a chef before departing at 18 to work in restaurants and bars in London, Italy and the USA. He has basically seen it all.
His latest venture, Le Comptoir in Donnybrook, described as a French-style premium café and restaurant, has been delighting D4’s café society with casually chic food and vibe from morning through evening. You can get delicious French toast with mixed berries or bacon & maple syrup, or the Full Irish, which will have organic pork sausages, bacon, black and white pudding, mushrooms, sun-blushed tomatoes, poached eggs and sourdough toast, or indeed Eggs Benedict with organic Irish ham, toasted sourdough, poached eggs and hollandaise. The healthy options are there too, such as organic Irish porridge or Granola with all the seeds, nuts and yoghurt, berries your heart desires. Another great one is avocado beetroot toast with whipped feta cheese, chives, sun-blushed tomatoes & poached eggs. Expanding into brunch/lunch at weekends there are salads and toasties, omelette de Campagne, Hereford striploin steak frites or moules frites as well as roast rack of pork with cider, apple, celeriac & potato mash. Lunch is also served during the week with the above dishes.
Dinner swings into play from early evening with starters such as moules mariniere, or maybe ham hock terrine with egg, celeriac remoulade and toasted sourdough. Mains include a steak frites, this time with an 10oz Irish Hereford striploin, while pan-fried venison is with braised red cabbage, roasted parsnip & red wine, with gratin potato.