Restaurant Review - The Magpie Inn
Monday 14 November 2011
Ever more we are veering towards the casual relaxed value dining ethos with good Tapas, Italian, and Gastropubs all flying. We have always wanted to dine like our Continental neighbours on a regular basis on reasonably priced simple food and now, with an abundance of casual eateries, particularly in Dublin, it seems many are doing so. Coming out of town any night through the South William Street area you can hardly get through the crowds of young people around Castle Market flocking into the bars and restaurants, and it is the same in Dame Street and George’s Street.
Gastropubs are judged now by diners as severely as restaurants – they are not any much cheaper than bistros or brasseries so the grub has to be wholesome and cooked with a certain flair, unlike the old pub grub world of meat and two veg. However, there is a place for that too – unlike some I don’t turn my nose up at the carvery – many people love it and use it as a daily staple. However, the subject of my attention today is a new Gastropub in the upmarket celebrity village of Dalkey, Co. Dublin, home to Bono and Pat Kenny et al and they all like to eat out too!
The Magpie Inn, formerly IN, has been taken over recently by Rachel Clancy, originally from Kilkenny, who has been involved in the Dublin restaurant scene for some fifteen years or so and knows what she is about. We really liked the atmosphere created in the Magpie and there were an awful lot of local faces tucking in there. “The lamb is really fantastic” wheezed one of them unsolicited as she stood outside the door puffing a fag between glasses of vino with her girlfriends. She should know being married to a one time prominent figure of the restaurant industry.
Starters €6/€10 included fish cake with citrus and chilli served with capers and lemon mayo, whilst seatrout and mackerel terrine had citrus cream cheese. Chorizo, red onion, Cashel Blue, chickpea ,and wild rocket salad (€8) was a whopper with diagonally cut shards of chorizo laid on the ample compound ingredients listed and would make a fine lunch in itself. Brendan’s somewhat unusual starter of paprika confit of pork belly (€7.50) had me salivating. Succulent slices of caramelised crispy belly sitting on pickled red cabbage topped with apple marmalade. I can see the doughty men of Dalkey doffing their cap to Ms Clancy to be fed with this.
A dozen Mains €15/€24 had pan seared hake fillet on sweet pea and chorizo risotto; Moroccan organic lamb burger, sesame yogurt, tomato, lettuce and chips; whilst split gambas came with chive butter, seasonal vegetables and spuds. Brendan immediately hopped on Tempura of haddock, thick chips, chunky tartar and pea puree (€16) but I had been lured by the “fantastic lamb” which was a slow roast rump served with seasonal vegetables of carrot and broccoli with mash potatoes red wine & Dijon sauce (€22). Despite the inclusion of chickpeas in my starter, and a Moroccan lamburger on the menu, I hadn’t up to that point copped on that the chef here is Hadi Fahes who is Lebanese, and whose food I have had and enjoyed before, and on realising this I asked for a stirfry of vegetables with a good whack of hot hot harissa paste added. A delicious melange of peppers, red onions, mushrooms, and green beans, ensued topped with sublimely tender tranches of rump, seared on the outside, and pink in the middle. The food was nice but I would really like to see some more North African dishes on the menu as we don’t have anything much like that really in Dublin – never mind the Borough. Puds were sensibly priced at €6 and I had an interesting lemon carrageen moss pudding with glazed rhubarb and ginger and rhubarb icecream.
There is a comprehensive interesting lunch menu and brunch at weekends. Our bill with optional service, a pint of Guinness (€4.50) and two glasses of Pinot Grigio (€6 ea) came to €88.50 and the glorious thing was that nobody was rushing us to get the table back.
The Magpie Inn,
115 Coliemore Road,
Dalkey,
Co. Dublin.
Tel: (01) 202-3909