Restaurant Review - Beeftro
Wednesday 11 September 2013
Is it mere coincidence that in a recession people love to snuggle themselves up beside the security of a humongous steak? Certainly we are seeing plenty of new beef eateries hitting our streets.
Beeftro, a purveyor of “Viandes de Qualite”, is a new eatery in Dundrum Town Centre. It started in Monaco as the less expensive sibling of Beefbar, owned by Riccardo Giraudi, a European meat importer who, unable to find steak restaurants to his satisfaction, started his own. Now he has branches in Moscow and Mexico with Berlin in the pipeline. The atmosphere in Beeftro is more Art Deco Parisian café style, than down on the Pampas, with wonderful lighting and a specially imported signature tiled floor.
John Collins and Peter Gaynor of Capital Foods Ltd, who operate with Clodagh McKenna her restaurants in Arnott’s Department Store and Clodagh’s Kitchen in Blackrock Shopping Centre, are the team behind Beeftro here. They also cleverly secured Ryan Bell, ex Head Chef at Shanahan’s on the Green, so I guess you couldn’t get a better man to cook your steak or burger.
With a Franco/New World twist to the Beeftro menu, Starters/Light Bites €5.50/€12 include carpaccio of beef sporting caper lemon jam and popcorn shoots, whilst pork ribs are combined with chicken wings. Truffle and mixed mushroom have a Pont L’Eveque dip and, of course, there is French Onion soup! Friend Kate kicked off with warm salad of flaked confit duck (€9) tossed with green lentils, gooseberries, and Sherry vinaigrette, which was served in a snazzy black French onion soup bowl with a handle. This would actually make a very good Light Bite, or lunch, if you wanted to go down the route of smaller plates. The same could be said for my large salad of fresh crab and roasted calamari (€9.50). It handsomely covering a rectangular slate with three quenelles of crab mayo, chargrilled rings of squid, beetroot, greenery, shredded carrot and red onion.
Steaks come in cuts, sizes, and prices from €17 for a 300 gram sirloin rump steak to a ginormous 800 gram rib steak cooked on the bone at €69.50 for 2. Fishophiles can choose from wood fired grilled Sea Bream, Hake & Shrimp Gratin, and there is a 600-gram Half Crispy Free Range chicken.
‘La Tagliata 200 g Top Blade’ is served sliced in a copper gratin dish with either Roquette and Parmesan, surf and turf, or with mushrooms, fried potatoes, garlic and Chimichurri dressing, which was Kate’s choice at €24. You also get to choose the silkiest potato puree from six flavours – Natural; Sel de Guerande with gravy; smokey BBQ; Bacon and crispy onion; Truffle; or Kate’s choice, Jalapeno Chilli – which she loved. AI had a200 gram filet mignon (€29.50) which was top drawer perfection sitting toute seule with a swirl of beef jus. Sauces were extra €1.50 and I had a classic Béarnaise. Eschewing the potato puree for a side salad, Kate and I fell like kids on a totally sinful ‘deep frying basket ‘ overflowing with crispy onion strings (€4.50).
We shared a raspberry and lemon dessert (€6.50) with lemon and raspberry sorbets, lemon curd, and fresh raspberries. With a bottle of House Chateau Gaudou Exception Cahors 2011 (€28), a large still water (€5) and two coffees (€5.50), our bill with service came to €135.00
The Monday – Friday Menu Express 12.pm – 6pm offers French Bistro classics at €14.
The new credit card terminal was giving trouble. However, they noted my credit card details and put them through when their problem was sorted. That’s called service. <ep>
Beeftro,
Pembroke District,
Dundrum Town Centre,
Dublin 16.
Tel: (01) 298-8874
FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE SUNDAY INDEPENDENT
www.lucindaosullivan.com