Lucinda O'Sullivan's Ireland

About The Restaurant

Eileen Dunne & Stefano Crescenzi are the couple who raised the level of casual Italian dining in Dublin thus formulating the successful Dunne & Crescenzi “brand”. It is a very simple concept really, but like all of these things has to be done well, an amalgam of good charcuterie and marinated vegetables in oil, decent breads, pastas, olive oils and wines, served with panache. They started out a few years ago with a little shop in Sutton, realised they had an eager dining public looking for good casual food awaiting, spread their wings, about which I remember writing back then, and now their tentacles, as they say, spread far and wide – so popular are their eateries.

A ground floor premises in South Frederick Street, in the shadow of Trinity College walls, was their first venture in 1998. It only had four or five tables where you could enjoy really nice coffee and a glass of wine along with some Italian charcuterie and cheeses but the people of Dublin took it to their hearts and the rest is history. They were passionate about their food sourcing which they did from small Italian producers and it is still the same today.

Over time they took over the premises next door thus enabling them to double the size of D & C to cope with the demand. This is a place now that is a hive of activity, people enjoying good Italian antipasti plates and wine both inside and outside at the tables under their perky awnings. It is just a great place to meet friends, or kick off with breakfast if you have come into town on the Dart, or for relaxed food at night. It is almost a Dublin institution now.

Breakfast D & C style consists of really good coffee maybe with croissants, or pastries, or toast with Parma ham or Asiago cheese and honey. If you like to kick off your day with fruit they do a lovely fresh fruit salad. Start your day either with an egg – organic scrambled eggs to be precise - with either a croissant, toast, Italian bacon, Buffalo mozzarella and smoked speck, mushrooms, smoked salmon – what more could you want.

They have a really tremenduous selection of foods at the D & C mothership. The favourite antipasti plates are there with selections of salumi and cheeses in various shapes and forms reasonably priced but you can get an amazing range of cheeses such as mature Tuscan pecorino cheese DOP with vine leaves, or flavoured with chilli peppers or mushrooms. They also have mature Pecorino cheese flavoured with peppercorns or matured under ash. Polenta here is also a speciality, they are typical of the north of Italy. You can have polenta, mushrooms, Gorgonzola cheese and extra virgin olive oil, or grilled polenta with spinach, Italian bacon, extra virgin olive oil, or with smoked ham, Asiago cheese and the oil. They do lovely salads and that apart there is also a Mozzarella Bar. Think of a delicious platter of Buffalo Mozzarella with chargrilled peppers, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, basil and warm bread. They also do cow mozzarella, which is lighter than buffalo, with fresh ripe tomates and basil. Another speciality is artisan salamini imported exclusively from Salumificio Villani by Stefano and Eileen – so think artisan salami flavoured with Barolo, or with truffle, or salami of wild boar meet, or with chilli.

In the evening they add specials to the menu such as sword fish loin with cherry tomatoes, pine nuts and aromatic herbs, or fillet of beef either grilled with olive oil and rosemary or with leek sauce served with a choice of contorno – side orders.

They also do risotto with clams, courgettes, saffron, flat parsley and white wine or delicious ravioli filled with Gorgonzola and mascarpone cheese. They do a fab Fettuccine nero – squid ink fettuccine with ocopus, tomato sauce and aromatic herbs.

Don’t forget to leave room for puds – Torta di Capri – a rich chocolate and almond cake served warm, or homemade tiramisu with vin santo. Yum.

Go visit this Italian legend in Dublin.

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