Lucinda O'Sullivan's Ireland

About The Restaurant

Easily accessible from the M9, the fabulous Tābú Tapas on Marsh’s Street, Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny, is certainly worth a detour. Chef/Proprietor Rodrigo Gonzalez, ex Head Chef at the Cliff House Tramore, is adding a bit of olé olé to Thomastown, delivering on terrific tasty authentic tapas – small and large – along with other dishes.

Bringing with him a superb culinary background, which includes the Cliff House, Rinuccini’s and Zuni, Rodrigo is passionate about his food, striving to provide the freshest and most flavoursome fare to his customers in a fun, relaxed atmosphere. Located super-close to the back gates of the glorious Mount Juliet Estate, Tābú offers a warm welcoming space with excellent attentive service from the moment you arrive.

Sat in the garden amongst colourful 'Dia De Los Muertos' Latin American statues, I greedily crunched on some Jerusalem artichoke, parsnip and sweet potato crisps, while I studied the menu. 

Besides from their small plates selection, they also offer a variety of hearty mains, so if you prefer the traditional starter and main course routine they have you covered. I opted for a selection of tapas, in the interest of trying more dishes, but it meant eschewing a tempting array of dishes such Black Tiger Prawn spaghetti, cooked in olive oil, garlic and chillis, and finished with Irish whiskey, as well as a monkfish steak cooked in brown butter and white wine and served with baby potatoes, kale and olives. There was pork belly, served with sweet potato and red cabbage, beef short rib with garlic potatoes, mushrooms and charcoal Yorkshire puds, not to mention a 16oz rib steak cote de boeuf. My meal, however, consisted of several delightful smaller dishes.

As soon as the plates arrived, I knew I was in for a treat, and I was. Guacamole Bites were cool and refreshing crisp baby gem leaves holding diced avocado, fresh chopped tomato, corn chip crumbs, red onion, garlic & lime juice, while crispy calamari bites with salt and lemon zest had a great sorrel aioli dip.  Pil Pil prawns in EVOO with garlic and fresh chillis were whole, and proved utterly delicious with some toasted baguette, and plenty of napkins and finger bowls. Meanwhile, my hasselback style patatas bravas were addictive stuff, the four large squares of potatoes, sliced deep down to the base, deep fried and centered with a spicy tangy tomato-based sauce.

There’s cocktails, mocktails, beers and wines galore, but ever the responsible driver, I stuck with water. Delighted with my visit, I hit the road again, already eager to find an excuse to revisit this superb Tapas restaurant. 

Map

Send to a friend

Member Comments

Please log in to add a comment. Click here to log in or sign up