Talented young chef Grainne O’Keefe has taken up residence in the open kitchen above one of Dublin’s original wine bar-cum-wine shops, The French Paradox; her all-female culinary team despatches the flavour-intense seasonal menus, while experienced restaurant manager and sommelier Julien Chaigneau delivers the charming service and extensive wine knowledge. It’s a winning formula.
Grainne O'Keefe has serious form, as culinary director of Bujo Burger Joints (and their wildly successful meal kits) and former head chef of Clanbrassil House, where modern-Irish grilling was the order of the day. In naming her first solo venture after her late grandmother Mae, O'Keefe has given herself a steady compass to guide her style of cooking in this hotly anticipated 2021 opening.
There may be one or two ingredients or preparations on the the six-course tasting menu (€62) that Granny Mae mightn’t have recognised – the agnolotti pasta parcel, perhaps, which encases sweet Cais na Tire sheep cheese with leek and crisped Jerusalem artichoke. For the most part, though, it is good old-fashioned deliciousness that O’Keefe is pursuing here more than any quest for clever novelty. Yes there are contemporary twists, such as the addition of seaweed and Goatsbridge trout caviar to a classic pairing of pristine cod with beurre blanc, or swapping in tangy creme fraiche rather than whipped cream to cut the sweetness of a textbook apple tart tatin with Calvados.
At its heart, however, this is old-school cooking that any granny could be proud of, right from the opening welcome of snacks that set the tone. These are no tweezered art statements, but rather finger food of the most delicious kind: a mouthful croquette of Basque ham and gruyére cheese; a tuile basket of gutsy beetroot, goats cheese and pickled walnut; a bite-sized slice of brioche piled high with the freshest Aran Island crab bound in a delicate lemon aoili with wafers of black and red radishes for peppery bite.
The setting for all of this is a small, bright and casual first-floor dining room that mixes high stool seating and cushion-laden banquettes with lots of blonde wood and metallic bartops. Table settings are pared-back smart, with an emphasis on Irish craft makers: smart plate-ware is from up-and-coming Dublin ceramist Noel Byas, for example, while your meat course (Higgins beef rib, perhaps, with braised beef cheek, morels, celeriac and tarragon sauce) might come with a choice of bespoke steak knives from a bevvy of Irish knife-makers including Fingal Ferguson and Sam Gleeson.
The icing on this very lovely cake is surely the wide-eyed service lead by Julien Chaigneau, who has managed this wine bar space since 2008. Chaigneau knows these wines intimately, and it is worth ordering either of the wine pairing options (designed to offer a two-tier choice on price, at €35 and €50, and both excellent value for the quality) just to hear his evocative yet accessible descriptions of each wine he serves. With another dozen or so wines by the glass, and creative aperitifs such as a rosé pineau royal with lemon zest, there is plenty to explore on the French-focused list. All the wines are supplied by The French Paradox itself, which specialises in direct imports from small producers, and is run today by brothers Jacques and Patrick who in 2020 took over from their parents Tanya and Pierre Chapeau.
With such a small space as this and such a big name as O’Keefe's, securing a booking is not easy; get yourself onto their mailing list or keep an eye on their Instagram page for alerts as to the next upcoming release of online bookings, which get snapped up fast.
