Dingle has had no shortage of excellent restaurants in recent years (and some have become national icons), yet the regular visitor will always find a few new ones vying for attention on every visit.
One of the younger kids on the block is Mask (or, to give it its full name Mask Handcrafted Flavour), which was opened in 2018 by the ebullient Reggie Sweetman and chef Adam Haliniak in the premises previously occupied by Idás - and it was soon rated as 'one to try' by local guesthouses, which is a sure sign of consistently good feedback.
Set on a hill, the restaurant is in two rooms on slightly different levels and - although there's a contemporary feel to the smart darkwood tables with their warm red runners, fine glasses and acrylic salt and pepper mills - this, plus open stone and brickwork walls and white painted wooden celings, gives it a cottagey charm.
And there's charm a-plenty from host Reggie and his friendly team, who happily chat to guests about the restaurant and its food. To answer the inevitable question however (why Mask?), they've posted the simple explanation across a beam: the names of the owners' children, Millie, Archie, Sonya and Kaya... It's a lovely back story and chimes well with the focus on local provenance that underpins menus that are otherwise are quite eclectic in terms of influence.
Local seafood from the harbour features strongly of course, and meats from the renowned Dingle Butcher, Jerry Kennedy - including the famed Blasket Islands lamb if you're lucky (it's a very seasonal treat). With its uniquely salty island flavour, it makes for a memorable early summer rack of lamb, with heirloom carrots, broad beans and an 'earthy jus'.
Gorgeous Maharees vegetables come from just across the mountains, where they're grown in the sandy peninsular soil near Castlegregory on the shores of Tralee Bay. Local drinks feature too - Dingle gin is used for a speciality cured fish starter, with nigri, mooli and picked ginger, for example - and then there are artisan cheeses, from The LIttle Cheese Shop in the town - since it was taken over recently by Dingle Cookery School owner, Mark Murphy, the shop specialises specifically in locally produced cheeses and is well worth a visit.
There's a huge enthusiasm about Mask, which makes guests feel especially welcome - and, in addition to the great local food, that is its real USP.
Certainly one to try next time you're in Dingle.
