Just back from Paris (and our ill fated rugby match!) and I have to say we were all VERY impressed with the bicycle rental scheme that’s going on there! I had heard something about it on the news here before we left, and we were really looking forward to seeing how it will take off in Dublin.

SO how will they stop the knick-knacks sending them to a watery grave I hear you ask!

The way it works in Paris is: you go to one of the many bicycle stations (situated within a 300 meter radius of each other) pop in your credit card to lay down a deposit of €150 and then you purchase your ticket. You can purchase all manner of subscriptions to suit the length of your visit. The locals use a ‘smart’ card that you just swipe and go! Each journey is free for the first 30 mins, so what they are encouraging you do to do is use the bike to get to your destination and pop it back in the station. It keeps a majority of the bicycles in circulation for people to use.

It made getting around Paris a doddle – from the top of Rue St Denis to the Rive Gauche in jig time!

The bicycles themselves are tamper-proof, un-deflatable tyres with three gears and the essential bell to warn pedestrians of your arrival! We couldn’t find that much information about the Dublin scheme, but it seems like the same company are behind it. JC Decaux are footing the bill in exchange for a number of adverting spots around the city.

Having a sneaky early Friday in town, I rang Derv to see if she was around for lunch.
In a fantastic moment of inspiration she rang the Winding Stair to see if they had a table available!
So we trundled up to the small but airy restaurant for our lunch.
The room is really nicely decorated – simple and sympathetic to the building. You see the kitchen through the hatch at the back, and all there is lots of action around the bar on the side of the room.

After long deliberations I ordered devilled kidneys and Derv had a poached duck egg with hollandaise and asparagus. And we splashed out on a bowl of homemade chips with aioli. The meal arrived in perfect time (too quick – I get suspicious, too long – I get cranky!).
My kidneys were presented on toast with a extremely simple but delicious green salad.
They were perfectly cooked and had a really great flavour. I really took my time over them to savour the taste.
Dervla’s egg was perfectly cooked, which for me makes the dish! The chips were piping hot, and tasted as if they were cooked in animal fat. YUM!

Not long after we received our food we decided to have a glass of wine each. We ordered the Riesling from the blackboard behind us. Two very generous glasses arrived and it was very (too!) drinkable.

Meal finished we ordered coffees – I have to say mine was a little cold, but after jumping on the chips when they arrived and burning my mouth… I didn’t really mind too much.

The staff were friendly and attentive. Our waiter attempted to schmooze two ladies beside us. He was under the impression that it was working, but they didn’t seem that impressed

I could have ordered ANYTHING from the menu, it all sounded really delicious. Right up my street. The focus seems to be on good ingredients cooked simply. I cannot argue with that!

I will DEFINITELY be back!

Rating: food: 5/5, ambiance 4/5, service 4/5 and value 3/5 All in all 16 out of 20.

As someone who loves to eat new things, what is better than making it a regular event! So we got together a motley (mostly Dublin Blog) crew and trotted on down to Town Bar & Grill last night for our first night out. Firstly – there were a few ground rules: You have to pick from the early bird/pre theatre and you must only order wine from the house selection.

Righteo – starting from the start, our table for 8 was set on a table fit for 6. Which was a bit annoying as they have all the bells and whistles on the table, which leaves little room for anything else. The anything else came along as a selection of delicious breads with some fabulous olive oil for dipping. Moving onto the menu – we had to ask for the pre-theatre menu as only the a la carte was on the table when we arrived. Service was prompt, nothing too exciting, a bit lifeless at times. Everything came in good time and it was hot and fresh tasting. Even though we had been told at the time of booking that we needed the table back for 8, they left us sipping the rest of our wine until nearly 9pm.

I had the chowder with smoked haddock. It had plenty of fish, but I like my chowder a little thicker. But that is my personal preference. For some reason Foie Gras appeared on the antipasti plate. It was delicious, but it seemed a little out of place. For mains I had the risotto, which had quite an intense flavour, I would have liked something sharp to cut through the dense taste. The other mains at the table seemed nice. I managed to get my fork into them all. Colin’s chicken was just a tad overcooked, and I’m just not a fan of polenta. But they did it justice and made it palatable. Desserts were tasty & simple. The house wines came in at €22.50 a bottle (two white and two reds) and they were both decent wines.

Now to the bill! Just as Colin was totting up what each of us owed, he realised that there was a major discrepancy between the items on the bill and the final total. We brought it to the attention of one of the waiters, who took it from Colin and walked away muttering. He came back – muttering some bizarre explanation and gave us the new bill.

SO! My two cents: It was a pleasant dinner, but if I had paid any more than €29.50 for the food I think I would have most definitely felt short changed. I would give it a 3/5 for food, 3/5 service, 2/5 ambiance and 3/5 for value. Giving it a grand total of 11 out of a possible 20. I don’t think I’ll be back in the near future!

I’m really looking forward to the next outing!

P.S. Santa in Holland comes on the 5th of December!!!