metro
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metrolife Tuesday, March 6, 2012
D
life
Going Out Food & Drink
Staying In & Going Out ABOUT TOWN POP Rebecca Ferguson One year on from X Factor, the Scouse singer has succeeded where many runners-up have failed – her debut LP Heaven has hit platinum status, and this Dublin gig is sold out Tonight, Grand Canal Theatre, Docklands D2, 7pm, €36 to €42.05 (sold out). Tel: 0818 719 377. www.rebeccaofficial.com
READING Eoin MacNamee & Órfhlaith Foyle The new Peregrine Reading Series kicks off with the John Creed author MacNamee showcasing his most recent novel Orchid Blue, while Foyle dips into Red Riding Hood’s Dilemma and Somewhere In Minnesota Tonight, Irish Writers’ Centre, 19 Parnell Square D1, 7.30pm, free. Tel: (01) 872 1302. www.writerscentre.ie
THEATRE Love Matters Performed in Irish with live translation into English (except on Friday), Gary Mitchell’s new play is a tragi-comedy about a sink estate feud resulting from a felon’s wife having an affair with a detective’s teenage son Until Sat, Project, 39 East Essex St D2, 8.15pm, €10 to €15. Tel: (01) 881 9613/4. www.projectartscentre.ie
BOOK NOW CONCERT Swedish House Mafia
Comfort food Table Talk Gallaher & Co
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Customer service is a curious thing, at least when it comes to eating out. We’re all agreed that sloppy or rude staff are a complete no-no but we tend to be far more forgiving of service that is cheerful if a tad over-eager than that which is sniffy but otherwise efficient. A recent visit to a popular city-centre restaurant, which shall remain nameless, is a case in point; because management at said venue refuse to take bookings for fewer than six, we arrived on the dot of seven in the hope of avoiding disappointment. Yet, despite the place being more than half empty our swaggering maître d’ unapologetically led us beyond the firstclass tables to the steerage stools at a counter overlooking the kitchen (all well and good for a joint serving on-the-hoof snacks but not good enough for a €50per-head venue which, for this diner at least, constitutes A Major Night Out).
Compare this with Gallaher & Co, where our lovely waitress may have lacked experience – going so far as offer us a wine cooler for our bottle of Rioja – but was so infectiously bubbly and wellmeaning that I’d be rushing back for her company alone. Gallaher’s shares its name with the tobacco company that set up shop in the same building on D’Olier Street at the turn of the 20th century; in more recent years, the ground floor has been home to the fairly pedestrian pizzeria Mona Lisa. In its new gussied-up guise, however, it’s a much more appealing space where lowhanging black pendant lights and black leather banquettes don’t detract from the exposed red-brick walls. Management are also to be commended for a menu that, though simple, is well-executed, appealing to diners who may not necessarily be in a position to push the boat out (bangers & mash comes in at €8.95). My smoked mackerel pâté with toast melba was very nicely presented and quickly devoured, even if the pâté could have been a little more punchy. His bruschetta was unusual insofar as instead of a Tuscan-style bread base, large, airy focaccia slices came topped with
tomatoes and a grated cheese that seemed more akin to cheddar than mozzarella. Our keen-as-mustard waitress arrived with my lamb chop main course before I’d finished my starter, but if the dish was reheated once it was returned to the kitchen it certainly didn’t taste like it. The two chops were perfectly lean and flavoursome and potato wedges were oven fresh; my only gripe was with an overly tomato-y ratatouille that threatened to overpower the meat. His tuna loin special was superb, cooked rare (as it should be), lightly seasoned and with four plump prawns making ideal bedfellows. A sticky toffee pudding looked so much like a brownie I thought there must have been a mix up but the proof of the, er, pudding proved that what the dessert lacked in appearance it made up for in taste – and buzz-inducing sugar rush. Oh, and for what’s it’s worth, there’s a large counter surrounded by stools in Gallaher’s but in the words of our beloved waitress as we walked past it on the way in: ‘You’d be far more comfortable at a table.’ The bill came to €80. Daragh Reddin
Swedish House Mafia are headlining this Phoenix Park shindig but their fellow acts are not to be sniffed at either: Tinie Tempah, Snoop Dogg and Calvin Harris. The Mafia are known for club anthems Save The World and Miami 2 Ibiza but if his previous Irish shows are anything to go by, Snoop will steal this one. Tickets go on sale Friday Jul 7, Phoenix Park, Arbour Hill D8, 4pm, €59.50. Tel: 0818 719 300. www.swedishousemafia.com
Our keen-as-mustard waitress arrived with my lamb chop before I’d finished my starter
THE HOTTEST TICKETS IN TOWN
DINE IN THIS WEEK Your quick-fix meal courtesy of EasyFood magazine
We have three pairs of tickets to see PROTEST THE HERO tonight, Whelan’s For your chance to win, just answer the question below and text LIFE followed by your full answer, e-mail address and name to 53133 (texts cost €0.60 + standard network charge). Q. What is the name of Protest The Hero’s current album? A. Scandalous B. Scurrilous Terms & Conditions: The competition closes at noon today. The winner(s) will be chosen at random from the entries received and notified by e-mail. Entrants must be over 18 years of age. Usual Metro Herald rules apply. The editor’s decision is final. SP. Oxygen8, 4th Floor, Malt House North, Grand Canal Quay D2. Customer service number: 0818 286 606.
16A D’Olier Street D2. Tel: (01) 677 0499. www.gallaherbistro.com
Spicy Bean Chilli (Serves four) Ingredients: 90g barley; 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 large onion, chopped; 1 green pepper, deseeded and chopped; 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp chilli powder; salt and black pepper; 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes; 2 x 400g tins of cannellini beans, rinsed; juice of 1 lemon; 2 spring onions, thinly sliced; 1 jalapeño, deseeded and chopped. Method: 1. Cook the barley as per the packet instructions. 2. Heat one tablespoon of the oil in a large
saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and pepper and cook until tender, about 6-8 minutes. 3. Add the garlic, cumin, chilli powder and season well with salt and pepper. Cook until it becomes fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. 4. Add the tomatoes and 350ml water and bring to a boil. 5. Add the beans and simmer for about 8-10 minutes, until slightly thickened. 6. Stir the lemon juice, spring onions, jalapeño and remaining tablespoon of oil into the barley. 7. Divide the chilli among bowls and top with the barley.
WINE NOTES Cloof Inkspot Vin Noir Accentuate the spice with this peppery, brambly red from South Africa’s Darling region. Not too heavy but still packed with flavour, this will do the trick nicely. Was €10.99, now €9.89, from O’Briens