Showing 1-12 of 12 results
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Alilang
With elements of Chinese, Japanese and Thai cuisine, this Korean restaurant on multicultural Parnell St has plenty to whet Western appetites. Tasty dishes like padun (a seafood pancake) are brought to your table with gas burner, skillet and spicy marinade, for you to tuck in DIY-style, making the food a talking piece. Avoid the dull wine list in favour of the Korean Hite beer.
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Aya
Aya could be in downtown Tokyo, with its chic, designer ambience and revolving sushi bar favoured by anyone looking to gossip over raw fish and sake. Problem is, the sushi belt consists mainly of non-sushi bites; the few bits you do get are generally of the salmon and fake-crab type. If you want the real deal, you have to order à la carte, and even then it's not that brilliant. Still, it's a great place to meet and greet and it looks fabulous.
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Café Mao
Mao's often spicy mix of Vietnamese and Thai specialities, cooked to order and served with a musical soundtrack that declared its super-cool credentials, really did the business until a fire gutted the place in early 2006. A whole year and a half went by before the reopening, but once again Dubliners could feast on the likes of nasi goreng and bulkoko - best enjoyed al fresco in fine weather. A long-time favourite of the trendy lunchtime crowd.
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Diep Le Shaker
Diep le Shaker is a modern, light-filled space that is tucked down an alley off prestigious Pembroke St. It is popular with the local business crowd, establishment movers and shakers, and people generally consumed by their own self-importance. It's the ugly side of the Celtic Tiger. The predominantly Thai grub is inventive and excellent, but you get the impression you're paying for the company and it ain't worth it.
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Imperial Chinese Restaurant
This long-established restaurant is a favourite with the Chinese community and is noted for its lunchtime dim sum and its we-don't-smile-but-we're-efficient service. If you're looking for some genuine Chinese dishes in an authentic atmosphere, there's no better time to go than Sunday, when the Imperial serves brunch Chinese-style in what is known as yum cha, or 'drink tea', the traditional accompaniment to dim sum.
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Jaipur
A stylish and contemporary room sets the scene for some of the best Indian cuisine in town. Critics rave about the subtle and varied flavours produced by Jaipur's kitchen, which is down to its refusal to skimp on even the smallest dash of spice; what you get here is as close to the real deal as you'll get anywhere outside India.
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Monty's Of Kathmandu
It has won a ton of ethnic dining awards, but Monty's still leaves us a little flat. The food is good if not exceptional, focusing primarily on Nepalese dishes like gorkhali (chicken cooked in chilli, yoghurt and ginger) or kachela (raw marinated meat). The atmosphere is muted, but on weeknights it can tend towards the moribund.
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Saba
The name means 'happy meeting place' and so far this Thai-Vietnamese fusion restaurant has proven to be just that, packed virtually every night with all sorts tucking into the extensive Southeast Asian menu amid the kind of contemporary decor that screams designer cool. We thought both the menu and the look were good without being exceptional, but it's really popular, so what the hell do we know?
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Wagamama
There's ne'er a trace of raw fish to be seen, but this popular chain dishes up some terrific Japanese food nonetheless. Production-line rice-and-noodle dishes served pronto at canteen-style tables mightn't seem like the most inviting way to dine, but boy this food is good, and the basement it's served up in is surprisingly light and airy - for a place with absolutely no natural light.
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Wongs
This top-rated Chinese restaurant, 5km from the city centre, is a family-run classic with subdued decor and friendly service that raises the bar on warmth and courtesy. The menu is not especially adventurous - it sticks to tried and tested dishes that won't offend the conservative Irish palate - but what it does serve is generally excellent.
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Yamamori
Hip, inexpensive and generally pretty good, Yamamori rarely disappoints with its bubbly service and vivacious cooking that swoops from sushi and sashimi to whopping great plates of noodles. It's a great spot for a sociable group - including vegetarians - although you'll have to book at the weekend. They've recently opened a mostly-sushi branch north of the river that we think is just that little bit nicer.
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Yamamori Sushi
Sushi arrives on the northside and immediately proves successful, but that's hardly surprising considering that its southside sister has been doing the Japanese thang with great aplomb for a very long time. The menus in both are largely the same, but we prefer this newer location - right on the river - because it's just that little bit more airy and spacious. The bento boxes are popular, but we just can't get enough of the sushi moriawase.
Showing 1-12 of 12 results
