Cookie FM Rating – 4.5/5
On Wednesday evening (February 10), I was invited to attend another #ZomatoMeetup, this time held in the luxurious Suesey Street. I was really looking forward to this meetup, as it was the first of the New Year with Zomato, but also because I love good food and with this group of gals, it’s always appreciated. Located at the top of Leeson Street, this restaurant has plush & sophisticated interiors, with a lounge bar and a fireside terrace that’s a truly hidden gem of Dublin City. The meetup event was organised by Aisling Byrne of Zomato, and her lovely colleague Karen Aherne also joined the soirée, alongside five gorgeous gals and I. We were welcomed by Karel Geoghegan, the House Sommelier, and shown out to their outdoor terrace where we had an apéritif by the fire. This terrace is beautiful, with sofas along the walls, cushions & blankets, tables & chairs and a roaring fire that’s truly perfect for a cold February evening in Dublin. Karel offered us a choice of white or red wine or beer, and I of course opted for a glass of white wine. Here, the girls and I were introduced to Wayne Cronin, the Suesey Street Events & Marketing Manager, who talked us through what our evening’s menu will consist of. We had a little chat before being seated inside at the top table for dinner where the cutest personal touches were on display; name plaques with our social media handles!
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The tasting menu we were offered included 10 dishes, from seafood to steak & pork pies to dessert. We started with the Dunany Crab Salad, which was such a refreshing little bundle of joy on a plate. It was served with radish slices and a lime crème fraiche, which really added to the light texture and zingy taste. It was so good I shared a second with Aisling! Dunany is a little village in Co. Louth, south-west of Annagassan, where I spent many of my summers as a child with my grandparents! Next up was the Salted Cod Brandade, which were crispy little balls filled with a perfect mix of cod, artichoke and herbs. A Brandade is usually an emulsion of salt cod and olive oil eaten with bread or potatoes, but this take on the French dish was just delicious! The accompanying yogurt sauce was refreshing with this too, and as a whole this was true comfort food.
We then tasted three small dishes; Buttermilk Purée, Potato Crisp & Goatsbridge Trout Roe and Crisp Chicken Skin & Kale. The first dish was a surprise as it wasn’t actually included on the menu, but it sure did taste good and I love to see buttermilk being used anywhere! It was nice & light, with its mix of buttermilk and yogurt, accompanied by crunchy potato crisps and sprinkled with kohlrabi. The second dish included fish roe, which is an ingredient I’ve not yet had before and as you may remember from my Blackboard Bistro post, 2016 is my year of trying new things! So I was pleasantly surprised that I liked the Goatsbridge trout roe, and its accompanying crunchy potato crisps and the creamy sour cream topped with dill were a tasty combination. The third of these mini dishes was possibly the tastiest; herb-spiced crispy chicken skin served with a truffle & hazelnut cream and crisp kale. Simple but so delicious!
We then moved onto the hearty dishes, starting with the Suesey Street Burger, which came on a freshly baked brioche bun, with caramelised onions, Romaine lettuce, a homemade relish, Hegarty’s cheddar cheese & Gubeen bacon too. The beef was cooked perfectly, whilst still being soft and worked beautifully with all its toppings. The bun was soft with a toasted top, though as I don’t eat a lot of bread, I only had one half of the brioche. Next came the Fish & Chips, which were breadcrumb-coated goujons of cod, with skinny-cut fries and generous dollops of tartare sauce. This was really delicious, such an Irish classic! Then we tasted the Pork Pies, one of the dishes I was most excited about trying as I adore meat in pies! It definitely did not disappoint, with fall-apart pork as a result of having been slow cooked with mixed vegetables & apple sauce, within a crisp pastry and topped with pickled red cabbage. It was absolute heaven. Everything worked together and I could easily have eaten two, or three more! To finish our savoury course, the John Stone Steak Sandwiches came out, which were cut into finger food sizes on ciabatta bread with a mustard sauce, watercress and caramelised onions. The rump steak was slow cooked to give a deliciously tender finish, and the ciabatta gave the dish great texture with its crisp outer and soft doughy inner.
After the mighty feast, we were spoiled with a surprise dessert of Warm Fig Bread that was served with milk ice cream. This little slice of fig bread had a beautiful texture to it, a crunch on top with a moist middle and a delicious honey & fig flavour. The milk ice cream was beautiful, and the right amount of simplicity with the strong-flavoured loaf, that was also accompanied by half a roasted fig. The dessert was also accompanied by a dollop of sour cream, that I felt wasn’t necessary to this dish as it only added bitterness, almost ruining the sweetness.
Overall this was a delectable tasting evening, and I will definitely come back to Suesey Street for more! The food is interesting with great flavours, a factor you expect from a high-class restaurant. This eatery also offers a 35-persons private dining room, the Suesey Suite, which was actually set up on our night for a party the following evening and is truly impressive. The service was top-notch; attentive & informative, with the house sommelier on hand for any questions. If you’re looking for fine dining, good wine and a tasty experience, stop here for lunch or dinner with family, friends & colleagues. This restaurant is also perfect for big occasions from anniversaries and birthdays to weddings, or looking for a special & intimate dinner with your other half, I do recommend Suesey Street.
Tried & Tested
Food
Dunany Crab Salad with radish, lime crème fraiche, dill & kohlrabi
Salted Cod Brandade with artichoke & yogurt
Buttermilk Purée & Potato Crisps
Crisp Chicken Skin with truffle & hazelnut
Potato Crisp with sour cream & Goatsbridge trout roe
Suesey Street Burger with Hegarty’s cheddar, Gubeen bacon on brioche bun
Fish and Chips (Catch of the Day: cod) with tartare sauce
Pork Pie with pickled red cabbage & apple sauce
John Stone Steak Sandwich with watercress, caramelised onion, tomato relish on ciabatta
Warm Fig Bread & Milk Ice Cream with roasted honey fig & sour cream
Suesey Street, 26 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2
Click to visit Suesey Street
THANK YOU TO AISLING & KAREN OF ZOMATO FOR THE INVITE AND BRILLIANT COORDINATION, AND TO Wayne Cronin & THE STAFF AT Suesey Street FOR ALL THE DELICIOUS FOOD.
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Images © Nirina Plunkett, Suesey Street, Zomato
*I did attend as a non-paying guest for this experience, but that does not influence the authenticity of this review.
Cookie FM 
Great review, very detailed, thanks Nirina!
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My absolute pleasure Lina! Thank you again, and hope to see you soon! xx
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