zMalahide is known to have a vibrant collection of restaurants, ranging from cosy French wine bars to more upmarket bistros, but the latest foodie haven on the block blows them all out of the water.
Old Street, a modern neighbourhood spot, has risen from the restoration of two of the oldest houses in the village that have been beautifully transformed into a rustic-but-super-trendy hot house of flavour.
I’d been waiting for ages for this place to open, mainly because one of the houses was in fact the old cottage where my granddad’s grandmother lived, and where he grew up as a kid, so as a family we were all fairly eager to bring him back to the scene of many a frantic childhood memory.
“The hen run used to be right over there”, he said as soon as we walked in.
In its place is a stunning sleek bar that runs half the width of the restuarant: this place is all exposed brick, bright wood and copper accents, an interior to envy any buzzing establishment in Brooklyn.
The menu aims for elegant dishes without all the pretentious fuss that sometimes comes with such high quality ingredients, and a la carte options include Scallops, Black Garlic Gel, Truffle Mayonaise, Apple and Celery (€15) and Chicken, Mushroom Caramel, Charred Lettuce, Asparagus, Caesar Emulsion (€23).