My first jetlag night in Dublin and I had been struggling to stay awake since my 6am arrival. Six weeks before I had brazenly decided to book theater tickets on my first night in Dublin, as part of my strategy to maximize performances of the Dublin Theatre Festival. When “Spinning” ended around 10pm, I had a second wind…and I was hungry.
Cleaver East sits on the quiet end of Temple Bar in the cultural district.
I walked three easy blocks from the Smock Alley Theatre to Cleaver East in the Clarence Hotel, which I was pretty sure would be open at this late hour on a Tuesday. The Arts district, just a couple of blocks west of Temple Bar, though nearly deserted was rather peaceful on this chilly fall night.
When I arrived at Cleaver East, the dining room was thinning out, but they seated me at the banquette under the large warehouse windows. I had found Cleaver East on my first trip to Dublin and fell in love with its modern high-ceilinged industrial space, low-lit, hip ambiance. But most of all I fell in love with the delicious, conceptual small plates.
I had been craving their lobster dumplings for the past year. Yes! They were still on the menu. The dumplings arrived first, bathing in a tangy lemongrass broth with pickled Enoki mushrooms. Still delicious, but undermined just a touch by a lukewarm broth.
Next was the perfectly poached, tender and translucent salmon sitting atop a grapefruit hollandaise. The grapefruit twist was simple and inspired, although the use of yellow grapefruit underscored the fruit’s bitter notes – but still excellent.
For my third dish, I opted for a healthy twist on Fish and Chips with roasted fish, fried zucchini rather than chips, hovering over a swath of refined mushy peas.
The Poached Halibut was delicate and melted in my mouth.
I ended with an Irish Ardrahan cheese from Cork.
Surprisingly, given Cleaver’s attention to detail on the food, its wine by the glass selection is fairly uninteresting and limited, making it difficult to satisfactorily pair the wonderful food. But all in all, a perfect way to end my first day back in Dublin.
I try to hit Cleaver East whenever I’m in town. Since my first visit to Cleaver East, its style has changed from a small plates approach to more traditional mains. While Cleaver still has the same creative approach and tasty food, I kind of miss the small plates that allowed me to try a range of dishes.
On my last visit, I was anxious to share the lobster dumpling experience with my friend CJ – and okay, selfishly I needed one more fix. Even two weeks later, the lobster dumplings were gone! – replaced by shrimp dumplings with same lemongrass broth and tangy Enokis. Okay, this was as close as I was going to get, so we placed our order. They were very good – but not as mind-blowing as the lobster version. Broth perfectly warm.
We had a late reservation so the evening’s dining was winding down. With the updated menu, I had questions for our elusive waitress who seemed more interested in folding napkins for the next day’s service. Perhaps a function of the late hour and she was ready to head home. Luckily, our distracted waitress was soon replaced by a friendlier version, who happily answered our interrogation of the new menu items – staff friendliness has been my typical experience at Cleaver East.
The poached salmon was also gone, so instead I opted for another delicious and creative roasted salmon dish over tender and creamy herb gnocchi.
CJ had the butter poached chicken with Parmesan crust.
And since I adore Colcannon, I couldn’t resist it in the clever fried version in the form of Croquettes.
Housed in the Clarence Hotel, it also sits across the hall from The Octagon Bar. The Octagon so named for the shape of its bar is a perfect meeting space set in a cozy, library-like lounge with the same Cleaver East exposed brick warehouse space.
I have been a fan of Cleaver East since my first trip to Dublin in 2013 when I popped my head in late one fall night to see if they were still serving. Sitting at the bar for a casual dinner, three small plates, and a couple of glasses of I wine, I was captivated – and hooked. While the candlelit ambiance sets a cozy nightlife atmosphere, its not the best for food photography.
Cleaver East set the bar high for me that very first night, and has continued to be on point with each successive visit. When Cleaver hits that perfect storm of taste, inventiveness, ambiance, and service – it is one of my favorite restaurants. The menu is always changing so, I’m already anticipating what’s going to be on their changing menu the next time I’m in Dublin.
