After a whirlwind roadtrip around the countryside, we arrived back in Dublin for our five final days in Ireland. We immediately made a reservation at The Chop House restaurant for the next night. The Chop House had intrigued me for its modern Irish menu and focus on local products. I also liked the idea of getting out of the city center and seeing a different neighborhood – in this case, Ballsbridge. We opted to take a taxi arranged by our hotel to pick us up at 7:30. As usual, a friendly taxi driver arrived early and whisked us off to The Chop House is a 10-minute ride from Christ Church. After a long day of urban hiking, the convenience of the taxi was well-worth the 12 euro fare.
We pulled up to an unassuming yellow building on busy Shelbourne Road that had a house-like sensibility. Sliding past the empty patio seating, we immediately entered into a modern and buzzy space. We were warmly welcomed and escorted to the large bar in the back while we waited for our table to be ready.
After about 10 minutes, we were escorted to a lovely window table and began to peruse the creative menu. We quickly realized that we were sitting right next to a blasting heater situated under the table and were immediately uncomfortable. Our waitress was perplexed at our request to move from this optimal and toasty spot. But we knew from our dinner the previous night at The Green Hen, where we had to peel off clothing to be remotely comfortable, that this toastiness was a sign of misery to come. Mostly, we didn’t get the appeal of the overly warm rooms given that Ireland was practically in a fall heatwave. Nevertheless, our waitress was completely accommodating and moved us to another perfectly lovely table, sans view and heater.
The Chop House name is a dead giveaway that their specialty is beef. However, the gastro pub menu is quite broad and interesting, even for a pescatarian like me. Homing-in on courses of seafood and fish, we settled on a bottle of crisp Chablis.
I couldn’t resist starting with the Clougherhead Crab & Cucumber, Mango, and Green Chili Herb Salsa, that turned out to be a delicious piece of art.
C. and I both had the visually stunningly and delectable Pan-fried Hake atop Cauliflower Puree, backlit by a neon Apple Jus and festooned with Broccolini, Apple & Hazelnut Salad.
Reluctant to leave The Chop House, we lingered over a decadent, tangy and creamy Lemon Curd with Meringue & Whipped Cream.
The Chop House was well-worth the effort to plan ahead for a reservation and get off the beaten path. The food was as mouthwatering delicious as it was beautiful and inventive. After dinner it was easy to simply walk outside and hail a taxi back to our hotel. Pondering our meal as we nestled into the taxi for our 10-minute return trip, I was already thinking about when I would return to The Chop House.
