GAMBIENI'S

HEAVY ON THE SALT

The latest visit to Gambieni’s Restaurant in Carey’s Lane started well. We each had the Spicy Meat Balls, Tasty & Juicy Meat Balls in a Hot & Spicy Sauce. They lived up to the billing and we had no worries ahead of the main course.

The advisor ordered Pollo Alla Romano, a dish we’ve had on several occasions here before. It is Grilled breast of chicken topped with red onion, roasted peppers, mushrooms in tomato & red wine sauce. She tucked in but soon discovered a very salty taste indeed.

I had chosen the Pollo Alferado, Grilled chicken breast with mushroom, red onion, scallions, garlic in a creamy white wine sauce. Very salty also. So salty in fact that I thought they had mixed in salty rashers among the strips of chicken. I even checked it out in the dim light but no, the salt taste was coming from the chicken itself.

We advised the staff and they were astonished, didn't know where the salt had come from. They checked behind the scenes but no answer. We were offered free desserts but instead settled for a cup of coffee each on a rare disappointing night at this city centre venue.

HAPPY GROUP

GAMBIENI’S SERVE UP A TREAT

If ever confirmation were needed that a restaurant rather than a hotel is the place to go for group dining at Christmas, then I got it at Gambieni’s last Saturday night.

I had arranged for a group of 14 to dine at the Carey’s Lane venue and neither I nor my 13 companions (they all turned up) were disappointed. Both the service and the food were top class. The plates were polished off and everyone left with a smile.

Gambieni’s has been and is one of my favourite restaurants in the city. They do a good range of food from pastas to pizzas to steaks but the chicken dishes are a delight.

And pride of place here goes to the Pollo alla Picatta. I plumped for that again the other night (after a goat’s cheese starter) and it was top class. I wasn’t exactly watching everyone else at the table but the Adviser had a Pollo alla Romano (a tomato based sauce) and that too was superb. The chicken dishes by the way are all about the €18.00 mark.


We did have a bottle of white wine, a Pinot Bianco that I hadn’t come across before. It was a refreshing light drink and great value at €18.50.

Just one charming waitress looked after our table and she did it superbly, the service not too slow and not too rushed and it all added to the family occasion.

I’ll certainly be back and I’m quite sure that the restaurant picked up a few new admirers on the night. Well done, again, Gambieni’s. Not that I ever had any doubts.

DEARER THAN SWITZERLAND?

No. You won't be ripped off in Switzerland!

PRICE COMPARISON
CORK V INTERLAKEN

Gambienis in Carey's Lane is one of my favourite Cork restaurants. The others are Curran’s, Amicus and La Boqueria.

Just back from a Continental holiday, I visited Carey's Lane recently and, aside from the desserts, myself and the Advisor weren't disappointed.

We both know and enjoy the Rustica starter and we weren't let down on this occasion. It is described as: Warmed Mixed Roasted Vegetables & Mozzarella Cheese On Ciabata Bread Topped With Chilli Pesto Dressing. The main ingredients are usually the same but the others can vary a bit. Still, it is always a very good starter.

Gamienis do some excellent chicken dishes and I had Pollo Alla Romano: grilled breast of chicken topped with red onion, roasted peppers, mushrooms in tomato & red wine sauce. The Advisor had Barbecued Chicken with tomato, onion mushroom and chili. Both were excellent.

We could have done without the deserts but, able to resist anything except temptation, we dug in. Portions were generous and sweet but they were heavy going and not worth the money. That revolving cabinet could do with a re-shuffle!

Wine was a Pinot Grigio delle Venzie, Vaja. The blurb read: A very pleasant, characteristic bouquet. Soft and dry, relatively full-flavoured with a clean, fresh finish.

It was bought specifically to compare with a Pinot Grigio from a neighbouring Northern Italian district (Trentino) that we bought a week earlier in Connobio on Lago Maggiore. Have to say that the one bought in Italy (it cost €9.80 in a wine shop in the town) was much better.

Of course that bottle in Italy was consumed on a balcony overlooking a sunny Lake Lugano and that may have given it an extra edge. After all, the only view from Gambienis was a windy and cold Carey's Lane.

We didn't bother with the coffee and the whole meal in Carey's Lane came to over €82.00. How does that compare with the holiday prices? Much higher, of course, than the likes of Portugal but how does it compare with Switzerland, which would be regarded as one of the best off countries on the continent. The prices there though are surprisingly good.

By way of a guideline, take the meal we had on the main street in the very busy resort of Interlaken. A six course meal, along with a bottle of mineral water and a 50cl bottle of local wine came to €60.00 euro for the two.

The only complaint one could have had in Switzerland was the fact that they just don't supply tap water to the table. Since coming back, I have been given the following tip: if you ask for 'hahnenwasser' you will get tap water, though some restaurants can be more obliging than others.

For more Swiss prices see swissroll07.blogspot.com