A Warm Welcome and Stunning Food at Greene’s Restaurant
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| Cod |
Walk into the warm welcome at Greene’s on MacCurtain Street. Take in the plush new interiors, from cascading plants and luxurious velvet seating to eye-catching warm lighting. You have some marvellous food to come, served with a smile and attention to detail throughout your meal.
We didn’t have a seat by the waterfall window, but we could still see the
Sunday lunch with a difference at Greene’s Restaurant
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| Halloumi |
Greene's restaurant has undergone many changes in the past year, but its commitment to local producers remains strong. New Executive Head Chef Nicolas Alegre and his team are putting a Spanish and South American twist on the menu, with stunning results.
Alegre is using local produce from Twomey's Butchers, Glenmar Fish, and Ardsallagh Cheese, and others, to create dishes that are both delicious and innovative. His Slow-cooked Twomey's Pork Belly with black garlic, hibiscus, cauliflower puree, and bechamel sauce is a must-try, as is his Glenmar Salmon Peruvian Tiradito with coriander oil, lime sauce, and onion salad.
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| Tiradito |
Super Flavours and Textures
The flavours and textures in Alegre's dishes are simply superb. The pork belly is tender and juicy. The salmon is fresh and delicate, with a hint of spice from the coriander oil and lime sauce.
Tiradito: A Peruvian Dish with Japanese Influences
Tiradito is a Peruvian dish of raw fish, cut in the shape of sashimi, and served in a spicy sauce. It reflects the influence of Japanese immigrants on Peruvian cuisine. Alegre's Tiradito is a perfect example of this fusion cuisine, with its delicate salmon, tangy lime sauce, and crunchy onion salad.
Last Sunday we were back at Greene's, where the experienced Ricardo Pinto heads up the front-of-house staff, for lunch We were greeted warmly and our coats were taken and hung up for us. We were soon seated at our "usual" window seat, with its beautiful view of the waterfall.
We opted for the regular lunch menu, which is a four-course meal for €42.50. The same menu is also available as an Early Bird, but be sure to check the website for times.
We started with a delightful amuse-bouche of mini fish cakes with a lime sauce. This was a lovely surprise and it set the tone for the rest of the meal.
We also had the breads, which were served with a delicious honey butter with sweet pepper and lime. The breads, white and brown, were fresh and crusty, and the butter was the perfect complement.
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| Pork Belly |
The super flavours and textures just kept coming. My starter was the Slow-cooked Twomey’s Pork Belly (with black garlic, hibiscus, cauliflower puree, and bechamel sauce) while CL picked the Glenmar Salmon Peruvian Tiradito (with coriander oil, lime sauce, onion salad).
Both were absolutely top-notch. They looked so appetising and the promise was delivered.
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| Cod |
The fried fish of the day was Cod and that was accompanied by Pil Pil Vasco (Basque) and Spinach. Quite a lovely piece of fish, the cooking was spot on. My pick was the Grilled Halloumi, seasonal vegetables, and curry (Ras el hanout grilled halloumi, Indian chickpeas, curry). Another beautifully presented dish and it didn’t flatter to deceive - very happy with it.
You can have a side with each of the mains and we enjoyed their Honey Roast Root Veg and Triple Cooked Fries. Rosemary Baby Potatoes and Buttery Mash were also available.
The Woodruff set cream pudding is a long-time favourite dessert here and is still on the menu! But this time, we choose the Burnt Basque Cheesecake, enhanced delightfully by blackberry textures.
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| Basque cheesecake |
A big thumbs up for the dessert (and the coffee) and for the meal in general! If you are looking for a four-course Sunday lunch menu that is a bit different from the norm, and is both delicious and affordable, I highly recommend you check this out!
The Lunch Menu
Begin
Ardsallagh Goats Cheese (with apricot, candy walnuts, roasted oats.
Slow-cooked Twomey’s Pork Belly (with black garlic, hibiscus, cauliflower puree, bechamel sauce.
Glenmar Salmon Peruvian Tiradito ((with coriander oil, lime sauce, onion salad). Vegetable Tisotto (with Aioli and vegetables).
Spanish Asidillo (with fresh mix lettuce and pickled vegetables).
Mains
Pan Fried Fish of the Day (Pil Pil Vasco, Spinach).
Striploin of Twomey’s Beef (Smoke Mash, Broccoli, Café de Paris Beef Sauce).
Grilled Halloumi, seasonal vegetables, curry (with Ras el hanout grilled halloumi, Indian chickpeas, curry).
Mint and Spinach Risotto (Stir-fry spinach).
Sweet
Chocolate and coconut cream (dark Chocolate, Toasted Coconut, Dark Chocolate Sorbet).
Woodruff set cream pudding (Caramelised apple, oats, vanilla ice-cream)
Burnt Basque Cheesecake (Blackberry Textures).
Selection of sorbet
To Finish
Freshly Brewed Tea or Coffee
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| Chef Jonathan |
Rising young chef Jonathan introduced us to his country's food.
Pisco, more like a brandy than a whiskey (because it is made from grapes), is the spirit of South America’s wine regions. We got introduced to it at last week’s amazing Peruvian Food evening in Greene’s where our chef was none other than Jonathan Ordonez, a Peruvian himself and whose restaurant in Madrid, Paschi (based on the cuisine of his country), is proving to be quite a hit for the young chef.
At Greene’s, Jonathan was joined by their Executive Head Chef Nicolas Alegre and they crafted an incredible evening inspired by modern Peruvian cuisine.
We had our first taste of the Pisco in the welcome cocktail and the last at the end of a rather special evening with some Pisco jelly, a rather, livelier jelly than usual! In between, we had nibbles and plates of outstanding food, colourful and flavourful. And that includes even the butter that came with the bread, a delicious blend of coriander, lime, ginger and butter of course!
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| Chef Nicolas |
Perhaps the most eye-catching early snack was the Bloody Mary with Pisco Sorbet, especially as it was cooled by a spray of icy nitro not that it cooled its flavours! Other bites we enjoyed were Stirie-fry Wagyu with Potato Espuma, Amazonian Crist and Andes Mountain Range.
There was no rush here and after the opening selection,m we were guided to our tables where selecting the wines was the first bite on the agenda. Greene’s have quite a list but I made it simpler by staying in South America,m beginning with an outstanding TerraMater Sauvignon Blanc from the Maipa Valley in Chile and ending with a superb Domaine Bousquet Malbec from Argentina. Nothing Peruvian on the list!
Starters
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| Potato Causa (with avocado and shrimp). Lovely starter with delicate texture and flavour |
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| Smoke Hot Ceviche with yellow Peruvian green rice. I've never had sea bass that tasted as well as this gem. No wonder the ceviche is a hit at his restaurant in Madrid. |
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| A superb piece of cod served with Northern Peruvian Green Rice. The rice, by the way, is not green, but the name comes from the coriander that is blended with it. Coriander seems to be a favourite of the chefs here and popped up a few times |
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| Peruvian Lamb Huatia with vegetables. Think slow-cooked in a closed pot. The result is roughly similar to beef featherblade or Irish stew. They use the neck of lamb and its own jus. Tender and delicious, great Malbec match. |
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| Chocolate and Stout (with Lucuma gel and chocolate powder) in a fog of cold nitro that really enhanced the dessert! The stout, by the way, was the local favourite Beamish! |
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| More Pisco at the end, the jelly topped by flowers. |
Greenes Restaurant Celebrates Peruvian Cuisine this week with
Guest Chef Jonathan Ordoñez
Nicolas Alegre (left) of Greenes Restaurant, Cork; Jonathan Ordoñez of Paschi Cocina Peruana, Madrid.
Jonathan Ordoñez will travel from Madrid and join the Executive Head Chef of Greenes Restaurant, Nicolas Alegre, for an evening of Peruvian cuisine on Thursday 12th October.
In Nicolas Alegre's first year at the helm of the team in Greenes kitchen, he has developed the menu to include a Latin American influence paired with the classic dishes the restaurant is known for. This Thursday, 12th October, Nicolas will welcome guests for an evening of food and drinks celebrating Peruvian food.
Peruvian Jonathan Ordoñez is a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu Peru, he worked in a number of prestigious restaurants in his home country before travelling to Madrid to share the flavours and culture of Peru in his restaurant Paschi Cocina Peruana. Paschi Cocina Peruana is described in the Michelin Guide 2023 as ‘Paschi opens tastebuds to the flavours of Peruvian cuisine, with the occasional nod to Chinese and Japanese cooking’.
The event takes place on Thursday the 12th of October, with limited spaces available. The price is €75 for the tasting menu with an option of wine pairing for €42.50. To reserve your table book via greenesrestaurant.com.
For more information, see the website www.greenesrestaurant.com
Fish:
Kelly's Oysters at Monks Ballyvaughan
Fish Pie on Scallop Shell at Tom Crean's Basecamp, Kenmare, Co. Kerry
Glenbeigh Hotel Seafood Mariniere (salmon, prawns, mussels, white fish)
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Poultry
Nash19 Chicken Crispy Chicken Confit of Leg with Korean Dressing and Charred Corn
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Dessert/Pastry/Cake
Passionfruit and White Chocolate Mousse at Holly's Kilkee
Greene's. Impeccable Delectable Lunch By The Waterfall
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| Mackerel |
Always a pleasure to dine at Greene’s. And last Saturday’s lunch was no exception. The sun shone on the sparkling waterfall alongside and the superbly cooked and presented dishes matched and even enhanced the mood of the long and lazy afternoon.
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| Lamb |
The kitchen team here, under Bryan McCarthy, have long recognised the excellence of the local produce and utilise their skills to get the very best from what comes in. And this lunch menu, available Saturday and Sunday, is a prime example. Three amazing courses, with choices, for €32.50. They also do a 6-course Tasting Menu (€55p.p., plus matching wine €42.50), available to order by table only.
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| Hake |
We two are checked in, as per current guidelines, and are soon seated in very comfortable chairs at our comfortable linen topped table and studying the menu. There are four starters on offer, five mains (with extra sides) and four desserts or an Irish cheese plate.
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| Goats cheese |
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| Raspberry |
West Cork Lamb Shoulder, artichoke, chicory, spiced coffee rub was one of our mains. That lamb was so tender, you could have had dined with a spoon and the combined flavours were impeccable, the ensemble perfectly executed.
Our other mains was Pan Fried Hake Fillet, sea vegetables, dillisk, dashi cream. The fish was white as could be, moist and delicately delicious, again enhanced by its accompaniments, even though CL is not a great fan of creamy sauces with fish! Both mains came with a bowl of shared potatoes and vegetables. The two plates and the bowl were returned empty.
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| Lemon Parfait |
Indeed, everything went back empty (well maybe not the bread - always wary of eating too much bread early on!).
I got a superb starter: Cured Mackerel, sorrel, gooseberry, sea vegetables. The three plump slices of mackerel came “swimming” in a green lagoon (gooseberry and mackerel are a traditional pairing) and it was a tartly delicious treat, so much so that I used an extra piece of bread to mop up the sauce!
You can often study a menu and you form a picture of the dish in your mind. But that picture is rarely accurate when Chef McCarthy is the “painter”. And so CL was ambushed, in the best possible way, by her gorgeous Goats Cheese, hazelnut, apple, summer berries.
We were asked to pick our desserts at the start (but also had the choice to leave it until later). I first put my eye on the Chocolate Cremeux Mousse but, with the fruit in season, selected the Raspberry, Mascarpone Mousse, sable biscuit instead. It turned out to be an excellent choice, very happy with it as it glided in and down.
The other dessert was Lemon Parfait, strawberry, basil and biscuit another perfect dessert, light and easily dispatched. In quite a few places, dessert can be too heavy, a "killer" at the end of the meal. Not the case in Greene’s where their colours and their fine flavours combined with a lack of density means they bring the excellent meal to a perfect finale.
Out then to the sun and a stroll around MacCurtain Street where they are eating outdoors from the likes of Gallaghers at one end to Thompsons at the other. And in between, there's so much more, including the Harley’s Street Market (with its food trucks and rustic seating), abuzz in the August sun. Maybe not the best of times but not the worst either.
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| MacCurtain Street newcomer: REZz |
