LaCucina

On 7th July, in our continuing request to establish the definitive guide to eating out in County Louth, the S.R.'s headed south west to Smarmor- a few miles out from Ardee. LaCucina is situated in the courtyard of Smarmor Castle, which in turn is situated in a lovely rural spot. The sun was shining as we walked through the courtyard to what was once stables or tack rooms and which had been converted to an Italian restaurant. The pretty surroundings confirmed my anticipation of a good evening as LaCucina had come well recommended. Alas this happy mood was not to last.

We had booked (unusually) so when we arrived and were left stranded, it was a little upsetting. No seats, drinks, menus or apologies were offered as we stood and watched empty tables been given to people who arrived after us.

While this was not the best start, all of the S.R. gang are professionals and we quickly put this bad impression out of our minds when we were (eventually) seated. Perhaps due to its popularity that Sunday evening or perhaps due to a physiological problem, the seating was arranged for maximum capacity rather than for the enjoyment, privacy or comfort of the diners. It was arranged like a school room refectory and had the acoustics of the school room refectory as well. It was also cold. Despite these drawbacks, we maintained our high spirits.

I had garlic mushrooms for starters. They were slow to come but were delicious. Simply cooked in garlic butter but very tasty. I also tasted some of Gonzales' garlic bread. It was the nicest I have ever had. Again very simple- some garlic butter on really heavenly pizza type bread. Doesn't sound much but was really tasty and greed inspiring. (They do take out pizzas and if you are in the vicinity of Smarmor - get one.

At this point I have to talk about the service. It was the worst I have ever come across. Firstly the waitresses were pretty horrible. They were sullen, surly, inefficient and clearly indicated that they better things to do than wait tables. Not one pleasant word or smile was squeezed out of them the whole evening. Here is an example; Rapheala asked for water (probably twice) and eventually a jug was plonked on the table. She then had to get the attention of the girl and asked for a glass. She came back and plonked out one glass! So we had to ask for glasses for the rest of us. In due course, they were thrown at us. I don't know how many times we had to ask for more water. I can't remember if we ever got it!. And the temperature was getting colder!

So after waiting maybe 10 minutes plus to be seated and perhaps another 15 minutes plus for our starter to arrive, we were estimated it might be another 20 minutes for the main course. We had been optimistic! It was about 45 minutes and an hour and half after we arrived. At this stage even the most cheerful companions are wilting. I was also starving. It was now freezing and my jacket was back on.

I had ordered lasagna. It came in an oval dish without anything else. (Yes, I know that seems to be an Italian thing). It would have needed to be pretty good to have counteracted the wait. Sadly it was almost inedible. The tomato sauce was nice, there was a bit too much cheese but that was OK, the pasta was well cooked. The missing ingredient was the meat - it was virtually missing ie non existent! I don't know if they just ran out of mince or forgot it or what but cheesy pasta gets a bit stodgy after the first few mouthfuls - also it was not very warm. So a big thumbs down there.

The desert was mostly those generic things that Italian restaurants have so I didn't bother. The service remained slow and rude. The price was reasonable and some of the other dishes were very tasty so I guess I shouldn't be totally negative about LaCucina. On a very quiet night (and avoiding the lasagna) it could be quite nice and I think the pizzas could be amazing but on a Sunday evening - a definite no! Rating 2

Task #1 update and Task #2

Update on Task #1 - finding out entertaining alternatives to eating out that we would all enjoy.

Result: Broken Wing looked into horse riding, spa treatments and cookery courses in the Castle Leslie estate, Monaghan. Dancer looked into movies at the local cinema. Raphaela looked into Powerscourt, Straffan Butterfly farm, the Irish National Stud and plays. No conclusion was made on whether to take up any of these outings.

Task #2 - Before our next meeting, each member of Stardust Ratatouille has to do something new and different that they have never done before.

Meal #2 - La Cucina, Smarmore Ardee

For tonight's evening out we ventured further afield to La Cucina, the restaurant in Smaremore Castle, a short distance outside Ardee town. The road to Ardee from Dundalk is quite windy and bumpy, and those who are prone to travel sickness might find it difficult. It was a very busy evening for the restaurant when we arrived with most of the tables occupied. The restaurant is situated in the old barn of the castle stable block and there isn't much room for tables to begin with. There are a few shallow steps that have to be negotiated to access the restaurant so it might be difficult for wheelchair users, but shouldn't be too difficult for those merely unsteady on their pins. Despite booking and arriving on time, we were made wait for our table. This was understandable, as they were busy, but we got no apology for having to wait and several groups who came into the restaurant after us were seated first, which set the evening off on a bad foot. Also, if we had been given the menu to look at while we waited or if we had been offered something to drink, it might have made the wait sweeter. However, instead we were left standing in the entrance to the restaurant, in view of all the diners and in the middle of the route to the kitchen with lots of waiters walking past us, which was not pleasant. The overall impression was that the establishment was stretched beyond capacity and no one could cope. I have been to La Cucina before and was pleased with it then, so I think this is an unusual situation rather than the norm. We were finally seated. The tables were very close together to make maximum advantage of the limited space. The barn had been nicely converted and the decor was pleasant, with bright colours and plenty of black and white prints and soft lighting. However, the chairs were not very comfortable, especially for long lingering meals, and there were spider webs around the edges of the rooms. The menu was typical Italian with a range of pasta, pizza and meat dishes. I shared a starter of garlic mushrooms with Broken Wing and sampled some of Gonzalez's garlic bread (vampires beware!). Both the bread and the mushrooms were delicious, although the presentation was non existent. For my main meal I chose steak, and once again there were no objections to serving it well done. The meat dishes came with a choice of potatoes, but I asked for a side order of vegetables instead and got more garlic mushrooms and extra onions. The meat, mushrooms and onions were really delicious - good, unpretentious food - however, the lack of presentation again let it down. The only home made dessert on the menu was Tiramisu, although there were a selection of packaged desserts which seem to be available in restaurants all over Europe (in my limited travel experience, anyway). I am not a fan of Tiramisu, but chose to sample it and shared it with Broken Wing. It was sweet, gooey and pleasant and my only criticism of it was that I don't like Tiramisu. I also had a cappuccino, which was pleasant, and helped myself to the basket of mints near the till on the way out (not the whole basket, of course).

Now, I cannot fault the food, and I liked the decor and the relaxed, friendly atmosphere of the other diners (at one point, nearly all the people at the tables around us were talking to the other people at the different tables around them) but the service was another matter entirely. The waiters were sullen, unfriendly and gave the impression of people called in on a favour to help with the crowd but would rather be anywhere else but there. When we ordered drinks, I ordered a jug of water for the table. The drinks came and I got a jug of water and a single glass. I had to ask the waiter twice for another glass before she brought one and even then she didn't bring extra for my other two fellow diners. We also had to wait a long time for our food. Well done steak always takes a while, but we were waiting for a lot longer than usual. I would have put up with this if we had at least got a smile or an apology from our waiters.

I liked La Cucina the last time I visited and I would certainly highly recommend its food, but on this performance I regretfully rate it 3/10 - OK, I suppose.

McBrides cont...

To get back to what i was trying to say; our blog group set off to McBrides on a rainy Sunday evening. The restaurant was upstairs over a pub but- and i will emphasis this for those who are always a little wary of restaurants over pubs- it is a real restaurant with not a trace of pub grub about it. Not that I'm knocking pub grub but its a genre of its own. I always think that food is only a small part of a good night out, an extremely important make or break part but still only a part. The most important ingredient, in my opinion, is the company- but the company can only shine and sparkle when it is comfortable (warm but not hot, airy, nice seats, no overcrowding, not over loud but not empty etc etc), when the service is pleasant (polite, attentive, not in your face) and when waiting does not take the edge off the appetite or put the edge on the impatient. I have to say, McBride's gave my lovely company plenty of opportunity to shine and sparkle. We were given a lovely round table in a corner, the temperature was pleasantly warm all evening and all the staff couldn't have been nicer. A little aside, regular readers of this blog will soon discover that I have a bit of a thing about the temperature in restaurants. For some reason I often find them quite cold and it always ruins the evening for me. Sometimes I think that I am cold because of the bad evening and at other times I think it is the cold that ruins the evening. To digress further, I once saw an episode of The Outer Limits where hell was portrayed as freezing cold (an unusual concept i know) I could relate to it as I always see cold as not only painful and uncomfortable but as alienating and distancing as well.

Enough of my ramblings. Our maitre'd took our drinks order while we pursued the menu. I went for vegetarian. The bad news was that there was only one vegetarian dish (i am not a veggie but i think they should have a choice)- the good news was that it was delicious. It was vegetables in a pastry case. An awkward one to get right and they got it perfect. The vegetables were tasty and the pastry light and crisp. Nothing soggy and no heavy creamy sauce(which can be lovely with pasta or meat but never with pastry). The helping was just about the right size and i had no trouble eating all of it with relish. I would certainly have it again although I probably would try one of the other tempting dishes.

While there was no hovering around or intrusive spying, our plates were removed and the desert menu proffered at just the right time. I was recommended the creme brulee but went for the sticky toffee pudding. As everything was so lovely up to now, I was more than usually disappointed with the desert. The pudding was a small dry muffin type thing with a bit of toffee sauce. The sauce was delicious but not sufficient to moisten the hard dry little muffin. A pity

I had cappuccino- which was fine as was the glass of house white.

Overall I would give McBrides an 8 out of 10. The ambiance, service and (mostly) great food over weighing the dodgy desert and price (it was quite expensive). You could bring anyone there and be fairly sure of a good evening out as everything did combine to relax the company and get the conversation flowing.

P.S. I hope you like the pictures- I always think a good picture improves a blog and I have no pictures of either McBrides or food.

P.P.S. All the main dishes came with a choice of potato type and vegetables. You know the little dishes with carrots, mange tout and sweet corn. Well the maitre'd asked everyone if they wanted their veggies (no one did). I liked that touch. So many times I have seen those little dishes remain untouched for the whole meal and I always think 'what a waste'.

McBrides

The inaugural Stardust Ratatouille Outing (SRO) took place on 23rd june in McBrides Castlebelingham.

Task #1

Not only are we four adventurous food critics, we also set ourselves tasks at each of our gastronomic outings that have to be completed before our next meal together. For our inaugural meeting our tasks are to look into alternative outings that we can go on together as a group - such as plays of interest, concerts, movies, ornate gardens and other entertainments that discerning people like ourselves might be interested in. Check in after our next meal to see how we get on.

Meal #1 - McBrides, Castlebellingham

Ah! The inaugural meeting of the Stardust Ratatouille superheroes! For this evenings refreshment we headed to Castlebellingham, a small hamlet not 8 miles away from Dundalk. McBrides is a pub on the main street, with a long history as a drinking establishment. It serves hot meals all day in the pub downstairs (it is basic pub grub, but of a high standard. Gonzalez and I tried it out a few weeks ago) and more high class meals in the restaurant up stairs in the evening. The outside of the pub is attractive cream and black and it looks newly painted. Parking is a problem, however, and you are lucky if you get a spot along the pavement in short walking distance to the venue. Entrance to the restaurant is via a small porch and up a steep flight of stairs, which is not very friendly to those with mobility issues. Once in the restaurant, the decor is very pleasing with nice decorations and touches of rustic charm. The chairs and tables are wooden and comfortable. The atmosphere is created with soft light and soothing music and is relaxing. We were greeted by a very friendly woman who showed us to our table and took our drinks order (always a good sign when a restaurant takes a drinks order while you peruse the menu imo). The menu was quite restricted, but all the meals sounded very tempting. I chose Steak for my main course, which they cooked well done without a quibble (I know technically steak should always be pink in the middle, but I hate when a restaurant refuses to do your steak well done. You are the one eating it - and paying for it - so what are they complaining about?). It came complete with onion marmalade and potatoes and was delicious. For dessert I had been advised to try the Creme Brulee, but I found none of their desserts particularly tempting (although they all sounded nice) and decided to just go with a cappuccino, which was warm and frothy but a little too bitter for my taste. The staff were very attentive and pleasant throughout the meal, without once rushing us or being obtrusive. A good place to dine, I would give McBride's 7 stars out of 10 - expect a good evening out.