Go for the steak, but skip the aubergine Parmigiana, writes TOM DOORLEY.
THE PEOPLE BEHIND it tell us they are “delighted to bring you the best in modern Italian food with the opening of Frankie’s Italian Bar and Grill at Temple Bar Square – the centre of cultural life in Dublin”.
Whatever about the finest produce, “the best in modern Italian food” is, as you have probably guessed, not currently available in Temple Bar.
This is one of a chain established by Marco- Pierre White and the jockey Frankie Dettori. And, thanks to Fitzers, Dublin, just like Dubai (which it increasingly resembles, weather aside), now has its very own Frankie’s.
And what exactly is Frankie’s? It seems to be a stab at recreating the Italian-American trattoria in far-flung places. The chain’s hallmark, bizarrely, is an obsession with suspended sparkly disco balls which, alas, do nothing to cheer up the funereal interior of the old Fitzers in Temple Bar. Light levels are so low that it’s more a question of feeling than seeing your food.
Aubergine Parmigiana was one of the most repellent things I’ve encountered in several years – and believe me, the competition in this category is not to be sneezed at.
Instead of slices of aubergine fried in olive oil, sandwiched with mozzarella and topped with a rich tomato sauce and a generous handful of Parmesan, it was an abomination.
There were two aubergine slices swimming in a pool of thin, red liquid which tasted like a cross between rather poor tomato sauce and that stuff that comes in big tins and gets spread on pizza bases. Forensic examination, hindered by the low light levels, revealed traces of mozzarella, and what appeared to be an orange substance on top. And if I wanted to recreate the dish, perhaps for culinary Crimewatch, I’d throw the aubergines in a microwave.
This dish costs €10.95. The other starter, deep-fried squid rings, could have come out of any freezer, and the tartare sauce, as authentically Italian as the rest of this joint, had all the hallmarks of mass-production.
But stay! What was this? Amazingly, it was a rib-eye steak with outstanding flavour, perhaps a smidgin on the rare side of medium rare (rib-eye needs a bit of extra cooking to help break down the tissues, but I digress). There are not many steaks as good as this in Dublin. Shame about the tired Béarnaise sauce and pale, flaccid chips.
Real carbonara is made with eggs, fried pancetta and lots of fluffy Parmesan. It’s very easy to do but you need to keep your nerve: just drain your pasta, toss with the other ingredients and the sauce cooks itself.
At Frankie’s, they do a huge dish of tagliolini with a “carbonara” sauce that is mainly cream. It’s also “gratinata”, so the top is browned under the grill. For €16.95 you have the right to expect a lot of pasta and a lot of sauce, and I can confirm that it will fill to the brim even the most cavernous stomach.
And that the pasta (fresh, delivered daily from Galway), is properly al dente. Indeed, if it were not for the nightmare starters, I would be tempted to go back and try the pasta in a less cloying form. Other pasta dishes here cost €14.95 and that’s a lot for pasta, fresh or otherwise.
After struggling through a quarter of the tagliolini there was no question of dessert, even in the interests of science. Mind you, the thought of the nougat-based semifreddo al torrone with raspberry sauce was alluring, especially late on a Monday night in Temple Bar.
Service was exceptional and the bill for this meal, with two beers and a bottle of Chianti, was €98.25. tdoorley@irishtimes.com
THE SMART MONEY
That steak, with a glass of wine, would weigh in at just under €25.
WINE CHOICE
There’s a strange randomness about the list, as if it had been chosen by sticking a pin into wholesalers’ catalogues. However, our Chianti Rocca della Macie (€27) is very correct, if a little dearer than it merits. House wines are €22 which, in the current climate, is asking too much, especially for the Via Nova Garganega, which is marginally less interesting than San Pellegrino. Planeta La Segreta Bianca (€32) is delicious, but again, dearer than it should be. And Proscecco for €37? Gimme a break.
TEMPLE BAR TRATTORIA
Frankie’s, 42 Temple Bar
Square, Dublin 2
Tel:01-6790440
Wheelchair access? No
Read Megabites, Tom Doorley’s blog on all things foodie, at irishtimes.com/blogs/megabites