Dublin's Dawson Street is one of my favourite thoroughfares. Wide
and airy it's as close as you'll get to a swish European boulevard
in cosy Dublin. Best of all, the street has one of the best selections
of bars and restaurants in the city. The La Stampa group of establishments
provides the street with its top attractions in my book. There's
something for everyone. Sam Sara bar and café offers booze,
coffee and light food in a chilled Moroccan milieu, the stylishly
revamped La Stampa is ideal for a grander feed and, in the basement
below, Tiger Becs boasts one of the best Thai menus in the city.
We chose a Wednesday night to indulge and the place was buzzing
with a mix of sorts. Hip couples, groups of well-groomed ladies
and casual work colleagues sat comfortably in a space that proves
the power and importance of good design. This was not an easy
place to fit out. The long, low, lower ground floor room should
have been a disaster to dine in but, instead, it's one of the
town's most pleasant restaurant spaces. Neat velvet chairs and
banquettes provide comfortable seating around a mixture of round
and oblong tables. White table cloths and one soft white wall,
broken by a multitude of triangular niches with nightlights throwing
out dancing candlelight, reflect the soft lighting, while the
opposite mirrored wall widens the whole prospect. Carved fretted
wood panels hang near the bar and the floor varies from herringbone
terracotta brickwork to a lovely swirling blend of terracotta
and marble. It's Tangiers meets Thailand in a very successful
meld of styles. Best of all, somebody had the good sense to invest
in good air conditioning and while the streets of the city outside
had nothing to offer but haze and a horrible chilly clamminess,
we were fresh and cool in Tiger Becs.
Our table was halfway down the restaurant, just past the bar in
front a nice terracotta brick fireplace. We were led to it by
a friendly waitress who handed us over to a perfectly attentive,
efficiently pleasant waiter.
Now the food. To be honest, I had arrived with certain reservation
about Tiger Becs. I'd heard a few quibbles about the place, which
opened last November. But we can all have our teething troubles
and , thus far, the atmosphere and staff had impressed my fellow
diner and I. Glad to say , the food was great too.
By the time the starter arrived, we had successfully demolished
a large bowl of fresh, flavoursome prawn crackers and were happily
sipping glasses of lovely Thai Tiger beer. The Tiger's Tale a
selection of appetizers for two, was a veritable platter of old
favourites done well. Chicken satay, little eggy fish cakes, crispy
little spring rolls, prawn spring rolls and prawn toast came with
a selection of the appropriate dips. The satay sauce was a good
example being not too sweet and packing a nutty punch. The sweet
chilli had a good balance of honey tones and chilli heat. It was
a great interactive start to dinner with picking, dipping, biting
and chatting oiled along by the cool glasses of beer. Top marks
to the house.
Choosing a main course was no easy task. The menu is longer than
usual in European Thai restaurants, and with a good deal more
variety than we're normally offered. Best of all the seafood options
go beyond the half dozen king prawn dishes, although these are
on offer. But seabass, salmon, scallops, Dover sole and lobster
offer and impressive choice for the fish lover. But we went for
land mammals. Pork with ginger, spring onion and pepper for me
and a sweet lamb curry for the lady.
The pork was delicious. Stir-fried strips were well matched with
the veggies and a rich, brown, slightly oily sauce had a clean
fresh flavour to it. There was heat there and slices of red chilli
offered the chance of a rush to those with a more robust palate.
Good though my mainer was, the star of the evening was the lamb
curry. It was one of the best oriental dishes my companion had
ever tasted. The sweetness came from a good, subtle, possibly
acacia honey while the sauce also held a fresh coriander flavour.
Tender chunks of lamb were perfectly cooked and pieces of sweet
potato added to the volume of what was a large bowl of the stuff.
Each of us had a generous bowl of steamed rice to accompany and
neither of us had room for dessert.
The lady's need to relieve a baby-sitter meant we couldn't linger
over coffees in Tiger Becs, which was a shame really. The place
provides a great backdrop for dining, chatting and unwinding.
If the restaurant had a rocky start, then it's well and truly
over it from what I saw. The décor is great, the staff
excellent and the menu would take an awful lot of visits to tire
of. There's a good selection of wine and a tempting cocktail list
if you want to make a night of it and I reckon I'll be sailing
back soon enough to do just that.
Bill for two (with four bottles of Tiger Beer and two large bottles
of sparkling water): €76.30
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