As soon as I arrived at Dublin, I went to a historical pub, called Mulligans, to which John F Kennedy has been. It wasn't crowded because I arrived there around 2:00pm. Of course, I had to order a Guinness. I'm not an expert in Guinness and I don't remember when the last time was that I had Guinness, so I don't really notice any difference in taste. However, the nostalgic atmosphere of the pub makes the taste better.
I was a bit hungry then, but Mulligans doesn't serve food. Instead, the bartender (possibly the owner) recommended the small restaurant next door. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a table, so I made a reservation for lunch tomorrow. Hope it's good.
After spending the afternoon in the city, I went to a gastropub, the Exchequer. Gastropubs started from London as pubs that serve restaurant food. However, most gastropubs in the U.S. are considered to be upscale, hip and contemporary pubs. Although they're supposed to be pubs, some gastropubs in the U.S. don't focus on beers, but on wine and cocktails. So, I was curious to see what the gastropubs in Ireland are like.
The first dish was an appetizer platter, with chicken wings, falafel, croquettes and grilled shrimp. Unlike the U.S. gastropubs, the flavors were pretty straightforward. They were all pretty good.
The first entree was Hake, which is in the same order as cod and haddock. The skin was very crispy and the portion is pretty generous. When the plate was brought over to the table, I smelled some fishiness. However, when I had a bite, I didn't smell anything bad and the texture was showing the freshness. Throughout the trip, I found that much seafood from the coast of the British Isles has a strong smell of "sea" but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's not fresh. I'm guessing that's because of the seaweed that grows in the area. This was a very good dish.
Next was a lamb steak with celery root puree. European meat's "done-ness" is usually different from the U.S. standard. European (Italy and Spain, as far as I know) medium rare is more like rare in the U.S. However, I asked for medium and this steak looks medium in the US standard. I don't know whether it's just this restaurant or an Irish thing? Nevertheless, it was very juicy and had almost no gaminess.
Because I didn't find anything interesting on the dessert menu, I went for the Irish cheese plate (as dessert). I was a bit surprised at the generous portion. This cheese plate was listed in the dessert section, though..... Taste-wise, everything is mild and there aren't many characteristics to talk about.
The Exchequer is definitely more upscale than a regular pub, but not as fancy as the U.S. gastropubs. The decor was like modern restaurant, though.
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