Christof's Blog: Review: Bite, Dublin

Long time no review, so I decided to give one of my restaurants from my Foursquare To Do-list a shot. I had read about "Bite" in an inflight magazine and thought it was worth a visit. Close enough to both the city centre and the docklands, it is a good starting point for a night out in Dublin. Especially as they advertise "Fish & Chips & Cocktails", the combination of heavier food and some aperitifs sound like a good combination.

The atmosphere: Bite looks comparably small from the outside, but it is actually huge and labyrinthine. It might well be that you have to pass through the service area to get to your seats. They have an army of black-tied waiters, which makes the place seem buzzing even if we were among the first guests that evening. Still the many different areas make a good table conversation possible and allow you to have some privacy with your date.

The noms: This new addition to the Dublin foodie scene follows the same principles as Crackbird and other restaurants of the Jo'Burger family: Keep your menu short and do one thing very well - in their case fish and chips. The contrast to these concept is that "Bite" aims to be more upscale. For my fish-averse friends there are also chicken and veggie options on the menu.

Upon arrival you get a bowl of free flavoured popcorn, which is a nice idea, but also quite heavy on the cholesterol side. We went for the Pil Pil Prawns (€ 6.95) as a starter. The prawns were good, but upon arrival I already suspected that the stack of herbs on top was a means to distract us from the fact that you only get four prawns of medium size. They were good and served in garlic oil the classic way, but thus also not really creative.

I had the Seared Yellowfin Tuna with Octo Vinaigrette (€ 17.95) as a main. The tuna was well prepared - pink on the inside with a touch of chargrill on the outside. The chili-based sauce that comes with it nicely complements the flavours of the high quality fish. Only downside is that the portion was tiny for the price.

Riin had the Lemon Sole Fried in Panko Bread (€ 13.95) which was not too fatty and had a very nice citrus note. The batter was very good, but I did not understand why it had to be served in a paper plate on top of the porcelain plate - maybe this is meant as a concession to the rather down-to-earth nature of the fish &chips-concept - but it still doesn't add to the dining experience and isn't very environmentally friendly. As a side we had the Parmesan and Truffle Fries (€ 3.95), which were to chunky for my taste and came with a pile of parmesan on top instead of the cheese forming a texture around the fries. They were ok, but I have seen better (chapeau to Joe Macken). They go well with their home-made red sauce, which was quite fresh, but Jo'Burger's still beats it.

A plus point for the fact that the sauces and pickles are all home made and come in cute little glasses. This adds a nice touch. Also you will find great crushed salts flavoured with chili, lemon and herbs on the table.

I also had a taste of the Rhubarb Panna Cotta with Gingernut (€ 4.95). It was very creamy and not set (stichfest) at all. The taste was nice, but it definitely did not meet the definition of Panna Cotta. Nothing special on the desert front, but ok value here.

The verdict: I still haven't grasped the overall concept of "Bite". Is it fish and chips goes haute cuisine? Then they have to turn it up a notch quality-wise. Or is it Do-one-thing-great-and-affordable like the Jo'Burger-Family - then it is a tad overpriced and too wannabe-upscale. Still worth a try if you like it fishy!

Ambience: 8 out of 10
Food: 7 out of 10
Value: 4 out of 10