Review: Bear, Dublin, Ireland

I have to say I was especially eager to go and try out this restaurant. First of all, it is the Jo'Burger family's latest love child (after the famous burger joint, Crackbird and Skinflint) and apart from that it is a steak restaurant. So after making burgers, chicken and meatballs incredibly awesome, steak - in itself the king of man grub - was going to be the next target in order to make the world a tastier place. And I wasn't disappointed...

The atmosphere: Bear can be found where Crackbird (in it's second hatching phase) used to be on South William Street. What it inherited from it's predecessor (now to be found on Dame Street) are the uncomfortable bar stools (I still have the feeling I am supposed to eat and make space for the next round of hungry (Twitter-)followers). But apart from that the interior is a lot nicer - dominated by brown and white tones that allow you to focus solely on the food without being distracted. Other reminders of Bear's genealogy are the superb lemonade in huge glasses and the fact that all male waiters are very... let's say flamboyant. In this case they come with Western shirts and ribbons on the collar to go with the steakhouse theme. Another nice addition is the open kitchen, which allows you to see all the grilling action and get your taste buds prepped for the feast.

The noms: We were three, so we ordered everything to share to get a good idea of what we like. I love the fact that the steaks come with original Opinel No. 9 knives from France - I had one of these in my boyscout days. Unfortunately you can't keep them (unless you want to pay 20€)
We ordered one of the special cuts - the Onglet (24.95€ - serves two) as well as the Rosary Cut (from the Ribs - 10.95€) with Million Dollar Fries (6.50€) and some Saute Kale & Garlic (4.50€) on the side. The Rosary had a lovely charred taste and some fat on the side - it reminded me a bit of pork belly. The Onglet is a good portion for two if you are having sides and especially the end pieces were super juicy and nice. The special cut has a bit of fat in the middle, which ads to the flavour, and is a very tender variety of beef - suitable for a filet lover like myself.  The highlight were the Million Dollar Fries though, which can only be described as fried potato gratin on a stick with truffle oil. Let me bathe in it!

The verdict: Bear offers great value steaks and sides that round up the whole experience. The bear's den itself is dark as expected but has a nicer atmosphere than e.g. Skinflint.

If you are as hungry as a bear, I can only recommend trying this out. Choose whichever steak you like, but definitely (!!!) have the Million Dollar Fries (even though they are pricey for a side)

Ambience: 8 out of 10
Food: 9 out of 10
Value: 8 out of 10

Bear from the outside South William Street)

The Onglet - enough for two

The open kitchen

The Rosary Cut

The Million Dollar Fries

Review: The Hungry Monk Bistro, Greystones, Ireland

While it is still icy cold in Germany, Ireland is already mild enough to have a walk on the beach - which is how we ended up in Greystones and in a nice place called The Hungy Monk today. As I am often asked for restaurant recommendations and eating out is a one of my favourite hobbies, I thought I might start blogging about my culinary adventures. So here it goes:

The atmosphere: There is a downstairs bistro and an upstairs restaurant. We had lunch in the bistro. It is nice and small, but what I really liked is that it was quiet, even though it was very busy -they are expanding in March. What stands out are the paintings of monks on the wall, which can become rather frivolous in the restrooms, which are called "The Convent" and "The Monastery" to go with the theme.
The owner is very nice and omnipresent, he addresses the guests by their name, even if he has just read it on their credit card.

The noms: I had Pork Bangers with Lentils, which were promoted as a house specialty. The sauce could have been a little stronger in flavors and I would have liked more lentils, but the sausages were great quality and reminded me of the small bratwurst variety you get in Nuremberg. All in all an OK value at 13 €.
Riin had the Wicklow Lamb and Crumbled Feta Burger - a nice bite with not too strong a taste of lamb. Her sauce would have benefited from a tad less dill and the ciabatta bun was mediocre - one more point in favor of baking in-house. The chunky fries on the side were a little soft, but then again that is my taste, Riin likes them that way - all that comes at the usual Dublin price of 14€.

The highlight actually came before that in the form of the starter we shared: Portobello mushroom fritters with garlic aioli! The big chunks of mushroom and a rich sauce are ideal for sharing and you get it for just 6€.

The verdict: A few minus points have to be mentioned. My Diet coke came in a can, which is not very classy and more fitting for a take-away, also, tge tea wasn't the best brand. Big minus for the10% service charge, which applies no matter how small your party is. The portion sizes are just right and the Deserts (which we haven't tried) are a good selection of the usual subjects in Ireland and cheese platters.

All in all no reason to become pious here, but you can do worse if you like to indulge in earthly pleasures.

Ambience: 8 out of 10
Food: 6 out of 10
Value: 5 out of 10

The Lamb Burger

Bangers and Lentils

My favourite: Portobello Mushrooms

Look at the downstairs bistro

The Hungry Monk

Petra, Jordan

I am still behind on my plan to blog once a week, but at least I am not running out of topics. I still have to share our trip to Petra with you.

To be honest, I was rather reluctant to shell out around 200 Euro for a day trip and getting up at a crazy time, just to add another stamp to my passport and see one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World" (I still think the election for these was a little skewed), but it was definitely worth it!

But first things first: Getting up at 3 a.m. is something my sleep cycle is never happy about - driving over an hour in a cramped bus didn't make it any better and a lot of fog that prevented us from seeing the sunrise from the ferry from Nuweiba to Aquaba in Jordan did not make me happier. Still the ferry ride was enjoyable as it was rather empty and we were able to take a nap there and we learned that Egypt uses old Tallink-ferries that have been going between Helsinki and Tallinn on this route. Mostly because all the signs are in Finnish and Estonian and there was a map of the Estonian capital on the wall.

After another bus ride with the obligatory "toilet break" at a gift shop to earn our tour guides living on commissions, we finally arrived in Petra. The tour of the main part takes you through a valley first and then into a narrow canyon that was used as the main entrance to the city that was built around 1200 BC by the Nabateans. First, you are impressed by the enormity of the canyon and the natural beauty of this passage carved out of the rock by a river. You start seeing more and more structures carved in the wall until finally the canyon opens up and you can see Al Kazneh, the Treasury, which is the most famous and probably most photographed building in the city - which didn't keep me from shooting some pictures of it myself.

After we had finally survived the "official" part of the tour - including a stop in a cafe/gift shop - commission, you know - Riin and I finally had some time to walk through Petra on our own. We were very lucky as February is not the busiest season anyway and due to the "Arab Spring" fewer people travel to the Middle East. This even allowed me to take some pictures without Japanese tourists jumping in front of my lens.

In conclusion, I think what makes Petra a real gem and worth visiting, is the fact that it is both a natural and a man-made "wonder". The colourful stone canyon alone would probably attract tourists, but with these impressive buildings carved out of the rock it is really unique (well, not quite, as there is a quite similar sister city in Saudi Arabia, which is closed to the public though). If any of you has the chance to go to Petra, you should definitely do it!

Coloured Canyon /Dahab / Sinai / Egypt

As we are just back from our desperately needed holidays, here are some pictures from Dahab - Sinai/Egypt. We have had a great time of which I tried to spend as much as possible under water or with a good book.

One thing I always love is how Western media exaggerate things like riots and sometimes even terrorist attacks. Egypt is quiet (at least when you are in the touristy places) and at the moment it is great to go there as many hotels, trips and other things are cheaper because of the repercussions of the "Arab Spring".

I will post pictures from Petra soonish to space out my posts a little bit - and yes, I will try to blog a little more again in 2012. The pictures below - except for the boat and the hotel are from the Coloured Canyon close to Dahab.