The Drury Buildings: Not Dreary At All!

The Epic Sojourn back to the big shmoke may be over but the posts most certainly are not …

The hip exterior of the Drury Buildings (find the mustache!)

Last Thursday was date night in Dublin and I being a lucky lady was double-booked! After spending the requisite time adoring my new haircut (and self mwaha) in the mirror at Davey Davey, I rocked on to the Drury Buildings with my bestie E for date numero uno. I had heard mixed reviews on this relatively new endeavor by Declan O’Regan of L’Gueuelton/NoName, but was intrigued by its graffitied exterior and trendy NYC-vibed interior. The “buildings” as such are laid out over two floors, with casual dining on the first floor and the full restaurant upstairs. The upstairs restaurant was full on the evening so we sat downstairs. We were informed immediatley however, that we could order from the upstairs restaurant if we wanted. Right away, E and I were impressed by the staff’s conscientiousness.

Shnazzy interior

E and I perused both the casual charcuterie-based downstairs and entrée-based upstairs menus and settled on going with the upstairs pre-theatre. The pre-theatre has a 2 and 3-course option, eur22 and eur28 respectively. We went for the 2-course, both opting for the Winter Vegetable and Cannellini Bean Broth, Pecorino, Parsley Pesto starter. The broth was simple and delicious: clear, clean broth with great seasoning and a layer of fresh green pesto and parsley floating amidst the beans and cubed root vegetables. It really got our taste buds excited for the main course, which is precisely what a starter should do! For mains, E went for the Medallions of Beef Fillet, Jerusalem Artichoke and Porcini Gratin, Chianti Jus (an extra fiver but hey it was date night!) and I for the Baked Aubergine (eggplant for you stateside readers), Bulgar Wheat, Toasted Almonds, Coriander and Natural Yoghurt. The service got another special nod here as our server made extra care to ensure E's medallions were cooked well done for dietary reasons. The beef still remained tender, and E really enjoyed the artichoke and porcini gratin as well. A side dish of root vegetables, potatoes and kale was served as a tasty surprise as well. I am pretty particular about ordering vegetarian mains, but my baked aubergine, was a real winner. The Eggplant was perfectly cooked, tasting meaty and moist, and served on an ample fluffy pile of bulgar wheat. The drizzled yoghurt was creamy with a hint of garlic and the almond slivers added a nice crunch to the dish. I honestly don’t think I’ve had a better vegetarian entrée since my visit to Candle 79 on the Upper East Side last year!

Veg broth starter - aww yeaaaah

Beef medallions - get in there!

Baked aubergine - hungry yet?

Veg side - for health!

Being so impressed by 2 courses, we decided to split a dessert and got 2 spoons for the Blood Orange and Campari Cake, Chocolate and Orange Ice Cream. Definitely a great executive decision and super morish. Again, I’m not a huge fan of orange and chocolate, but this dessert almost all but nixed my reservations for the combination. Delish!

Dessert - some serious Vitamin C

After some really delicious food and memorable conversation, it was almost too difficult to end date #1 but on to the International Comedy Club I went. As for the Drury Buildings, date night or any night, it won my vote for a yum-tastic experience!

The Drury Buildings
52-55 Drury Street
Dublin 2
Ireland
+353 (1) 960 2095