I have to say, I’m taken totally by surprise at how quickly I relax into the room. Yes, it’s all gilt mirrors, chandeliers, deep patterned carpets and plush velvet chairs; the sort of place where, if you have to ask (the price), you can’t afford it. But there’s something gloriously refreshing about a restaurant that is so comfortable in its own un-Botoxed skin. Where the gold leaf is on the stucco, not the steaks.
I had expected garrulous bellowing, “send him down” toasts, and the muted sizzle of heated tongs opening last century Bordeaux, but instead, it’s a hum of chatter, with tables just far enough apart to allow snatches of overheard conversations, without the full Julian Assange. And Frank Sinatra, crooning “it’s my kind of town”.
It’s a Tuesday night in November in Shanahan’s on the Green in Dublin – weekend nights are booked out until mid-January – and the room is practically full. Full of men, that is. The lights are bright enough to aid the exhaustive “sign here, and here, and here” on what must be a 50-page document that is being attended to at the table beside us; bright enough to allow me to do a brief count of the women in the room. There are eight.
Part of the joy of eating in a steakhouse like Shanahan’s is that ordering borders on “would you like fries with that?” There are no kitchen tours, Himalayan pink salt installations, or bovine dental records to be inspected. It is essentially transactional, as long as you’ve waded through the zeros on the wine list and unearthed an affordable bottle. A Domäne Wachau Grüner Veltliner (€49) works with the meal, with a glass of Bodega Roda Rioja (€20) to go with the steak.
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Warm bread arrives to the table, a whole cheesy loaf on a wooden board, with a corn muffin; a veritable challenge to prepare for what’s ahead.
To keep our appetite sharp, we start with light courses, a Caesar salad (€12.75) and a jumbo shrimp cocktail (€23), both steakhouse stalwarts. Caesar salad is all about the dressing, it should have a balance of anchovy saltiness and acidity, which this does, but the stalks on the Romaine lettuce have that giveaway pink tinge of leaves that were torn apart too early in the day. The prawns, all six of them, taste of nothing, and I later discover they’re from India. Not a good idea when there are sweet-tasting Dublin Bay prawns just a few food miles away.
So, it is over to the main courses to do the heavy lifting. Promises of a glorious char on a lump of meat are admirably met with the 24oz bone-in rib eye steak, €58, which is deliciously rare inside. But the meter keeps ticking as sides are additional, so that’s another €10.25 for a great big pile of decadently crispy fried onion strings. Béarnaise, for some reason, does not come as standard, but if you ask for it, they’ll bring it to the table.
Our other main is black sole, €48.85, again with no sides, so ka-ching, it’s an additional €9.25 for creamed spinach. The sole, in a nutty beurre noisette spiked with lemon zest, is a beautiful piece of fish, perfectly cooked and taken off the bone by our waiter.
After all of this, and the help of a doggy bag, we can just about manage a dessert, a lemon and lime meringue tart with surprisingly bullet proof pastry, and raspberry sorbet, €14.50. So, an evening of loads of food, of variable quality, for loads of money. And quite a few questions.
Taking potshots at Shanahan’s is too easy, apart from the fact that I may hit someone I know. But at this price level, comparisons have to be drawn. This is Michelin level pricing, but nowhere near Michelin quality. And while you might not want the formality of multi-course menus, for a lot less money you could be tucking into equally good, if not better, hunks of beef, with all the trimmings included, at the likes of Etto, Uno Mas or Locks.
It is however, a restaurant that has incredibly loyal customers, and not all of them dining on the corporate card. The menu, if not the restaurant, is accessible; the atmosphere is relaxed and friendly, and while it may not epitomise “my kind of razzmatazz”, I will happily pull up a seat at one of the white linen clad tables. As long as I’m not paying.
Dinner for two with a bottle and a glass of wine was €245.60
- Verdict Not "my kind of razzmatazz"
- Facilities Fancy, with fluffy towels, soap and hand moisturiser
- Music 1940s jazz and Frank Sinatra
- Food provenance Prawns from India, fish from Beshoff's, beef from Dawn Meats
- Vegetarian options Vegetarian menu available with three choices of starter and main course
- Wheelchair access No
