Eating out:The first thing I noticed about Eatery120 is that the risers of the stairs are embellished with the names of New York restaurants, such as Gramercy Tavern. This struck me as odd for two reasons. Firstly, there's nothing that suggests New York about the place. It's very, very Ranelagh. And, secondly, it's just odd to have someone paint, by hand, the names of other restaurants on the stairway.
I wonder if it denotes some kind of insecurity. Is this the Celtic Tiger manifestation of our traditional tendency, in provincial towns, to call any hostelry with a bit of chrome "the American Bar"?
Until a few years ago there was a hairdresser's in a western town that went by the unlikely moniker of Bernadette of Bond Street. And, for that matter, I'm pretty sure I have passed a dormer bungalow called Claridge's.
We were lucky to get our timing right when we visited Eatery120, as the place was packed on a Thursday evening. In fact it was heaving, and everybody seemed to be having a good time. It takes a very capable kitchen to deal with that kind of pressure - and a very competent floor staff, too. In these respects Eatery120 acquitted itself very well.
I'm just not entirely sure what the point is. The menu is short and conservative. The wine list is a lot longer and a lot more relaxed. Maybe it doesn't need a point.
One thing is certain: they do an excellent potted crab. It's generous, there's plenty of butter on top, the crab is sweet and thoroughly crabby (not as common as one would like) and the whole thing is impeccably seasoned, right down to some finely snipped chives mixed through. Instead of the usual slice of lemon, it came with a grilled lime. Odd, I know, but perfectly effective. And there was thin toast made from ciabatta.
Soup of the day was tomato, a creamy but light, almost ethereal version with the trademark acidity of Irish tomatoes in a difficult season. At least it was real. It came with some crunchy croutons and mountains of brown bread and butter.
So, starters seemed pretty good.
Mains were curiously disappointing. A large, juicy, well-cooked hamburger - that is, moist inside but hot enough to kill off any lurking pathogens - came with "120 relish", the blandness of which was amazing. I didn't think you could put tomatoes and whatever else together and end up with such a sense of nothingness.
So the big burger in its big and attractive bap ended up tasting of very little. The dish was redeemed by some of the best chips I've ever tasted: big, crisp, fluffy inside, a monument to the art of the deep-fried spud.
A cylinder of belly pork topped with apple puree came with a token manifestation of crisp cabbage and a whole lot of mashed potato, into which a lot of grainy mustard had been incorporated.
It was not particularly good mash in the first place, and as mustard mash goes it stayed firmly on the plate.
We shared a theatrical pudding comprising berry compote lying beneath a thick layer of creamy, proper custard in a glass pot, with a tiny shortcake biscuit acting as a lid.
This was presented with tiny spherical doughnuts, each containing a raspberry, which were to be dunked. Very pleasant but not quite as exciting as it sounds.
We finished with a couple of espressos and a double macchiato.
With a bottle of Panna still water, a glass of Gewürztraminer, a glass of rosé and a bottle of rather dull Côtes du Rhone Villages the bill came to €108.45.
Eatery120, 120 Ranelagh Road, Dublin 6, 01-4704120, www.eatery120.ie
WINE CHOICE:You can have many of the wines by the bottle or by the carafe of 750ml, 500ml, 250ml or 150ml - which is, perhaps, just too much choice.
Juicy Ca' del Matt Barbera d'Asti is heavily marked up to €25, and Château de Tracy Pouilly-Fumé is surely way over the top at €51. On the other hand, Pirineos rosé, from Spain, is yummy at €19 (or €13 for 500ml, €6.50 for 250ml, €4.50 for 150ml). Vina Alberdi Rioja Reserva is fair at €34. The Austrian sticky Alois Kracher Beerenauslese is a stunner at €32 for 500ml. Domaine La Croix Belle Muscat Sec (€24) is a pleasantly offbeat and frivolous white. I like Rocca delle Macie Chianti Classico (€28), proper grown-up stuff with acidity, tannin and fruit all in the right places, but much as I admire Mount Langi Ghiran Shiraz, from Victoria, I can't see my way to spending €53 on it.