Bad service from the Irish is one thing, but from the Gauls? There's a paradox, writes Tom Doorley
The French Paradox is a great idea. There's plenty of wine, most of it directly imported and therefore refreshingly different, and the food is, in a sense, reflective of how most people eat these days. As those of us with sedentary lives can rarely cope with the calories of a three-course meal, this restaurant delivers plates of charcuterie, cheese, salad, foie gras (for the decadent), a hot special and lots of good bread.
When it opened, a few years ago, the novelty was so great that all of Dublin 4 went there at the drop of a hat, which meant getting a table required serious planning. The premises have been extended into what was once a doctor's consulting rooms, and these days the downstairs part is known, somewhat alarmingly, as the surgery. Considering the appetite of the medical profession for good red wine - and not just because of its antioxidant activity, which is the original French paradox - this is perhaps appropriate.
But this sophisticated wine bar does not seem as busy as it once was, and I'm wondering why. Irish consumers are canny creatures, and some of you who have e-mailed me on the subject seem to feel that grazing and slurping at the French Paradox is just as expensive as eating what they are too polite to call a proper meal. This is a bit unfair. What they serve here does not come cheap, even wholesale. On the other hand, they don't need to man a full kitchen. Staff, of course, don't come cheap.
And the staff at the French Paradox delivered glacial service when three of us dropped in on a rainy Monday night. One couldn't help but think that we customers were just an inconvenience. A poor attitude from Irish staff is bad enough, but waiting is not in our blood. When you get it from French staff it feels worse. From start to finish we were served with a certain reluctance. Even a request for a wine suggestion was like pulling teeth without an anaesthetic. Eventually we were offered an expensive bottle that didn't match the description of what we wanted. The wines we did drink - a dry Muscat and a Ribera del Duero - were excellent, but we had to find them ourselves.
The food was good, too. The hot dish of the day was coq au vin, made with flavoursome chicken bathed in and infused with a rich wine gravy that had the sheen of highly reduced proper stock. Served with little spuds and a garnish of crisp, chunky lardons, it was coq au vin as it should be.
We also put away a plate of charcuterie from Andalusia, from pigs fed an abundance of hazelnuts. The ham and salami both had a subtle nuttiness - and were delicious. The fond de barrique selection of cheese (including an immaculately stinky reblochon), ham and saucisson was pretty good, too.
We had to ask for more bread - surely it's not too much to expect the basket to be replenished without having to make an issue of it? - and for more of the mingy portions of hard butter.
"Can I take the bill now, please?" I asked the waiter when we were done. I'm almost certain he had to think about it before graciously replying: "OK." It came to €127.35.
The French Paradox, 53 Shelbourne Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, 01-6604068, www.thefrenchparadox.com
WINE CHOICE If you want to browse the shelves of the ground-floor shop there is a great deal to choose from, and not all of it is French. The selection on the wine bar's list is short and full of good stuff, starting with a range of Champagnes from the excellent Philipponnat (€13.70 for a glass, €75 for a bottle of the NV, up to €207 for the tête de cuvée). It has 25 wines by the glass (either a 6.25ml taster or a proper 18.75ml). Prices per full glass run from €5.60 for a Castilla y León to €16.60 for a Gevrey-Chambertin. Our bone-dry, fragrant Agellum Muscat Sec, from the Pays d'Oc, was sound value at €27 a bottle; the Valduero Ribera del Duero Crianza was superb at €35.