Note: apologies for the quality of the images – a smudge on my camera’s lens have left them blurry.
Light years ago, well light years in blogging terms, but in reality only last July (still a longish time) I wrote a post on good value eating out in Dublin in which I said that said post was the first in an occasional series but as it’s only now that I am writing a second post it’s obviously going to be a very intermittent series.
The Hot Stove is a newish Dublin restaurant that opened in January 2013. Now strange and unplumbed are the ways in which small pieces of the lava of information that flow incessantly, in this our hyper-tech-charged-social-mediaized world, penetrates our temples (or mine at least): because if I did see something about The Hot Stove in the local media it didn’t register but when I spotted tweets with links to a New York Times article about eating out in Dublin by David Farley which mentioned a number of restaurants the one I zoned in on and most wanted to visit was The Hot Stove.
Buried in the basement of an elegant red-brick Georgian town house The Hot Stove has its entrance through number thirty-eight Parnell Square West, however the basement actually spans two houses so it’s large with two generous sized dining rooms and a substantial bar area. The space is decorated in a restrained and tasteful way mostly in various shades of neutral but the colourful floor tiles add liveliness and particular nice touches are the chunky vintage radiators and the old range which gives The Hot Stove its name. There are snowy white starched table cloths and matching billowy napkins and crumbs are brushed from the table between courses: but, for all that, it’s not a stuffy spot.
Now good value, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder: I imagine it is perfectly possible to ratchet up a large bill at The Hot Stove especially in the evening, but I was there for lunch and I choose from a menu which offered two courses for €20 or three for €25. I opted for two courses and given that the food was good I thought that was excellent value on a price to quality scale.
I had a main course of seared hake and braised endive, the hake was cooked to melt in the mouth perfection and was braceleted with a dressing of finely diced potato, chestnut, and blood orange. I don’t have a huge appetite so the dressing and the endive were adequate as accompaniments to the fish but those who do might like to order one of the sides (examples: duck fat fried chips at €4.50, braised red cabbage €3.50 …).
I choose apple crumble served with salt caramel and a cider sorbet for desert, this was good if not absolutely divine – I would have liked the crumble with something more robust than the delicate sorbet, such as vanilla ice-cream, however that’s not a criticism just a personal preference. There’s a decent wine list with a reasonable choice of wines by the glass, I had a Languedoc white – La Closerie des Lys’s vermentino.
The cooking at The Hot Stove is spot on and the service is friendly but unobtrusive.
Just Add Attitude 
Sounds like a perfectly lovely restaurant and one I would like to visit if/when I visit Dublin.
It is a perfectly lovely restaurant so I hope they succeed and I also hope you get to visit Dublin one day …
It looks like a great place to eat…I think I am hungry.
It’s good. There is something about reading a piece on food that induces hunger, even in my case just after I have had a meal and am actually full!
note to self.
“don’t read delicious restaurant reviews when one must go to sleep in los angeles times” 😉
divine!
*wavingtodublin*
_tg x
*waving to los angeles*
Btw, I have just checked on the wonderous internet and discovered that Mr Amazon dispatched my order for your book yesterday so I am looking forward to receiving it very soon. 😉
B x
OMG! the first sighting in IRELAND very soon then!
do send us a picture…..it would mean such a lot over here at teamgloria towers.
Will do!
I think it must have arrived in sooner than expected at Amazon Towers as the last time I checked I am sure the despatch date was listed as some time in March.
Hi B
Nicely constructed and presented critique (including great photos that don’t look too blurry to me!) of what sounds like a restaurant I should visit
Thank you very much and I really appreciate the positive feedback. 😉 The images are blurry in places but not all over and sadly I am having difficult getting rid of the smudge even with a lens cleaner.
The Hot Stove is worth a visit.
All the very best from B
Delicious. That looks like an apple chip/crisp in the sorbet…is it? I didn’t really notice any serious smudge in your photos; just thought of it as a little steam from the Hot Stove 🙂
Yes, indeed it is an apple crisp in the sorbet. Thanks for saying you didn’t notice and serious smudge, that’s good to hear as it seems to leap out whenever I look at them. 😉
Sounds like an absolutely delicious meal at a fun restaurant! Intermittent series are quite fun, it gives us something to look forward to 🙂
It was a good meal and it is always nice to try out new restaurants. It’s not the easiest of economic times to be opening an expensively (I suspect) refurbishment restaurant but I think diners will go because of the cooking. I wish them well. 😉
Love this– I saw David’s piece which was excellent but I wanted to see more photos!! The fish looks delicious.
The fish really was cooked to perfection and I agree the NY Times piece was excellent. 😉
Love the name of the restaurant. I enjoy going to a new restaurant for lunch…it lets you sample their food without spending as much as you might for their dinner menu.
I so agree lunch which is usually good value in restaurants – even the best of them – is a great way of sampling the cuisine. 😉
We do that when we go to a Michelin restaurant when we are traveling to Europe. The meal usually cost less and reservations are easier to come by.
I enjoy following your European tours and your restaurants and hotel write-ups. I am looking forward to the 2014 edition.
Great reading, it sounds and looks delicious, B. I save your posts as we intend to revisit Dublin soon, maybe next year. I We loved every minute of two weeks in Dublin 2012 and we mostly picked our choice for eating from recommendations like yours. Thanks a lot!
Enjoy your weekend,
Dina and Klausbernd
Hello Dina,
Thank you so much for your lovely comment and I so hope you get to make a return trip to Dublin next year.
I wish you and Klausbernd and, of course, the book fairies an enjoyable weekend (what’s left of it!).
With good wishes from
Bxx
I so enjoy touring with you.
Thank you so much.
Looks like a great place for a quiet, cozy dinner! I like the touches of blue combined with the otherwise neutral decor.
Thanks Mary Frances for your comment. Yes it’s a good spot and yes, as well, the touches of blue, are a good counterpoint to the neutral decor.
This sounds like a great place and I hope you keep posting reviews – I’ll want to visit them when I get to Dublin!
Meg, hopefully your travels will bring you to Dublin sometime! 😉
Love everything about this place starting from the name … such a cute name! And the price? Very reasonable for what you get.
It’s a great name and the old range (stove) in the fireplace is lovely, unfortunately I didn’t get a good shot of it. And the prices are very reasonable. 😉
I really like the decor. The trend here in the states is toward all hard surfaces (no tablecloths, no plush chairs, no carpets, nothing to dampen noise) because evidently young people like noisy restaurants. I saw a restaurant show in which someone explained that umping the amps in a restaurant serves to allow patrons to talk loudly about whatever personal scandals they want to discuss, and to curse without worrying about the neighboring table overhearing. This is what a young man said about his restaurant preferences, anyway. There definitely is a trend toward noisy restaurants. I also read an article about the hearing-health hazard for servers in New York City, who are chronically exposed to unsafe noise decibel levels.
It turns out that I no longer like going to restaurants. They’re all so loud, that I cannot converse with the people I’m with, and I leave with a headache. Are they quieter in Dublin?
If I could converse with the people I’m dining with, I’d definitely eat at The Hot Stove. I love friendly but unobtrusive service. 🙂
I don’t eat out a lot in Dublin but when I do none of the restaurants I have visited have been especially noisy. Altho I don’t doubt that there are restaurants in Dublin where the decibel levels are through the roof.
It’s sad to hear that noise levels in New York restaurants are a health hazard for the wait staff but easy to imagine how this could happen in a large space with lots of hard surfaces.
The Hot Stove was noisy when I was there but as it has a wood cum tile floor I suspect it could be noiser on very busy days. 😉 😉
I just had lunch at a neighborhood place (newly discovered) that was actually quiet. It’s been there for 30 years (I’m new to this neighborhood)–I was very pleased to have found it.
I probably just have to avoid the trendiest new places, and stick with the old ones. Must be a sign that I’m not as young as I think I am. 😉
I am pleased you found a local place that’s quite, as it’s nice to have somewhere to go to that is not too far from home. I think it’s true that, in general, the newer and trendier restaurants are more cacophonous than older establishments. 😉
Great review, dear B: looks like a beautiful restaurant with a nice decor, great food presentation and inviting dishes. 🙂
I liked the restaurant and I hope they do well: it’s a challenging time to open up a new venture. 😉