Hitting the right notes to keep a family in harmony

SOMETIMES restaurants are not all about the food. There are places where the room itself, the service, the sense of theatre, even the view, are what brings in the customers.

I tend to focus on what’s on the plate, I’m not really concerned with the décor — once the food is good, the service is pleasant and prices are reasonable, I’m happy. And so to Casper & Giumbini’s, a family restaurant on the seafront at Dun Laoghaire.

I’m accompanied by one of my regular dining companions and his two children, aged 11 and 14. It’s a wet and windy night and we are glad to be inside this warm and welcoming place.

In terms of look it’s vaguely in the style of one of those oldfashioned New York steakhouses, like Tomahawk on a tighter budget. There’s a long back-lit bar and more banquettes than you could shake a stick at, if so inclined. The menu covers all the bases. The advantage of this is that a multi-generational family group will be able to dine here in perfect harmony. Casper & Giumbini’s is conservative about food in the way that the late Archbishop McQuaid was about family planning.

So, to table. Half a dozen Carlingford oysters (€14) were fine, although the mignonette sauce that accompanied them was made with caramelised onion rather than a very fine dice of almost raw shallot. This take on a classic doesn’t add to the gaiety of the nations.

Buffalo chicken wings (€10) were also fine, as in perfectly adequate if unremarkable, the sauce pleasingly sharp and buttery with the spice level titrated to the cautious palate.

Calamari rings (€10) were tender, plentiful and served with a little ramekin of punchy sriracha mayo. However, I think the first duty of a squid ring is to be crisp, and these were somewhat flaccid. French onion soup (€7) was the star of the starters: generous, cheesy, the liquid element sweet with caramelised onion (as welcome here as it wasn’t in the mignonette), the stock deep and savoury.

The 11-year-old manfully — or boyfully — had three stabs at eating an oyster before giving up, whereupon his older sister consumed it in one gulp despite a cry of ‘that’s been in my mouth!’

An 8oz sirloin steak, cooked as the chef felt best (ie rare and just the way I like it) was juicy, flavoursome and came with frites and a creamy, somewhat sweet Béarnaise. Not at all bad for €17.

A special of mushroom risotto (€16) was again fine, but not something to get the pulse racing. But the texture of the rice was welljudged and the shavings of black truffle were a nice touch of luxury if rather lacking in truffleness (not surprising, given the price). A decent dish for a winter evening.

The small boy’s pan-fried (is there another way?) Irish salmon (€19) was, as he pointed out plain

tively, overcooked. Crushed baby potatoes and a rather bland hollandaise didn’t raise this dish from the doldrums.

Rack of lamb was ambitiously priced at €28 and served very pink but came with a decent potato gratin and a take on the Sicilian aubergine and pepper dish, caponata, that was new to me.

It tasted of cumin and lacked the combination of sweetness and sourness that should be its hallmark.

The small boy enjoyed his chocolate mousse (€7) and was pleased with its orange dimension and the crunch of honeycomb; it was a bit too sweet for the grown-ups so he got the lion’s share.

The young lady’s crème brulée (€7) was rather clodhopping. I have no idea how this was achieved.

So, despite some bright spots, the food was rather underwhelming, neither notably good but not terribly bad either.

But we had a hugely enjoyable evening thanks to the staff, the atmosphere and the company. Casper & Giumbini’s has made Dun Laoghaire a better place.

THE SMART MONEY

There’s a pre-theatre menu every day 5pm-7pm, €24 for starter and main course; add €2 for dishes involving crab, prawn, oyster.

AND ANOTHER THING...

I like the way they distinguish between chips (thick) and frites (thin). Both were perfectly crisp.