Dunne & Crescenzi started in 1999 from the original taste and enterprise of Eileen Dunne and her Italian husband Stefano Crescenzi. After they moved to Dublin from Rome in 1995, they set up a small shop in Sutton, stocking fine Italian foods and wine. They then set up the original Dunne and Crescanzi in South Frederick Street, and the rest, as they say is history.

There is a now a group of outlets, each with it’s own authentic take on Italian food. The D&C philosophy is a simple one – combine good ingredients, authentic dishes and a young and energetic team and serve lots of great Italian food to Irish diners in a authentic Italian atmosphere with, of course, good customer service.

Dunne and Crescenzi in Sth. Frederick Street is a great place to shop for some authentic Italian ingredients, their wines are all for sale, and you can enjoy them in situ with a plate of excellent antipasta. Lunch is a busy affair as they have built up a big following in the city, and the seats outside are just perfect on a summers day, but you will have to be quick or lucky, as they are in high demand. In the evening the menu becomes longer, the staff get quicker and the experienced is just as good.

Paolo has been a regular here since the beginning, and here are some of his review.

My first stop this week was in Dunne and Crescenzi (cresh-enzee) with my wife for a quick snack before a book launch in the International Book Shop next door. It has a very busy, yet at the same time comfortable feel to it - there's a big sofa with a low table just inside the door that adds to this impression. The walls are lined with bottles of wine just like an Italian enoteca, pastas of varying kinds are on display as well, and there's a smell of freshly made coffee in the air. The tables and chairs are simple wood and the menu is short.

Service is brisk and courteous and from the menu we ordered a vegetarian antipasto for Susie, a bresaola for me, a half-litre of mineral water and a glass of Cannonau - the Sardinian red - for Susie. Simple wooden platters serve as plates and a very good mixed antipasto arrived for Susie, with mozzarella that tasted like it should. I got a very generous plateful of bresaola (bress-ow-la) which was served on top of crostini. Both of us were well pleased with what we got, the flavours were just like those you'd find at an Italian road-side paninoteca (a place that specialises in panini and snacks). A bill for just over €20 made this particular stop seem like value for money, especially the mineral water.