Eamonn O'Reilly has quietly carved out an exciting and successful career as one of Ireland's top chefs and restauranteurs. This is his flagship restaurant, and One Pico is a must for any gastro-gnome out there who hasn't tried Eamonn's cooking. The critics have enjoyed the culinary delights of this talented chef and have lavished praise on both his food and restaurants. Paolo is one of them.One Pico is on the corner of Molesworth Lane and Schoolhouse Lane, at the back of Molesworth Street. This puts it close to the Schoolhouse Lane car park, which makes it very convenient. You walk in off the lane into an ante-room which serves as a bar and reception area. Double doors lead from here into the dining room, which is nicely proportioned and decorated with a restrained elegance. There's a difficult to define quality about good restaurants - but I suspect it's a mix of ambience, the sense of competence you get from the staff and the presentation of the menu. All of things obtain in One Pico, you know at once that you're in the hands of professionals.I was dining there with Marian Kenny, who told me that the last time she'd dined in One Pico she was with Karen Millen and Ian Galvin, which tells you the sort of diners you can expect to find there and also explains why she was so elegantly dressed; with friends like that being at the cutting edge of fashion is almost de rigeur. It's a restaurant favoured by politicians and business people - there's the air of quiet formality that good restaurants often generate. The menu is a blend of modern and traditional - old favourites sit alongside more imaginative offerings.
Marian chose the goats' cheese salad as her starter and I picked the Carlingford oysters with buttered linguini. Before they arrived we were served a choice of good breads, including hot, crispy rolls. When the starters came they were nicely presented on good crockery, Marian's goats' cheese perched precariously on top of a pile of well-dressed mixed leaves. My oysters were quite delicious, each one perched on a small roll of linguini, served in a half shell and coated with a seafood foam.
A sorbet came after this as a palate cleanser and then came the main courses. Marian had chosen the roasted best end of veal and I'd picked the roast saddle of rabbit. When they arrived I couldn't help a small giggle - Marian's plate contained a perfectly huge piece of veal; it was meal for a trencherman. Mine, on the other hand, was positively dainty. The rabbit loin had been boned and was served as two tiny roulades, two legs trimmed and served as confit, a teensy liver and two itsy-bitsy kidneys completed a plate that was almost art. Any observer seeing Marian's slim frame and my portly one, might reasonably have assumed the dishes were intended vice-versa.
Despite these dishes being delicious and filling, we still managed to find room for a chocolate fondant between us. It's prepared to order, so there's a 15 minute wait for it - worth it, I assure you. It was a delight, and if you're feeling adventurous the recipe is alongside this article. We finished up with an espresso and agreed that we'd eaten well. If you were to create a Premier League of Dublin restaurants, there's no doubt that One Pico would be in the top half dozen. Apart from the pleasing room and the professional service, the quality of the food is well above the normal. It's competent and slick, and if you're adventurous in your choices, you can find dishes that will surprise and delight.
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