beeftro

i visited beeftro in dundrum on a tuesday evening after the cinema and presumed there was no need to book on a weekday. i should have paid more attention to the reviews i read because when we arrived we were told it would be a half hour wait and that the only space to wait was outside. it was very cold, but our waitress was very attentive and friendly. we ordered a drink and didn't have to wait that long before we were seated inside for the remainder of the wait. the crowd subsided significantly after 9pm which indicates how good theearlybird (which runs til 9 mon-thurs) is. i had the cheese and chorizo bread in mornay sauce to start - very rich and maybe a little heavy as a starter, but it was so tasty! i had to pawn some off to himself so i could still manage a main course afterwards. i had the black angus cheeseburger for mains and it was one of the best burgers i've had in a while. juicy and sweet and branded with the beeftro 'b' - a nice touch. he ordered a sirloin rump steak (and fabulous creamy pepper sauce which i could have drank with a straw it was so good) but from the a la carte menu because theearlybird steak is very small (7oz). the food was delicious, the staff were lovely and the whole thing (2 starters, 2 mains and 1 glass of wine) came to €50, even with him not on theearlybird. not a bad night out at all!

i spotted this place on twitter and had to try!

we went for theearlybird menu which is amazing value and runs up until 9pm . starters got the french onion soup and omg is all the can say , steak is cooked to perfection. highly recommend if you love steak.

beeftro opened in the pembroke district in dundrum town centre a while back, i visited not long after it opened but wasn’t in ‘review mode’ so didn’t take pictures or think too much about it and just enjoyed what i ate, intending to be back to it not long afterwards. the ‘not long afterwards’ turned into a few months, just one of those things that every time we went to go back, something else got in the way. so on a random tuesday earlier this week after one of ‘those day’s in work, i needed wine, and meat… so beeftro it was.

it wasn’t too busy on arrival so we got a lovely table for 2 in the window. inside beeftro is classic bistro style – think french meets american… dark wood, white tiles, mirrors, dark red leather, marble…

we were given the regular menu, wine list and theearlybird. theearlybird is really excellent value at €19.50 for 2 courses and €24.50 for 3 courses and is available 5pm – 9pm monday – wednesday.

beeftro goats cheesethere was a special starter of liver pate which was also available on theearlybird. i decided to go with that, followed by the beeftro bourguignon. he decided to start with a crispy goats cheese salad and follow it with the sirloin rump which is served with a potato puree and pepper sauce on the side. we added a side of fries (but to be honest didn’t need them!).

on the wine list they have certain wines indicated as good pairings to steaks so from that list, we chose a portugese red – azamor, a blended variety including syrah, touriga nacional, merlot, trincadeira, alicante bouschet, mouvedre and petit verdot – a dark, full bodied and juicy red, ideal with the steak and bourguignon. at €36 its a treat but more than worth it.

the starters were very good, the goats cheese salad was a nice take on a staple with the crispy fried cheese. the pate was presented beautifully, with grilled toasts beside it. the main courses were definitely the stars of the show.. the sirloin arrived unadorned on the plate, just it alone. for rump steak the quality was amazing, it was cooked perfectly medium as requested, chargrilled on the outside and inside, pink and tender. a puree potatoe and pepper sauce came with the steak and for someone who doesn’t like mashed potato (him), he did a fairly good job of it! my bourguignon was simply stunning… loved how it was presented (which can be hard with dishes like this) and tasted just as good as it looked. there was nothing i could fault in this dish and i’m still thinking of just how delicious it was.

we had no room for dessert so instead squeezed in a 50cl carafe of one of the house reds, a spanish tempranillo/syrah/cabernet, which at €17 is well priced.

we were really impressed with our 2nd visit to beeftro. its a lovely spot for a night out or indeed a break from shopping, and i’m looking forward to my next beef fix at beeftro…