Enoteca Torino

Hi, this an invited guest post.

A big thank you to Mick Wallace, the developer who made pucks of money (what developer hasn't !), and then gave a little back. I'm referring of course to his little Italy district on Bloom's lane in the city center AND Enoteca Torino just down the road from us here in Inchicore. I can imagine you thinking ... oh, no, not another restaurant recommendation... but this IS DIFFERENT !! Why you might ask? Well, where else in this city can you get a meal for two, with a few glasses of wine, coffee, great atmosphere, and mainland europe-type service for 50-60 euro. The answer is Enoteca Torino.

Recently the whole place has been done up, now doubled in size, and so we headed down last Friday to see if it was still up to scratch. Typical of this place was the big loud hello we received on entering the restaurant.. a nice start. We had a bruschetta starter with buffalo mozzarella - simple but delicious. Pasta mains were equally tasty - both of us went for a thick spaghetti-like pasta we'd never tried before (can't remember the name but it sounds like shagatelli !!) , wth mine accompanied by porcini mushroom & toulouse sausage, and my other half choosing walnuts, sausage and radicchio. Wine-wise we went for glasses of Barbera D'Alba and an unusual Ciro Rosso. The Ciro was from Calabria, really delicious and quite full bodied. Dessert consisted of a sweet Verduzzo from Friuli, which knocked both our socks off - really good balance of sweetness and acidity, with surprising richness. Coffee to finish. Final bill 50 euro !!! Our service was fantastic, with a nice liveliness, mostly provided by a charismatic Italian head waiter, who may well sit down beside you while taking you order !

Why is this high quality place such rediculously good value ? Well, the reason is that it's owner, Mick Wallace loves Piedmont and Italy and wanted to provide a proper Italian dining experience at a reasonable price in Dublin. He also imports all his own wine (all Italian of course), which remarkably you can buy from the restaurant without the usually prohibitive restaurant mark-ups.

So thanks again Mick.. if only there were more Enoteca Torino's.... so come down to Inchicore and experience our little piece of Piedmont. I guarantee you'll love it.