A great new arrival to this popular south Dublin residential area near Leopardstown race course, ‘The Box Tree by Eamonn O’Reilly’ is the latest venture by one of Ireland’s foremost chefs – and it makes an elegant, smart-casual companion to O’Reilly’s celebrated city centre fine dining destination, One Pico, and its newer sister The Greenhouse
Easy to spot with its smartly canopied frontage and crisply trimmed box trees flanking the entrance, hungry guests can head straight in to their table in the restaurant or call in to the attractive modern pub next door, The Wild Boar (thewildboar.ie).
In common ownership with The Box Tree, it has interconnecting doors and offers a more casual setting to enjoy good food from the same kitchen, or for drinks before and after your meal.
The classy interior is gently contemporary, decorated in elegant tones - soft sage, blue-greys and complementary browns and creams – and with tweedy checks on upholstered furniture softening the look in the restaurant, which has fashionably bare tables, traditional white linen napkins and very comfortable wooden-backed dining chairs. Banquettes with comfy cushions act as room dividers, and alcoves allow privacy for families and small groups.
Well-designed lighting creates a warm atmosphere – with some light fittings featuring antlers, a reminder that the Wicklow Hills are close by, and a link with menus that may offer specialities such as Wicklow Blue cheese and, in season, local Glenmalure venison.
A ‘Wait here to be seated’ sign just inside the door may seem a little out of place in this exceptionally well-run restaurant, as friendly and well-trained staff are very quick to make arriving guests feel at home.
Menus, wine list, water and delicious breads appear in a flash and, after just the right amount of time, a well-informed server returns to explain the specials and other highlights of the menus.
And foodies have plenty to look forward to here. Talented head chef Nick Woollard has an interesting CV, with time at Peacock Alley and Maison Novelli to his credit – and he has worked with Eamonn O’Reilly before, as head chef in his former Temple Bar restaurant, Pacific. Their shared philosophy and teamwork are clearly working well, and the range of menus offered is underpinned by excellent produce.
Listed suppliers of excellent Irish speciality foods include Gold River Farm (Aughrim, Co Wicklow), Hicks butchers, the renowned Kettyle meats of Fermanagh and Sheridans cheeses - and fresh produce grown nearby in Kiltiernan is dropped in by Eamonn each morning on his way in to One Pico.
Also, through a delightfully old-fashioned and practical barter scheme, some local producers supply small quantities of free range organic eggs and vegetables in exchange for meals and drinks.
The value offered is very keen for the high quality of the food, and attractively-priced menus are carefully structured to give customer-friendly the option of balanced 2 course meals (with small supplements for one or two specialities) or à la carte choices.
Local vegetables really do star (unusual enough to merit special mention) and, although there are many other good things to choose from, including excellent fish cooking, the big speciality is beef, notably Hicks 30 day dry-aged Hereford Rib Eye: perfectly cooked, meltingly tender and served with chunky triple cooked chips, cassis onions and béarnaise, this delicious meat is a treat worth travelling for.
The presentation style tends to be more elaborate than menu descriptions (and the relatively informal surroundings) suggest: a starter salad of beetroot and Ardsallagh cheese mousse with candied walnuts & baby leaves, for example, is very much a picture on a (fashionable square white) plate, but oh, what flavours...
And desserts, by contrast, veer reassuringly towards the homely – baked apple and wild blackberry crumble, perhaps (served with very good vanilla pod ice cream) or lemon rice pudding ‘with our own wild blackberry jam’.
A customer-friendly wine list includes half a dozen well chosen wines by the glass, and service in all areas is notably knowledgeable and helpful.
Great cooking, a good buzz, stylish surroundings and genuine value for money make this a place people will keep returning to – more than an appealing neighbourhood restaurant, it’s definitely worth a detour.
Seats 70 (outdoors, 18; private room, 40). L&D daily, 12-3pm & 5-10pm (to 8.30pm Sun). Lunch offered as à la carte or 2 courses @ €16.95; 2 course set D €19.95 (+ dessert €4.95) available all evening (5-10) Sun-Tue & 5.30-7 Wed-Sat; also à la carte. Children welcome; wheelchair access to toilets & public areas; air conditioning. Closed 25 Dec. Amex, MasterCard, Visa, Laser.
