The Old Spot Cook Book does several things very well, and chief amongst those things is its celebration of the skills of Denise McBrien, the manager of the celebrated Dublin gastropub.
Restaurant managers used to be more famous than chefs – when Jancis Robinson and Nick Lander owned L’Escargot in London’s Soho, their fame played second fiddle to Elena Salvoni, the legendary hostess who ran the room – and Ms McBrien’s position front and centre of the book is proper order.
A great manager such as Denise McBrien sets the tone of a restaurant, and setting that tone is what makes people return, again and again. Having regulars returning to eat the same thing they ate last time is the secret sauce of the success of The Old Spot, and explains how the pub has enjoyed a decade of being jammers.
Along with Denise’s people-handling skills, the Old Spot is lucky to have the maverick talents of Mark Ahessy in the kitchen. To this day, we regret not having ever made it to Ahessy’s own place, The Stonehouse in Clonmel, but he has shown his talents in many leading restaurants in recent years.
What he does in The Old Spot is to superannuate well-loved staples, by dint of superlative sourcing – that pork chop comes from Andarl Farm in Mayo; that burger is rare-breed wagyu beef from Wicklow; that black pudding is a rare beast that comes all the way from Peter O’Sullivan in Sneem, who makes it in the Kerry style. Ahessy shows these ingredients the respect they deserve, so it’s win-win all the way.
But there is more to The Old Spot Cook Book than just good recipes. Author Aoife Carrigy knows exactly how restaurants work – Carrigy is a restaurant vet herself, as well as a wine and food writer – and TOSC works as a manual of just how you run a restaurant to achieve success. (Spoiler Alert: the secret is a happy crew of happy staff who go the extra mile.)
Ruth Calder-Potts’ photos are as lush as Mark Ahessy’s dishes, which means the book is as well fettled as The Old Spot itself. A class act from a class team.
Mark Moriarty’s new book, Season, has the ideal, double-angled title for a book that is a series of masterclasses on classic domestic dishes. Cook what is in season, he advises, but also pay attention to how you season a dish, because the detail in finishing is what makes for success.
Moriarty’s gift is the ability to bring the sharpness and attention-to-detail of a 2-star chef to the domestic kitchen. His recipes are offered with a brigade of one – you, the reader – in mind, with everything geared toward executing a successful dish for Wednesday night after a long day at the coal face. Bring seasonal ingredients, and your enthusiasm, and you are almost there.
Season shows how God is in the detail, whether you are grilling a striploin, roasting butternut squash or lightening your rice pudding by folding in some whipped cream before adjusting the flavour with icing sugar and crumbling over some shortbread.
Moriarty takes nothing for granted on the part of the reader, and his assured confidence and experience means Season is a book that will guide every cook towards a delicious result. Your finished dish may not look just as camera-ready and sumptuous as Cliodhna Prendergast’s beautiful photographs of the food mark creates, but the flavours will all be present and correct.
The Old Spot Cook Book is published by Nine Bean Rows.
Season is published by Gill Books
Staples:
Food Finds: Nicky’s Plaice Open Fire Smokehouse
The characterful Nicky’s Plaice in Howth reminds us that it is Dublin’s last open fire smokehouse, situated behind their fish shop overlooking the West Pier in Howth. Smoking mainly salmon, but also other seasonal catch on demand, the fire has been smouldering since 1961. The fish is rich and creamy, expertly hot-smoked as you would expect from an oven that’s been lit for over 60 years.
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You always make me wish we had have spent more time in Ireland, but of course when we were there probably none of the places you recommend were. Thank you for the heads up on the cookbooks.