Best dinner in Carlow

coroner29

Hi folks,

I would like to take my friend for a dinner, so could somebody suggest a good restaurant in Carlow? Some decent place, not a McDonald. And I am mostly interested in European food, sub 15 euro range.
There is a list of restaurants at http://www.findarestaurant.ie/Restaurants_In_Carlow.htm but only few of them are rated, so I am counting more on your experience Thanks

foggy_lad

Not many places where you'll get dinner for less than €15 unless you go for a pub/carvery type affair.

coroner29

I meant €15 just for one meal (excluding drinks), not the whole dinner for two (if that is what you meant).

ShayK1

lautrecs usually gets good reviews. I haven't been myself but there's lots of good feedback on boards about it.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

pompeii, down by the rowing club is quite nice.. i think the prices around around that range too

you wouldnt want to go there for quiet conversation though, there are about five thosuand council workers with tanks and laser guided missiles digging the road up right beside it

car

I went out for dinner recently with my friends and we had the choice of either a starter and main course or a main course and desert for €15.95 in Dinn Ri - You cant go wrong for that price, plus you have a great selection of choices to choose from.

Toughers on the Dublin road do a 4 course dinner for €17.95 - I think they do that from Sun-Thursday though.

Reddys do nice evening meals too, not sure about how much their set meals costs as there was a group of 15 of us that ate out that night, and we divided the bill, including the wine.... which I dont drink, I normally have a mineral with my food, but still always to pay for (that is my pet hate when I go out for meals with his family!)

foggy_lad

i keep forgetting about reddys, they usually have lovely food and very reasonably priced.

patrickc

foggy_lad wrote: »

i keep forgetting about reddys, they usually have lovely food and very reasonably priced.

I'd Sunday dinner in Reddy' last week, was good but not up to it's usual standards
saw the have an offer on at the moment though dinner for 2 (3 courses I think) and a bottle of wine 49.95

carrie1234

Well I was in Mimosa Wine Bar near the Cathedral recently and you really can't do better than that , all the Tapas are €5 , and you can order as many as you like ,VERY tasty, as well as that they have a great atmosphere , other than Mimosa I'd say Lautrecs is your best bet. Good luck

coroner29

Thank you guys for all your replies

slimjimmc

If you're going for dinner there's very little on the menu in Lautrecs at around €15 for a single main course unless you're ordering pasta or baked aubergine.
Their lunch or the early bird menu would be more suited to that price range.

http://www.lautrecs.com

foundry

Any1 know if you'd have to book a table for 2 at pompeii sat night around 8? i.e are they even doin that well?

Also has any1 been to little venice? it looks like a front room of a house. . well in fact it is. . how many does it seat?

Thundercats Ho

foundry wrote: »

Any1 know if you'd have to book a table for 2 at pompeii sat night around 8? i.e are they even doin that well?

Also has any1 been to little venice? it looks like a front room of a house. . well in fact it is. . how many does it seat?

Pretty sure little venice has been closed for around 6 months or so (unless they've just re-opened.

foundry

Got a green flyer though door bout 2 weeks ago with opening hours of little venice and saying you can bring your own bottle (wine) with free corkage so i'm led to believe it's re opened!

lotdpd

Brooks in Dinn Ri do great evening food.......

Laura_lolly87

Foundry, i'd advise booking a table in Pompeii just to be on the safe side as every weekend varies.

bluestreak

hi guys,
couldn't recommend Joe's Chinese enough, there food and service is brilliant,and reasonably priced.
On the other hand i would touch pompeii with a barge pole, poor service and badly prepared food, as in reheated just before service...
Mimosa Wine Bar is lovely, good atmosphere, good food, good wine.
Lautrecs is also quite good, quite reasonably priced...

heather55

Hi Coroner 29,

Mimosa Wine bar has to be one of the best locations in Carlow, Joe's Chinese is lovely too great service and price. However if you don't want to have too close a link to a coroner I'd advise against Pompeii!:(

Patrickof

Lennons in the visual arts centre is good, though I haven't been there in the evenings, only lunchtime.

I know you said European, but lemongrass does a great Nasi goreng.

coroner29

Thanks to all of you

foundry

Went to Pompeii Sat night, mixed opinions here.

It was OK.. I wouldn't go again though!!

Tapas best place in town by far

Yum

Nalz

foggy_lad wrote: »

i keep forgetting about reddys, they usually have lovely food and very reasonably priced.

Great food in Reddys, best in town I think. Lived in Carlow for 22 years and only had dinner in it 3 or 4 months ago. 5 years out of the place, went in there with family and was shocked at how good it was

MickShamrock

Lautrec's Bistro.

patrickc

was at pompei friday night, had to send back my main course, was so over cooked, the menu is not that great and is expensive also, wont be going back again

AWD4

Funny, I have been many times in Pompei and it is always quite good, unpretentious and simple cuisine with a very warm service. The pizzas are really nice and tasty, the veal is good and the pastas are fine,

The tapas near the cathedral, on the other hand I find that the dishes are re-heated, factory-made frozen stuff, I really have no time for these kind of places, nothing beats a real kitchen delivering real food, prepared on-site... and their wines are so commercial.
other decent choices, Lennon and Weeping Tiger,

but overall, Carlow is unfortunately quite poor for really good restaurants.

byhookorbycrook

hmmmmm...first post all to praise a place...

slimjimmc

byhookorbycrook wrote: »

hmmmmm...first post all to praise a place...

He/she didn't give a resounding appraisal, more like it's good but not so great everyone must rush in and try it. Seems to me that "pastas are fine" isn't great praise at all for any self respecting Italian.

AWD4

byhookorbycrook wrote: »

hmmmmm...first post all to praise a place...

Not sure what I was expected to post, dear
Moderator?
In a thread called 'dinner in carlow' I felt I could give my contribution, since we dine out quite a lot ( mind you we go more to kilkenny)
Pompei is good IMHO, so are Lennon and the weeping tiger, while the tapas is a joke, still in my opinion of course...
Maybe when I'll have 100 posts I will be taken more seriously?..

byhookorbycrook

There have been a no. of posts praising this place from new posters, so I take your point of view with a grain of salt "dear".Exactly the same way that I do with tripadvisor etc.

tommycahir

Hi AWD4 and welcome to the forum.
As byhookorbycrook said there was some posts that are suspected of shilling on behalf of this restaurant so some people are skeptical of 1st posts praising a place.

AWD4

tommycahir wrote: »

Hi AWD4 and welcome to the forum....

That's more like it only kidding, thanks tommycahir

Ok I suppose it makes sense, but I don't think I was raving that much about the place either, I find it good and welcoming, but it doesn't have a huge WOW factor, not like Campagne in Kilkenny for example.
But hey, it is not the same price either.

dabestman1

courthouse hotel, nice

bluefirefly

the OP is asking for European food..

I think Dinn Ri has a new early bird menu(i went there last thursday but havent been there to eat for a long time already so to me that menu was new:D) I was very reasonable for a main course. I had a steak sandwich, very nice.
Brooks beside it is good too.

Latrecs use to be good. I use to go there quite often but they must change chefs all the time because their food quality is soooo unstable. Sometimes good sometimes really bad.. and recently i think just bad stuff. My fajita wasnt even cooked properly it was hard on the edges.

The place use to Italien Connection now is call Quo Vitas or something. Their lunch menu(goes to 7pm?) is very good value, around a tenner a main course. Very nice food. they also do some specials 2 course meal but i dont know the details.

Mimosa only good for small bit of food and drink. No point going there for food food. It would be too expensive to get full.(5 euro per tapas and they are tiny..only potato bravas is bigger)

Pompelli- Didnt have good experience with them. Very limited menu,not very good service. I would give them a second chance..but its abit far out so i prefer the Quo Vitas place. maybe the summer i'll try them.

Lennons- went there for lunch. its ok.Too healthy for me:p. never been there for dinner.

Wouldnt go to pubs for dinner. So guess thats it!! Hmm...not that many european restaurants in carlow.... Not counting fast food place of course

Zeppi

On mothers day we went to have a late lunch in Pompei and it was a nice experience, the food was superb, the staff gave us an excellent service even though the place was very busy and one thing that made the difference is the Mario the owner came to our table, sat down and had a chat with us and to top it all he even gave my mrs a complementary glass of Prosecco.

I definitely will be going back and in fact we decided to book a table for a group of 9 to celebrate the confirmation of my son.

AWD4

I almost feel guilty in posting this, since some people are suspicious about positive posts regarding Pompei, but we went back last Saturday, and it was once again very good, we went for Veal Mario and another veal dish and they were both excellent. Service was fleet and friendly, and we also got the comp. Prosecco from the owner Mario
PS: For the record, I am neither Italian nor related in any way to Pompei, just happened to like it

Another restaurant worth checking out, for very special occasion, is the Kilgraney House between Borris and Bagenalstown, I know it is away from town but the gardens, building and surrounding are really superb. The food is minute-prepared and incredibly sophisticated for such as small operation. We were bluffed when we went there for the first time last year and I just learnt that they have just reopenned for the season.;)

maxer68

AWD4 wrote: »

The tapas near the cathedral, on the other hand I find that the dishes are re-heated, factory-made frozen stuff, I really have no time for these kind of places, nothing beats a real kitchen delivering real food, prepared on-site... and their wines are so commercial.
.

I've been in there a few times. The food is certainly not "factory made frozen stuff" with the exception of possibly the samosas and its certainly not "reheated". As for the wines, the standrd wines are , well, standard. the better wines are excellent and not supermarket types.

Whenever I'm there its busy - even on wednesday evenings. You don't have a busy restaurant these days unless your food stands up to scrutiny.

Spangles

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned Teach Dolmen - lovely restaurant at back of pub (open fronted kitchen at rear or restaurant). Myself and my partner have never been let down on food/price and friendly service with a la carte menu. (The duck tempura starter is especially scrummy)

carrie1234

I agree Maxer 68, I dunno where awd4 is from or what affiliation they have or not with Pompeii but its crazy to suggest there is no-where decent to eat in Carlow , I like Lautrecs & Mimosa & lennons for lunch other than that I have eaten in pompeii a couple of times and have always been dissapointed. To suggest without inside knowledge of a place that they serve "factory Re heated stuff " is very dodgy ground as every time I have been there the food has been so different & so tasty & the best steak I have eaten in Ireland has been in Lautrecs !!

hare05

+1 for mimosa.

AWD4

Well, I don't know where I've said "there is no-where decent to eat in Carlow"... I mentionned Weeping and lennon's myself... And I can quite safely add Sha-Roe, Lord Bagenal and Kilgraney house to the list as well.
I said Carlow, as in Carlow Town, is quite poor for decent restaurants and Kilkenny fairs quite better, sorry but this is my opinion, and I think one have to be from Mars not to see that...

As per Mimosa we went twice, and both times they served perfectly similary shaped (and bland) spring rolls, in my experience, these are bought frozen and reheated. Same went with at least 4 of the tapas, which were totally similar in taste and in shape on the first and the second visit. I can be wrong of course, but in my experience, it would take a good few skilled chefs in the kitchen to deliver that kind of regularity. If you want to taste real tapas, made in-situ, try The Grapevine in Kilkenny, the papatas, the lamb dish, the apsaragus wrap[ped in parma ham certainly don't look perfect, but they do taste home made.
McDonalds is always busy when I drive passed it, it doesn't makes me want to stop either...
and their wines are obvious, overly sweet and limit-charicatural full-on flavoured. They are produced to please the crowds, not enlivened the palate of people who appreciate real wines. Again this is my opinion, and of course I don't expect everyone to agree with me.

And once again so that it is clear, and it is quite annoying to have to justify myself all the time, I am not affiliated with Pompei.

Villain

I did wonder myself if some of Tapas dishes were just bought in and cooked but to be honest I don't care because I always find Mimosa exceptional for food, wine, service and atmosphere.

Some of the dishes are just amazing like the recent pork belly dish, probably one of the nicest things I have ever eaten and the cheeseboard is always excellent I'd eat there every night if I could.

AWD4

Must say I haven't returned since so I have never seen the pork belly at the time, and to be fair, maybe they have improved their kitchen, and yes I can see why people go there, it is a friendly and relaxed atmosphere, but it doesn't do it for me. Food and wine come first on my list.

wheres me jumpa

AWD4 wrote: »

Kilkenny fairs quite better
.

While the questions remain as to your motives, I actually agree with this. Kilkenny has a wide range of fantastic restaurants and a handful of exceptional restaurants.

Rabidlamb

We had ten tapas in Mimosa last night for a table of 4, we drank 3 bottles of Hardys Shiraz at €20 a bottle.
Cost between 4 came to €124 & every dish was fantastic.
Love the way they stagger the dishes so you've some breathing room.
It was my first time to try Tapas & I loved it, can't wait to go back.

I last went to Lautrecs just before it closed a while back.
We got the kids down just after 8pm & said goodbye to the babysitter.
We made it to the restaurant by 9pm where we were told to order straight away as the kitchen was closing at 9.30pm.
They were lifting chairs onto tables before 10pm while sweeping around us.
Mimosa stays open until 12pm, 1am at the weekend, no competition for my future business.

mmm88

Had a meal in lautrecs a few weeks ago with himself, went there for Sunday lunch, honestly could not fault the food, the steak and pepper sauce was amazing

Taffy Kat

I'm picky on Italian food, because I've spent enough time in Italy away from the tourist zones to know how it should taste, and I have to say Quo Vadis never disappoints. Added to that is the fact that the waiter (the young guy) Mimmo is very friendly and always makes sure everything is spot on.

I know the op doesn't want non-European food but I thought I'd mention...

Going to the other side of the world, the Jasmine is fantastic for Chinese food.

The Shapna isn't bad at all for Indian.

Pompeii is awful, I'm sorry but to call it Italian food is an insult to la cucina italiana. If the place opened anywhere in Italy, except for somewhere only tourists go, it wouldn't be open a week.

Memory Of 98

Today, for the third time, I decided to go with my girlfriend to the Pompei restaurant, on the Barrow track.

For the third time they were closed! I checked their website and it wrongly said that they were open today (Monday) at the time we planned to go, and closed tomorrow (Tuesday) but it was closed when we went down!

We went to the Courthouse Hotel instead.

The food was great, except for an incident where the drinking glasses had heavy residue from dishwasher soap, which tainted the drinks, and my stomach, but that was easily fixed.

The food, staff and prices were great though.

Taffy Kat

Memory Of 98 wrote: »

Today, for the third time, I decided to go with my girlfriend to the Pompei restaurant, on the Barrow track.

For the third time they were closed! I checked their website and it wrongly said that they were open today (Monday) at the time we planned to go, and closed tomorrow (Tuesday) but it was closed when we went down!

We went to the Courthouse Hotel instead.

The food was great, except for an incident where the drinking glasses had heavy residue from dishwasher soap, which tainted the drinks, and my stomach, but that was easily fixed.

The food, staff and prices were great though.

Pompei closed = blessing in disguise .