Tasting menu - what to expect

positivenote

Hi All,
we are after booking a tasting menu at Tankardstown in Slane for when outdoor diner resumes. Thing is we've never done a tasting menu before. can anyone let us know what to expect? is it just little samples and if so does it fill you like a proper 3 courses? excuse the ignorance but we are going in pretty blind to the whole experience
Thanks

the beer revolu

Usually 6 to 10 small plates.
Some bigger than others.
There's usually one plate that's more like a main course but smaller.
It's a way that I really like to eat.
I've never been hungry after a tasting menu.

Just enjoy it, don't overthink it. It's just food to enjoy.

Faith

I find there are so many flavours and experiences on a tasting menu that I’m always stuffed after them!

Zaney

Can vary, but the days of extreme nouvelle cuisine are gone and you should get a good sized meal. I would tend to go hungry to a tasting meal.

Watch out for alcohol consumption. The meal usually takes a lot longer than the standard three course and some places will lay on the service which often includes topping up your glass. I just tend to get distracted and lose track of how much I’m drinking. I’ve ended up properly p*ss’d once or twice. I now prefer to go for the wine matching as that tends to be more controlled and interesting, but even then if you get a generous server it can be a lot of booze.

tropics001

Faith wrote: »

I find there are so many flavours and experiences on a tasting menu that I’m always stuffed after them!

yep, same.

the beer revolu

What I also like about tasting menus is that you end up eating things that you might never have ordered or that you thought you didn't like.

If there is something that you really don't like, it's no big deal as there is plenty more dishes!

Tree

positivenote wrote: »

Hi All,
... can anyone let us know what to expect? ...

Extreme jealousy from those of us who are still stuck isolating.

Feisar

Zaney wrote: »

Watch out for alcohol consumption.

I was at one once and each course had it's own glass of wine. A total pretentious waste, would have been wasted if I drank it all.

tropics001

Feisar wrote: »

I was at one once and each course had it's own glass of wine. A total pretentious waste, would have been wasted if I drank it all.

where was that? just out of... uh... curiousity....

i have rolled out of some places after several glasses of wine over the course of the night.

Feisar

tropics001 wrote: »

where was that? just out of... uh... curiousity....

i have rolled out of some places after several glasses of wine over the course of the night.

Darwin's about 10 years ago I think?

awec

Feisar wrote: »

I was at one once and each course had it's own glass of wine. A total pretentious waste, would have been wasted if I drank it all.

Same here, except I drank it.

And was falling asleep by the last course.

Black Sheep

Most tasting menus do have an optional wine pairing that you can add on, but it tends to not be a full glass of wine offered, it'll be a little less... For exactly the reason being discussed, it can be a lot of alcohol otherwise. It varies from place to place, however, I've seen both ends of the spectrum - a full glass or practically a full glass, and also what was genuinely just a couple of splashes.

I can think of one or two tasting menus where I left feeling they were quite 'light', despite the duration, but I would put that down to the particular styles of cooking as much as anything else, and I wouldn't say I left still hungry. I have had more where I left feeling like I had pushed the boat out, that's more common I think!

I hope you enjoy Brabazon, the kitchen at Tankardstown has really progressed in recent years, I've heard good things!