Update: This restaurant is permanently closed
For our anniversary dinner we wanted to go somewhere a little special.
I kind of neglected fine dining in 2015 and one of my new year's
Anyway, after cocktails in the Chelsea Drugstore we arrived at Luna, located in the basement level of Super Miss Sue but has its own entrance. You go down the stairs and find yourself facing a sexy bright red sculpture of a woman's body and there is a neon light with the name of the restaurant 'Luna', which is the first name of the daughter of restaurant owner, John Farrell.
On arrival we were told by the lady we were late (only 5 minutes according to Mr. FFID) and we were asked to wait at the bar. We saw they had prosecco on tap so had to order a glass of course!
When you step into Luna's dining room you know it's going to be more than eating at a restaurant, it's show time!
There is a big red curtain and the waiting staff are all young men dressed in burgundy tuxedos tailored by Louis Copeland. The carpet looks like it's from the movie The Shining and there are Italian salami hanging from the ceiling.
The busy chefs can be seen at the open kitchen and diners are sitting on leather banquettes. The restaurant screams sexiness, the owner really succeeded in recreating the atmosphere and setting of an Italian restaurant from 1950's America.
We sat our table and were given the gigantic menu, it's mostly written in Italian and divided into 8 sections: cold meats and bread, starters, soups and salads, pasta dishes, fish, meat, sides and the dessert trolley.
We were brought little shavings of parmesan cheese to nibble on but also ordered lardo on toast to share (€3.50).
Lardo being one my favourite kind of fat, it went down a treat served on good sourdough toast.
My starter (€12) was a piece of salted baked celeriac served with a runny egg yolk, a puree of black trumpet mushroom and toasted hazelnuts. A beautiful dish with winter earthy flavours and contrasting textures, one of the best vegetarian dishes I've ever had.
Mr. FFID went for a delectable tartare of sirloin which came with bone marrow and parmesan toast, a very different looking tartare, impeccably seasoned but I have to say my dish won.
We resisted the call of the côte de boeuf we spotted on the table next to us as a main and didn't order, preferring individual dishes for a change.
My main was pretty easy to choose as it basically included some of my favourite foods in one dish: Jerusalem artichokes, scallops and truffles. I wouldn't normally order a risotto (€28) but this one was spot on. Perfectly cooked rice, exquisite seared plump scallops and generous truffle shavings: a real winner!
Mr. FFID had the deliciously pink venison rack with beautifully roasted parsnip and beetroot (€33), a well presented dish with robust flavours. He heartily enjoyed his main and didn't share much of it.
The dessert trolley featured quite a selection of old school desserts such as tiramisu, pumpkin pie and a chocolate tart.
We shared the chocolate tart which was very rich, probably a little too bitter for me, unfortunately it didn't quite live up to the rest of the meal.
Luna is an opulent restaurant, from the decor to the food it is made to impress. It isn't a cheap place, our bill came to just over €160 before tip but that's why we booked it for a special occasion. My only complaint (which isn't really a complaint) is that it's so dark that my pictures don't do justice to the food and also after a few glasses of wine I was confused by the two gendered doors both leading to one unisex bathroom.
I haven't had a real dining experience like this in a long time so it was totally worth the money. If you're looking for an experience on a smaller budget, their pre theatre menu is priced at €30 per person for 3 courses.
Luna you sexy beast, I'm looking forward to seeing you again.
Luna
2-3 Drury Street
Dublin 2
This is an independent review, I paid for my meal.
