Cookbook Club Review

Aah," squealed Sharon, as she whacked her forehead and made the lady sitting next to her jump in surprise. "What's the matter," asked the kind lady. "I'm so stupid," mumbled Sharon. "I've brought my camera but somehow I've left my memory card at home so I can't take any pictures of the food".

"But who takes pictures of their food," asked the confused lady. "Don't most people just eat it?"

That was the moment a very confused lady was introduced to the world of food blogging and it was also the moment I realised I wouldn't have any pictures to share with you from Monday night's Cookbook Club in Dublin. Thankfully, the lovely organiser Elaine came to the rescue with some pictures taken by a photographer on the night. There aren't many of the food but you will get an idea of the atmosphere of the evening.

I went with two Polish friends, Beata and Filipe. We had decided that, seeing as there were three starters, main courses and desserts to choose from, we would order one of each and share.

My first impressions were good. Ely is in a fabulous old building. Its architecture highlights its heritage and you can't help but wonder what stories these walls could tell. Later on in the evening, the owner of the restaurant would tell us some of these stories. Did you know that the 4,000 Irish soldiers who fought in the Crimean War had a banquet here before they left? Fascinating.

The atmosphere at Ely's was animated from the moment we arrived. The layout of the room and of the tables was arranged in such a way that it encouraged interaction with others at the table. So, not only did I speak to Beata and Filipe (and to the startled lady next to me) but we also had interesting chats with two other women.

These two women, to be precise:

They were interested in farmers' markets, the upcoming Taste of Christmas and Dáithí Ó Sé's chocolate biscuit cake, as seen on RTE's The Restaurant. (They almost hyperventilated when I told them that because I used to be good friends with his sister, I had tasted this cake on many an occasion!)

While conversation was definitely on the menu at Ely's, it wasn't necessarily always easy to hear what others were saying, especially if they were sitting across from you. It may be because of the low vaulted ceilings but the acoustics of the room amplified the sounds and you had to shout in order to be heard. My ears were ringing when I left and Beata said she felt as though she had been in a nightclub. This was a pity but nevertheless, it didn't stop us talking.

The lovely Elaine was the host for the evening. She greeted everyone when they arrived and gave a welcoming speech before the meal was served. She also introduced that night's chef, Clodagh McKenna, whose food was being cooked by the kitchen. Clodagh was extremely warm and friendly and during the evening, she went from table to table, chatting with the diners.

So, what about the food?

Here's what we ate:

Starters:

Chicken Liver Parfait with Carmelised Onion and Mustart Seeds served with a Spicy Apple Chutney
A Pesto Ricotta Tart
French Onion Soup with Gruyere Toasts

Mains:

Italian Beef Stew
Baked Whole Sole with Salsa Verde (this was replaced with swordfish when the sole ran out)
Homemade Gnocchi with a creamy Bellingham Blue Cheese Sauce

Desserts:

Cardamon-infused chocolate mousse pots
Rosewater jellies
Orange-scented rice pudding

Because Ely's prides itself on its extensive wine list, they had recommended wines to match the food and we followed their advice.

So, what did I think? Unfortunately, I thought the food was slightly disappointing. The chicken liver parfait was perfectly smooth but it needed something to contrast with its creamy mildness and the onions and chutney just didn't do it. I thought the French onion soup was wonderfully sweet and was well complemented by the cheesy toasties. (However, Beata - an onion fanatic - thought there were too many onions and not enough liquid). The pesto ricotta tart was delicious. Light, creamy, herby; perfect.

The Italian beef stew had an unexpected touch of sweetness and lots of chunky pieces of meat. By the time we ordered our fish, the sole had been replaced by swordfish (which I must confess is not one of my favourite fish) and I thought the resulting dish was a little dry and slightly boring. But the gnocchi was a revelation. This was the dish we had expected least from but it was stunning. The gnocchi themselves were perfectly cooked and the blue cheese sauce was so creamy and had such depth of flavour. It was one of those dishes you could easily eat again and again and again.

So far, the dinner was going quite well but when the desserts arrived, it nosedived. The rosewater jelly was perfectly pleasant but not memorable. The rice pudding was completely underflavoured. And the chocolate mousse pots didn't really taste of chocolate. They also had a funny grainy texture - maybe from the cardamon?

This was such a pity as it ended what had been a good evening on a low note. (When I'm cooking at home, I almost always plan my dessert first as I find that even the biggest culinary disasters are instantly forgotten the moment guests taste something decadently sweet and here, I think the opposite applied.)

My overall verdict? The evening was very convivial and I had lots of interesting conversations. Ely's wine list is phenomenal. The food could have been better. But I would definitely go again.

One funny thing though: there were hardly any men there. Women seemed to outnumber men by at least ten to one. Weird, eh?

An exciting new event for Dublin's foodies

Have you heard about the Cookbook Club? I hadn't until I saw it mentioned in The Sunday Times' Style section a few weeks back but I was instantly intrigued. If you're a foodie, you are sure to be too.

Its founder, Elaine Walsh, recently told me what it was all about:

"Everyone seems to like the ethos and quirkiness of the club," she says. "An in-house chef interprets a menu adapted from a cookbook and cooks that menu for 120 people. It's a challenge for them to interpret the recipes but then that's what we all do at home with cookbooks, isn't it? With the club, you get to eat the lovely dishes in the pictures but someone else has cooked them and you don't have to do the washing up!"

To make it even more interesting, the chef/author of the cookbook is also present on the night. They introduce the menu and I'm sure they also make the in-house chef feel nervous about doing their recipes justice!

The Cookbook Club meets on the first Monday of every month and next Monday, the chefs at Ely Bar and Brasserie will be cooking what they consider to be some of Clodagh McKenna's best dishes. Diners will have a choice of three starters, three main courses and three desserts. And most excitingly of all, I'm going to be there to sample them!

I love the story of what inspired Elaine to start this club. It's a story that combines everything that makes food so important: family, bringing people together, the conviviality of preparing food and the enjoyment there is in sharing the pleasure of a meal.

Here's how Elaine explains it:
"There are two things," she says. "I'm from a farm in West Clare but I hated it. I hated weeding, minding the cattle and cutting the turf. But I did like the preparation of our own homegrown food. My mum and grandmother used to dissect recipes they scoured from 'Woman's Way' magazines and old domestic science books to find something 'cordon bleu-y' to do with the same old mutton or turnip or we'd all die of boredom. They'd be cleavering meat and chopping vegetables, gossiping all the while. I'd be sitting eavesdropping on the stairs and I think that's why I associate food preparation and family gossip and get-togethers with cookbook narratives. I want to know the story behind the dish."


Elaine is also writing a cookbook of her own, which has its very own story. "It's about five real-life sisters who were all taught to cook by their extraordinary mother," she explains. "That book won't be released until next year but while I was studying the cookbook market, I started to think about organising big social get-togethers for groups of friends and family."

That's how the idea was born and the club has met twice so far. In September, the chefs of the Town Bar and Grill interpreted the recipes of Paul Flynn from The Tannery and in October those of Catherine Fulvio. Elaine was thrilled with both events .

"There's such conviviality and fun," she says. "Some people use it as a chance to catch up but it's also great to bring people together and to see strangers make friends. I've even had two romances come out of it. At one occasion, two cousins who hadn't seen each other in over 30 years because of a family row happened to be sitting together. It was so emotional to see them reconnect."

She is now planning to bring her cookbook club to other parts of Ireland and maybe even further afield. Future events are being organised for Cork, Belfast and Galway.

I don't know if there are any more tickets available for Monday but if you're interested, the cost is €35 and more information can be found here: http://thecookbookclub.ie/

In the meantime, I'm going along on Monday and I'll post a review to let you know how it goes.