I’m scoffing nachos while Get By by Talib Kweli blares from the stereo. It’s loud but its volume is absolutely appropriate; it’s Friday night and every table in the house is brimming with people ready to go out on the town. The servers are almost dancing as they bring out plates of tacos and I can’t help but get carried away by the buzz and the beats. I’m in the ground floor dining room of Odessa off Dame Lane. But this isn’t Odessa anymore; it’s Taco Taco.
Odessa’s brunch used to buzz like this. I was disappointed to note the decline in Odessa’s food offering in the last couple of years. It felt like it was being left behind while newer, shinier food businesses popped up around it. This stagnation, and perhaps the residual effect of once being a members-only club, saw Odessa in the regrettable position at the beginning of this year of having to go into interim examinership, with debts that apparently mounted up to €1 million.
It was announced a few months ago that Dublin’s latest pop-up was to take roost in their ground-floor dining room, and the Odessa restaurant was to move upstairs with a new chef (Troy Maguire), business as usual. Taco Taco, spearheaded by chef Temple Garner (of San Lorenzo’s) and restaurant promoter Anthony Remedy (formerly of Bite and San Lorenzo’s).
Garner is one of my favourite Irish chefs. I still don’t think his Dame Street Mermaid Café brunch has been adequately replaced, not even by his ‘brunch of champions’ at San Lorenzo’s (a restaurant I still prefer at dinnertime). The flavours at Taco Taco have Garner’s stamp all over them. They’re powerful without being gratuitous, with an unfussy attention to detail that sees ingredients reach their full potential.
Prices are high but the portions are huge. We share a giant plate of Super Nachos (€14.95) to start; each element is bang on, from the smoky chilli con carne to the creamy guac to the melted cheddar and the salty nachos.
I struggle to finish my shrimp popcorn taco (€18.95), which saddens me deeply as it is thoroughly tasty. The shrimp itself bursts with the flavour that one hopes for in a shrimp: sweet and succulent, coated in a batter that remains crispy throughout. My date’s Chinese Five Spice Duck Taco (€16.95) doesn’t disappoint either. It’s dark in colour, sticky with sauce and full of flavour. In fact, flavour comes at us from every direction at Taco Taco; there’s no opportunity for great taste that’s been left uncovered.
Poutine is a Canadian speciality of fried potatoes covered in cheese and gravy, which should (and can) be disgusting. Taco Taco have done this dish justice; it’s a joyously weird marriage of carbs and umami in one messy side dish (economically priced at €3.50). A side order of kimchi (€2) is the only thing that underwhelms. It’s a little weak on tanginess and it’s grated, which leaves me missing the crunch of chunky, fermented cabbage.
We’re left with just about enough room for a shared bowl of ice cream with hundreds and thousands (€6.50). Service is fast and friendly, with the girls being a little friendlier than the boys, it must be said. Our bill, which includes a mesquite old-fashioned (€11), a brunch sour (€11.50), a non-alcoholic Peachy Keen (€4), a homemade lemonade (€3) and an americano (€2.85), comes to a total of €95.20.
For me, Taco Taco is leading the way in the current line-up of new spots to eat in Dublin. Let’s hope it’s here to stay.
Taco Taco
Open for dinner and weekend brunch, no reservations
14 Dame Court, Dublin 2
t: 083-4499584
w: www.tacotacodublin.com
Words: Aoife McElwain
Photos: Naomi Gaffey
