Fiorentina

Where? Fiorentina, Dame Street, D2
Ordered? For starters, Arancini di riso, calamari alla brace. For main, Pollo alla Sorrentina

  One of my favourite Italian restaurants, Fiorentina is a classy quiet gem on the corner of Dame St and Parliament St, with a relaxed atmosphere and friendly knowledgeable staff, and run by the accomplished (and unquestionably witty) restauranteur Kristan Burness. The food is fresh and full of flavour and the menu changes seasonally, so the menu on offer today is the summer menu.

  I choose fried risotto balls with lamb and chargrilled calamari to start. The risotto balls come in a lovely tomato sauce, and they are delicious, I even scoop some of the sauce onto the calamari so as not to waste it! The calamari is lovely and crispy and cooked well, not too chewy but with a nice bite. Both dishes are tasty and the portion sizes make for a good starter.

  For main I choose the Pollo alla Sorrentina, chicken breast half on the bone served with cherry tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, baby potatoes and I order a side of rocket and parmesan salad. Overall the dish is very tasty and I would say well balanced if it weren't for the slab of mozarella, it was nice and complemented the dish well but there was just a lot of it. I would order it again though. Everything was delicious and I stuffed myself to the brim.  

  Instead of a dessert, I was offered a complimentary sample of one of the treats from the upcoming new cocktail menu being launched this coming Monday (well worth checking out). The Signora Sofisticada (Sophisticated Lady, if I'm not mistaken) had a basis of Brockmans Gin, fresh basil, strawberry, lime juice, egg whites and some secret ingredients. A perfect summer cocktail, it was sweet and fresh with just a hint of spice from a sprinkling of black pepper on top. 

  Fiorentina is a perfect date spot, however, their lunch menu is also worth a look and very reasonably priced, with such dishes as Rose Veal meat balls and gluten free pasta options. I look forward to coming back and trying some more of Paddy's new cocktails, bellissima!

http://www.fiorentina.ie

Umi

Where? Umi Falafel, 13 Dame St, Dublin 2
Ordered? Tunisian salad, 4 falafel served with bread, hummus, dips and a drink.
For dessert, Baklawa

  I'll admit, I've never had falafel before and wasn't too sure what it was to begin with (it's OK, I googled it). I decided to check out Umi Falafel today to pop my falafel cherry, and I'm so glad I did.

  I went for a lunch combo that comes with a salad (I chose the Tunisian Salad), 4 falafel (I really like saying falafel), hummus, dips, bread and a drink. Pretty good deal if you ask me. The waitress took my order and I got to take in the surroundings; the seating area was airy and cool and the music was good, something I feel is important in a restaurant. In the middle of King of the Bongo, the waitress brought my plate out .The presentation was nice, I especially liked the little deep fryer basket holding the falafels. 

  The salad was made up of cous cous, scallion, coriander, red pepper and chickpeas and I finished the lot, as well as all four of the falafels and the two breads that accompanied it. The hummus and salad were really refreshing while the falafels ( my new favourite word) were crunchy and had a hint of spice, all really tasty.

  For dessert I ordered the Baklawa, which is compact layers of pastry with pistacios and honey. They were a little too sweet for me to be honest, but I think that's just me. I did manage a couple of bites n they packed a nice bite.

  All in all I think their lunch deal is an absolute bargain, the food is fresh and flavoursome, and all completely vegetarian. Go Umi!

http://www.umifalafel.ie