We booked a room at the Carlton Hotel for our last night in Dublin as we had an early morning flight. The hotel website had an option to pre-book a Prix Fix dinner with reservations (required!) which seemed like a good idea at the time as this was the end of a long trip and we had an early flight the next morning.
The restaurant had not been informed of our reservation, or our pre-purchased three course meal. The hotel website had not passed the information to reception or the restaurant. We rescheduled with reception when we check in, but still the information had not been passed on to the restaurant. We asked the waiter who seated us to please check with reception to confirm and he said he would 'contact them when it is time to cash-out'. Glad we decided at hotel check-in to not leave our credit card information and instead 'pay as we go'. This blase' reaction did not give us a warm fuzzy feeling and makes me wonder why a hotel chain as large as the Carlton is still using paper reservation sheets at reception, AND why, if reservations 'are required' when pre-booking, that information does not get electronically sent to the restaurant booking system. Unless there is not one, which it seems there is not.
Our meals included starters, mains and dessert. We had the caesar salad and soup of the day, leek and potato. The salad itself was fresh, with large pieces of lettuce, bacon and toast sized croutons. The dressing tasted like mayonnaise. The soup was tasty if a bit salty, even for my SO who loves salty foods. It came with a small slice of tasty, hearty brown bread and a crusty roll and butter. A large bottle of tap water was placed on the table and replaced when empty.
Our mains were Salmon with peas and chicken breast with zucchini ragout. Both are served on a hill of mashed potatoes and sweet potato puree is smeared across the plate. Both mains were well cooked and tasty, simple food, aside from the decorative presentation. The peas were firm and the mashed potatoes good.
Both ordered the brownie which has a cake like texture, and is surprisingly, a bit dry. There is a sauce dolloped along two sides and some whipped cream. One sauce was strawberry, the other we think is lemon. This brownie needs more than just a couple of dollops. A scoop of vanilla ice cream perhaps?
Not sure how large the restaurant is as we were shown to a table right inside the door, along with other guests arriving for an early dinner. The waiter was friendly and service well timed. When we checked out he had confirmed our pre-paid dinner option and only drinks were charged. By the way, the Prix Fix dinner price on the menu is a bit lower than the price we paid on line. read more