# Rhodes restaurant Dublin 7 - small servings big plates slow service



## IrishGunner (10 Sep 2006)

Well was here on Sat night and extremly dissapointed

I hate restaurants were you get *BIG* plates and small portions and this was the case here

However the service was slooooowwwww and it was a good 20-25 minute wait in between starters and main course and then they forgot our vegtables. Table beside us also complained

Wont be back again although the atmosphere was good not sure if we caught them on a bad night?

Was in Keatings pub for a drink before hand and like the look of that anyone ever eaten here ?

Also read some reviews of Rhodes and please just because its on the Northside it does not make it a bad restaraunt

Listen up D4 heads


----------



## ftb2 (11 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*

Hi IrishGunner,

I wouldn't recommend Keatings I'm afraid. Had a terrible experience there - ordered a fishpie that was steaming hot and burnt my mouth even though I let it sit in front of me for about 5 mins before I ate any of it.

Called the waiter over who could see I was struggling with the dish and he said I should have let it cool down - this after it was sitting on the table for over 10 mins!!!

I felt the food was simply precooked and shoved into a microwave on superpower before it was served up...appalling 

Some fabby restaurants to check out...Yamamori on George's St; Sixty Six next door to the old reliable Yama; Siam Thai on Exchequer St; Chez Max at entrance to Dublin Castle; Elephant & Castle, Temple Bar...


----------



## IrishGunner (11 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*



ftb2 said:


> Some fabby restaurants to check out...Yamamori on George's St; Sixty Six next door to the old reliable Yama; Siam Thai on Exchequer St; Chez Max at entrance to Dublin Castle; Elephant & Castle, Temple Bar...



So food not that great in Keatings...hmmmm such a nice pub

Have tried nearly all of the above except Sixty Six but will be there on Wed night, better get our early for the Arsenal match. From reading previous threads heard good and bad things about it. Now its time for me to experience it

Thank


----------



## car (12 Sep 2006)

I thought downstairs in the sports bar in temple bar was the place to go for arsenal matches midweek.  a friend is in the "official supporters club" and thats where they all meet.  complimentary finger food.


----------



## ClubMan (12 Sep 2006)

I was in _Rhodes _the other week and the food, portions and service were fine in my opinion. Mind you somebody else was footing the bill which helped me to enjoy proceedings.  Somebody ordered a port after the meal and was eventually told that they were out of it which was a small thing that they really should have known in advance. Wasn't mad on the actual restaurant space itself - a bit cold/clinical/noisy for my tastes. And the maitre d' was a bit offputting saying that 9 instead of the originally booked 8 would be very tight at the table reserved even though we ended up at another table with loads of space. A simple "let's see what we can do" would have been a bit more welcoming. Would probably go back and try it again though - even if I had to foot the bill myself this time.


----------



## IrishGunner (12 Sep 2006)

car said:


> I thought downstairs in the sports bar in temple bar was the place to go for arsenal matches midweek.  a friend is in the "official supporters club" and thats where they all meet.  complimentary finger food.



Nah we have gone up in the world and eat and drink in the westmoreland

Me I have tried most food places. Also spoke to a work colleague yesterday and said the exact same re service and portions re Rhodes

Heard that they maybe opening a new Rhodes in Donnybrook?? Should please the D4 heads who wont venture to Capel street

I would rather come out of a restaraunt too full rather than still hungry 

Damn to those critics on the restaurant its food not art .Its there to be eaten not to take a picture of so bigger portions please. Although not always.....
Sorry went on a bit there


----------



## ClubMan (12 Sep 2006)

While it's cheaper and more cheerful in my opinion, I reckon that value for money is better at _101 Talbot _than at _Rhodes_ for not dissimilar types of food. We ate there a while back and had booked for 19:30 on a Saturday. Turns out that their early bird menu finishes at 19:30 (not 20:00 as stated on their website) but they charged us the early bird price anyway - even though we ordered from the a la carte - and it worked out cheaper. Not sure what the etiquette is in this context normally but we thought that it was a nice touch.


----------



## mf1 (13 Sep 2006)

Ate in Rhodes last night. I enjoyed it,I liked the space and thought the food was really good and at E28 per head ( ok, light meal and very little wine) not excessive. BUT I don't know what their target or niche market is - up market? Linen and black clad waiters? Or trendy?  Or MOR? I like 101 also - but it is considerably more casual, more down to earth and much more buzzy.  

Different venues for different outings perhaps? 

mf


----------



## Guest120 (13 Sep 2006)

IrishGunner said:


> Heard that they maybe opening a new Rhodes in Donnybrook?? Should please the D4 heads who wont venture to Capel street



There will be a Rhodes D4 but it won't be in Donnybrook, it will be in the Bolands Mill complex down in Docklands D4 (Pearse St/Ringsend Rd), it will be the resturant in the hotel part of the development.

Same owners and developers as the Capel Building where D7 is located.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]


----------



## kramer2006 (13 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*



ftb2 said:


> I wouldn't recommend Keatings I'm afraid. Had a terrible experience there - ordered a fishpie that was steaming hot and burnt my mouth even though I let it sit in front of me for about 5 mins before I ate any of it.


 
You're complaining because your food was TOO HOT?  



ftb2 said:


> I felt the food was simply precooked and shoved into a microwave on superpower before it was served up...appalling


 
Speaking from experience, a lot of pubs will prepare food this way. If you don't want pub grub, you should have gone to a restaurant.


----------



## TarfHead (13 Sep 2006)

IrishGunner said:


> .. and please just because its on the Northside it does not make it a bad restaraunt


 
and what does *that* mean ?

Restaurant standards decline the further you move north of the Liffey ?
Restaurants south of the Liffey cannot be anything other than good by virtue of geography ?

The last good restaurant meal I had was in Malahide.  That's about 9 miles north of the Liffey. If I liked Cruzzos, what must a restaurant 9 miles south of the Liffey be like ? Gastronomic nirvana ?


----------



## ClubMan (13 Sep 2006)

mf1 said:


> Different venues for different outings perhaps?


Perhaps. It's always apples and oranges when it comes to comparing restaurants. I'm just saying that I personally reckon that all told _101 _offers better value for money.


----------



## ClubMan (13 Sep 2006)

TarfHead said:


> and what does *that* mean ?


Yeah - you bleedin' startin' or wha'...!?


----------



## extopia (13 Sep 2006)

Chapter One on Parnell Square is possibly the best restaurant in the country but there's no doubt that the majority of good (and bad) restaurants are on the southside. Agree with Clubman about 101 Talbot, a good place, long established and they know what they're doing.


----------



## ClubMan (13 Sep 2006)

A colleague was in _Chapter One _one night and _Rhodes _the next and reckoned that _Chapter One_, while very good, did not merit the significant price differential. It's always good to consider such things with your logical economic man consuming units of utility hat on!


----------



## ClubMan (13 Sep 2006)

jaybird said:


> I happen to know that they're having a hard time keeping their staff, I don't know exactly why though, I haven't been (yet).


Maybe it's the smell of cats' weewee off the hedge around their open air section on _Mary's Abbey_! Seriously... some pong. Seemingly it's the type of hedge and not actually the local cats.


----------



## Humpback (13 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*



kramer2006 said:


> You're complaining because your food was TOO HOT?


 
I would have thought that this was a legitimate reason for not enjoying a meal. You don't expect to have scalding food served to you - you expect food to be served to you in an edible format. Fit for purpose as the legislation would put it.



kramer2006 said:


> Speaking from experience, a lot of pubs will prepare food this way. If you don't want pub grub, you should have gone to a restaurant.


 
Fair enough, but most pub grub I eat is served at a temperature that is edible once the food is served to me. I don't normally have to wait (or would expect to wait) for 10minutes for it to cool down.


----------



## ClubMan (13 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*



ftb2 said:


> ordered a fishpie that was steaming hot and burnt my mouth even though I let it sit in front of me for about 5 mins before I ate any of it.
> 
> Called the waiter over who could see I was struggling with the dish and he said I should have let it cool down - this after it was sitting on the table for over 10 mins!!!


Surely it was cooler after than 10 minutes than it was after 5?


----------



## NorfBank (13 Sep 2006)

Gunner, 

Don't get your hopes up for good service fi you're off to 66. I have heard the food is decent but just haven't had the patience to wait for service the two times I did go there. I've just given up now. 20 minutes for even the drinks order is too long. I liked Rhodes, portions were small but very tasy, opted for the confit of duck as the main. Yummy. Off to Darwins tonight on Aungier Street, a hidden gem of a restaurant.


----------



## kramer2006 (13 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*



ronan_d_john said:


> I would have thought that this was a legitimate reason for not enjoying a meal.


 
Let's get back to reality here. The OP claimed he/she had an "appalling" meal, because the food was too hot. He/she was so flummoxed by hot food ("struggling"), a waiter felt the need to approach him/her and explain a course of action.

One solution: blow on it! We're taught this life-saving procedure at an early age. Or, (my favourite) have a beer while it cools down.

If the food was too cold I'd say fair enough.


----------



## extopia (13 Sep 2006)

Come on now. Food served too hot is a sign of incompetence in the kitchen. The food in Keatings is indeed not very good, in my experience.


----------



## kramer2006 (13 Sep 2006)

extopia said:


> Food served too hot is a sign of incompetence in the kitchen.


 
Extopia, I'm not denying that fact. I'm just commenting on the amount of drama the OP has managed to wring out of the fact that her fish pie was too hot. 

I think the OP should sue ...  

Anyway, this thread is supposed to be about Rhode's over-priced noshery. And here we are talking about Keating's fish pie. It's just chaos.


----------



## ClubMan (13 Sep 2006)

Who said _Rhodes _is over-priced?


----------



## Humpback (13 Sep 2006)

*Re: Rhodes D7*



kramer2006 said:


> Let's get back to reality here. The OP claimed he/she had an "appalling" meal, because the food was too hot. He/she was so flummoxed by hot food ("struggling"), a waiter felt the need to approach him/her and explain a course of action.


 
Fair enough then, in reality, the OP said nothing about food being too hot.


----------



## IrishGunner (13 Sep 2006)

TarfHead said:


> and what does *that* mean ?
> Restaurant standards decline the further you move north of the Liffey ?
> Restaurants south of the Liffey cannot be anything other than good by virtue of geography ?
> 
> The last good restaurant meal I had was in Malahide.  That's about 9 miles north of the Liffey. If I liked Cruzzos, what must a restaurant 9 miles south of the Liffey be like ? Gastronomic nirvana ?



Well have ate in Cruzzos and yes was impressed here but more impressed by Siam Thiam and Silks has gone downhill

101 talbot and Chapter one good food. Also have ventured into Dublin Chinatown(aka Parnell street) and good food there also. Also have ate in an Italian place near the Millennium bridge which was ok

Location is nothing. Yes the critics did touch on this when Rhodes opened
but hey what do they know

66 tonight but there is another thread on that already


----------



## Deirdra (15 Sep 2006)

TarfHead said:


> and what does *that* mean ?
> 
> ..., what must a restaurant 9 miles south of the Liffey be like ? Gastronomic nirvana ?



No, definitely no nirvana over here either.

Had a nice lunch in Rhodes D7 today. After I said I was a food critic, I was given a tour of the restaurant! Big place, good service, good food but not much 'wow' factor. Maybe a lot of business from the Four Courts?


----------



## Davy (15 Sep 2006)

I liked the food but found the service very bad. They forgot the vegetables and didnt bring them when we asked. Found it very cramped also and did not like the decor.


----------



## extopia (16 Sep 2006)

Deirdra said:


> Maybe a lot of business from the Four Courts?



Is this the impression you got on your visit? Lots of wigs / blue and grey suits in evidence (apologies if my knowledge of legal fashion is outdated).

Or are you suggesting either that:

(a) It's the northside so only slumming professionals can afford it. 
(b) It's the norhtside so it's full of skangers.  

btw nice touch with the "Food Critic" claim. I thought genuine food critics gave their eye teeth to remain anonymous?


----------



## Deirdra (19 Sep 2006)

extopia said:


> Is this the impression you got on your visit? Lots of wigs / blue and grey suits in evidence (apologies if my knowledge of legal fashion is outdated).
> 
> Or are you suggesting either that:
> 
> ...



It's such a big place, I wondered if they were catering for more people rather than just shoppers or people who work near by. It's not exactly cosy and intimate!

Suggestion (c) As, hopefully, a 'genuine food lover', I think Dublin is lacking good restaurants in general, compared to other European cities. I patiently wait for Tom Doorly's restaurant reviews each week before I descend on the next restaurant. in Rhodes D7, I also told the East European waitress that as I and my dining companion were 'good looking' we would want a table that we could see and be seen, but as with my 'food critic' line, I don't think she didn't understood me, or of course, could be that she just ignored me...

Aah well off to try the Winding Stair restaurant this week


----------



## wheeler (13 Nov 2006)

I was in RhodesD7 on Friday night for the first and last time.

I can't complain about the service - that was very good.

But the food was just ok. Nothing wrong with it (except that they overcooked the steak, I asked for medium but got medium-well and at that it was more on the well side) but it does not warrant the price tag.

This restaurant does not fit into the motto 'try anything once'. It's definitely not worth even the once.


----------



## Tarquin (13 Nov 2006)

Re


----------

