Glovers Alley by Andy McFadden — Restaurant in Dublin

Located off of Dublin's Stephens green area Glovers Alley is easily accessible by foot and by all means of public transport. There is also parking nearby in the shopping centre and Qpark garages, although traffic is at best... a challenge. Upon arrival we were promptly and politely greeted and seated and offered an aperitif whilst we awaited the arrival of our last guest. Once all seated and orders taken we were very swiftly brought a duo of amuses. Little creamed cheese and chive tartlets, and mushroom macarons. The tartlets were a wonderfully silky yet perfectly crispy bite, complimented perfectly with the slightly acidic bite of the chives. Of the two the mushroom macarons I'd eat a hundred times over, so incredibly bold in flavour with rich hints of roasted yeast yet not diminishing the gentle umami of the mushrooms; they were lighter than a cloud, yet unctuous in the centre. We ordered the 4 course surprise menu, in which the chef prepares his choice from the menu. There was a selection of breads brought to the table including the classic soda and Guinness breads, sitting alongside the slightly more exotic mini French breads and the cheesy swirls - which were my favourite by far. The starter was scallop ceviche, with parsley and radish, served with a foie gras crumb. The scallops so tender and delicate they practically melt in the mouth, whilst the radish, foie and parsley add a complimentary zing without taking away from the subtle flavours of the scallop. This was followed by the wild turbot with brassicas and chorizo. The colours of the plate are bold and unapologetic, the almost gold and white of the turbot being the star of the show was meaty with the perfect level of sea without seeming to fishy; it's delightful subtly is complimented perfectly with the slight piquant of the brassica, and elevated by the chorizo, whilst gently kissed by the saltiness of oscietra caviar. After this came lamb, black curry "ratatouille" with foie gras. This dish is the ultimate presentation of a deconstructed dish. The perfectly rare lamb sits artistically amoung eggplant puree, a zippy tomato sauce and topped with a courgette disc. Generally speaking I'm not usually a fan of lamb, yet this dish was sublime. Melting in the mouth and leaving you swiping the plate for every last morsel of the delicious sauce. Then came the pallette cleansing citrus granita with honey youghurt. For dessert the Iles flottants, which were gravity defying in their sturdiness whilst being unfathomably delicate and soft, topped with a chocolate disc and a wonderfully tart strawberry sorbet, this dessert delivers for all of the senses.

The service was impeccable and graceful without being pretentious, with every dish respectfully introduced and each dish being swept away swiftly but without rushing you. If I were to be utterly trivial my only complaint would be that the menus both in person and online could do with a space between dishes, to the untrained eye it might be difficult to see where one dish ends and the next begins, also if one is to receive such visual dishes a touch more light in the general environment certainly wouldn't...

This was the only substandard experience I have ever had at a Michelin restaurant. I suggest others look at some of the other fantastic options in the city before trying out this hotel restaurant. The only reasons for giving any stars at all were the decent wine pairing and the well prepared if uninspired menu. Unfortunately this establishment thinks it's acceptable for drunk, rowdy patrons to ruin the experience of others. The table next to us were extremely loud the entire evening. When someone in my party asked if anything could be done about the table, the manager said he cannot control other people and offered to move us to another table near the offending one. What this was going to accomplish I have no idea. At that point we should have walked out but I assumed the table would quiet down once they got their food. Instead as the night went on we were subjected to watching the men harass the sommelier while loudly watching videos on their phones and describing in graphic detail sexual conquests of both a consensual and seemingly nonconsensual nature as well as making ableist, sexist, and racist comments and slurs throughout. After our last course, we were forgotten about for 45 minutes while waiting for our check. The manager rightfully skipped the tipping section when closing us out, as we had no intention to tip for that experience. At the end of the night the staff and manager appeared to have no knowledge of the disgusting antics taking place despite it being consistent behavior for three hours. I truly feel for the unfortunate position staff are put in dealing with toxic behavior but this was beyond the pale. An extremely disappointing experience and one which won't...

We were a table of 4, 2 of us are vegetarian the 3rd don't eat sea food and pork but do eat fish and other kinds of meat and myself with no dietary restrictions. They kindly offered to set us on a 4 course diner that will match each person dietary restrictions, we agreed, I asked to enjoy the diner and be served without restrictions, and especially asked to get the stuff the others restricted as it looked more to my liking. First course vegetarian for all, second course i got the same dish as my friend got when they removed the lobster for both of us because of her restriction, after i asked not to restrict me, we didn't share we ordered differently and served separately, but both got restricted, after i asked about it they said they might find me a piece of lobster in the kitchen and although there isn't a dish like that without lobster they said they sometimes serve like this as a surprise menu, I declined the search for lobster and ate my dish without it. Third dish same again for me and my friend. At the same time, both vegetarians ate differently from us except the first similar dish. I ordered another dish, sea food, that was, in my opinion, the best of them and very lovely. For me, it was all the wrong choices than what i asked. When we asked to pay, they did not charge for the extra dish. That was kind of them. The good part of the service was Ana, the excellent lady who helped us with drinks and knew exactly what we wished for. Thanks, Ana. You deserve 5...