I’m a couple of days behind with my restaurant reports. I was supposed to post my first Ireland restaurant report and another Italy report over the weekend and did neither. And so instead of the promised Twin Cities report, here is my first report from Ireland. It’s a good thing I don’t write this blog for a living and also that nobody really gives a shit when I post anything. Anyway, our travels this summer took us from Italy to Ireland. I’m far from done with my meal reports from Italy but figured I’d mix some Irish content in to switch things up a bit. And what could be more Irish than a Persian/Kurdish restaurant? No better way to begin the Irish reports, I say. It’s also an appropriate way to begin the Irish reports because Passion 4 Food was the location of both the first and last meal we ate out on our six-week Irish sojourn. Which is not to say we ate those meals at the same restaurant.

I don’t mean to be mysterious with that last sentence. Those who follow the Dublin restaurant scene closely know that Passion 4 Food has three locations in Dublin: the original opened on Clanbrassil St. Lower in 2009; another location opened on Camden St. Lower in 2015; and most recently their third location opened this year in Ongar Village (in a far-flung part of Dublin we never went to). We visited the Clanbrassil St. location a few hours after settling into the house we spent most of our six weeks in Ireland in (well, the family spent all six weeks there—I took off for Belfast for a week in the middle with my students). We needed an easygoing place within easy reach and Passion 4 Food, located less than 10 minutes walk from us fit the bill perfectly. I’m very glad to report that the food was as good as the location was convenient. We enjoyed it enough to want to go back again. But as luck would have it, we only made it back on our last full day in Dublin/Ireland. But on that occasion, walking back home from one last visit to Stephen’s Green, the Camden St. location was closer when we got hungry and so that’s where we went. And that meal was very good as well.

Both locations—and probably the third as well—have identical menus. The spaces, however, are quite different. The Clanbrassil St. original is spread over two floors. As you enter on the ground floor there are a few tables facing the kitchen counters and stairs up to a mid-sized dining room. If you eat downstairs you can order at the counter but upstairs it’s table service only. Either way, you pay downstairs and it’s cash only (also true at Camden St.). As far as ambience goes, it’s mostly functional. The Camden St. location, which rubs shoulders with many of Dublin’s trendiest places, has more going for it in terms of interior decoration. You enter past a long counter where the meats are being cooked on spits and find a large, attractive dining room. You can order either at the counter as you enter, or at your table. The menu at both places, again, is the same.

At the first meal we got an order of the lamb doner and an order of the Passion special. The latter comprises two skewers each of the lamb shish kebab, the chicken shish kebab and the kubideh (ground lamb kebab). Both came with a choice of rice or naan and we got a mix. They also gave us each a small salad with various marinated/pickled things. And we got what turned out to be a massive side of garlic cheese chips. Of the mains the lamb doner and the chicken shish kebab were our favourites but all the kebabs were very good.

At the second meal we got an order of the mixed doner (lamb and chicken), the charcoal chicken (half a grilled chicken), and the tashreeb (a large lamb shank in a tomato-based stew). The same salads and sauces accompanied these dishes along with the choice of naan or rice: we again got some of each. And this time we got an order of the regular chips. Everything was again very good but we really liked the tashreeb, the stew rendered velvety by the use of okra.

For a look at the restaurants and what we ate, click on a pic below to launch a larger slideshow. Scroll down to see how much it all cost and to see what’s coming next.

Both meals cost almost exactly 60 euros. Which is a pretty good deal in Dublin for the quality and quantity (we took home leftovers from both meals). Service was very friendly and attentive enough. I’m not sure where Passion 4 Food falls in Dublin’s larger Middle Eastern restaurant scene; but I can tell you we enjoyed their food a lot. Whether you’re looking for a quick kebab or a larger meal, you could do a lot worse. And, oh yes, they even have a few vegan options.

Alright, my next report will feature either a return to Italy or a return to another of our Twin Cities favourites. At any rate, I’ll post one on Thursday and the other on the weekend. Or maybe I should say, that’s what I intend to do. Let’s see how it goes.