I visited Herbstreet recently for a bit of pre theatre grub with a group of ladies from work. A group of ladies you ask? Well, we were going to see Priscilla, Queen of the Desert so we didn’t get any takers from the lads. In case you’re wondering, it was brilliant. Priscilla, you had me at hot men dancing around in cupcake costumes.
Back to the grub…Herbstreet run a very efficient pre-theatre service and were able to confirm that we’d easily have time for a starter and main despite only having an hour from sit down to curtains up. Catering for a coeliac would also be no problem.
On having our orders taken, I inquired about the Creamy Wild Mushrooms with Rocket & Tomato salad for my starter which the helpful waiter confirmed could be adjusted for me using GF bread. See the results above, yum yum. I’m pretty sure the bread was BFree.
For mains, unfortunately I couldn’t have my first choice, the fish tacos, as they are deep fried, however, I was steered in the direction of the Turkey burger with Sweet Potato Wedges. It was just the right size meal and the burger was really tasty, as were the wedges. Without even asking, my burger came with more Bfree bread. While this was great, I’m always a little disappointed with this especially when a restaurant is clearly ‘clued in’ to gluten free. I guess I just feel if I can buy GF burger buns in Tesco, why can’t they? There are other Dublin restaurants that offer these so it might be something to think about.
We were a group of 11 and all received our orders in good time with no issues. The wait staff were very obliging and definitely knew what a coeliac could and couldn’t have. My only criticism is the lack of clarity on the menu regarding this. There is some effort made to mention gluten free soup being available but apart from that you will need to check with your server for all dishes.
Bill came to €32 each for two courses  including generous tip and 2 glasses of  a nice sav blanc and I would definitely recommend a visit. Their brunch is supposed to be fab and if it’s anything like the food I had for dinner, I don’t doubt it.
