Review
The Blazin’ Grill is a family business, run by Lee McCabe and his brothers. It is up at the top of the Square shopping centre in the Belgard Square Complex, on the road that leads from the main Tallaght bypass to the hospital.
We went along on a Friday evening - myself, wife Deirdre and our friend Pauline who is doing a masters in IT in Tallaght. The atmosphere was busy and buzzy, the service friendly and prompt and the clientele a mixture of twenty and thirty something's on a night out, and families out for a weekend treat.
The Blazin' Grill is a modern purpose built unit that features large windows running all around two sides of the restaurant. Inside there's a large dining area that starts off as a large rectangular space, with the bar on one side, and narrows to a longer stretch this runs down the length of the wall of glass.
As the name suggests, this is a steakhouse, and they have taken this commitment seriously. There is a good selection of cuts and sizes, but in addition they can be had in almost a dozen styles. By that I mean you can choose to have your steak American style, or perhaps Italian or British would be more appealing, while you can always play it safe and have it Irish style, with colcannon, roast vegetables, crispy onions and Guinness jus. The steaks of the World concept is what it's called, and essentially they serve the steak as you would get it in any of the different countries listed, so if spicy Mexican is your thing, they have that too.
Apart from the steak the menu is quite extensive. Starters include a prawn cocktail, smoked salmon salad, chicken wings or baby beetroot and Goat's cheese salad and are mostly priced at under €7. Main courses offer other meat dishes like lamb chops, a choice of pastas or a selection of fish dishes including baked Atlantic salmon or grilled hake fillet. Again prices here are fair, with most of the main courses priced in the mid teens, with only a few of the larger steaks going into the twenties
We were eating as three, and all ordered different dishes to get a sense of the menu. Pauline started with the filo prawns with wasabi mayo; Deirdre had the smoked salmon while I find it hard to pass a prawn cocktail.
The filo prawns were very good, and the wasabi mayo had a nice kick. Deirdre was very happy with her smoked salmon with capers salad, but the star for me was the prawn cocktail. This was executed perfectly and served on a plate rather than in a glass, and the Marie Rose sauce was just right.
For main courses, Pauline had the steak - French style - while Deirdre had the sea bass and I had the lamb chops. Pauline's steak was perfectly cooked and the French styling was nicely done. Her gratin potatoes were tasty, and sides of asparagus and mushrooms were nicely seasoned. French peppercorn and Brandy sauce finished the dish perfectly. Deirdre's sea bass was cooked au pointe, and accompanied by a light sauce that complemented by didn't overwhelm the flavour of the fish.
My lamb chops were generous to say the least, and I had trouble finishing them, but again they were cooked perfectly pink, the lamb had a good flavour and scallion mash was a lovely childhood memory.
We struggled with dessert, but managed to share a slice of cheesecake and some good coffees. The Blazing Grill is a very good steakhouse that does exactly what it says on the tin. The service is excellent, and the staff are friendly and personable. It's a great spot for a night out with friends, and lends itself to staying around for a cocktail or two.
**We ate off the A la Carte, but there is an early bird that offers two courses for €16, which offers excellent value, while two courses at lunch time are only €12.95. Kids eat free on Sunday.