Review
DeBruns restaurant and Bar (formerly Brasserie 15) is tucked away in the Ashleigh Centre in the heart of Castleknock Village. It is part of Greg and Mary Brownes trio of restaurants within the Dublin 15 area, along with Brownes Steakhouse in Main Street Blanchardstown and Castello Bruno in Castleknock.
During the day DeBruns is filled with locals and business people enjoying lunch, while by evening the place has a relaxed ambiance with couples, families and groups enjoying the vast array of food & drinks available and over the weekend brunch is busy.
As we walked into DeBruns early on a Friday evening, we quickly arrived at the opinion that the place has something to offer ever taste, from the quaint snug in the corner, the large and well sheltered beer garden, to the well laid out restaurant and bar packed with an appealing selection of craft beers and cocktails.
The restaurant is well laid out with a combination of large comfortable booths intermixed with tables all well set apart from each other designed for a convivial evening of chat, food and a social beverage or two!
It has a French bistro influence in design which works quirkily well alongside its clearly Irish heritage bar. The menu is broad and eclectic and reflects an international influence with appealing dishes from the Mediterranean Stuffed Peppers, Raman’s Chicken Curry or the Prawn Provencale.
We ordered a bottle of Reserva Privada House White, which was bursting with citrus flavours and honey notes – great value for €22. To start I had Prawns Pil Pil which was packed with a medley of flavours accompanied by ciabatta which was excellent for adsorbing the tasty, spicy sauce which accompanied the plentiful, juicy prawns. Pauline had homemade fishcakes which had a wonderful tangy flavour to them, and the fish flavour came through nicely.
For the main course I had the Massaman Lamb Curry which was a slow cooked delight, the lamb melted in my mouth, and it was served with sticky rice and coconut infused crackers which I thoroughly enjoyed. Pauline chose the special of the day; pan fried Hake which was very fresh , beautifully seasoned and served simply with baby potatoes.
After two generous dishes we just managed to share a Crème Brulee which had a thin crisp shell which shattered to reveal a light custard beneath and was a perfect combination of frothy and flavoursome with a subtle hint of vanilla.
DeBruns is fine venue with a relaxed informal atmosphere, attentive staff, a diverse menu and is reasonably priced with many specials on offer throughout the week. It's a restaurant where you can spend a very pleasant evening and take time to choose between an assortment of international dishes which are tasty and flavoursome at very reasonable prices, to be accompanied by a medley of craft beers and a good selection of wines.
