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Gaudinos
Castle Street
WHEN I last reviewed Gaudinos in January 2015, in its former life as the Allegro (click here), I had the same thing I’d always had as an adult going there – my guilty pleasure of liver, bacon and chips.
But it’s no longer the Allegro. The restaurant has a new name and a cool new look so I decided to call in there on Friday for a bite and to see the changes.
It looks a lot different alright. The furnishings look good and they have a cool area at the back which could accommodate private parties.
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I called in after the lunchtime rush at around 2.30pm so it was pretty quiet. I took a seat and the very friendly waitress came over to take my order. It was predictably quiet at this time with just one other customer, but by the time I left a half hour later there were six other tables taken.
The menu caters for all tastes with loads of reasonably priced pizzas and pastas, steaks, grills, sandwiches and, yes, my beloved liver and bacon.
They also had some specials on offer which piqued my interest – breaded pork on sourdough bread topped with tomato sauce, melted cheese with salad and chips; risotto mushroom and chicken; coconut prawns with a spicy pineapple dip or roast chicken and ham. All these specials were for under €10.
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I decided to go for the risotto (€8.95), which is something that’s not fried, thus breaking a 30 year tradition of artery-clogging loveliness enjoyed in the Allegro down the years.
The risotto did not take long to appear and it was good. A decent portion, the sauce was very tasty, the rice not soggy and the mushrooms delicious.
One thing I will complain about is the music. The restaurant has had a really nice refurbishment and could do with either some St Germain/Zero 7 (I’m showing my age here!) style funky/chillout sounds or Cuban/Mediterranean beats, rather than the vapid Richard Clayderman/hotel bar music that was playing in the background.
I had a good cappuccino (which could have been a bit hotter though) to finish and the bill came to €11.65.
The back area, as I mentioned before, looks like an inviting spot for an early bird or evening meal, so I might check it out soon.
All in all, a good lunch.
