Living Dublin Restaurants

The Mongolian Barbeque

7 Anglesea Street

If you're looking for something different and you like stir fry, then The Mongolian Barbeque is a must try. Add in the fact that it offers all you can eat at a single price and it's a perfect target for the impoverished or just horribly hungry traveller.

First, a bit of history. Apparently, at the end of the day Genghis khan and his ravenous hordes of buddies liked to to sit around an open campfire. Lacking both Calor Gas and Tefal they would simply empty the proceeds of the daily hunt onto an upturned shield and place it over the open fire. Not, you might think, the beginnings of a world cuisine but, according to the restaurant's literature, "with that event in mind, we have once again created the Mongolian Barbeque experience".

The process is simple: you go in, take your place at a table and order rice and drinks from a waiter or waitress, then head off for the cooking area. Here you choose from a self-service selection of raw meats, vegetables, spices and sauces and hand your completed bowl over to a chef who stir fries the lot on a large semi-circular flat griddle (the modern equivalent of GK's shield). Once cooked, you return with it to you table, where the rice to accompany it awaits you.

This is eating with fun attached. If you don't like your food you can't complain, unless it's to yourself. Handy hint cards make suggestions on combinations you might like to try, but the trick to the Mongolian Barbeque is to eat small and often - you can make as many trips to the cooking area as you like. Play, experiment, enjoy.

The Mongolian Barbeque operates on four daily sittings: lunchtime, early-bird and two in the evening (the last can be booked in advance). The price for the same all-you-can-eat deal rises through the day. Interestingly, the cheapest sitting (lunchtime) is also the longest.

I can't stress the sheer fun of the Mongolian Barbeque experience enough. If you are of the I-like-to-know-what-I'm-eating sort, then it's perfect for you too. It's great for groups, because it's the only restaurant I know of where you actually get to swap recipes, and meat eaters and vegetarians don't need to feel they're eating from different menus. It's great for adventurous kids - my pre-teen loved it because he loves his food but usually gets quickly bored by the actual process of eating. I've also been there on my own - it's fine.

Genghis Khan may have left something to civilisation after all.

October 04

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