Upstairs, the restaurant, which was one large room with wooden floorboards, had a laid-back, mellow vibe. The relaxed decor held a touch of that not-trying-too-hard feel that had obviously cost a lot of money. Retro-style leather seats with metal legs were arranged around solid, not-quite rustic wooden circular tables, each of which was set with elegant glasses, silverware, and neat black linen napkins. A gentle hum of voices rose in the room which was packed.
‘Conor, good to see you.’ The casually dressed man at the front desk clapped Conor on the back with easy familiarity before turning to Hannah with a cheerful smile. ‘Hello there, and welcome to Fintan’s.’
‘Gerard. Good to see you. Looks like you’ve got a hit on your hands. I had to beg for a table.’
‘Sure, you did not. You and the family have always a welcome here. If it weren’t for your mam I wouldn’t be here. You know that.’
‘She sends her love.’
‘And well she might but when she’s going to grace me with her presence?’
‘You know her; it’s almost impossible to winkle her out of her empire.’
‘No surprise really. She’s created a paradise there. Ah, Audrey,’ Gerard called to a passing waitress. ‘Will you show Conor and his friend to table one?’
‘Sure,’ she said and then as she looked at Conor properly, her eyes widened in sudden recognition. ‘Good evening, sir. Gerard mentioned you were coming by. Nice to meet you.’
‘Hi,’ he said with his usual easy smile. She led the way through the tables and Hannah noticed a few heads turn as they passed but quickly forgot when they arrived at a corner table, right beside the window, with a fabulous view out over the River Liffey.
Hannah looked round with pleasure. ‘We’ve got the best seat in the house. Gerard’s a good friend I take it?’
‘We go back a way.’
‘Is it quite a new restaurant?’
‘Yes. Opened two months ago and it’s had rave reviews, but then it should do. He was taught by one of the best chefs in Ireland.’
‘What’s the food like?’
‘Have you heard of the Slow Food Movement?’
Hannah shook her head. ‘No.’
‘It’s about linking food back to the community, focusing on the ingredients and its provenance. Where it comes from and how it’s been grown. That’s a simplification, but there’s a strong emphasis on preserving regional food traditions – good for the livestock and for the locals.’
‘Wow,’ said Hannah, for want of anything else to say. This was Mina’s territory. Without her sister’s influence she’d have been a strictly meat and two veg girl, but even so her knowledge of food was sketchy. Mina cooked it, she ate it. ‘Sounds fascinating. So, what do they serve here?’
‘Gerard has developed a menu that only uses seasonal ingredients that are available in Ireland. So it cuts down on the carbon footprint, instead of having things flown in from places like Peru and Kenya.’
‘No avocados, then,’ said Hannah, a touch flippantly.
‘They don’t grow so well in Ireland.’ His eyes crinkled at her in a way that she was rapidly getting used to and was more than a little thrilled by. It had a way of making her feel like she was the centre of his attention that was both flattering and terrifying. Conor was a player who knew how to charm the ladies, but, for tonight, Hannah decided, why not join in the game?
When the waitress arrived to take their drinks orders and to hand over menus, Hannah picked hers up with no great expectation. What did they grow in Ireland? Sheep. Potatoes. Maybe fish. She’d heard of Dublin Bay prawns, so that might be something nice on the menu but she was expecting it to be fairly limited.
Which just went to prove that she knew nothing!
The menu, even to her own unsophisticated palate, sounded sublime, and when she ordered langoustine bisque followed by beef rib, with something called Roscoff onion, spinach, and pepper sauce, she knew she had a treat in store.
Conor insisted on ordering a half bottle of Chablis to go with their starters and a half of Malbec for the main course. It seemed a bit extravagant to ensure that they had the correct wine to go with seafood and beef, but she wasn’t going to argue with an expert and when she took her first sip of the silky-smooth Chablis, she was pleased she’d left it up to him.
‘This place is great. There’s a real buzz.’
‘Lots of hard work. Unsociable hours.’ He grimaced. ‘It’s not for everyone.’
‘Yes, there’s a lot to be said for working nine to five.’
He raised an eyebrow. ‘I always got the impression lawyers did their fair share of overtime. Isn’t it all about billable hours?’
