Thanks to the Irish flag proudly displayed outside, you can’t miss The Dubliner, one of the newest eating establishments on Washington Avenue. This Irish pub is open and spacious with high ceilings and a large, central bar. For more privacy, head to one of the high-backed booths toward the rear. Or, if you’re looking for a pint and a place to watch the game – football or rugby – belly up to the bar.
Besides serving breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week, The Dubliner is open for brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. For a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast, this is the place.
Care for a little Jameson with your coffee? Warm up with an Irish coffee (a bit light on the whiskey for my taste) topped with fresh, thick cream. Or, if a bloody mary is more your speed, The Dubliner makes its traditional Irish version with a shot of Guinness for that extra morning kick. Is it so wrong to spend more on alcohol at breakfast than food?
To accompany our beverages, a plate of scones and jam ($3) was just the thing. The small triangles were dense, yet moist with chocolate chips and raspberries. On another visit, we ordered muffins ($2). Six mini-muffins in a variety of flavors were perfect to share.
More than a half-dozen items constitute the breakfast menu, including omelets, pancakes, French toast and eggs. The whole-grain pancakes ($7) were substantial with a hearty consistency and a healthful bite. Cinnamon was the standout spice of the French toast. While it was good, $9 seemed pricey for three slices of Texas toast. Eggs and potatoes ($7) are served with your choice of sides, including sausages or smoked salmon. It was a basic breakfast dish, and the potatoes were disappointingly cold.
But I figure if you’re going to eat a traditional Irish breakfast, then you may as well go all the way. And the Full Dubliner ($9) does just that. The dish comes complete with a rasher (bacon cured on-site) – not the slice we’d typically think of, but more like a piece of ham – bangers (sausages), made with a mixture of pork and organ meats; white and black puddings (loose sausage patties); an oven-roasted tomato; mushroom; eggs; and baked beans. The best thing about this dish is that you get to experience a lot of flavors – and a lot of food.
After we questioned our server about the provenance of what filled our plates (and they were filled!), she sent out executive chef Timothy O’Sullivan, who explained that all sausages are made in-house, from the black pudding (blood sausage with an intense mineral taste that, once acquired, is quite good) to the bangers.
O’Sullivan and co-owner Eddie Neill did extensive research to achieve just the right balance of spices and ingredients. They imported basic sausages from Ireland to try them side by side with those O’Sullivan created. In his puddings, there’s lots of mace and sage, while the lamb sausage is a bit spicier with sage, onion, garlic, fennel and a touch of paprika. The breakfast banger is a firmer sausage, flavored with sage, onion and garlic, and O’Sullivan uses lamb casing for it. Even the binder – oatmeal or barley – came under close scrutiny. “We were happy with oatmeal,” said O’Sullivan, “but when we tried barley it looked better.” So now he uses a mixture of both for texture and firmness.
For the white pudding, a generous amount of cream is added, which lends a sweeter flavor. Actually, for all the sausages, cream is a necessary ingredient to help make stuffing the casing easier. Since lamb and hogs are delivered regularly and butchered on-site, you know you’re getting fresh ingredients.
Beans are imported from Ireland since O’Sullivan can’t find just the right flavor and consistency in the States. They’re from the familiar brand Heinz, but they’re made with ketchup rather than barbecue sauce, giving them a nice mellow flavor instead of a smoky one.
Traditional Irish fare also included boiled bacon ($9) served with cabbage and creamy mashed potatoes in a light parsley sauce. The meat was really Irish-style pork loin and was tender and tasty, just like your mom’s pork roast.
On one visit, a friend from Ireland joined us. He was surprised that The Dubliner really used rashers and sausages and not American bacon. And, besides being impressed with the level of authenticity, he got to catch a classic rugby game from 1972. Over and above enjoying good food, it was nice to know that he got a true taste of home.
This article appears in Jan 1-31, 2007.