Restaurant review: A slice of Peru in the heart of Dublin
Zampas is laid out in modern bistro format with an open kitchen and some South American touches in the tiles and chairs.
Tel: 01 4825017; www.zampas.ie
Fadó Fadó (the 1980s), many people believed it was the zenith of cool to wear a Hard Rock Café t-shirt from a far away city — Chicago, Melbourne or perhaps Singapore. This demonstrated that: a) you had been to a city a long way away, and, b) that you had been in a newly-fashionable Hard Rock Café.
Even as an impressionable teenager I remember thinking: 'Why would you go to an unusual/interesting city and visit a Hard Rock Café … did you also go to McDonalds?’.
Yes, I admit I was a fearful snob, even then.
I was vaguely aware that Hard Rock Café had opened a hotel on Dublin’s Aungier Street in 2019 near Christ Church Cathedral, but I paid no attention until I learned that their restaurant, Zampas, was serving Peruvian food and was independently run. Peruvian food has been the ‘next big thing’ for at least a decade so it’s about time Dubliners got a taste of it, especially given that Peru is the original home of the potato.
I visited Zampas on a warm Sunday evening with Dave Lang, editor of ButcherMagazine.com and his son, Keith, who is a global roving tech guru who runs the website EatPeru.com. I should clarify that I brought Keith because I knew he would be interested and could tell me how typical the food was, and in no way to judge the restaurant on so-called ‘authenticity’ (an irrelevant concept in our global food world).
Zampas is laid out in modern bistro format with an open kitchen and some South American touches in the tiles and chairs, and dotted around the room are bits of rock memorabilia such as Tom Petty’s Harmonica. The menu is short and read more ‘bistro classics with a solid Peruvian twist’ than hard-core Peruvian (beef heart anticuchos and charcoal roasted guineapig might be a hard sell in a Hard Rock Café).
I began with the national drink of Peru — Pisco Sour (€12) — and it was excellent: less sweet than the usual, but a fine take on this classic cocktail made with Pisco (a sort of white brandy), egg white, citrus and bitters. Other cocktail choices are strictly old school: Cuba Libre, Mojito, etc.
The wine list has around 40 wines and includes the usual suspects (Rioja, Chablis, Pinot Grigio, etc), plus some welcome creative choices; eg. Marc Brédif Vouvray and Chinon, Cabernet Franc from Argentina, and the wine I chose — Petit Pittacum Mencía (€39) from Galicia. All lists should have a Mencía as its bright vibrant fruits are a fine match for most things and it worked well with both our starters and mains.
Confit duck croquetas were packed with sweet tender duck and a pineapple and chilli relish added some sweetness and lift, and my large portion of Pisco & lime-glazed Manor Farm chicken wings (€9.50) were crispy and tangy and disappeared quickly. Wild white fish ceviche (€9.50) was dotted with red onion and sweet potato and the fish had a clean fresh lime flavour but we would have loved some chilli heat.
Best of the mains was my Asador Peruvian roast chicken (€22.95 for half) marinated in Peruvian aji verde green chilli sauce and slow roasted to give a spicy crispy skin with juicy soft chicken underneath. Seco de carne was a meltingly soft slow-braised featherblade (€16.95) served with white beans and coriander rice. Our butcher consultant pronounced it ‘very tasty’ but was certain this was, in fact, a braised 'petit tender' cut rather than a 'featherblade' given its shape and texture. A 28-day John Stone dry-aged 10oz ribeye (€32.50) with crispy onions and polenta chips was also a quality piece of meat with tasty sides, although the chimichurri was unusually oily.
Desserts were faultless and we ordered the two most typically Peruvian. Alfajores (€7.50) were very tasty — soft shortbread cookie sandwiches with a big dollop of sweet rich dulce de leche sauce on top with a passionfruit sorbet on the side along with fresh pineapple for contrast. A half dozen cinnamon-sugar dusted churros (€7.25) were hot, crispy and featherlight and served with a creamy rich chocolate sauce.
So while this was not a perfect meal we enjoyed the food and the staff were great — unnecessarily comping us drinks due to a couple of minor hiccups in service. I would urge you to give Zampas a go: just make sure to ask for extra chilli for your ceviche and maybe some hot sauce on the side. We left full and happy, discussing the joys and occasional perils of boiling tins of condensed milk to make dulce de leche.
[i]Open daily from 7am to 10pm.
Dinner for three plus a bottle of wine cost €189.00; Three Course Tasting Menu Special: €45 (3 courses plus a Pisco Sour)[/i]
