Restaurant Review: Hellfire's red room might invoke murder - but it's hellishly good fun

The interior of Hellfire Restaurant in Dublin

• Hellfire Restaurant
• 7 Westmoreland Street, Dublin 2, D02XF76, 
• Tel: [phone]
• www.hellfire.ie
• 13.00-23.00 - Tuesday-Sunday

“Salt Bae vibes,” whispered my guest to me when I arrived at Hellfire, Dublin’s newest restaurant which opened on January 10.

If you don’t know who Salt Bae is, then you need to improve your meme game. Thankfully Hellfire is not serving €1,000 steaks coated in gold leaf like Salt Bae; it’s a proper restaurant, but there is a charmingly silly theatricality here that made us smile.

Theatricality is a big part of Hellfire's experience

The decor has lots of red everywhere (to evoke Hell) and there is an indoor tree in one of the rooms which seems to be a thing now. Hellfire’s executive chef Roberto Rapisardi is Italian, and we watched him at the pass all evening, carefully plating and minutely inspecting each dish, his evident perfectionism was a comforting contrast.

Our meal began with some light and tasty charred flatbread from the wood-burning oven which had been sprinkled with sea salt and rosemary needles — a reason to order pizza next time. Starters followed quickly, with the highlight a grilled ‘Smoked Salsiccia’ sausage glazed with honey and mustard and dotted with fresh mint and crispy onions. Tender and moist with a tang of fennel detectable under the smoke and honey mustard — the onions and mint lifted the flavours further, and the juices burst in my mouth — I’m ordering two next time.

‘Tacos Mignon’ (€12) also worked well — fresh corn tortillas filled with juicy charred beef, creamy guacamole and a hint of chipotle — the tender beef and the quality of the tortilla made the dish, the sweet savoury tang of the corn lingers still. ‘Spicy Mussels and Clams’ (€9) were less successful, not particularly spicy or numerous — I suggest increasing the price and doubling the quantity.

Fillet steak at Hellfire

Produce suppliers are listed on the menu which is great to see and, before our meal, we were shown the different cuts available including an 18oz 45-day dry-aged Galician Blond Steak. My guest opted for the 10oz fillet (€37) with a green pepper and rosemary sauce which came on a wooden board which was then set alight. A silly flourish that nevertheless put a smile on our faces. Crucially the steak was fairly flawless, tender but textured with an admirable umami meatiness, plus all the herbal-mineral flavours of proper grass-fed beef. ‘Slow-cooked Roast Octopus’ (€25) was less successful, perhaps seared a little too long before serving as it tasted rather dry.

Hellfire’s wine list has around 60 wines and is fairly priced, with a Puglian Falanghina at €30 and a Negroamaro at €32. I’d love to tell you more, but I can’t because so few producer names are mentioned, just grapes and countries. When I queried this, the maitre d’ quickly apologised, as I was not the first to point this out and it is being rectified — he blamed Hellfire’s wine supplier who had provided the text.

We took a risk on a bottle of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo for €33 and I was pleased to see I recognised the label — Torre dei Beati, imported by Findlaters. This normally retails around €20 and so this was a bit of a steal — ripe and juicy with a nice balance of fruit, structure, and acidity.

Liqueur de Cacao dessert at Hellfire

But back to the theatre; ‘Liqueur de Cacao’ is Hellfire’s signature dessert and is easily the funniest pudding I’ve ever seen. Towering over the plate demanding attention was a 12-inch tall candyfloss chicken that reminded me of a headless Foghorn Leghorn from the cartoons of my childhood. The candyfloss getting stuck in my teeth was another memory I got to repeat, but his peanut brittle legs were well executed and the best part of the dish — the dulce de leche, coffee-chocolate cake was solid enough but I’d prefer more unctuous oomph.

Hellfire was open just a handful of days when I visited so assuming they fix the wine list and iron out a few of the lesser dishes I expect them to be busy. Our “damned bill” (their words) came to a reasonable €146.50 and I will be back for sausage, pizza, and steak.

The Tab:

Dinner for Two including three starters, two mains, dessert, mineral water and a bottle of wine cost a reasonable €146.50.

Hellfire: The Verdict

• Food: 7/10
• Wine: 7/10
• Service: 8/10
• Ambience: 8/10
• Value: 8/10
• In a Sentence: Despite some small teething problems this brand-new restaurant is a lot of fun offering (mostly) tasty dishes in a theatrical atmosphere.