Restaurant review: Market Lane is turning 20 soon — here's what it's like to dine there
Cork very lucky to call Market Lane its own
It is one of the best restaurants in the country when it comes to sourcing premium local produce, yet manages to deliver a menu at highly competitive prices
Market Lane will be a remarkable 20 years old next year, the original restaurant of five in one of Ireland’s canniest hospitality portfolios. That portfolio may also include national stars, Goldie and Elbow Lane, but Market Lane remains the commercial motor and beating heart, driving the other four — Orso and Blackrock Castle Cafe complete the quintet.
After almost two decades, you’d imagine I’d have reviewed it at least once. However, Market Lane was also where No 1 Son worked for 14 years during his seemingly terminal addiction to third-level education. I was conflicted: Would a bad review see him dunked in a deep fat fryer, a good one be chalked down to parental bias? But now he works elsewhere, a fully fledged nine-to-fiver, no longer a creature of the night, so I’m delivering my first professional appraisal.
Incredibly, Market Lane (and Elbow Lane, next door) are buzzing, nicely full on a freezing cold Tuesday night in mid-January, a testament in itself. Market Lane will never win prizes for interior flair but friendly, efficient staff complete a warm and welcoming space.
Ardsallagh goat’s curd (€11.90) is whipped to a creamy mousse, an airy cloud with a demure lactic tang, a lush coat to chunks of confit golden beetroot, brightened further by sweet-sour, crisp, pickled Granny Smith apples. Crunchy, savoury sage and pumpkin seed cracker rounds out the dish.
Garryhinch oyster mushroom ragu tartlet (€12.50) is an absolute cracker, my favourite dish of the night. Textured, toothsome mushroom is freighted with thyme-graced umami, sitting in excellent buttery shortcrust that is paradoxically rich, yet light — giddily sweet miso caramel rounding out the flavour profile. Crisp, thin slivers of tempura battered enoki are utterly addictive, the crowning glory, piled high on top. It should really be a main course, as good a vegetarian option as I’ve encountered in many a moon.
Market Lane will never win prizes for interior flair but friendly, efficient staff complete a warm and welcoming space.
Since my life was entirely blighted by a late-surfacing allergy to my formerly beloved aubergines, I have to take La Daughter’s word that baked aubergine parmagiana (€21.50) of Toonsbridge mozzarella, with parmesan cream, tomato, and basil is good. The way she puts it away reinforces her testimony. Perky fennel and orange salad and springy house-baked focaccia on the side only deepen my gloom at missing out on another considered vegetarian offering.
No 2 Son speed-reads his menu until he finds steak, sirloin (€34.30), immaculately cooked to order (medium). Mahogany brown and burnished with finishing butter, crisped, creamy fat adds layers of further flavour to succulent pink meat. He spears sauteed mushrooms like a litter warden on speed and dips proper handcut chips into piquant peppercorn and brandy sauce, while simultaneously tearing into his steak like a pitbull fresh out of the pound. Face hovering mere inches from his dish, he mumbles through mouthfuls at intervals that it is ‘good’. High praise from him; judging by the tiny sliver he shares, I’d say ‘very good’.
Gamekeeper’s pie with venison, pheasant and partridge is my idea of winter heaven but drying out as I am for January, I reluctantly bypass a dish I could only contemplate with at least a pichet of robust, red wine.
Instead, I have pan-fried hake (€25.20), lemon and thyme fondant potato, chive velouté, tenderstem broccoli. The potato’s floury, fluffy heart wears a hum of astringent thyme and citric zing; verdant broccoli retains a crisp snap. A companionable velouté would have perfectly completed the dish but hake has seen too much of the pan; skin is crisp and golden but what should be flaky, moist flesh is chalk white, drying out and breaking down.
Desserts are total and terrific crowdpleasers. LD’s balanced house-made raspberry and coconut sorbet (€7.90) with lime curd and a coconut macaroon maintains pleasing restraint on its more exotic elements. No 2’s Chocolate and honeycomb brownie (€8.30), salted caramel, Baldwin’s vanilla ice-cream, is a bolshie sugar monster, a direct route to dopamine divinity.
Market Lane is nicely full on a freezing cold Tuesday night in mid-January, a testament in itself. Picture: Larry Cummins
Totally stuffed, I fall back on glutton’s logic, that ice cream will find space in the remaining cracks and crevices of my belly. Hazelnut ice cream parfait (€8.50) is a delicious and delightful amusement, dark-chocolate-covered ‘pine cone’ of fine ice cream, partnering perfectly with nutty, crunchy biscuit crumbs.
I have long admired Market Lane as a superb hospitality operation and an award-winning employer. It is one of the best restaurants in the country when it comes to sourcing premium local produce, yet manages to deliver a menu at highly competitive prices — a roast chicken dinner, with braised root veg, red cabbage, mash and gravy, at €20.50, is restaurant-quality food at trucker’s cafe prices. What is even more remarkable is how ML’s menu manages to carry such wide appeal without spreading itself too thin — also making it popular for big multi-generational, family, and life celebrations.
There is plenty for the down-home diner seeking a ‘healthy feed’ and who gets nosebleeds if a dish strays too far from a template of ‘mammy’s cooking’. And yet there are also dishes for the more adventurous, considered diner who appreciates culinary innovation — my mushroom tartlet is a fine example.
The common denominator is ever tasty and often quite delicious food at very reasonable prices. It will never be Noma and the Michelin man will only ever eat here on his day off, but Cork is very lucky indeed to call Market Lane one of its own.
