The past six months have been a pleasure and an exhausting joy for me as I have been experiencing motherhood for the first time. That said, I am starting to feel that using an innocent babe as my excuse for not changing out of my jammies until lunchtime is becoming awkward – and have even accepted that I might be ready to start stepping out in the evening once again.
So this week I took the plunge: I went out for dinner with Mr Kerry. Not lunch with a baby in tow, but dinner. An actual date night. We wanted cocktails, sophistication, grown-up chat and amazing food so finding the right venue would be crucial. I had heard that the chef from The Playwright had recently moved to shake things up at 172 The Caird – now under new ownership – so we booked a table and set about glamming ourselves up.
With heels to detract from the baby weight and make-up to hide the dark circles, I was ready. All it took was five minutes of kisses and cuddles – with baby Kerry, not Mr Kerry – to leave me looking like I was about to do the walk of shame, rather than hit the town, but as I handed responsibility to the lovely Stephanie it felt good to be heading out like a proper, normal grown-up.
Entering 172 I instantly knew we had come to the right place. The dark painted greys and metallic wallpapers ooze glamour and give the restaurant a distinctly 1920s feel, made all the more elegant by the heavenly sounds of Cole Porter. The bar looks classic and chic and close attention has clearly been paid to the decor, fixtures and fittings.
We were seated by a charming waitress whose beautiful Donegal lilt helped ease us into our comfy seats by the window and we settled down to select our first separation-anxiety-shifting cocktail.
Although we opted for the a la carte menu, we took a look at the pre-theatre offerings and noticed some lovely choices at a pretty reasonable price. It was slightly disappointing to note that the only veggie main course on either was an uninventive vegetable gnocchi but to be fair it may have been the tastiest dish in town.
We had a lot of grown-up chat to get through so we ordered the bread board while we decided on our food. Oh my, it was sublime. Three different types of home-baked bread with butter, oil and balsamic, and all so tasty that we had to consciously tell ourselves to stop eating.
Mr Kerry’s starter – the crab bisque with pesto rouille – was exactly as we had hoped. Dark and sweet, it had a bitter undertone with delicate flakes of crab scattered through it and a creamy rouille swirled within. Delicious. My salmon ravioli was an excellent choice too. The pasta parcels were a little nondescript but the sauce was rich and velvety and the intense creaminess was cut through by a mini piece of pan-fried salmon with samphire. This was my kind of starter and I would go straight back to it again and again.
My date chose the monkfish with cauliflower and Indian spices for his main course. The spices were rich yet delicate, the monkfish well cooked and the cauliflower had just the right amount of bite but sadly the dish had been over-salted which took the edge off the experience for him.
I ordered the supreme of duck and was asked if I’d be happy with it served medium-rare. That was fine by me – even though it arrived medium to well done. Nevertheless it was tender and juicy and came with a duck pithivier containing shredded over-salted meat encased in a rather soggy pastry. The accompanying potato rosti was also rendered a bit spongy by the jus and once again, it was incredibly salty. I speak as a woman who has been known to grind a little extra salt on to my buttered toast – don’t judge me! – but even I found it overpowering here, which was one of the few downsides to our date.
By this point a text home was necessary and having been assured that all was well, Mr Kerry was able to relax into the dessert course. I am currently trying to swerve sugar so I suspect he chose the sweetest, most sugar-laden pudding he could, in the misguided belief that I would keep my paws off. His cunning was no match for my curiosity, however, and I am happy to say that my large spoonful of his banoffee parfait with marshmallows and dulce de leche sauce was lovely. The frozen parfait had an intense banana flavour which was ideally suited to the toffee and crushed peanuts here.
I thoroughly enjoyed our evening at 172 The Caird. The ambience and service were just what we had hoped for and would have suited a first date, as well as a sophisticated night with the girls. The starters were divine and although they were let down a little by the over-salty main courses the quality picked up again by dessert and I would certainly go back for more. The chef appears to be aiming for the quality of The Playwright but without the disproportionately steep price tag and it’s a formula that should pay off.
We arrived home, stuffed and satisfied, to a sleeping baby and a calm quiet house. Roll on next week’s date night I say.
Info
Price: Pre-theatre menu: £17.95 for 2 courses or £20.95 for three courses; starters £8.95 – £13.00; main courses: £14.50 – £26.95; desserts: £6.95 – £11.95
Value: 8/10
Menu: 7/10
Atmosphere: 9/10
Service: 8/10
Food: 7/10
Total: 39/50
Info: 172 at The Caird
Address: 172 Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4EE
Tel: 01382 657404
