When the chefs have a little time off, we travel. We travel to eat and to learn and we have been inspired by a wide variety of countries, cultures and cuisines around the world. None more important than Ireland. Ireland’s acute awareness of its cultural heritage and loyalty to its artisanal products, as well as its wild, farmed and cultivated native ingredients, make it a monster in the culinary world at present moment. We have yet to taste fresher fish, more flavorful lamb, more balanced ham or a grassier cheese anywhere we have traveled in our lives. Don’t get us started on the butter!

Along comes Chapter One:

What makes a perfect pair to such incredible raw ingredients at any great restaurant? A team that knows how to coax flavors and entice textures without losing the soul of the products that they are working with in the fist place. This is the know-how at Chapter One. This unassuming place right off Parnell Square and opposite the Garden of Remembrance uses its name as a way to mark its place in the basement of the Dublin Writers Museum. Chapter One is a michelin-starred restaurant known for the dynamic and highly skilled ownership team at its helm, Chef Ross Lewis in the kitchen and Martin Corbett running front of house. Rarely will you see such a seamless and guest focused partnership between the two often fractious realms that make up a fine dining restaurant.

Upon entering, we were treated to warm Irish hospitality in the understated and elegant dining rooms sitting just below street level. Sitting with family made the experience that much better, sharing bottles of fine wine and conversation as we dined.