Farrells Irish Italian Restaurant

Home

Sláinte! And, indeed, salute… Tony Benjamin finds two distinctive cuisines making a perfect marriage

Not being totally familiar with Keynsham, I ring for directions. “We’re on the High Street,” says the voice. “You can’t miss us.” They’re right: as the Duchess of Ashley Road drives us into the heart of Keynsham, there’s Farrells like a beacon of contemporary smartness, freshly painted and nicely lit.

Inside it’s equally impressive, with a large, comfortable bar leading to a fair-sized dining area and open plan kitchen and with a small courtyard garden beyond that. It’s a Tuesday evening in only their second month, but already the place is filling up with a nice bustle going on, pizzas sliding into the oven to a soundtrack of Irish rebel songs… Ah, yes: that Irish Italian thing… what’s that all about?

The fact is that chef/proprietor Barry Farrell (visibly busy in the kitchen) is an Irishman whose career has been mainly in the Italian food business, including some years as a prize-winning pizza chef. After a long time as part of the Bottelino restaurant organisation he’s now finally going it alone so he can realise his vision of bringing together the two food cultures closest to his heart. Thanks to a former career in architecture and design, he can also take credit for the layout and décor in this totally refurbished former garage premises in Keynsham.

The waitress introduces the menu with an appropriate brogue (she’s from Kildare, via Whitchurch) and we mull over a range of classic Italian dishes and Irish plates with Irish ingredients like Cashel blue cheese scattered throughout. All relevant Irish and Italian products are sourced with care, including Fior De Latte mozzarella cheese from Campania, and this week’s meat all comes from Newton St Loe with vegetables from The Severn Project in Keynsham.

Straightaway this all feels like a great idea, an impression confirmed both by the clean lightness of the dipping oil with our chunks of home-cooked walnut bread, and then our Irish starters of perfectly sea-flavoured brown shrimps potted in Killeshandra butter and a silky mousse parfait of chicken liver brushed with Bushmills whiskey. Our wine choice nods to the Italians, however, with a dark red Salice Salentino. It’s a full-flavoured drink yet light on the tongue, sitting well with both my Ulster Mixed Grill and the Duchess’ Donegal Fish Stew. The meaty plateful facing me is instantly rewarding: I’ve asked for rareness where appropriate so there’s a pink-hearted lamb chop and lump of seared steak running red inside but the sausage, black and white puddings and gammon steak are all properly cooked and wonderfully flavoured. Each element is a great example of its kind, a tribute to careful sourcing and preparation, and even the fat chips are crisp perfection. I’m very satisfied, though sheer greed means I can’t help hankering for the Duchess’ Colcannon as well, but she makes short work of it herself by mopping up the wine and cream sauce around a heap of mixed fish, the flaking chunks of smoked haddock particularly pleasing to her taste. A crisp mixed salad scattered with pine nuts and slivers of sun-dried tomato adds a slight hint of Italy.

There’s a breather needed before we contemplate desserts and we decide to compensate for all that Irishness by going Italian for the finale. Thus the Duchess piles into a carefully under-sweetened almond and limoncello tart with plum compôte and a firm Amaretto panna cotta that balances my forceful cup of espresso.

It’s all been ridiculously delicious, we decide, thanks to skilful cookery that would do well anywhere, let alone BS31. Our meal comes to £75 all in, which seems a very fair price for the quality and quantity. A return visit seems inevitable, if only to sample those excellent-looking pizzas.

CONTACT

FARRELLS IRISH ITALIAN RESTAURANT 44 TEMPLE ST, KEYNSHAM. FFI: 0117 986 6330, WWW.FARRELLSRESTAURANT.CO.UK

THE VERDICT A stand-out arrival punching well above its weight for taste and quality