Tapas with Funk and Jazz
I’m constantly looking for somewhere new and different to eat out, and when it involves tapas it’s nearly always a winner. But add that to jazz and a laid back, friendly atmosphere and you’ve got the latest new opening in Dublin – Le Cirk, just off Dame Street. The management and in-house marketing gurus describe it as a “music bar and jazz club experience”, a description not too far off the mark. The emphasis is on a mix of Jazz, Funk, Soul and Latino music, so it’s 'eclectic' when it comes to what you might hear on any night of the week and a refreshing addition to the bar and club scene around the city centre. It comes in a number of parts; Le Basement is a tapas and jazz club downstairs which programmes live entertainment seven nights a week and on Sunday afternoons. Regular acts include The Phil Ware Trio, Myles Drennan and Damian Evans Trios and The Louie Stewart Quintet. Then there are the ground floor and the cocktail bars, which are also to play host to live bands and urban DJs. On Fridays and Saturdays there’s no charge into any of the three venues ("for the forseeable future’, according to management”) but on week nights there is a charge into Le Basement for the live music sessions. Don’t be confused by the different entrances to this place – one is opposite the Central Bank Plaza on Dame Street, with the other just across from The Stag’s Head on Dame Lame (another great old pub worth visiting). Chef Gail Pilkington has put together a menu which is reasonably priced (for Dublin, anyway) – try the lamb pie with root vegetables in a puff pastry, it fits the bill for these cold wintry December days. The tapas in Le Basement range from traditionally prepared Spanish calamares to patatas bravas and some really meaty chorizo. The venue is soon to include a boutique hotel with 15 rooms – will visit for the low down once it's fully up and running.