Restaurant review: Lennan's Yard is a million-euro dining experience

How many chargrilled prawns and croquetas de jamón do you have to sell to make a million euro? 

I honestly have no idea, it hurts my head to think about it, and this is the main reason I will never open a restaurant. Lennan’s Yard cost ‘many millions’ according to majority stakeholder Shane Mitchell, (quoted in The Irish Times in 2021); that’s an awful lot of prawns and croquetas.

Named for Willam Lennan, a saddler who had a workshop on Dawson Street in the 1800s, it is difficult to get a grip on the extent of the space as it goes back further than you would think possible, and extends over a number of floors.

You can enter via The Lennan (dark wood furniture and leather button back bench seating), or through the laneway beside the pub into a courtyard, and find your way to the ‘gastro-pub’, cocktail bar, wine bar, or restaurant. 

The money spent is evident in the furnishings, the lighting, and in the beautiful Alice Maher paintings on the tastefully scrubbed bare walls.

Originally a ‘contemporary Irish’ restaurant called Hayloft, in recent weeks it has been made over and renamed ‘Asador at Lennan’s Yard’ after their sister restaurant Asador on Haddington Road. 

The new menu of Mediterranean small plates and meat and fish cooked over fire is working better I hear and when we visited early on a Tuesday the space was three-quarters full, mainly with groups on work outings we reckoned. 

The atmosphere was as lively as could be expected in a space with such a high roof.

The menu is split into small plates and mains with a strong Italian and Spanish focus that pleased my Spanish guest, Blanca. We had to begin with that staple of Spain, pan con tomate. 

I was intrigued to see how they could justify €14 for bread rubbed with a bit of tomato, but what arrived was crunchy sourdough piled almost a centimetre high, with tangy fresh tomato, sprinkled with sea salt and drizzled with arbequina olive oil. 

I tried bemoaning the inaccuracy but Blanca successfully argued that the generosity and the flavour was the thing to focus on — she was correct.

Next came two large ‘jamón croquettes’ (€12), properly crisp without and velvety and savoury within — they worked well. 

What worked less well was the rather harsh romesco sauce on which they sat, an excess of smoked paprika the culprit. Not a romesco to appeal to a Catalan fisherman (the sauce’s origin).

Braised short rib agnolotti had a rich meaty filling and decently silky pasta and a more or less balanced mushroom and meat jus sauce. 

Pressed lamb breast had been slow cooked and then finished on the grill, and had intense meaty richness . This was easily my favourite of the four small plates.

For a main we shared a large piece of halibut (€54) which had a light smokiness, was correctly cooked and broke nicely into translucent flakes. 

Grilled greens were crisp and fresh but had been tossed in a chermoula sauce that was too heavy on chilli so remained largely uneaten. House fries were excellent however, properly crispy with a fluffy interior.

Lennan’s Yard’s wine list is substantial and wide ranging with a good ‘by the glass’ selection and prices starting at €35 (Dâo) and reaching as far as €2,500 (Ch. Margaux 2003). 

Our bottle of ‘Maretti Rosso’ from Piedmont was ripe and juicy and worked well, it was also fairly priced at €43 (elsewhere it costs up to €50).

Desserts range from €10 to €16 and include old favourites like chocolate fondant and Basque cheesecake (inevitably). 

Seeking a road less travelled, we chose a passionfruit-peppercorn tart and a hazelnut s’more brownie. 

This last sounded promising and I liked the melted marshmallow on top, but the brownie itself was dense and unyielding with an excess of hazelnuts — worse still the accompanying cinnamon ice-cream made us both cough it was so strong. 

Much better was the passionfruit and pink peppercorn tart with zingy blackberry sorbet. Crisp pastry, creamy light custard, and tangy passion fruit was given a spiky lift by pink peppercorns.

Service on the night was attentive, perhaps overly so, but it is possible I was rumbled. 

Despite the seasoning issues we largely enjoyed our meal and I liked the drama and effusiveness of the place, certainly more than much of the rather gauche competition nearby. 

So will Lennan’s Yard last long enough to pay back the banks? You know, it might.

Our verdict:

• Food: 7/10
• Wine: 8/10
• Service: 8/10
• Atmosphere: 7.5/10
• Value: 7.5/10