Fans of the original Molly Malone’s will miss its signature sushi bar and kitschy mismatched interior. The new Molly Malone’s, courtesy of Brian McKenna’s authentically British hand, is decked out in varnished hardwood, tartan and supple leathers in shades of brown, green and crimson. The atmosphere provided by the warmly lit, low-ceilinged space is one of comfortable luxury – the sort of space deep-pocketed financiers might reserve for smoking cigars and drinking brown spirits.
From the snacks we go for the pork belly ribs, pumpkin soup and sticky pork belly salad before pouring over the rest of the menu. Our stoic waitress, the lone attendant working the floor during this eerily quite weekend evening, is quick to take our order but vanishes for the remainder of the evening.
The pumpkin soup is a creamy smooth blend of spices and sweet pumpkin; slices of fluffy ciabatta bread are quickly deployed to clean the bottom of the bowl. The sticky pork salad with Thai herbs arrives cold, disappointing seeing as the chewy morsels of belly meat are well seasoned and tasty, but the chilled firmness makes it hard to enjoy the bed of fresh herbs and wedges of soft boiled egg. The pork ribs are much better, the tender meat demonstrates the same mastery of slow cooking but at a much more enjoyable temperature and with a burnt smoky flavour.
The main event comes in the form of the large meat platters and pies, meant for sharing. The cuts of beef, from the 300g fillet to the 500g sirloin, are dry-aged in-house, or at least they were under McKenna’s brief tenure. The ageing room was full of pink Himalayan salt blocks but empty of meat on both our visits.
Wherever they are storing the beef they’re not messing around. The wagyu rib eye is as juicy and flavorful as we could have hoped for, while the beef cheek pie is a savoury blend of tender cheek, veggies and herbs, if a bit difficult to share across a large table. Everything from the grill comes beefed up with an arteryclogging portion of roasted bone marrow; the added richness takes the indulgence of the experience to new heights without overpowering the flavour of the well-treated, high-quality beef. The mountain of truffle French fries certainly doesn’t do anything to dampen the spirit of excess. Their aroma is intoxicating with a salty, earthen pang.
Address: 90 Jinbao Jie, Dongcheng District 东城区金宝街90号
Source: timeoutbeijing.com
