Carton House in Kildare is home to The Linden Tree restaurant.  Voted the best hotel restaurant in Kildare in 2015 and 2017, it is stacking up quite a few accolades.  Restaurants in a hotel can be a funny business.  Guests can look at them as a last resort and prefer to dine elsewhere. For those not staying in the hotel, they need something special to garner attention.

I was lucky enough to win a Twitter competition which included an overnight stay in Carton House and three course dinner in the restaurant. Granted for this visit I didn’t have to put my hand in my pocket, but what follows are my own views.

The restaurant space itself is inviting, formal without being stuffy.  We were seated at a table by a large window overlooking the grounds. I’m happy to report the space between tables was ample.  There is nothing worse than sharing your dinner chat with the person at the table beside you.

The Starters

A choice of five including truffle soup, roast quail and Lambay crab which is what I went for.  Served with yogurt, apple, cucumber and cumin it was fresh and textural and presented beautifully.  The second starter pipped the first to the post with little effort.  Smoked Skeganore duck breast with a crispy duck egg and truffle mayonnaise.  Let me tell you this dish was superb. The combination of flavours, the silky yolk from the egg, the hints of truffle, smokiness from the duck, simply sublime.

The Main Event

Like the starters, the mains were a choice of five with beef, scallops, seabass, chicken and Tortellini completing the offering.   The seabass had a crisp skin, a generous portion size and was served with pickled pumpkin, white asparagus and Jerusalem artichoke. An exacting level of presentation was standard throughout dish and each had plenty of plate appeal.

The second main was scallops (5 of them), which came with, Kohlrabi (part of the cabbage family) confit potato, cauliflower and baby leek.  We were both in the mood for seafood and both dishes lived up to expectations.

To Finish

I always justify dessert with “it would be rude not to”, not that it needs justifying really. I opted for the lemon crème tartlet with Chantilly and fresh berries.  The other fella went for the cheeseboard, which I don’t have a photo of.  Desserts were the proverbial runt of the litter at The Linden Tree.  The cheeseboard, was not memorable and I recall the presentation was lacking.  The lemon tartlet was just ‘fine’.

Like every business, there is scope for improvement.  Starters and mains were presented well, tasted superb and the service and attention to detail throughout couldn’t be faulted.  Yes I was a competition winner, but I assure you every table around us were treated well.

A two course meal is €40 and three courses €50.  Would I go back?  Yes I would.  The surrounds are sumptuous throughout the hotel, the food speaks for itself overall and dinner is served Sunday to Friday from 7pm to 9.30pm and from 6.30pm to 9.30pm on Saturdays.  Visit early and take a walk through the grounds.