Eric Matthews of Kicky's: "If you love your food, you’re really spoilt for choice at the moment in Dublin"

Stretching from South William Street to George’s Street and from Exchequer Street to Lower Stephen’s Street, the Creative Quarter is now firmly established as one of the capital’s foodie hotpots.

Among those leading the culinary charge there is Kicky’s, which promises “Mediterranean-inspired food cooked over fire, hand-rolled pastas and signature cocktails” and delivers big time in a bright, buzzy room that always feels welcoming.

The open kitchen means that you can watch the theatre of Eric Matthews and his team creating such nibblesome delights as Rabbit Bolognese; John Dory with Delica Pumpkin, Castletownbere Shrimp, Coco de Paimpol à la Bretonne and Pickled Red Dillisk; and Burnt Basque Cheesecake with Irish Blackberries, more of which anon.

As for those cocktails, rum, cacao nib, banana liqueur, Amaro Lucano and lime combine to glorious effect in their Jamaican Me Thirsty, while chili oil, alliums, tequila, mescal, lime, Cointreau and Agave all find their way into the Umami Issues which (in a good way!) is like nothing you’ve ever tasted before.

Eric Matthews, Kickys. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

“You know where that dish comes from?” Eric says when I tell him of my love affair with his Rabbit Bolognese. “Ischia, a tiny island that’s about an hour’s ferry ride from Naples. I had my honeymoon there and have been back four of five times – the food is phenomenal. There’s a tiny village, Sant’Angelo, that’s totally car-free and home to my favourite restaurant in the world, Emaneula’s. Emaneula was the granny and her son who’s fifty now runs in it with his youngest daughter. It’s not Michelin-y or fancy but, oh my god, everything on the menu is fabulous. And in particular, the Rabbit Bolognese which, like a good few of the dishes on our menu, we brought back with us from our travels. I get inspiration from the chefs, the style of what they cook and the vibe of the restaurant.”

Dishes are like children – you shouldn’t have favourites – but what is he most enjoying rustling up at the moment?

“I love cooking fish,” Eric enthuses. “The beauty of this place is that it’s always changing but generally I’d have turbot, John Dory or red mullet, which is my favourite, on the menu.”

It’s Eric’s mum who passed the cooking bug on to her son.

“My mother was obsessed with Spain, we had a pan in the cupboard and from a young age I’d be cooking paellas,” he reminisces. “This was before YouTube so I’d be watching Rick Stein and Keith Floyd on the telly and learning. What I still love about paellas, is that you’re connected to them from start to finish. You don’t put them in the oven and forget about them; you have to constantly mind the pan, which is definitely something that’s stayed with me.

“Funnily enough, paella was on the menu a few weeks ago when my wife and I were in Sardinia. I was like, ‘Paella in Italy? This has to be for the tourists.’ Doing some research on the beach, though, I discovered that 30% of the people in Alghero are Catalunyan. So we try this paella, it’s amazing and we’re now doing a riff on it at Kicky’s.”

Leaving school, Eric started an Economics and Spanish degree at DCU – the main attraction being the two years he was supposed to spend in Madrid – but halfway through first-year switched to Culinary Arts at what was then DIT and is now TUD on Cathal Brugha Street.

“My parents sat me down individually and said, ‘Don’t do it, it’s going to be a terrible life!’ but I was always cooking for my friends and inviting dates to mine for dinner, so I thought, ‘What the hell, let’s give it a go…’” he smiles. “And, honestly, it was the best decision I’ve ever made. I can’t recommend Cathal Brugha Street highly enough.

“I’m actually a member of the review board for the TUD courses now which I love.”

Eric’s first paid cheffing gig was in the Tea Room at the Clarence Hotel, which was still owned at the time by U2.

“It was a rocking place!” he reminisces. “We served a good few celebrities, my favourite being Robert Plant. I love a good actor or musician; somebody who’s contributed to the world. When they come in I’m like, ‘I owe you a cracker of a meal!’

“Funnily enough, before switching direction my wife, Ciera, was a contestant on The Voice and was mentored by Dolores O’Riordan who was really good to her.”

Kicky’s is a collaboration between Eric and Richie Barrett, a three-time Wine Spectator Award of Excellence recipient who he first worked with sixteen years ago at BANG on Merrion Square.

“Richie also worked locally at Etto and Uno Mas and for Supernatural in Melbourne, so he knows the business inside out and is as obsessive about food as I am. Our paths crossed again as both of us were looking to do something new and exciting. Conceptually we were on the same page, so it made total sense for us to team up.”

The search for the right premises for their new baby was a long one.

“I spent two years jogging around Dublin trying to figure out where we were going to go,” he laughs. “In the end, Richie’s brother heard about this place, which space, vibe and location-wise couldn’t be more perfect.”

This summer found Eric celebrating his twentieth year as a professional chef.

“It takes a long time to get to the point where you have your own distinctive style,” he resumes, “but through working in some really great restaurants I feel now that I’ve reached it. We had a guy in last night from a three star Michelin restaurant in San Francisco. Five years ago I’d have been nervous and trying to cherry-pick the dishes, but we’ve eleven highly trained chefs and I can 100% stand over everything on the menu.”

A large part of which is cooked over fire.

“Half the kitchen is fire, the other half induction. No gas as we want to be sustainable,” Eric explains. “The flavour when you cook something over embers; it’s sweeter and you’ve that smokiness. To be honest with you, I’ll never go back to pans. Lamb, pork, duck, whole chickens – they’re all done over fire. I couldn’t cook any other way.”

Those really great restaurants Eric worked in before Kicky’s include The Square in London; Guillaume at Bennelong in the Sydney Opera House; Chapter One in Dublin and The Fat Duck, which is Heston Blumenthal’s flagship in Bray on Thames. Did he enjoy his time there?

“It was like walking into Mecca!” Eric says, clearly awe-struck by his Heston experience. “It’s a really small restaurant – 38 covers maximum – but they had seventeen chefs in a 19 sq. m kitchen and another twelve across the road in the prep kitchen, which also isn’t that big. Separate again is the development kitchen with its five or six people. They were filming In Search Of Perfection when I was there so there was loads of mad scientist stuff going on, with Heston this culinary Napoleon commanding his generals. He’s like a rock star but lovely and super, super intelligent.

“Interestingly, the main reason for The Fat Duck saying ‘Yes’ when I asked if I could do my college placement there, is the reputation Cathal Brugha Street has internationally.”

Quick pop quiz; what’s Eric’s favourite Irish cheese?

“For our Burnt Basque Cheesecake, we use an outstanding triple-cream one from Armagh called Ballylisk which is made by the Wright brothers – not the ones who invented the aeroplane,” he deadpans. “I also love Young Buck, Cashel Blue, Durrus, Gubeen and Bellingham Blue… the list goes on and on.”

Which is the correct answer.

When not slaving over a hot stove himself, where in Dublin does Eric like to eat?

“Sunil Ghai’s place, Pickle, is one of the best restaurants – not just in Dublin but the whole of Ireland,” he reflects. “I don’t want to be giving them any more business but Bambino’s on Stephen’s Street Lower is great and open till two in the morning, which is perfect for me. They’re second-best in Dublin for pizza – sorry Shane, I love you! – the number one being DiFontaine’s on Parliament Street, which has really benefited from being pedestrianised. For kebabs, I tend to go to Chiya on Dame Street which is run by the daughter of the people who own Reyna a few doors down. ‘Fast food’ used to be a pejorative term but the quality of it now in Dublin is incredible.”

Another influence on the Kicky’s menu is the United Nations of staff that Eric has working alongside him in the kitchen.

“My head chef’s from Argentina, we’ve others from Canada, Mexico, Bolivia and Spain,” he concludes. “I’m learning as much from them as they are from me, which is brilliant. If you love your food, you’re really spoilt for choice at the moment in Dublin.”

Kicky’s
South Great George’s Street, Dublin 2
Tel: (01) 906 1008
kickys.ie

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