Richard Corrigan has come east, opening a brand new restaurant called Daffodil Mulligan where modern Irish restaurant Nuala used to be, just off Old Street. The new joint keeps that Irish connection – not only is it named after the daughter of legendary Irish street seller Biddy Mulligan but Richard Corrigan has drafted in a host of Irish talent for the team, including founder of Kings Place John Nugent and Tony Gibney, from the pub Gibney’s of Malahide.
It’s a lively – and big – space with an area for drinkers on the ground floor as well as the open kitchen and main dining room, and a 10-seat oyster bar. There’s also a basement saloon bar downstairs which has music nights and lots more seating. So it’s perfectly possible to come in for a pint of Gibney’s stout (it’s the only place in London to serve it) and a few snacks if you wanted, or if you’re after the full feast, there’s a much bigger menu to get your teeth in to.
We kicked off with a snack of smoked whipped cod’s roe with thin crisp breads – a huge portion for £3, it’s probably one of the best value in dishes in London at the moment. The beef tartare wasn’t a universal hit but one of us loved it. The beef is marinated with plenty of tabasco and a slightly sweet tomato sauce, and served in an oyster shell alongside a dollop of light oyster cream.
A new one on us was ‘crubeen’. This traditional Irish dish involves slowly braising pig’s trotters, stripping the meat off, coating it in breadcrumbs and deep frying it. At Daffodil Mulligan it’s served as two thick pucks, with a jar of mustard and some mashed swede – they might be an acquired taste for some, but we were big fans. Knowing that we were ordering a lot of heavy meat dishes, we tried to balance it out with at least one vegetable dish, the roast beetroot, with came with curd, pomegranate, walnuts and orange. Not that light, but still.
Main courses are centred around meats and fish cooked on the wood oven and grill, with lamb, beef, partridge, and even lobster cooked in the glowing flames of the huge oven. We went for the sugar pit pork, a thick cured pork rib served with fresh pineapple and lychee to cut through the rich meat. You may have seen or heard about the bone marrow mash already and we can confirm that is indeed excellent. However we had no idea that it was such a small portion (guess Instagram makes things look bigger) so definitely order two, as you won’t want to share it.
For dessert, there’s an excellent dark chocolate mousse with a sweet banana caramel that’s definitely worth saving room for.
Daffodil Mulligan is a really fun restaurant and we love the flexibility of the space – we can definitely imagine coming back and popping in for a couple of drinks and oysters whenever we’re in the area.
70-74 City Rd, London EC1Y 2BJ
daffodilmulligan.com