Restaurant review: I’m in shock. €35 for chicken supreme using non-free-range Dutch chicken

Sole Seafood & Grill      Address: 47 Drury Street, Dublin 2, D02 K753Telephone: 01-5442300Cuisine: Fish and seafoodCost: €€€I am one of those people who, if you turn me around, doesn’t know where I am. Actually, I don’t even need to be turned around for confusion to set in. And the newly refurbished Sole Seafood & Grill in Dublin is just the place to put this to the test, because, rather than moving to new premises, as I mistakenly thought, it has simply doubled in size within the original building and moved its entrance from South William Street to the far busier Drury Street, right beside Ciss Madden’s.Sole is part of the EHL group, owned by seasoned operator Padraic O’Kane and Bord Bia chairman Larry Murrin. The hospitality group includes Fire Steakhouse and The Round Room at the Mansion House, Sally Mac’s Pub & Kitchen, Ethos Cafes and With Taste catering.After checking in at reception – serious exclusivity vibes – we are guided up a sweeping staircase through a warren of dining areas, past some tables for two in what amounts to a corridor, and finally reach the dramatically decorated bar area of the restaurant. It feels more escape room to me. I have no idea of the way back out, so I sit tight in my seat for the evening, rather than risk the need to send out a search party.There’s a three-course table d’hote menu for €69, but as it includes farmed sea bass (from Spain, Greece or Turkey, €35 on the a la carte), it narrows my options. I discover afterwards that the Cajun chicken is Polish and not free-range, and the chicken supreme (€35 on the a la carte) is made with Dutch chicken that is not free-range either. The Guinness smoked salmon is farmed in Scotland (€16.50 on the a la carte), and the tiger prawns in the chowder are farmed and block frozen in Bangladesh. Considering Sole claims that its “food philosophy is one honouring seafood sustainability and local Irish producers”, this is not a good start. In its defence, the cod for the fish and chips is landed by Irish boats and the rib-eye steak is Peter Hannan’s excellent salt-aged beef.READ MOREBut I really want fish to be the focus of my meal, so the a la carte menu it is. It leads with oysters and then goes on to caviar – €59 to €178 – followed by the Sole seafood towers – €85 to €137.50. A 500g lobster, €95, is catch of the day. Clearly, I’m in a room of well-heeled diners; I see towers winging their way like drones around the room.Rock oysters are €7 for two, and there’s a choice from four Irish producers. David Keane’s Connemara oysters are sweet and creamy while Kelly’s oysters are slightly smaller, tasting of a fresh day by the sea. They are delicious with a squeeze of lemon, a splash of Tabasco and a glass of Picpoul de Pinet Cap Cette (€45 for a bottle) from a safe list that is strong on whites. Reds top out at €1,800 for the 2016 Château Latour. Dingle brown crab claws (€19.50) are succulent, sautéed in butter and served with a delicious lemon beurre blanc, scattered with samphire. There is a bit of theatre around my main course. Sole meunière (€59.50) arrives whole on the bone, golden around the edges, and is skilfully filleted tableside. It is sweet-tasting and beautifully cooked, served with melted butter and a wedge of lemon. The side dish of green beans is crunchy and perhaps a little heavy on the garlic. Fish ’n’ chips (€29.50) arrives as two large chunks of beer-battered cod, the fish deliciously moist inside a crackling batter, the chips golden and crunchy. The accompaniment of peas is a minted purée, oddly soupy.Sole's sweeping staircase. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times Seafood tower at Sole. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times Monkfish at Sole. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times Dessert is mango mousse (€12.50), refreshing after a feast of fish, accompanied by passion fruit and mango salsa and chunks of toasted coconut meringue.Sole is a well-oiled machine with some notably good dishes on the menu using freshly landed fish and seafood: oysters, Roaring Water Bay mussels, Dover sole, cod, monkfish and lobster. But there is also an over-dependence on frozen seafood: squid from southeast Asia, Vietnamese yellowfin tuna, Bangladeshi and Argentinian prawns – even the Dublin Bay prawns and Dingle crab claws are frozen. It is not unusual for a restaurant to use frozen seafood – it allows more control over stock – but a restaurant that positions itself as a place where seafood sustainability and local Irish produce are at the forefront merits more in-depth scrutiny. The Polish and Dutch non-free-range chicken diminishes the case further. EHL might have allocated some of that €4.5 million expansion spend on better sourcing.Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was €180.The Verdict: Sole’s sourcing does not always match its claims.Food provenance: Fish and frozen seafood, Kish Fish; scallops, Mourne Seafood; beef, Peter Hannan and Dawn Meats; Dutch and Polish chicken from La Rousse, Keelings vegetables.Vegetarian options: Limited. Burrata with fennel, orange and beef tomatoes; pappardelle with basil; vegetable side dishes.Wheelchair access: Fully accessible with an accessible toilet. Music: Barry White, Bill Withers and lounge music. Inside Sole in Dublin 2. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times Sole comprises a number of dining areas. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times Inside Sole. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times