Lucinda O’Sullivan’s restaurant review: Terrific Pakistani chain Daata’s new location gives Blackrock another culinary boost

The fourth link for this superb chain is a perfect addition to the Dublin suburb, says our critic

Tandoori prawns. Photo: Lucinda O'Sullivan

Lucinda O'Sullivan

It’s only relatively recently that the affluent SoCoDu village of Blackrock has managed to attract and sustain good restaurants. Surprisingly, for most of my time living in the ‘borough of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown’, it’s been something of a culinary desert. I was thinking about this recently following the death of the wonderful chef and artist Colin O’Daly, who was highly respected and loved in the hospitality industry.

With a prestigious culinary pedigree behind him, O’Daly had departed the Park Hotel in Kenmare in the 80s and opened his Park restaurant in Blackrock to great acclaim — the king and queen of Spain even came to dine — and, back then, the bank manager visited him every week to check out how it was going!