Fawn
Address: Main Street, Oranmore, Co Galway, H91 PNY7
Telephone: N/A
Cuisine: Modern International
Website: https://www.fawn.ie/Opens in new window
Cost: €€€
At Fawn in Oranmore, Co Galway, the smartest move is to start with the wine list. Online ideally, where its 21 pages read as a clear statement of intent. It assumes curiosity: wines grouped by country, then producer, clearly flagged red, white or orange. It isn’t a straightforward read and some rooting is required. Engagement is assumed, and the sommelier will guide you.
Two things stand out immediately. Margins, which vary, are among the lowest you’ll find in the country. If you’re celebrating and weighing up cocktails, Champagne makes a strong case: Grower Champagne, Laherte Frères at €70 sits within a hair’s breadth of retail, while by the glass it’s €15.50, or €25 with three oysters. Jean Foillard’s Morgon Côte du Py lands at roughly 1½ times retail, and the supporting cast includes top indie producers such as Comando G, Occhipinti, Foradori and Ganevat. This is a list designed to be drunk and enjoyed, not to underwrite the kitchen.
Fawn is run by two couples forged in hotel and restaurant kitchens: Ervin Vamoser and Maria Ogl on front of house and wine, and chefs Jason O’Neill and Sarah Croffey in the kitchen. Ogl was head sommelier at three-Michelin-star Hiša Franko, and that experience is written all over Fawn’s wine list, with notable depth in bottles from her native Hungary.
With Ogl on maternity leave, Iseult Fitzsimons, formerly of Daróg and Loam (since closed), takes charge of the room. She is knowledgeable and helpful, suggesting a light chilled Hungarian red with our food: a Szekszárd Kadarka 2022 (€49) from Heimann & Fiai. Kadarka is a grape that’s new to me, and an excellent call.
The food follows the same logic of confidence and restraint. Vamoser cites Brat in London and Elkano, near San Sebastián, as influences, and cooking over fire is central to the menu. Meat and dry-aged steaks are cooked over olive wood on a Santa Maria-style grill custom made by Smokin’ Soul, while fish is cooked over apple wood.
Jason O’Neill, head chef and co-owner at Fawn in Oranmore, where the menu is led by fire. All photographs: Joe O’Shaughnessy 
Fawn Restaurant Oranmore Co Galway
The meal begins gently, with parsnip and Velvet Cloud sheep’s cheese dumplings (€14) arriving as four mildly flavoured rounds with roasted pear. They are agreeable enough, but the kitchen’s strengths come into sharper focus with the barbecue-glazed quail (€15 for half a bird), a stronger plate and better value. The quail is confidently grilled, breast and leg treated separately, the meat still pink and well rested. Roasted beetroot brings sweetness, kale adds bitterness and a glossy jus pulls the plate together without excess. It is direct, assured cooking.
The same lightness of touch suits the whole grilled wild fish of the evening, a lemon sole (€45), often confused with black sole but in fact a flounder with paler, softer flesh that usually rewards gentle handling. More commonly pan-fried, it takes well to the grill here, retaining its tenderness while picking up a light char. Served simply with garlic and chilli pil-pil on top, the focus stays on the fish, though a more characterful olive oil poured around it would lift it further.
There is also a dry-aged pork chop (€34), on the bone, with a glossy jus, alongside grilled mushroom and spring onion. Roast potatoes come separately, well cooked and solid rather than showy. The meat itself is well handled on the grill and neatly carved, but the glaze is less convincing: a straightforward barbecue sweetness that feels blunt rather than nuanced. It’s a good-quality Pigs on the Green chop that doesn’t really need a glaze at all, particularly with a peppercorn sauce served on the side. The dish is easy to eat and competently done, but for a cut of this size and presence, it plays things a little safe.
Dessert keeps things simple. A choux bun (€10.50) pairs white chocolate ice cream with forced rhubarb, the latter nicely tart and doing useful work against the sweetness. The balance, however, tips too far: the ice cream dominates, while the choux itself is also quite sweet, on the dry side, and would have benefited from a craquelin topping for texture and richness. It’s agreeable rather than indulgent.
What lingers is the combination of fire-led cooking and unusually fair wine pricing. The wine list sets the terms of the evening early, and the menu follows by organising itself around the grill, where the kitchen is most assured. Fire-led dishes make the strongest case for the restaurant, a point underlined by the substantial steaks circulating through the room. The restaurant is at its most persuasive when it keeps things this direct.
Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was €167.50.
The verdict Fire-led cooking with sensibly priced wine.
Food provenance Padraig Gilligan beef, The Happy Lobster, Pigs on the Green, Oranmore Organic and Friendly Farmer.
Vegetarian options Parsnip and cheese dumplings, roasted cauliflower, three cheese gnocchi, and baked Hokkaido pumpkin.
Wheelchair access Fully accessible with an accessible toilet.
Music Background, indie-rock.
Fawn Restaurant Oranmore, Co Galway.
A section of the dining area in Fawn Restaurant.
Photograph: O’Shughnessy. 
Fawn Restaurant Oranmore, Co Galway:
The reception area at Fawn Restaurant, Oranmore. Photograph: O’Shughnessy