Having totally altered our expectations of Indian restaurants, the culinary genius of Asheesh Dewan’s Jaipur continues to delight a legion of regulars and high-profile diners, writes our critic
Mango malai kulfi with berries at Jaipur in Dalkey. Photo: Lucinda O’Sullivan
There had previously been a run-of-the-mill, old-style Indian restaurant on the main street of the colourful coastal town of Dalkey, Co Dublin, but in 2002, when Asheesh Dewan took over the premises while expanding his then new Jaipur restaurant group, he created a lighter, brighter, flock-wallpaper-free vibe that changed our idea of what an Indian restaurant should be. Twenty-four years later, it’s been a regular haunt of the many distinguished denizens of, and superstar visitors to, Dalkey, including the late writers Maeve Binchy and Hugh Leonard.
Apart from food, Dewan always had an interest in art, using his restaurants in a gallery-like fashion, and serving the modern, less-dense kind of cuisine that came on trend in London in 2001 when Atul Kochhar became the first Indian chef to be awarded a Michelin star.