The eagle-eyed may have noticed a string of high scores of late. Truth be told it took until the end of the year to land successive heavy hitters, like a couple of championship points played out at 2024’s crescendo. A turbulent year for the history books where hospitality is concerned — and 2025 is not looking too hot on the horizon, with similarly treacherous conditions forecast.

However, the last few places covered in these pages — Library Street, Woodruff and now Forêt — through sheer chance have all been winners. These form a convincing line of defence of well-run kitchens slinging fantastic plates — consistently across every course, which is important — in salubrious surrounds with service on point.

Sous chef plating chicken dish.

Sous chef Mathys Ryboloviecz

BRYAN MEADE FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES

The best of the bunch, and potentially of 2024 in general, may have just snuck in in the dying weeks of the year. And, even more exciting, it is brand new to the scene. This week’s restaurant is also, in the context of the 50-plus covered this year, the one we are itching to get back to most in 2025, such is the divine impression a recent Sunday lunch had on us.

This is not an obscure find or under-the-radar opening, though. It’s actually the opposite: a fêted new frontier of John and Sandy Wyer’s stable of sturdy, well-run, consistent ventures — all with forest in the name — set south of the Grand Canal.

Their longstanding golden child, Forest Avenue, sits beside this opening, which is one floor above M O’Brien’s pub. Forest & Marcy used to lie steps away on Leeson Street, while their more casual, Italian-influenced pizza, pasta and antipasti spot, Little Forest, is found a further skip up the road in Blackrock.

Little has been done inside the Sussex, which formerly occupied Forêt’s space. Masculine, a heavy interior, edging on Edwardian pub, with olive green leather bar seats and mahogany galore; even the light fittings are the same. However, some softening and cosiness has been summoned via a lick of charcoal blue and simple, unstuffy table dressing.

The interior feels at odds with the casual French bistro menu — which comes sort of half-written in French — while the soundtrack is all chanson. Oh yes, they are going the full Franc here — don’t worry, you won’t have time to focus on the decor: instead you’ll be fixated by the treasures that land before you. The space is mostly irrelevant.

Chicken au Vin Jaune with greens and mushrooms.

Chicken au vin jaune from Forêt

BRYAN MEADE FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES

If, like us, this is your first foray, allow us to guide you through the most fabulous walk in the Forêt. First, if coming for lunch clear your schedule afterwards. Start with an aperitif (like a glass of poiré or a very well-made sour cherry negroni) and savour a couple of oysters served on a clatter of cleaned-out clam shells with a brilliant, bright mignonette.

Agonise over which classic to pick, maybe old-school egg mayonnaise made enticingly modern, softly boiled, served on a bed of celeriac remoulade with a chunky gribiche underneath and a fling of chivey pangrattato atop. Continue on to the boquerones (white anchovies), dressed in a herby oil with ratte potato, slivers of pink pickled onion and fresh cheese, while you choose a wine such as an Albert Mann Crémant d’Alsace. Bistro can be bouji too.

The bubbles pair surprisingly well with the beef tartare, which eats richly and complexly, nicely sharp with caper, cornichon and onion lavished atop the oily griddle-branded bread that joins it.

Don’t overthink it; order the rump steak — supremely charred yet impossibly pink and tender, luxuriating in a punchy peppercorn sauce. If the lamb shoulder or suckling pig is on the menu, debate over which one and then just order both. We still couldn’t tell you which was better, so don’t take our word for it. Chase it with a glass (scratch that, bottle) of red from the impossibly Gallic wine list.

Oyster with pink and green garnish served in a bowl with shells.

Oyster on clam shells with mignonette

BRYAN MEADE FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES

Don’t be worried that chicken breast as a main in 2024 would be a disaster: it won’t be. Here it comes miraculously succulent, with golden-crisped skin in an intense jus spiked by vin jaune, the slightly oxidised white wine from Jura, alongside riz paysanne, white rice flecked with broken bits of crisped skin and with some additional trimmings of chicken.

Save room for crème brûlée. A masterclass in a classic and so well made there is not a single calorie, of course. Croissant bread pudding should be enforced upon every table and come preprinted on the bill, it is that good, but you won’t be surprised. There’s a kouign amann-style shattering caramelised top situation about it, and calvados-spiked custard that the rocher of vanilla bean ice cream atop the pudding melts elegantly into. We presume the croissants come from Una bakery in Ranelagh, which the Wyers are also behind.

Stay for cheese, stay for coffee, stay for another bottle if they will let you. Make Forêt the focus of your day — it deserves it. We have a trip to Paris and Bordeaux pencilled in for post-Christmas, but we may just cancel it and move in here for the five days to properly make our way around the menu.

What do we have to complain about? Provenance is MIA: it is not clear where things are coming from, except for the wagyu beef from Armagh. Even our question about the sourcing of the oysters isn’t answered. There is also a little misfiring with service — some teething issues with timing that make the segue from snacks to starters then mains stutter a little, but on the whole Forêt is near-faultless for a first go in its initial few weeks, and up there with our favourite meals of 2024.

What we ate

Snacks/smalls
Oyster x 5 €15
Anchovy €9
Egg mayonnaise €6
Onion velouté €11
Green bean salad €12
Steak tartare €16

Mains
Chicken au vin jaune €26
Rump of beef €45
Lamb shoulder €28
Suckling pig €28

Desserts
Croissant bread pudding €8
Crème brûlée €9

Drink
Dirty martini x 2 €32
Cherry negroni x 2 €32
Water (x 4) €8
Espresso €4

Total: €289

If that, then these…

Bistro but elevated, three more to try:

Mae, Ballsbridge Set above the French Paradox, Grainne O’Keefe’s bijou dining room is consistently brilliant@mae_restaurant

Marcel, Belfast Incredible value and skilled cooking at this new star of Belmont Road @MarcelBelfast

La Maison, Dublin 2 15 years in on Castle Market, La Maison is as sturdy as ever @lamaisondublin

foret.ie; @ForetDublin

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