This week's dining began with a meal to celebrate the life and work of an exceptional lady. It was held in the excellent Monty's of Kathmandu in Dublin's Temple Bar and many of Ireland's foodies came to honour and praise Myrtle Allen, the guest of honour. If the history ever gets written of Ireland's extraordinary metamorphosis from a gastronomic desert to a food-conscious culture in a mere thirty years, the names of Myrtle Allen and Ballymaloe House will certainly have a pivotal role in it. By now many of her erstwhile pupils are teaching others and the Ballymaloe ethos of careful cooking with the finest ingredients has infiltrated kitchens all over the country. You could say that Myrtle Allen has done for Ireland what Elizabeth David did for England.

Later in the week I found myself on Dublin's north quays coming up to lunchtime and with growing pangs of hunger. I enjoyed a morning cappuccino on the Liffey's boardwalk, thinking that all that was needed was a ray or two of sun to make me feel like a mainland Continental. A short walk from here took me to the Enoteca delle Langhe. What you need to know about this Italian name is that an 'enoteca' is a wine shop and 'Langhe' is pronounced lan-gay. It's all very new and shiny and at one end the walls are lined with nicely made bespoke wooden racks which contain almost exclusively wines from Italy's Piedmont region - the one that's up in Italy's north-west. Some of the finest Italian wines come from here: Barolo, Barbaresco and Nebbiolo, all of which can be found on display and on sale.

I've complained before in print that there's nowhere that immediately springs to mind that I could take an Italian visitor to, but this place comes very close. If the menu wasn't quite so limited it would have been perfect, but then again, it does call itself a wine shop and not a restaurant. What you can get in the Enoteca is nicely presented plates of cold meats and cheeses - good prosciutto, Italian cheeses, mortadella, salamis and breads. On the day I was there, there were two hot specials, a linguine with a cherry tomato sauce and polpettoni, which are big meat balls, which I had. I started with a platter of bresaola, which came with Parmesan shavings and a rocket salad. The salad was nicely dressed with a very good olive oil, something that makes a huge difference to a salad, and something that I don't find often enough. The meat balls came sliced and in a tasty gravy, and I enjoyed them. My only whinge is that having eaten such a pleasing lunch I wasn't able to round it off with an espresso. It seems they've made a management decision not to do them. You can snack well and on genuinely Italian food here - served by Italians as well - and needn't spend more than a tenner. I'll be going back.

It's been a long time since I visited Bray, so a meal there was somewhat overdue. I was dining with Michael Lowesly, who lives in Bray, so I let him guide me. He suggested Barracuda on the seafront, a restaurant that I'd been to before in another incarnation. I didn't have especially good memories of the food, but Michael assured me that things had changed. He has good reason to know that, he's a regular diner there - so regular that as we walked in it was 'Good evening, Mr. Lowesly' and 'Can I show you to your regular table, Mr. Lowesly?' and 'Can I fetch you a more comfortable chair, Mr. Lowsely?' I don't think I've ever been treated so well by association. I mused to myself that probably Michael is generous with his tips.

The first thing that struck me is that the menu prices are pitched firmly at the middle market. Starters come at around €7 to €8 and main courses from €18 to €22. The wine list, however, is pitched much higher. There are some wines to be had around the €20 mark, but the mark-up is higher than usual and there are wines listed at around €30 that really ought to cost much less. From the list we picked a decent white Bordeaux listed at €29, which makes my point.

To begin Michael chose the black and white pudding and I picked the squid rings. The black and white pudding was very prettily presented as a mosaic and I stole a forkful from across the table to find a very well flavoured dish. As to my squid, the rings were tender enough to cut with the side of my fork. I passed on a soup course, but Michael had the French onion soup and I got to taste a spoonful. It was a good soup, well reduced and flavoured, but I think I'd have preferred a more traditional sprinkling of small croutons rather than one very large one.

For our main courses Michael had picked the filet mignon, a fine cut of beef fillet which he'd asked for medium rare. I couldn't resist the cod and chips, or as it's on the menu here 'tempura of cod'. As side orders we'd chosen the caramelised onions and the sautéed mushrooms. All of these were competently made, the tempura batter on my cod well above average.

Throughout the meal the service was attentive and prompt, which is always an aid to relaxation. The dining room is very attractive with a view over the esplanade and the sea, and although it's very big, it's been carefully subdivided into discrete dining areas. I enjoyed my meal in Barracuda, the food is neither haute cuisine nor cutting edge modern, but it's well made and well priced. Our bill came to €109.15, not including service.