It seemed so perfectly fitting; after driving around the Continent for four weeks through France and Italy, I got back here to find everyone talking about Eddie Hobbs and his show, 'Rip-Off Republic'. It seems that finally people are beginning to question why they have to pay so much for everything, from private sector services to the cost of government. You really do notice the prices here after a spell elsewhere. Food costs, hotel prices, health costs, transport, hospitality - every aspect of everyday life seems to cost more in Ireland, even down to small expenditures like coffee. In France and Italy an espresso will cost you between 60 cents and €1, here €2.50 isn't uncommon.

Just to elaborate the point a little, this summer a new restaurant opened up in my little Italian village of Gallinaro, called 'Il Ristoro'. It sits atop a small hill and the outside terrace has a spectacular view over the Comino Valley. I went there with three Irish friends who had come to visit me - Michael, Alexis and Marian. We had two starters of fettucine with fresh truffles, two fettucine with hand-picked wild mountain asparagus, then lamb chops and skewered beef done on a barbecue. Wine, mineral water, beer, coffees and after dinner liqueurs brought the bill for the four of us up to €80.

Driving to Italy through France and then back through France on the way home, I made good use when travelling of the amazing French hotel system. Off nearly every motorway junction you can find hotels, from the very cheap 'Formule 1', which costs €25 for a room for up to three people, to the marginally more expensive 'Premier Classe' and 'B&B' chains, which throw in an en suite bathroom for €30 a night, again for up to three people. What makes these chains so useful for the traveller isn't just the price, it's the fact that they're totally automated. No matter what time of night you arrive, you check in via a computer console at the entrance using your credit card. The computer prints out a receipt, a door code and a room code. You key in these numbers on a numeric pad by each door, and you've got a place to lay your head. Painless and very cheap.

After docking in Rosslare a few days ago, I had the last bit of the journey in front of me, the trip back to Wicklow. It took 45 minutes just to get through Gorey. I can think of plenty of third world countries that have trunk roads between their major ports and their capitals, but despite our supposed thriving economy and new found status as rich man of Europe, we still haven't got a proper road system. Not even a motorway between Dublin and Cork. After driving on the Continent, an average speed on a long journey of 35 mph seems positively primitive.

Anyway, at least I came back to some sunshine, which makes getting back into harness a little easier. Not having seen my mother for more than a month, taking her out for a meal seemed like a good way to catch up. I asked her if there was anywhere she fancied going and she answered unhesitatingly 'Bianconi's', which is opposite St. Vincent's on the Merrion Road.

We arrived without a reservation on a midweek night and got a table towards the back of a very long dining room. Simple tables and chairs, simple table settings and some interesting art on the walls make Bianconi's feel more like a trattoria rather than a restaurant. The menu confirms this; there are plenty of pastas and pizzas, a few daily specials and some main courses all priced very reasonably.

The first thing I studied was the wine list, which is reasonably long and very well priced. Most of the wines are priced between €18 and €25, although if you wanted something special it also lists an Amarone 1997 for a modest €58, which isn't far off the retail price. Since mother's not a big drinker and I was driving, we settled on a half bottle of Chardonnay at €14 and a bottle of mineral water. Mother is not a big eater either, so she decided on just a main course, the daily special of monkfish wrapped in Parma ham. I decided on a starter, a portion of lasagna, and then the escalopes of veal Milanese.

The lasagna was tasty, but made in a very non-traditional way. I found no trace of béchamel, but lots of minced beef - almost as much as there was pasta. Still, it was good and I ate it all. I'd been quietly worried about my mother's choice, since fish wrapped in something prior to cooking has rarely been successful in my experience. I needn't have worried, the monkfish was perfectly cooked and my mother enjoyed it thoroughly. My veal Milanese was gloriously simple, just two escalopes cooked through but still juicy, and a basil mash which also worked very well. It was exactly what needed, a squeeze of lemon and I was transported back to Italy.

We finished our meal with an espresso for me and a limoncello for mother, and ended up with a bill for €66.90, which is probably the smallest bill I've had for dinner this year. You could say it made a gentle re-entry into the world of Irish prices.