David Dunne opening Knox was a ‘hole in one’
When David Dunne had to close during the Covid-19 pandemic his team were without jobs, but in a strange twist of fate, has he not seen it all before?
Working in the world of corporate finance for 17 years in 2014 the unthinkable happened, his employers announced they were closing their operations and redundancy loomed. Far from being dismayed, David treated it as an opportunity for change, headed to Ballymaloe for their world famous 12 week course, got inspired by Darina Allen’s work ethos, saw an opportunity in Sligo town to create a quality casual dining eatery and opened Knox, named after the old name for O’Connell Street where it is located, on 29th May 2015.
They hit the ground running – so much so they closed after a week to extend the kitchen and within a year they had introduced their popular Tapas menu which runs on their ‘late’ nights – Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
One of his early passions in life, golf (he won 8 national titles with Sligo Golf Club!) has now taken a back seat. His other passion is Liverpool FC and he fondly remembers being there in Istanbul in 2005 when the Reds came back from 3-0 down to win the Champions League against Milan. So we assume he will “Never give up” and Knox will be back! In the meantime we let him adore films, red wine and chocolate “All 3 at the same time is just perfect” he says.
On our Sligo Food Tour we often refer to Knox as our “meaty stop” and highlight that all their meat is sourced from local butchers like Sheerins, Clarkes or Rare Ruminare by Clive Bright, who is producing wonderful organic beef & lamb here in Ballymote Sligo with long grass grazing. That is not to say that he cannot pull out all the stops when it comes to our Vegan tour, where we had extraordinary dishes created by the kitchen team.
Here is David Dunne uncovered
What is your favourite food? I am a bit of a carnivore and I absolutely love slow cooked meats that have been marinated beforehand.
Finish the sentence: A ‘top’ chef is an artist who is passionate about food and where it comes from and is able to transfer that passion onto the plate in style.
The country you travel for food: I ‘should’ be saying France but I really haven’t travelled there enough so it’s probably Spain for me. Everyone who loves food should do San Sebastien at least once in their lives. I was equally impressed about the standard of cooking in Lisbon and of course their pastel de natas!
Three things you always have in your larder/fridge? Butter, butter and more butter!
What is your most used gadget? Hands down the Thermomix, it’s on non-stop in the Knox kitchen and a fantastic bit of kit, like a turbo blender with extra powers!
Do you read cookbooks and which one do you come back to? I’m an avid ‘purchaser’ of cookbooks but I have to admit during ‘normal’ work schedules they’re rarely read, but Diana Henry, Ottolenghi and Nigel Slater produce wonderful books.
Who is your inspiration (not necessarily from the food world)? Darina Allen was a huge influence for me setting up a food business. An incredible lady. She is a force of nature! Locally, I’ve always admired Gary Stafford (Lyons Cafe) and Andy Donaghy (Coach Lane). Both set up their businesses when it was not fashionable to do so. Both work extremely hard and let their food do the talking and neither crave publicity.
What are you currently listening to? I found a playlist on Spotify called New Retro and I have that on repeat play at the moment.
Something people don’t know about you? I ran 3 marathons during a bit of a mid-life crisis and I have played golf for Ireland at all levels.
What will be hot in 2020? As 2020 has been a shocker of a year so far with ongoing road works on O’Connell Street, storms with names every weekend for the first couple of months and now the Coronavirus pandemic, I hope when life eventually resumes later this year, that what’s hot will be – going out and having a nice meal with a nice glass of something with friends!