Eating Out in Dublin

Like any large city, Dublin has so many restaurants in every price range that picking out just a few is extremely difficult. We have tried to go for as much variety as possible and to concentrate on those places which have stood the test of time and been consistently both good and popular.

A great way for anyone with an interest in food to spend a Saturday morning is at the Temple Bar Food Market, where small producers, farmers and importers of interesting food from overseas gather at stalls to sell direct to the public.

There is a new temptation every week and a lot to learn from just talking to the ever friendly stall holders.

One restaurant category that has grown hugely in recent years is that of ethnic restaurants. With an increasingly cosmopolitan population, there is now hardly any of the great world cuisines that cannot be found in Dublin.

As always with such places it is a very good sign if people from the country from which the food originates eat in the restaurant.

Eating Out in Dublin on a Budget

Leo Burdock’s legendary chip shop near Christ Church Cathedral is a mecca for both Dubliners and visitors looking for a bargain tasty and filling feed. There is no seating and you will probably have to queue on the street, but it’s worth it.

It was a reader of this site that brought me to the The Half Moon Crêpe Co and their great value menu of crêpes, panini and toasted sandwiches. You’ll eat tastily and well here at a great price for Temple Bar and the extremely friendly service is a real bonus.

Cafe Azteca is about as close as you’ll get to authentic Mexican food in Dublin, and it’s close. Their huevos rancheros are to die for and they serve proper tacos, not the pale imitations that too often appear on menus.

Wagamama ( 353 1 4782152)on South King St is part of an international chain of Japanese Noodle Houses. You could spend a lot here, but equally you can get a tasty and satisfying bowl of noodles for a very reasonable cost.

Blazing Salads ( 353 1 6719552) is a deli and bakery on Drury St which does amazing takeaway salads with innovate daily specials and yummy cakes that manage to be vaguely healthy at the same time. No seating – take your picnic to Stephen’s green and eat al fresco.

Milkbar ( 353 1 4788450), with branches on Montague St and Setanta Place is a coffee bar serving great value freshly made baguettes, sandwiches and ciabatta plus sweet and savoury croissants baked each day on the premises.

The Cafe Bar Deli has branches in Grafton St, Georges St and Ranelagh and is deservedly popular for its great value and excellent pizzas and pastas. Bookings are not accepted and it is common to have to join a queue.

Miss Sushi ( 353 1 8722965) in the Epicurean Food Hall in Middle Abbey St has good value bento boxes. Also in the same location is the best place for bagels in Dublin, Itsabagel ( 353 1 6449441), with terrific fillings and bagels imported from New York.

If you are prepared to be adventurous, there are several chinese and other ethnic restaurants on Moore St and Parnell St that are very cheap but may not have English (or at least understandably English) menus. They can be a disaster or a triumph – it’s a bit hit and miss but the Sichuan House (01 8783400) is a pretty good bet, it’s always full of Chinese people and is very cheap.

There is a large Polish community in Dublin, and the Gospoda Polska is their favorite place to eat. It’s the sort of hearty and substantial food – goulash, potato cakes, dumplings, apple pie and a cheesecake that is becoming almost legendary – that those on a tight budget really appreciate.

Salamanca on Andrew’s Street, just off Wicklow St, is a cheerful and friendly Spanish tapas bar. Share a selection of dishes -totilla, calamari, patatas bravas, garlic roast chicken etc. Lovely lemon tart dessert. No reservations so there is often a wait for tables.

Middle Range Restaurants in Dublin

Vegetarians in search of extremely yummy Indian food at a good price need to get to Govindas, with branches in Aungier St (a bit cheaper than the other two), Merrion Row and Abbey St. They serve generous portions of virtuous Indian food that tastes too good to be good for you and you don’t have to be vegetarian to enjoy it. This is a borderline low-budget place, except you’ll order too much.

The food at the Avoca Cafe is the sort you might call good home cooking, nothing fancy but prepared to perfection and with a little bit of imagination. Everything is delicious but the cakes and tarts are something really special. You could eat on a low budget here if you have iron discipline, and it’s a good place for coffee and something tasty while wandering around Dublin.

Gallagher’s Boxty House in Temple Bar serves traditional Irish dishes including Boxty, Irish Stew, Dublin Coddle, Champ and Colcannon, and also excellent steaks in nice surroundings with extremely friendly staff.

The Léon Bistro (01 670 7238) on Exchequer St is a little bit of France in Dublin, serving typical French food like Daube de Boeuf, goats cheese tarts and foie gras along with delectable desserts. This is a good place to drop into for a coffee and pastry during the day too.

Diep La Shaker ( 353 1 6611829) in Pembroke Lane serves quite delicious  Thai food, and with live jazz and great cocktails making this a really great place for a fun night out.  Diep Noodle Bar ( 353 1 4976550) its sister restaurant in Ranelagh Village is less expensive and has equally good food and also have an extensive take away menu.

Also serving excellent Thai food, Koh, on Jervis Street,  is particularly popular for celebration meals, work parties, birthday bashes and so on. It’s easy to see why.

The Winding Stair is a combined restaurant and bookshop (new and second hand and a browsers paradise), which makes it a place I could happily just move into.

The restaurant is upstairs in a great room, high ceilinged and with a sort of loft feel, with a view over the Liffey. That the food is very good too is a real bonus. Prices are firmly at the high end of the middle range, but worth it.

If you want to eat and feel virtuous at the same time, then Nude ( 353 1 6772762) in Suffolk St is the place to go. Fresh, often organic or fair trade, ingredients are used to make delicious soups, rolls, panini and salads, there is a good juice bar, vegetarians will be spoiled for choice and just about all special dietary requirements are catered for.

For the best sushi in Dublin, the place to go is AYA ( 353 1 6771544) on Clarendon St, which is also extremely good value. Yamamori (353 1 4755001) on Sth Great Georges St is good too.

I don’t personally know anyone whe has eaten there and I’ve never tasted Malaysian food, but Swai (01 856 1633) has had some excellent reviews and is in a fantastic location on North Wall Quay overlooking the river, particularly at night when it’s floodlit. It’s on my list.

You know just what to expect at the Hard Rock Cafe ( 353 1 6717777) in Temple Bar, loud and lively with the usual overpriced burgers and pizzas, chicken wings and steaks, but then you don’t really go for the food. Among its memorabilia is U2’s Trabant.

High End Dining in Dublin

Balzac ( 353 1 6774444) in Dawson St only opened in February 2007 but is already a firm favourite among those who appreciate the value, and rarity, of simple food cooked to absolute perfection.

The Trocadero ( 353 1 6792385) is a Dublin institution, more than 50 years in business and little changed in that time. It’s lavish decor may be a little frayed at the edges, but it has always delivered good food at a good price and continues to do so. Popular with the theatre and arts set, it is always lively and fun. The pre-theatre menu is priced in the middle range and is great value and very popular.

Dax Wine Bar ( 353 1 6761494)on Pembroke St is a most enjoyable place to eat, with a menu that particularly strong on very well selected and prepared seafood. It is also possible to just share a plate of delicious tapas and a few glasses of good wine at the bar. The Early Bird Menu here is excellent value.

Regulars at Les Freres Jaques on Dame St wax lyrical about the not only the food but the ambiance and service, and have made it one of the most popular restaurants in Dublin. The food is real French cuisine, making good use of Irish ingredients and cooking them with the sort of apparant simplicity that’s actually very hard to acheive. If your budget won’t stretch to dinner the lunch menu of 2 courses for €18 or €23 will allow you to sample the food without breaking the bank. Get there early though – it’s outrageously popular.

Thornton’s ( 353 1 4787009) on St Stephen’s Green is exceptional by an standards: serious cooking where expensive ingredients like Foie Gras, Truffles and lobster abound, and there is a twist to almost every dish. The cooking is impeccable, there is real love of food on every plate, and the atmosphere is surprisingly relaxed and friendly for such a high end place. A total delight.

Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud ( 353 1 6764192) on Upper Merrion St is Ireland’s only 2 star Michelin Restaurant, and its standards are consistently at the very top end of excellent and also, it must be said, price – it’s a great place to go when someone else is paying! A beautiful and elegant place, with impeccable service and food that is as good to eat as it is to look at. Some people find it a little too formal, but it is a very special occasion every time you eat here.

Located in the beautifully restored basement of the Dublin Writer’s Museum on Parnell Square, Chapter One ( 353 1 8732266) is a great place to sample what is often called the ‘new Irish Cuisine’. Classic French cooking techniques are used with the best of Irish produce to produce a consistently excellent standard of food. Was awarded a richly deserved Michelin star for the first time in 2007.