Restaurants in Ireland
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A
Sixty6
This swanky New York–style brasserie is one of the most popular party-dinner spots in town – the kind of place at which you’d want to celebrate your birthday with friends. It does a mean rotisserie chicken, four different ways at any given time. Besides its signature dish, the meat-heavy menu features things like lamb shank and a particularly good bit of liver. For that special occasion, there’s a whole roast pig, but you need to order seven days in advance and be in a group of eight.
reviewed
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B
Yamamori Sushi
Sushi arrives on the north side and immediately proves successful, but that’s hardly surprising considering that its south side sister has been doing the Japanese thang with great aplomb for a very long time. The menus in both are largely the same, but we prefer this newer location – right on the river – because it’s just that little bit more airy and spacious. The bento boxes are a popular choice – especially at lunchtime – but we really just can’t get enough of the nami moriawase.
reviewed
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C
Diep le Shaker
Diep le Shaker is a modern, light-filled space tucked down an alley off prestigious Pembroke St. It is popular with the local business crowd, establishment movers and shakers, and people generally consumed by their own self-importance. The predominantly Thai grub is inventive and excellent, but you get the impression you’re paying for the company and it ain’t worth it.
reviewed
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D
Winding Stair
This Dublin institution has simple décor and warm atmosphere along with an excellent wine list and wonderful Irish menu – creamy fish pie, bacon and organic cabbage, steamed mussels or Irish farmyard cheeses – all prepared with much TLC.
reviewed
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E
Tea Rooms
Mathieu Melin is performing small miracles in this elegant restaurant, its soaring ceiling and double-height windows designed to resemble a church. There are few places in all of Dublin where you'll get such superb fare – an ambitious marriage of classic French cuisine and typically Irish produce – at such reasonable prices.
reviewed
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F
English Market
Cork picnickers are a fortunate bunch. The wonderful market is a self-caterer's paradise with so many tasty delicacies to choose from it's hard to show restraint. The emphasis is on local produce, with cheeses, ham, buttered eggs, sausages, bread and smoked salmon on offer, but there are some imports such as olives and wine too.
If you have cooking facilities, the fresh-fish sellers will tell you exactly what to buy and how to cook it. Otherwise, perch at stall-side counters or take your lunch to Bishop Lucey Park, a popular alfresco eating spot.
reviewed
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G
Jo’burger
A playful, kids-in-the-70s theme (the menus are pasted into children’s almanacs), DJs playing great music loud enough to hear but not too loud to be annoying, and a sensational burger menu make this the coolest, hippest, best burger joint in the city. The organic burgers – beef, lamb, fish, veggie – come in a variety of options, all with funky names. The mapetla has beetroot salad, rocket and relish; the zondi comes with green thai curry mayo, coriander and chilli.
reviewed
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H
McDonagh's
A trip to Galway isn't complete without stopping at McDonagh's. Divided into two parts, with a takeaway counter and a cafe with long communal wooden tables on one side, and a more upmarket restaurant on the other, Galway's best chippy churns out battered cod, plaice, haddock, whiting and salmon nonstop, all accompanied by homemade tartare sauce.
reviewed
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I
Silk Road Café
Museum cafes don't often make you salivate, but this vaguely Middle Eastern–North African–Mediterranean gem is the exception. On the ground floor of the Chester Beatty Library, it is the culinary extension of the superb collection upstairs, gathering together exotic flavours into one outstanding menu that is about two-thirds vegie. Complementing the house specialities like Greek moussaka and spinach lasagne are daily specials like djaj mehshi (chicken stuffed with spices, rice, dried fruit, almonds and pine nuts and served with okra and Greek yoghurt). For dessert, there's Lebanese baklava and coconut kataif, or you could opt for the juiciest dates this side of Tyre.…
reviewed
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J
Peploe’s
Lots of air-kissing and comparing of shopping-bag contents takes place at this sophisticated and sumptuous wine-bar, which is basically Dublin’s answer to London’s Ivy Rooms. It’s all about elegance and attention to detail – check out the sumptuous tableware – and not really about the perfectly adequate continental cuisine, which is merely a complement to the superb wine list.
reviewed
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Bang Café
The highest-profile victim of the big bust was this stylish spot owned by the handsome Stokes twins, which closed suddenly in 2009 despite being one of the few enterprises of their empire to actually be in the black. But you can’t keep a good restaurant down, it seems, and within months it had reopened under new management, which has sworn to keep up Bang’s reputation for excellent fare. Only time will tell.
reviewed
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L
Jola's
With double-height ceilings, exposed brick walls and a stunning chandelier, Jola Wojtowicz's restaurant brings a dash of metropolitan style to Kinsale. The food is equally adept, confidently marrying Eastern European and Irish cuisine. The pierogi (dumplings) made with Clonakilty black pudding are divine, but are merely preparation for the mouth-watering mains, which include a particularly lovely dish of lamb cutlets with basil and walnut pesto.
reviewed
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Soup Dragon
Eat in or takeaway one of 12 tasty varieties of homemade soups, including shepherd’s pie or spicy vegetable gumbo. Bowls come in three different sizes and prices include fresh bread and a piece of fruit. Kick-start your day (or afternoon) with a healthy all-day breakfast selection: fresh smoothies (€4.50), generous bowls of yoghurt, fruit and muesli (€5) or poached egg in a bagel (€4).
reviewed
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N
Nick's Warehouse
A Cathedral Quarter pioneer (opened in 1989), Nick's is an enormous red-brick and blond-wood wine bar and restaurant, buzzing with happy drinkers and diners. The seasonal menu is strong on local produce, and the wine list is intriguing.
reviewed
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O
Cornstore
Bustling and buzzy day and night, this modern restaurant has a swish bar, where you can enjoy creative cocktails while waiting for a table. Some tables are minute, but if you're having the amazing house special of lobster hold out for a large one so your elbows and shells can fly. There's also excellent fresh fish, steaks and pasta.
reviewed
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Stone Chat
This secluded restaurant serves traditional and more cosmopolitan dishes, from Kerry lamb to Moroccan-style monkfish, and chicken wrapped in Parma ham. The great vegetarian selection includes spicy fajitas and a tagliatelle featuring coconut cream and chilli essence. Try the grilled salmon with crunchy sauté vegetables.
reviewed
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Q
Johnnie Fox's
Ireland's highest-altitude pub is about 45 minutes from Dublin in the Wicklow Mountains. Some people find it kitsch and overdone, but it's actually an authentic old place full of bric-a-brac, gnarled benches, sawdust floors and crackling open fires. The fabulous (but pricey) seafood and nightly Irish music are another draw.
reviewed
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Kingfisher
Set in a beautifully restored grain store, the Kingfisher serves up a short but sound menu of modern Irish food with international twists. Go for Thai spiced pork with sticky rice and sweet Asian salad, duck confit or spiced Cajun chicken with sour cream. It's all extremely good.
reviewed
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R
Cake Café
Dublin's best-kept pastry secret is this great little cafe on a tiny lane parallel to Camden St. The easiest way in is through Daintree stationery shop; through the back is the self-contained yard, which in good weather is the best spot to enjoy a coffee and a homemade cake.
reviewed
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Mustard
In the cellar of an old mill, some tables view the still-turning wheel. Burgers and excellent pizza are the thing here. Go nuts and have the Boxty Burger, a vegetarian treat made from mashed potatoes, green onions and more. Be sure to start with the ‘garlic crust’, which comes with pesto. Yum.
reviewed
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Il Baccaro
Want a free Italian lesson? Drop into this fabulous trattoria and eavesdrop in this rustic piece of the Old Boot, where the food is exuberantly authentic, and includes bruschetta, homemade pasta, Italian sausage and the like. The Italian wines are buonissimi.
reviewed
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Teach Ósta
The island's perfect pub hums on summer evenings (grab a table outside for the views) and supplies snacks, sandwiches, soups and seafood platters. Though the pub often keeps going until the wee hours, food service generally stops around 7pm and may not be available in the winter months.
reviewed
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Bistro
The real draw at this place in summer is its outdoor seating, set on a lively pedestrianised strip behind the George’s St Arcade. An excellent menu of fish, pasta and meat specials, a well-stocked wine cellar and efficient service make this the warm-weather choice for alfresco dining.
reviewed
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W
Food 4 Thought
Besides providing organic and vegetarian sandwiches, savoury scones, and wholesome dishes such as cashew-nut roast, this New Age-y place is great for finding out about energy workshops and yoga classes around town.
reviewed
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X
Yamamori
Hip, inexpensive and generally pretty good, Yamamori rarely disappoints with its bubbly service and vivacious cooking that swoops from sushi and sashimi to whopping great plates of noodles, with plenty in between. It's a great spot for a sociable group – including vegetarians – although you'll have to book at the weekend to be one of the happy campers. The lunch bento (€9.95) is one of the best deals in town. There's another branch north of the river.
reviewed