Italian restaurants in Ireland
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La Sabbia
This colourful cottage decorated with striking contemporary art has tables spilling out onto the front porch and attracts a lively, upbeat crowd. It's run by a Milanese chef, whose hometown specials include delicious risottos as well as crispy pizzas, and pasta dishes like porcini-filled ravioli.
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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, cannelini beans and the like. The Italian wines are buonissimi.
reviewed
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Oscar's
Following a facelift and a change of management, this Enniskillen institution now sports a casual Tuscan-style restaurant upstairs, complete with a wood-fired pizza oven, and a more formal, Victorian dining room downstairs.
The menu ranges from pizza and pasta through to flame-grilled steaks and seafood, with gourmet specials such as tartlet of goat's cheese with Clonakilty black pudding, and prawn ravioli with smoked cheddar and basil cream sauce. The kitchen can cater for various special diets if you warn them when booking.
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Café Bardeli
With two branches in the south city centre, the folks behind Café Bardeli have created a winning formula: great crispy pizzas with imaginative toppings such as spicy lamb and tzatziki, fresh homemade pastas or salads like broccoli, feta and chickpea, all served within the stylish environs of what were once branches of Dublin’s most beloved café, Bewley’s. No reservations allowed, so prepare to wait on a busy night. There’s a second city branch and another in Ranelagh.
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Ar Vicoletto
When it’s good, this cosy little osteria is very, very good, with excellent Italian dishes washed down with splendid Italian reds and enjoyed in a convivial atmosphere. But it’s a little inconsistent and sometimes the standard menu of pasta, meaty mains and seafood misses the mark. At these times it doesn’t seem like good value at all, although the warm Gorgonzola salad never disappoints. Absolutely worth the risk.
reviewed
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Café Bardeli
Two other branches, one on Grafton St and one in Ranelagh Village, testify to the success of this eternally popular restaurant’s simple formula: great crispy pizzas with imaginative toppings such as spicy lamb and tzatziki, fresh homemade pastas or salads such as broccoli, feta and chickpea that you’ll dream about for days. All at prices that won’t break the bank in a buzzing atmosphere. What more could you want, hey?
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Rinuccini
Follow a short flight of steps down to a candlelit basement to bliss out on Antonio Cavaliere's classical Italian cuisine, including his sublime spaghetti al astice (lobster tossed with pasta, shallots, cream, brandy and black truffle, doused with fresh parmesan, and served in the shell). There's a cute and romantic table in front under an atrium. Service wins plaudits.
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Speranza 2
A local institution - it's been around for more than 20 years - the recently revamped Speranza is a big, buzzing Italian restaurant that complements traditional pizzas and pastas with more sophisticated dishes. It's family friendly, with a kids' menu, high-chairs, colouring books and crayons. They only take reservations for groups of six or more; otherwise, pop in and wait in the bar for a table.
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La Taverna Di Bacco
Football-mad developer Mick Wallace has managed to single-handedly create a thriving new Italian quarter with cafes and eateries popping up all over Quartier Bloom, the new lane from Ormond Quay to Great Strand St. La Taverna (and, a few doors up, Enoteca Delle Langhe) serves simple pastas, antipasti and Italian cheeses, along with the delicious produce of his own vineyard and others in Piemonte.
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Steps of Rome
One of the best open secrets in town is this tiny kerbside cafe just off Grafton St, where you can take away rustic pizza slices or sit in and rub elbows with the Italian frat pack over as authentic a bowl of pasta as you’ll find anywhere. It’s always jammed and you can’t book, but service is smart so you’ll usually get a table after a few minutes’ wait.
reviewed
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Bar Italia
A well-established and authentic Italian restaurant that specialises in ever-changing pasta dishes, homemade risottos and excellent Palombini coffee.
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Pizza Milano
There are four branches of this large and pretty stylish pizza emporium spread throughout the city centre, all sharing a similar menu, but this one is our favourite because of the alfresco dining area on Dawson St and the on-site free child-minders, who entertain your little ones while you eat, on Sunday between noon and 4.30pm.
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Juniors
Cramped and easily mistaken for any old cafe, Juniors is anything but ordinary: designed to imitate a New York deli, the food (Italian-influenced, all locally sourced produce) is delicious, the atmosphere always buzzing (it's often hard to get a table) and the ethos top-notch, which is down to the two brothers who run the place.
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Bottega Toffoli
Tucked away in the city centre (to the point where you would never find it unless you actually looked for it) is this superb Italian cafe, home of one of the best sandwiches you'll eat in town: beautifully cut prosciutto, baby tomatoes and rocket salad drizzled with imported olive oil, all on homemade piadina bread that is just too good to be true.
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Unicorn
Saturday lunch at the fashionable Unicorn has been a noisy Dublin tradition for over half a century, as media types, politicos and legal eagles gossip and clink glasses in conspiratorial rapture. At lunch many opt for the antipasto bar, but we prefer the meaty a la carte menu.
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Dunne & Crescenzi
This exceptional Italian eatery delights its regulars with a basic menu of rustic pleasures: panini, a single pasta dish and a superb plate of mixed antipasti drizzled in olive oil. The shelves are stacked with wine, the coffee is perfect and the desserts are sinfully good.
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Bella Atina
Old-school country charm combines with new ideas at this excellent Italian place down by the river. It’s all exposed brick arches and red walls inside, and the menu features classic Italian pastas as well as deftly prepared meat and fish dishes. The cannelloni is a treat.
reviewed
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La Scala
Contemporary La Scala serves timeless, classic Italian food: porcini mushroom and truffle risotto, frittura mista with sea bass, tiger prawns and squid, and chicken breast with ham and mozzarella, as well as a wide range of pastas.
reviewed
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Franco's
An atmospheric warren of wood-panelled, candlelit nooks set in a former blacksmith's forge, Franco's is always bustling and noisy, and serves a range of Italian, Asian and seafood dishes. Early bird menus (noon to 8pm Monday to Thursday, to 7pm Friday and 5.15pm Saturday) offer two/three courses for €16/20.
reviewed
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Sirocco's
Serving a good selection of fresh pasta and pizza, as well as meat, chicken and fish dishes, this simple little Italian bistro is a local favourite. Booking ahead is advised.
reviewed
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Enoteca delle Langhe
Developer, Italophile and recently elected parliamentarian Mick Wallace's Italian Quarter – as the lane between Ormond Quay and Great Strand St is known – has a trio of eateries that serve simple pastas, antipasti and cheeses. It also has an excellent selection of Piedmontese wines.
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La Bella Donna
Pizza, pasta and sizzling steaks in rich sauces pull in the punters at this lively, modern restaurant. It gets very busy at weekends so you'd be advised to book in advance.
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Coast
Another water front place offering stone-baked pizzas, pasta dishes and a range of steak, chicken and fish dishes.
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Rosato's
This lively pub is the best spot in town for food. It has a good range of pizzas and pasta dishes, and live music on Saturday nights.
reviewed
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Café Bardeli
Café Bardeli has the same no-fuss menu that made its big sister such a roaring success on South Great George’s St.
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