Restaurants in Ireland
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Queenstown Restaurant
Inside the old train station with the heritage centre, this simple cafe is best right when the doors open and the scones are emerging from the oven, warm and fragrant. Other times the food is fine but akin to what you might have had shipboard in 2nd class.
reviewed
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A
Stuffed Olive
This exquisite bakery and deli has a fine coffee bar and stools along a narrow counter in the sunny front window. Luscious baked goods are displayed like, well, a bunch of tarts. Find your picnic lunch here and nab one of the excellent bottles of wine.
reviewed
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Caffe Formenti
This buzzing cafe combines the talents of an Irish-Italian husband-and-wife team. In addition to daily lunch specials and wholesome soups, there's a tempting selection of Italian pastries, freshly made gelati (yum!) and aromatic coffees.
reviewed
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C
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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Glebe Gardens & Café
The beautiful gardens here are an attraction in themselves; lavender and herbs add fragrant aromas that waft over the tables inside and out. Food is simple and fresh, sourced from the gardens and a list of local purveyors.
reviewed
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O’Connor’s Seafood Restaurant
The tank full of lobsters and the three wooden yachts in the window give the game away – award-winning O’Connor’s offers Bantry seafood at its posh best. It’s an exquisite experience and one to savour.
reviewed
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D
Govinda’s
An authentic beans-and-pulses place run by the Hare Krishna, with three branches in the city centre. Its cheap, wholesome mix of salads and Indian-influenced hot daily specials are filling and tasty.
reviewed
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Larder Cafe
Set in one of the restored stone buildings in Market Yard, this modern cafe is a popular lunch spot and serves a good selection of soups, sandwiches, cakes, gourmet coffees and fairtrade teas.
reviewed
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E
Cornucopia
For those escaping the Irish cholesterol habit, Cornucopia is a popular wholefood cafe turning out healthy goodies. There’s even a hot vegetarian breakfast as an alternative to muesli.
reviewed
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47 The Bistro
A popular restaurant with curvy contemporary décor, serving sizzling stir-fries, stodgy classics such as Irish stew and pasta, and delicious desserts. Book ahead to get a table.
reviewed
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Linnane's
Irish standards like smoked sal- mon and more are fully honoured here. Peat fires warm the almost bare interior; nary a frill in sight. There's trad music many nights in summer.
reviewed
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Sandwich Co
Sandwich Co sells white bread, brown bread, baguettes, panini, ciabatta - this place offers good-value, choose-your-own sandwiches and salads. Also at 61 Strand Road.
reviewed
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Charlie's Gourmet Sandwich Bar
Charlie's is good place for cheap, healthy and filling sandwiches, and also serves a range of breakfasts from toasted soda bread to the full Ulster fry.
reviewed
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Blueberry Tearoom
A perennial local favourite, this cosy cafe serves up simple, honest food in hearty portions. Expect soup, toasties, quiche, panini, sticky cakes of all descriptions and a warm, friendly atmosphere.
reviewed
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Oystercatcher Bistro
Specialities of these white-tableclothed premises include Capalana (North African–spiced seafood and meat) and cola-marinated pork ribs.
reviewed
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Murphy's Ice Cream
The Killarney branch of this superlative Dingle ice cream maker, with wonderfully thick hot chocolates including chilli.
reviewed
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K
Stolen Pizza
An old neighbourhood pub has been reborn and has a welcoming dinner menu of Italian classics. It's great for when you want to say no to mussels and say yes to spaghetti and meatballs. There's excellent pizza and, in a nod to local tradition, fine seafood ravioli. By day this charmer is good for a coffee and a pause along the gentrifying street.
reviewed
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Gruel
For its regulars, Gruel is the best dish in town, whether for the super-filling, tasty lunchtime roast-in-a-roll – a rotating list of slow-roasted organic meats stuffed into a bap and flavoured with homemade relishes – or the exceptional evening menu, where pasta, fish and chicken are given an exotic once-over. Go, queue, and share elbow space with the table behind you: it’s worth the effort. Bookings not accepted.
reviewed
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Tom's Artisan Bakery
Window displays at Tom’s Artisan Bakery are suitably artful.
reviewed
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Wongs
This top-rated Chinese restaurant, 5km from the city centre, is a family-run classic with subdued décor and friendly service that raises the bar on warmth and courtesy. The menu is not especially adventurous – it sticks to tried and tested dishes that won’t offend the conservative Irish palate – but what it does serve is generally excellent. Our absolute favourite is the duck in a carved-out pineapple shell surrounded by pieces of the fruit and dripping with sauce. Upstairs is a teppanyaki room – a private dining room where the food is cooked in the middle of the seated group – for that special occasion or business dinner.
reviewed
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Lock’s
When chef Troy Maguire left the immensely popular L’Gueuleton in early 2007 to team up with ex-Bang manager Kelvin Rynhardt to take over one of the steady stalwarts of the Dublin dining scene, the bar was suddenly set very, very high. Would Lock’s shake off its old-town dust? Could Maguire recreate the informal-but-superb French campagnard cooking that made his former kitchen such a huge hit? Would Lock’s be as cool as Bang used to be? And would the prices stay this side of decent? Thankfully, yes on all counts, and while it’s still early days, Lock’s promises to be one of the most sought-after tables in town for years to come.
reviewed
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Beatrice Kennedy
Organic veg and locally sourced meats are a staple at this perennial Queen's Quarter favourite (it's where students take their visiting parents for dinner). Recently revamped, the dining room retains its Victorian elegance and period style, while the menu adds a modern twist to traditional Irish seafood, lamb and beef. There's a separate vegetarian menu, with dishes such as butternut squash risotto with rocket pesto and parmesan. From 5pm to 7pm you can get a two-course dinner for £15.
reviewed
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Roscoff
A muted décor in shades of slate blue, white and dark grey, with polished wood floors and white linen, puts the food squarely centre stage in this sophisticated and smoothly run restaurant. Part of the Paul Rankin stable, Roscoff takes inspiration from Irish produce and French cuisine, with dishes such as carpaccio (very thin slices of raw meat) of venison with celeriac remoulade, and pot roast turbot with mussels and tarragon cream.
There's a two-/three-course lunch menu for around £16/around £20, and a three-course dinner menu for £25 (Monday to Thursday only).
reviewed
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Lime Tree
Unfussy decor in shades of burgundy and beige softened by flickering tea-lights makes for a relaxing atmosphere in Limavady's top eatery. The menu promotes local produce – from seafood thermidor made with Donegal fish to fillet steak from award-winning butcher Hunter's of Limavady – and includes vegetarian dishes that are a cut above the usual. There's also an early-bird menu (two/three courses £14.50/17.50) available before 7pm Tuesday to Friday.
reviewed
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Q
Aya
Aya looks like it belongs in downtown Tokyo, with its chic, designer ambience and revolving sushi bar favoured by shoppers laden down with bags from the attached Brown Thomas store, and anyone else looking to gossip over raw fish and sake. Problem is, the sushi belt consists mainly of fruit plates, desserts and mostly non-sushi bites; the few bits you do get are generally of the salmon and fake-crab type. If you want the real deal, you have to order à la carte, and even then it’s not that brilliant. Still, it is a great place to meet and greet and it looks just fabulous.
reviewed