10 Great Dublin Eats

With access to top quality dairy, meats, and produce, Ireland has become quite the food destination.  Dublin is one of my favorite places for a short getaway, and on a recent trip, I had some fantastic meals at my old favorites and new places.  In no particular order, here are 10 of my favorite food stops.

The Pepper Pot Cafe

The Pepper Pot Cafe in Powerscourt Town Centre is a place I always visit when I’m in Dublin.  Overlooking the courtyard and particularly festive during the holiday season, the adorable cafe features polkadot oilcloth covered tables and mismatched china.  The scones, organic porridge, creamy scrambled eggs, and Victoria sponge are all excellent.

What keeps me going back though is the roast pear,bacon, and Mount Callon cheddar sandwich.  A perfect combination of salty and sweet, this is simple food with high quality ingredients at its best.

Jo’ Burger

On my last visit, I had a lovely evening at sister restaurant Crack Bird, so this time I decided to try restauranteur Joe Macken’s original place. You start by choosing your burger – beef, lamb, chicken, fish, or vegetarian.  The hard part was choosing a long list of creative topping options.  We went with the 28 day dry aged Irish beef burger , one with brie and pear ginger Jo’burger relish, and one with peanut chili sauce and coriander.  An order of bush fries with hot curry mayo and MacIvor’s Irish Cider rounded out a great meal.

The Rolling Donut

I read that Krispy Kreme is opening in Dublin, which is a shame because there seem to be so many great local donut places in town. The Rolling Donut started as a Kiosk on O’Connell Street in the 1970s, but has recently expanded to two additional storefronts.  My favorite was the decadent Pistachio Salted Caramel, but we also liked the Molly Malone – filled with apple and cinnamon with a vanilla glaze and biscuit crumble.

Featherblade

After reading a series of great reviews, the Featherblade was at the top of my list to visit.  As expected, the signature Featherblade cut steak was tender and perfectly seasoned.

We also tried the sides that I read so much about – beef dripping chips and truffle mac n’cheese.  Both were excellent, but the mac n’cheese was the winner for me.

The surprise real standout was the charred tenderstem broccoli with garlic chips and chili.  This may be one of best things I have eaten all year.  I am on a mission to recreate this dish to satisfy my craving until my next trip.

Murphy’s Ice Cream

My father always said that eating ice cream when it’s cold out helps regulate your temperature.  Murphy’s has incredible ice cream with unique Irish flavors including Dingle sea salt, caramelized brown bread, and Irish coffee (with whiskey).  They are all good, but the  sea salt is the flavor that keeps me going back.

Bear

Another restaurant in the Jo’Burger family, Bear may be my favorite of the group.  The €9.95 lunch special is unbeatable!  We got a minute steak with garlic butter and fries, and a chicken paillard with salad.  A beer and homemade lemonade, and it was the perfect weekday lunch!

Da Mimmo

Full disclosure – restaurant owners Tino and Brigid Fuscardi have been dear friends of mine for many years.  They are the loveliest of couples and seriously know how to run a great restaurant.  Da Mimmo was named as the Top Italian Restaurant in Dublin by Lovin Dublin! This is a neighborhood place, a little off the tourist path, but well worth the detour.  The Fritto Misto was a mix of fried calamari, prawns, scampi, and fish with caper mayo dip.  The capers provided a balance to the crisp perfectly fried seafood, but the batter was perfectly flavored and the dish was also delicious on its own.

The seafood was so good, that we also had it in a perfectly cooked risotto.

For dessert, we tried a wonderful creme brûlée, and a light and lovely tiramisu. The cocoa shamrock serves as decoration, but also as a reminder that you are not in Italy.  During the course of a meal here, it is indeed possible to forget.

Queen of Tarts

A visit to Dublin just doesn’t seem complete without a stop by Queen of Tarts.  The cozy original shop on Dame Street is my favorite, but if it’s full you can head around the corner to the larger shop on Cows Lane.

I almost always end up ordering a scone – with raspberry preserve and cream of course.  Queen of Tarts also has a great full hot breakfast menu and a good lunch.  The  amazing tarts and other baked confections on display are hard to pass up, but luckily you can get takeaway.

The Woollen Mills

The Woollen Mills is the younger and slightly edgier sister restaurant to one of my old favorites, the Winding Stair.  Although the Winding Stair is one of my top picks for a romantic meal, the modern energetic Woollen Mills would be my pick for a night out with friends.  We enjoyed gin and tonics, butternut squash bhaji with baby spinach and poached egg, steamed cockles and mussels with creamy herb and white wine broth, pork belly mac and cheese with bacon marmalade, and a chocolate and hazelnut Eton Mess.

Aungier Danger

Almost too edgy and decadent for breakfast, Aungier Danger is a donut place that seems more appropriate for a quick stop after a night out.  The posted hours are from morning until the donuts sell out.  I’ll take the Banoffee Autopsy donut over the pie version any day.