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Cheese. Cheese cheese cheese. Cheese. Cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese. Cheese. Cheese. Cheese cheese cheese. Cheese. Cheese cheese. Cheese. Cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese. Cheese. We’ve been thinking about cheese a LOT lately, and it's probably Instagram wot did it. Here are five cheesy things we want to eat in Dublin this week. Cheese. 1) Cheese, Onion And Potato Pie From Uno Mas In a world where we can be anything, we’d like to be sitting on a stool in Uno Mas . Simple dream. Until that can become a reality again, we’ll have to make do with their click and collect menu (operating from Thursday to Saturday with delivery available Saturday and Sunday) and this Abondance cheese, caramelised onion and potato pie, served with asparagus, shiitake and buttermilk. 2) Stracciatella Di Bufala From Oliveto Proof that cheesy doesn’t have to be heavy, Oliveto in Dún Laoghaire have this dish of charred baby leeks, stracciatella di bufala, pistachio and agretti in development and we would love to see it on the menu soon. If it does land, get in there before anyone else finds out. 3) Pão De Queijo From Aventura Café Aventura , operating out of two trailers in Portmarnock train station and on Paddy’s Hill in Malahide/Portmarnock, have started serving pão de queijo, a traditional Brazilian snack and popular breakfast food. The light, puffy, slightly salty cheese bread bite also pairs really well with a cold beer (not that you'd dare bring one of those to the beach or anything). 4) Croquettes From Winedown You’re probably familiar with Meltdown and their super cheesy toasties, but further cheese-based magic happens when the Montague Street location becomes Winedown every Friday and Saturday evening from 17:00 - 21:00. Wine, cocktails and small plates are on offer, and these cheesy croquettes are kind of genius as they mirror the flavours of the toasties, coming in hey pesto, spicy cajun, mac mama, rib-melt, and smoked fungi varieties. It’s like a toastie, but even more convenient. 5) The Cure from Secret Sandwich Society Okay, we don’t know what this is actually supposed to cure but we’re definitely feeling a little faint, have a tickle in our throats, and we’re not sure if this raised temperature is from illness or anticipation. Serving from MVP on Upper Clanbrassil Street, Secret Sandwich Society have created a toasted sandwich that sounds so good, we don’t know why we've never seen it before. Potato gratin, smoked Drumlin cheese, toasted sourdough malt. Oooooooooft.

Updated 27th April '21 We're officially fed up of life right now, and have been overtaken with fantasies that involve floating through the door of Variety Jones and walking straight to the chef's table, sitting at the bar in Uno Mas watching a wobbling flan come our way, and sticking a hopeful head into Assassination Custard to see two free seats and that day's menu scratched on a paper bag. It's enough to make a group of hungry girls (and guys) weep, BUT we're on the home stretch, and until our fantasy life becomes reality again, we're making do with the city's best restaurant at home experiences. This is an ever changing landscape so we will be adding and removing places as necessary, and we've included a colour-coded key this time with our most frequent requests from you lot. A couple of notes: A lot of places could be designated as special occasion or casual , so we put them in the one we think they're most suited to based on price/effort. As for family friendly , we t hink of all food as family friendly, but have stuck this on anywhere offering a children's menu or serving notoriously popular foods like burgers and pizzas - but that doesn't mean we think the kids should miss out on the crab linguine from Michael's or the venison wellington from Juniors. For anywhere catering to vegetarians but not vegans , it's worth getting in touch to see if they can take out the dairy element - most will be happy to cater for you where possible. If you think somewhere is missing or anything is inaccurate let us know by emailing us at info@allthefood.ie . Until then let's just keep eating our way through this. (s) - Special Occasion (c) - Casual (v) / (vg) Vegetarian/Vegan (d) / (D) - Limited Dublin delivery / Dublinwide Delivery (n) - Nationwide Delivery (w) - Work involved (f) - Family Friendly (1) - Meals for one 1) Clanbrassil House (s) (v) (w) (1) Clanbrassil House head chef Gráinne O'Keefe announced she was moving on at the start of April, and we don't know who's taking over from her yet, but you have until mid-May to try her food before thing inevitably get a shake up. April's family style menu includes hot-smoked trout with sourdough and pickled red cabbage, and a beef cheek and Guinness pie with potato puree, gravy and tarragon cream. There's also a côte de boeuf meal for two and the option to add on hash brown fries, and it's available for collection on Fridays and Saturdays. Order here . 2) Bastible (s) (v) (w) (1) Bastible 's meal kits are available for collection Thursday - Saturday from 1600 - 19:00, and the five course menu (plus bread and snacks) will definitely be worthy of your next special occasion. April's menu includes treacle-cured sea trout with fermented gooseberry and smoked yoghurt, and lamb saddle with smoked anchovy and confit fennel (so many of our favourite things), and there's a bit of work involved so you can take full (semi) credit for the results. Order here . 3) Boco (c) (v) (vg) (d) (w) (f) Boco are the latest pizza restaurant to join the bake at home brigade. Bases come half-baked to be finished in the oven at home, with crushed tomato sauce, Fior di Latte cheese and the toppings for whichever ones you pick, as well as that all important woodfired garlic mayo. Deliver is available within 10km of the restaurant in Dublin 1 from Friday - Sunday and they get cheaper the more you order. Kits keep for three days and can be ordered on their website . 4) Asador/Prado (c) (d) (w) (f) Sister restaurants Asador and Prado have six at home meal boxes available, with four designed for the barbecue. They've covered a lot of bases from a healthy Mediterranean box with piri piri chicken and halloumi sticks, to the ultimate BBQ box with beef, lamb, prawns and sausages (only available for the May bank holiday). Available for collection or delivery Thursday - Sunday and they cover most of Dublin. Check out their boxes here . 5) Ripasso (c) (d) (w) (f) Bray's bone fide Italian Ripasso is doing a weekly three-course regional menu, and they're delivering to Dublin 14, 16 and 18 as well as the Dunlaoghaire-Rathdown area. This week it's Tuscany with a fish stew to start, pappardelle with Italian pork and mushrooms for main, and a chocolate mousse with a biscuit base for dessert. It's €26 pp and you can add on their suggested wine pairing too. Order online here , and if your address isn't coming up send them an email. 6) 777, Dublin 2 (c) (D) (n) (v) (w) (f) Mexican 777 have just launched nationwide delivery for €9 on their taquito kits (meat and veggie versions available), and if you're in Dublin there's also a weekly special. Optional (necessary) margaritas can be added on as well as other cocktails and Mexican lager, and in Dublin they're available for collection or delivery within the M50 for €7. Order here . 7) Fade Street Social, City Centre (s) (vg) (D) (w) (f) (1) Fade Street Social is back with an at home menu and all we can think about is pie. There's a set menu at €38 a head for snacks, three courses and petit fours, or you can pick and choose from the à la carte, with dishes like honey-glazed ham hock for two, crispy confit garlic potatoes with cep mayo, and that chicken, ham hock, duck liver and tarragon pie. There's cocktails too and they deliver across Dublin on Friday and Saturday. Order here . 8) Loretta's, Phibsborough (s) (f) (1) Loretta's in Phibsborough is also back after a hiatus, with a three-course menu and snacks for €32.50 a head. The firrst week's menu features black olive gnocchi, confit duck leg with maple toasted oats and blood orange drizzle cake, and you can add on wine. Available for collection on Friday and Saturday. Order here . 9) Bibi's, Portobello (c) (vg) (w) (f) Bibi's bake at home dinners for two were a Dublin 8 highlight of the last lockdown, with dishes like meatball lasagne, lamb shank shepherd's pie and butter chicken, and they've just brought them back. First up is beef short rib (or bean) chilli, with sides including charred corn, kale and sweet potato salad, and desserts including chocolate bread and butter pudding. Order for collection only on Fridays and Saturdays here . 10) Oliveto, Dun Laoghaire (s) (c) (v) / (vg) (d) / (D) (n) (w) (f) (1) Oliveto in Haddington House have a to-go menu from Wednesday - Sunday, with pizza, pasta, salads and cocktail kits at the weekend. We like the sound of the Mantovana sausage ragu with n’duja and fresh pappardelle, and the sweet potato gnocchi with St. Tola goats cheese, caramelised aubergine, asparagus, fresh peas, watercress, basil & pangrattato. It's available for click and collect or delivery on Deliveroo . 11) Bia Rebel, Belfast (c) (v) (n) (w) (f) (1) Belfast ramen mecca Bia Rebel have launched at home kits for nationwide delivery (ROI and UK) and this is one we can't wait to get our hands on. There's a vegetarian (£16) or a pork option (£20), each serving two people, and it comes with handmade noodles, miso broth and toppings. Delivery to the ROI is £6.50 and you can order here . 12) Variety Jones, Dublin 8 (s) (D) (w) They made us wait a year but Variety Jones have finally made their food available at home. Their first meal kit launched in March, priced at €180 for a tasting menu and two bottles of wine chosen by sommelier Vanda Ivancic, and because we were quick off the mark we got one - it was everything we wanted it to be, see the proof here . Here's the bad news though. They had so much interest after announcing the first box that they're not taking any more enquiries for the foreseeable. While this may be news capable of ruining your day, keep in mind that people always cancel, change their minds, or don't answer their phones when it comes time to pay, so we'd suggest turning on notifications for their Instagram stories as your best chance of joining the chosen few who will bag one, as this is where cancellations may be offered up to the quickest takers. 13) Grano, Stoneybatter (c) (v) (w) (f) (1) Grano a casa is back with their collection menu of homemade pastas, sauces, cured meats and tiramisu for dessert. The OGs are still there, like the cacio e pepe and the amatriciana with black pig guanciale, but they're also doing weekly specials, like fresh egg pasta with truffle and a creamy sauce with salsiccia and parmesan. Collection is available Friday and Saturday from 13:00 - 18:30, and you can place an order here . 14) The Shelbourne, St. Stephen's Green (s) (v) (d) (w) (1) The Shelbourne have a few different at home options available for collection or delivery within 10km of the hotel (€10), including afternoon tea, seafood towers, a beef wellington with all the sides, and a three-course Sunday lunch. You can also add on their excellent cocktails for €20 a bottle plus garnishes (two serves), as well as olives and almonds to snack on during aperitif hour. See all the details here . 15) Tiller + Grain, City Centre (c) (v) (f) (1) City centre café Tiller + Grain have been serving some of the best food in town since opening in early 2019, and while they're also late to the meal box game, they're making up for lost time and have been selling out every week. Boxes are €35 per person and include dips, salads, meat or fish and dessert. It's collection only on Fridays and Saturdays between 15:00 and 17:00, and orders can be placed each week once the boxes are live on their website . 16) Craft, Harold's Cross (s) (v) (w) (1) Craft 's set menu is available for collection on Friday and Saturday nights. It's €35 for one and €70 for two and there's a choice of main courses including a vegetarian option. Last week's menu included snacks of brown treacle loaf and whipped feta with pickled beetroot, a starter of roasted carrots with spiced hummus, main of slow cooked brisket with artichoke and mushroom cream, and a pistachio financier for dessert. Order here . 17) The Beach House, Tramore (s) (v) (n) (w) (f) (1) When The Beach House in Tramore (from the owners of Fish Shop in Dublin, who moved to Waterford last year) announced they were starting nationwide delivery a few weeks ago, whoops could be heard from Donegal to Dingle. We bagged an order for their first weekend and it's been one of our favourite at home food experiences during the entire pandemic. The pork rillettes with cornichons and Seagull Bakery sourdough took us to Paris, the Roaring Bay Water mussel and wild Irish squid seafood stew to Cadiz, and the Comeragh Mountain lamb shoulder to the wilds of Waterford. Unsurprisingly it sold out a week in advance, so you're advised to set an alarm for 18:00 on Thursdays if you want a pep in your step for the next eight days while you wait for your delivery. Order here . 18) Brother Hubbard, City Centre (c) (vg) (D) (w) (f) After another hiatus Brother Hubbard are back and they've brought the meal kits with them. Their extensive Middle Eastern feast (either meat or vegan) is just €45 for two and includes two nibbles, a snack, three dips, a main course, a dessert and even mint tea to finish. It's available for collection or Dublin-wide delivery, and we saw a little box on their homepage stating that nationwide delivery is coming soon... Order here . 19) Mister S, Camden Street (c) (D) (w) (f) (1) Mister S is back with a new menu, following the departure of ex-head chef Daniel Hannigan. Their heat at home options are available for collection or delivery, with a three-course meal for two (currently shortrib or pork belly) costing €49. There's also a ready to eat menu for collection only, from an à la carte menu. Order here . 20) Big Fan Bao (c) (vg) (d) (w) (f) Big Fan Bao were only open a few weeks when our worlds were turned upside down, and while they've stayed open for takeaway, they've only just dipped a toe into the meal kit waters. Their supremely good pork and vegan bao boxes are available for collection from George's Street and Greystones on Friday and Saturdays, and for the moment they offer delivery within the city centre, to most of South Dublin, and last week as far northside as Malahide/Swords/Howth . Boxes are €50 and come with a DIY steamer, as well as pastries and tea for afterwards, and you can add on wine and cocktails. Order here . 21) Glas, Chatham Street (s) (vg) (d) (w) (1) Vegan and vegetarian restaurant Glas have a vegetable and grain based feast for collection from the city centre or delivery within the M50. It's €35 for one or €70 for two, and you get nibbles including kale pesto and seaweed soda bread, a starter of squash rillettes with smoked almond emulsion, a main of hispi cabbage with fennel gratin, and a dessert of cherry, almond and chocolate entremet. Order here . 22) Locks (s) (v) (w) (1) Locks have a weekly meal collection service on Friday and Saturday nights, with snacks, a starter, a main, sides and dessert for €70 - €80, depending on the main. Recent dishes have included ras el hanout lamb rump and Thornhill duck á l'orange, and we'd drive to Portobello for the breads with trout and dillisk butter alone. The menu goes online and orders open each Sunday for the following week. Check them out here . 23) Little Forest (c) (v) (vg) (f) (1) The pizza master is back, and the reviews are better than ever. After parting ways with Pi last year, Reggie White has taken over the pizza oven at Little Forest in Blackrock, the third opening from John and Sandy Wyer, along with former 2IC Shane Windrum. The critics love it, the collection spots sell out every week, and they're mixing up the menu regularly - although we're still not over the fact that we missed the one with roast cauliflower, Taleggio, grapes and brown butter. Praying for a comeback. Orders go live every Monday at 10:00 for that week and you can book a collection slot (if you're fast) here . 24) Bresson (s) (v) (1) Upmarket French restaurant Bresson in Monkstown have an à la carte menu of ready to eat dishes like French onion soup, rolled gratinated lobster pancakes with gruyère and thermidor sauce, and apricot glazed brioche bread and butter putting. It's collection only and slots become available here at 11:00 on Monday mornings. 25) Airfield (c) (f) (1) Urban farm and estate Airfield in Dundrum have a weekly seasonal menu using ingredients from the estate, for collection only from the restaurant on Friday and Saturday between 17:00 and 18:00. It's always interesting and very good value, and there's also a Sunday roast at €24 for one and €44 for two. See this week's menu and order here . 26) Michie Sushi (c) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Michie services most of South Dublin for crispy salmon temaki, tuna maki and fire dragon rolls, alongside katsu currys, yaki soba and seaweed salads. Collection is available from their three branches in Ranelagh, Dun Laoghaire and Sandyford, with delivery charges ffrom €2.50 - €3.50. See their menu and order here . 27) Kakilang, Dublin 1 (c) (d) (f) (1) Bubble tea and fried chicken house Kakilang had barely gotten off the ground before the lockdowns began, but buoyed by the response of their customers they've stayed open for takeaway throughout, and have started offering a delivery services to different parts of Dublin each day (you can check their weekly schedule on Instagram). Taiwanese chicken steak, chicken wings with Korean and Japanese sauces, and takoyaki (octopus balls) are the savoury options, with filled croissants, cheesecake and crêpe cakes for dessert. There are 25 different types of bubble tea, all customisable with fruit, tapioca and jelly toppings, and they do excellent value meal deals. 28) The Port House, Dublin 2 & Dundrum (s) (v) (d) (w) (f) (1) The Port House will deliver a tapas box and wine anywhere within the M50 for €60 feeding two people. You get a starter, three main tapas, a side, a dessert and a bottle of wine (or upgrade to cava for another €10). Boxes also include almonds, olives, a candle and a playlist. Order here . The Port House in Dundrum only (for now) are also doing an extensive menu of hot tapas to take home, with everything from pil-pil to patatas bravas, paella to pimientos de padron. See the menu and order here . 29) Michael's, Mount Merrion & Sutton (s) (w) (f) (1) Michael's is back in business from this Friday 22nd after a well deserved break, promising ready to eat meals, meal kits to cook at home and an increased range of products in their spin off shops - Little Lockdown (Mount Merrion and Sutton). Collection slots for hot food will open this week on their website and will go fast, so keep your eyes peeled. 30) The Dough Bros, Galway (c) (n) (w) (f) Galway pizzeria The Dough Bros send their DIY pizza kits nationwide, containing 3 wood-fired pizza bases, roasted garlic dips and toppings of your choice. The kit is €35 and delivery is €3.50. Order here . 31) The Legal Eagle, Dublin 1 (s) (v) (D) (w) (1) The Legal Eagle / Winding Stair is now available in the comfort of your own home, complete with treacle brown bread, bacon and cheese crisps, and bread and butter pudding with whiskey caramel sauce (epic is the word). For mains there's a choice of Châteaubriand, olive-fed pork belly, fish or vegetarian options, and the Toonsbridge goat's curd panna cotta with fresh figs, onion marmalade and hazelnuts is worth an order alone. Currently available Friday and Saturday with more days to come. Order here . 32) Uno Mas, Dublin 2 (s) (v) (D) (w) (1) Uno Mas ’ gildas, tortilla and flan de queso are on every Dublin food to-do list, and now you can have them delivered to your door – you can even buy the perfect tortilla making pan to make sure it’s just right. They don’t always feature in each week’s set menu (available for one or two people), but can be added on – and you really should add them on. Other optional extras include cured meats, tinned fish and olive oil, as well as sherry, wine and cocktails, so enough to set you up for a very nice weekend. They're back from this Thursday 21st January and are available for collection and delivery from Thursday - Saturday, costing €32 for one or €62 for two. Order here . 33) Two Pups, Dublin 8 (c) (v) (w) (f) (1) Two Pups have dinners for collection from Thursday - Saturday, and at €25 for three courses it's a bit of a steal. This week's menu includes wild mushroom arancini, black lentil moussaka and hazelnut baklava with pink grapefruit cream, and you can order here . 34) Etto, Dublin 2 (s) (v) (w) (1) Etto will be back a week later than sister restaurant Uno Mas, on Thursday 28th January. Their set menu for two people is €60 and includes olives, almonds, cured meats and sourdough, then a weekly changing starter, main and dessert. The food comes cold with minimal assembly at home, and collections are available from Thursday - Sunday. Menus and how to order should go live on their website soon . 35) Tang, Dublin 1 & 2 (s) (vg) (D) (w) (f) (1) We love Tang ’s healthy, Middle-Eastern vibe (and their nut butter, never forget the nut butter), and their dinner box for two is excellent value at €45. You get four nibbles, a main with three sides, and a dessert, and this week features lovely things like McNally Farm Crown Prince Pumpkin hummus, Sean Ring’s organic roast chicken with cardamom and caramelised onion, and a chocolate torte with sweet tahini. Deliveries Friday and Saturday. Order here . 36) Host, Ranelagh (s) (v) (w) (1) Host at home was one of the highlights of a sad 2020 for us, so we're delighted they're back in action this week, serving their chefs' menus from Thursday - Sunday. You can add on signature dishes like their pumpkin cappellacci with walnuts and sage , and burnt ricotta cheesecake, and there's wine too. Order here . 37) Juniors, Dublin 4 (s) (v) (1) Junior's is doing dinner for collection from Thursday - Saturday from an à la carte menu with individual and sharing options like mushroom arancini, venison wellington for two, and their famous pint of prawns. See the menu and order here . 38) Pickle, Dublin 2 (s) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Pickle are doing takeaway from their Camden Street restaurant until they can reopen, including their kid goat mince curry, venison keema samosas, and takda dahl. It's available for collection or delivery and you'll need to book a slot on their website here . 39) Margadh, Howth (c) (v) (w) (f) (1) Mamó in Howth have stopped their supper club menu so they can have a rest before looking towards reopening, but you can still get heat at home mains from the same kitchen team from their upmarket food shop Margadh a few doors down. 40) The Cake Café, Dublin 2 (s) (v) (D) (f) For some serious escapism, The Cake Café will deliver afternoon tea to your door, with prosecco cocktails as an optional add on. It costs €49.80 for two and includes mini sandwiches, cakes, scones and teas, and they deliver anywhere in Dublin for €10. Order here . 41) Bujo, Sandymount (c) (v) (vg) (n) (w) (f) We have a lot of love for Bujo ’s perfectly crafted burgers, and this is another one for the nationwide delivery list. Their masterpiece kit comes with everything you need to make four doubles and four singles, so you just need to round up some friends and family (if allowed), or commit to multiple days of eating burgers, which won’t be an issue. Kits are €40 and can be ordered here . There are veggie and vegan options, and keep an eye out for limited special boxes, like their Bujo weekender for Valentine's weekend. Delivery is every Friday, with the cut off the day before at 12pm. 42) Mulberry Garden, Donnybrook (s) (v) (D) (w) Mulberry Garden in Donnybrook are doing a three-course menu for two for €65 from Thursday - Sunday, with a weekly changing menu focusing on seasonal Irish produce. Collection or delivery across Dublin. Get involved here . 43) Uno Pizza, Rathmines (c) (v) (n) (w) (f) Uno Pizza ’s at home kits are probably the closest you’re going to get to wood-fired pizza made fresh at home. The clever frying pan/oven method produces a surprisingly good result, and they provide everything you need for a margarita or diavola. You can also add on prosecco, wine or beer. Order here . 44) Dax, Dublin 2 (s) (1) If you've got something to celebrate, you'll be delighted to hear that upmarket Dax is now available to have at home on Friday and Saturday nights. It's one of the pricier options in the city right now at €48 per person for three courses, but yellowfin tuna, smoked Challans duck and Dublin Bay prawn ravioli don't come cheap. See the menu here . 45) Mr Fox, Dublin 1 (s) (v) (w) (1) Mr Fox is doing a very appealing set meal for two on Saturday nights for €75 (€45 for 1), which you reheat and assemble at home. It's very generous, with nibbles, a starter, main, cheese and two desserts (because you're worth it), and is available for collection only. Order here . 46) China Sichuan, Sandyford (s) (v) (vg) (w) (f) (1) China Sichuan in Sandyford have started doing cook-at-home kits alongside their regular takeaway menu. Options include black pepper merlot beef and dan dan noodles, and they cost €22.50 and feed two. Or you can just save yourself the work and order some "Man & Wife" spicy beef slices and soft-shell crab to go. Reserve a collection spot via their website . 47) Bistro One, Foxrock (c) (v) (f) (1) Bistro One reopened last week for collections on Friday and Saturday nights from 17:00 - 20:00. It's rhubarb and blood orange season and they're promising plenty of both, along with classics like brisket lasagne, smokies and roast duck. Order on their website . 48) Woodruff, Stepaside (s) (v) (1) Woodruff in Stepaside are back since last week, offering takeaway from an á la carte menu from Thursday - Saturday night for collection only. Last week's menu included charred line caught winter mackerel with beetroot kimchi, and a white choocolate, clementine, lavender and pistachio mille feuille, and comes out at around €40 a head for snacks, three courses and sides, but you can order as much or as little as you want. There's also a pop up wine shop and Bar 1661 cocktails to take home. See the menu and book on their website . 49) Street By Sunil, Clonskeagh (c) (v) (vg) (f) (1) Pickle 's Sunil Ghai opened the more casual Street By Sunil in Clonskeagh a few months ago, and the critics have already been describing it as "sublime" and "beautiful food". The curries, kebab boxes and 36-hour black dahl are available for takeaway from Wednesday - Monday, with orders by phone or via their website . 50) Richmond, Portobello (s) (1) Richmond have a weekly changing call and collect menu, with starters, mains, sides, desserts and wine, so a one-stop shop. They're operating from 17:00 - 21:00 Thursday and Friday, and from 14:00 - 21:00 on Saturday. Call them on 01 4788783 to order, and you can see the current menu on their website . 51) The Fumbally, Dublin 8 (c) (v) (vg) (w) (f) (1) The Fumbally 's Wednesday and Friday dinners are the calm we need in our lives right now. On Wednesday you'll get a main and a dessert for €18 (last week was tinga tacos and chocolate chilli brownies), and Friday is lasagne night (€13.50). Orders via their website , where you can also add on jars of Fumbally ferments, Harry's nutbutter and natural wines. 52) 3 Leaves, Blackrock (s) (v) (vg) (f) (1) 3 Leaves is back for collections this week from Friday - Sunday, between 17:15 and 20:00. Slots open on their website on Wednesday and will go quickly so set an alarm if you've been missing their samosa chat, beef rib masala and rainbow rice. 53) The Chop House, Ballsbridge (c) (v) (f) (1) The Chophouse are serving their "untouchable" menu from Thursday - Sunday, with dishes including spicy king prawns, dry-aged rib-eye and a "fish board in a box". See the menu and nab a collection slot on their website . 54) Gaillot et Gray, Dublin 8 (c) (v) (f) (1) Bread and pizza mecca Gaillot et Gray is open for collections from 08:00 - 21:00 Wednesday - Saturday, with pizzas from 16:00, including their new special with roast aubergine, garlic, semi sun-dried tomato, caramelised red onion and Toulouse sausage. Call them on 01 4547781 to order. 55) Kinara Group (c) (v) (vg) (f) (1) Kinara in Clontarf and Ranelagh, as well as Kajal in Malahide, are doing a limited takeout menu with 15% off menu prices, available Thursday - Sunday from 17:00 - 21:00. They're doing starters like Aloo Tiki and Behari Kebab (marinated beef tenderloin cooked over charcoal), and mains like Jalfrezi Jhinga and Bhuna Gosht. Orders can be made via whatsapp - full details here . 56) Circa, Terenure (s) (v) (1) Circa are back from Friday 22nd January, with brunch (12:00 - 15:00) and dinner (17:00 - 21:00) Fridays and Saturdays. Menus and how to book are on their website . 57) Nunki Tea House, Dun Laoghaire (s) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Regional Chinese specialists Nunki Tea House in Dun Laoghaire are open for delivery or collection with a huge menu including specialties that need to be pre-booked 24 hours in advance. You can choose from stewed pork ribs with pickled cabbage; prawns with crab sticks, black fungi and wolfberries, or Nunki's special deep-fried milk custard. See the menu and how to order here . 58) Hang Dai Chinese, Dublin 2 (s) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Modern Camden Street Chinese Hang Dai have a takeaway and delivery menu featuring favourites like their sesame prawn sourdough toast with yuzu mayo and mapo tofu with minced pork, along with their take on classic takeaway dishes like crispy, sticky sweet and sour pork with roasted pineapple and Kentucky fried kung pao chicken with peanuts and chilli. They're also doing a set family meal for €55, with two starters and mains, two kids meals and icebergers for everyone. To order call them on 01 5458888 or head to Deliveroo . 59) Boco, Dublin 1 & Clontarf (c) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) North city centre pizzeria BoCo have pizzas for collection or delivery. They're doing pizza (numbered from 1-13, no fancy names here), sides including woodfired flatbreads and truffled mac n cheese, salads and desserts. Don't forget at least one dip for the crusts. Order from BoCo here . 60) Nightmarket, Ranelagh (s) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Thai restaurant Nightmarket is offering collection and delivery within a 7.5km radius of their Ranelagh restaurant. It's the same extensive (often spicy) menu and is availale from Wednesday - Sunday for the moment. See their menu and order here . 61) Riba, Stillorgan (c) (v) (d) (f) (1) Stillorgan restaurant Riba a re doing family style mains, grazing platters and an à la carte menu for delivery and collection. Spicy chicken wings, whole black sole and hand-rolled pappardelle with Italian sausage ragu and buffalo mozzarella are all on the menu, as well as trays of tiramisu and cannoli, and they're offering their wine list at wine shop prices. Open Wednesday - Sunday - see the menu and order here . 62) Cirillo's, Dublin 2 (c) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Good news for Cirillo's fans (which seems to be all of you), their pizzas (and truffle aioli) are available for delivery or collection from the restaurant. We very much recommend the Calabra with tomato sauce, mozzarella, nduja, Young Buck blue cheese & basil, or you can't go wrong with their classic Margherita, and truffle aioli is non-negotiable. See their menu and how to order here . 63) One Society, Dublin 1 (c) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) One Society are doing pizzas and pastas for collection and delivery from Wednesday - Sunday. Pizzas include the 'Sizzling Garlic Prawn' with Toonsbridge mozzarella, parma ham and fresh chilli, and 'The Farmers Wife' with Toonsbridge mozzarella, red onion, parmesan and slow cooked pulled brisket from the owner's sister’s farm, and pastas are the usual suspects like arrabbiata and spaghetti bolognese. See the menu and order on their website . 64) Lobstar, Monkstown (s) (f) (1) Lobstar are doing pretty much their full menu for collection from Tuesday - Sunday, and yes there's lobster - whole with garlic ginger butter and fries, and lobster rolls. There's also oysters, seafood linguine and steak, and you can see the menu and number to call here . 65) Allta Box (s) (D) (w) Allta led the way with nationwide delivery from the get go, and each week we've seen people in takeaway starved parts of the country excitedly Instagramming their shiitake miso butter, house charcuterie and crab macaroni. Unfortunately they've now limited it to Dublin, Wicklow, Kildare and Meath makes a great gift for anyone who’s stranded far from a decent restaurant, and in our opinion has just gotten better and better. Boxes go live each Monday 25th for delivery that weekend, and will set you back €80 (including a wine pairing) plus €8.95 for delivery. Set your alarms and order here . 66) Bang, Dublin 2 (s) (v) (D) (w) (1) Bang have two options - a hot food collection and a finish at home option. Hot food can be collected or delivered within 3km of the restaurant, while the finish at home box can be delivered across Dublin. Various set menus are available as well as "simple dinners" (two courses), and you can find all the options and how to order here . 67) Ananda (s) (v) (vg) (f) (1) Longtime ATF favourite Ananda have a dine at home menu featuring popular dishes like their Old Delhi chaat platter, Goan seafood curry and gulab jamun (warm, caramelised milk dumplings). There's also an early bird for €26, a tasting menu for €70 for two, and a children's menu. See all the details here . 68) Gursha, Phibsborough (c) (v) (vg) (d) (f) (1) Ethiopian Gursha and doing collection or local delivery from their Phibsborough base, comprising of five mixed dishes or six vegan ones for €21. Extra injera (a spongy teff based pancake to mop everything up) is €3. Order and choose from the menu here . 69) Potager, Skerries (s) (v) (1) Potager are doing a six-course tasting menu for one or two people (€45/€90) with an optional wine pairing €70 for two). It's all cooked and ready to heat, so there's no work involved, bar turning the oven to low to keep your main warm. They're also open for a grab and go lunch from Thursday - Saturday. See all the information you need here . 70) Back 2 Dine (s) (D) (w) Back to Dine and San Lorenzo's Temple Garner are onto collaboration number four - this time with chefs from Bresson and Pichet. See the menu and book here . 71) Aimsir (s) (D) (w) Definitely the fanciest option on this list, two Michelin-starred restaurant Aimsir , in Celbridge, have launched an eight-course at home menu for two for €210. You'll get bread, butter, snacks, a starter, main, cheese, dessert and petits fours, with instructions for plating each dish and even an Aimsir branded tweezers. You can watch video content online from Jordan Bailey, Majken Bech Bailey and the team, including recommended drinks pairings, and wine and coffee can also be added to your order. Boxes go on sale here each Friday for Saturday of the following week, and can be collected from the restaurant or delivered in Dublin and selected towns in Kildare. Keep an eye on their Instagram page for the next release. 72) Le Perroquet (s) (v) (w) (1) Le Perroquet has been through something of a bizarre change over the past few months, with owner Nick Munier departing and a second restaurant 'Le Petit Perroquet' opening on Wicklow Street with a menu in no way resembling the original, but ardent fans will be happy to know that their new dinner boxes are very much in the style that chef Chris Fulham became known for pre-Covid. Four-course meals are €32.50 per person, with a meat, fish or vegetarian option, and dishes like chicken liver parfait, marinated beetroot, crispy chicken skin and confit garlic, and espresso chocolate and roast hazelnut mille feuille with candied hazelnuts and caramelised crème fraiche. Orders can be placed here for collection only - despite there being a delivery option it's not currently operational. 73) The Butcher Grill (s) (c) (D) (n) (w) (f) (1) The Butcher Grill in Ranelagh have quite a few options for food at home - a weekly three course set menu, a steak box, a hot food menu collected ready to eat, and a Sunday roast (also ready to eat). Delivery is available in Dublin south inside the M50, or collections can be made from the restaurant, and as of late April they're offering nationwide delivery for €9! See all of their menus and order here . 74) The Vintage Kitchen (c) (f) The Vintage Kitchen have a hot food menu for two people for collection Thursday - Saturday from 16:00 - 19:00. It comes ready to eat (bar some reheating), ranges from €55 - €70 depending on which one you pick, and includes dishes like prawn risotto, duck liver creme, caramelised red onion focaccia, and côte de boeuf for two with horseradish sauce. See the options and order here . We'll add more to this list as and when they become available.

A trip last weekend to Stepaside on the Wicklow border led to the discovery of what has to be some of the best charcuterie on the island right now. Woodruff has been on our bucket list for an age, partly due to their stunning Instagram feed featuring all the things we want to eat, and a takeaway stop only made us want to visit more once they're back open. The croquettes and sausage rolls were things of beauty, as were the butternut squash cannoli filled with ricotta, but the charcuterie, with coppa, air-dried lamb, strip loin bresaola and beef salami is 100% worth the drive, if the best Spanish jamons and Italian prosciuttos get you excited - Lisa An Edible Coffee Cup Bold and Brass , the coffee trailer operating out of the car park of a GAA club on the Clontarf Road piqued our interest this week when they announced the arrival of Better Me edible cups. Putting them to the test with a cappuccino and an espresso, they held up perfectly well with no sign of the cup going at all soggy. Witchcraft. The taste is somewhere between a very plain, unsweetened ice-cream wafer, and off-brand Shredded Wheat. We did find it got a bit too much after a few bites so it’ll never replace a pastry, but a handy one when you don’t have a reusable cup with you and you’re happy to spend a little extra to avoid adding to landfill - Helen Granola Bowls & Breakfast Burritos At Fable + Stey We went to Fable + Stey in Blackrock in search of pastries and were gutted they had none left, but luckily their cacao granola with yoghurt and rhubarb and breakfast burrito helped to soften the blow. The burrito was packed with avocado, eggs, chilli beans, brown rice, lime and chorizo and a good job of eliminating the memory of all the substandard ones we endured in the noughties - Lisa Mezze Plate from Lebanese Tapas in Blackrock Market Tucked away in Blackrock Market is a little Lebanese kitchen selling tapas style dishes and coffee. We went for the mezze plate which was packed with hummus, tabbouleh, baba ganoush, stuffed vine leaves, and possibly the best falafel we’ve had in Dublin. All of that was €10 and we added on Halloumi for €2 because frankly it would have been criminal not to - Helen Crab Pasta From Michael's Michael's has long been our special occasion restaurant, so even in a lockdown we find ourselves craving the fresh seafood in the generous portions that only Gaz Smith seems to be able to provide for every birthday/anniversary/Friday. The Michaels' pasta and seafood kits are available at Higgins' Butchers in Sutton, Michael's in Mount Merrion and Greenman Wines in Terenure, and are worth every penny. As fresh as it gets and ready in around 5 minutes - Lisa Takeaway From Big Fan Bao While the demand for Big Fan Bao kits is pretty immense, some of us are lucky to live within their Deliveroo delivery area and can confirm that the food travels really well. Standouts were the sweet and sour prawn toast, Taiwanese chicken, and the incredible wonton crackers with salsa and parmesan cheese.

We’re ready for summer. We’re ready for days so warm that hanging around the frozen food aisle becomes a national pastime, and queueing for ice-cream is the most productive thing we’ll do all week. While the weekend was lovely it looks like it’s not time to crack out the paddleboards and factor 50 just yet. Here are five foods that’ll help you bridge the gap between summer weather, and whatever seasons the next few weeks throw at us. 1) Roast Chicken Salad from Junior’s You know when you buy a new goldfish and can’t add it to the tank straight away because the sudden change of environment might be too much of a shock? That’s our approach to salads. We like to ease ourselves in gently with something that’s technically a hearty dinner but with added leaves, like this roast chicken salad for two from Junior’s with torn bread, pine nuts, golden raisins, scallions and a roasting juice and Chardonnay dressing. 2) Poké Bowl from Shaka Poké Look, we’re not saying you’re spending too much time inside watching TV, but your couch has a butt-dent and you have the “duh-dum” of a Netflix Original as a constant earworm. Time to get up, get out, and get to Shaka Poké in Blackrock Market for some super-bright and summery poké bowls. The menu has set bowls or you can build your own with Ahi tuna, crab, salmon, or go vegan with tofu and avocado, plus lots of rice, zoodles, veggies, and sauces. 3) Smoked Pork Sandwich from Tír Deli Opening today, Tír Deli on Baggot takes the place of what was Cocu Kitchen (who’ll be back on Hatch Street once restrictions allow) and is focused on seasonal Irish sandwiches and house-smoked meats. Top of our list to try is the smoked pork sandwich, which should keep our needs ticking over nicely until BBQ season, and realistically year-round cos ain’t nobody got time for smoking their own meat. All opening day proceeds are going to the Irish Cancer Society so you’ll be doing some good while stuffing your face. 4) Rhubarb Brioche from Overends Kitchen Overends Kitchen at Airfield Estate is normally a bright spot in the Dublin food landscape and this summer it’s bound to be a go-to location for many. This brioche, made with rhubarb from the estate, pretty much sums up the promise of summer for us. 5) Cereal Iced Coffees from Laine My Love Is milk a food? No. Is a coffee made from cereal-flavoured milk technically a food? Also no, but we think it’s important that you know that Coco Pop mochas and cereal-milk lattes are a thing now so we’re including them here. Consider it a public service announcement from us and Laine My Love . You are most welcome.

Dorothy may have followed the Yellow Brick Road but we're all about cycle lanes - who wants to travel in heels anyway. Whether it’s a sunrise or sunset spin, there’s always something good to fuel you along the way. We’d recommend more than one stop, because you know, nutrition when exercising is important and all that, and here are seven of our favourites on a southside cycle. 1) Nico Reynolds' Pulled Pork Sambo At Strand Fare, Sandymount If you’ve sat, jaw-dropped and drooling over all of Nico Reynold ’s Insta videos, this is your chance to find out how the fruits of his labour taste. In the ultimate Covid-time collab and perfect Sandymount pit stop, we’re stopping for Nico’s Pulled Pork Sambo BY Greenville Deli AT Strand Fare in Sandymount Village. Everything within the crisp ciabatta tastes like time and effort went into the making, just as you’d expect. It really doesn’t disappoint. Try to savour it, try... 2) Mushroom Toast At Hatch, Blackrock Though there may still be more places to get your hair done than eat in Blackrock, things are moving in the right direction. Recently celebrating their fifth birthday, Hatch ’s Blackrock outlet opened mid-pandemic and has quickly raised the bar for the village’s offerings. Chef Emma Tarrant’s micro take-away menu isn’t just delicious, it’s also guaranteed to last perfectly until you find a seafront seat or bench to enjoy it from. The creamy tarragon mushroom toast topped with a fried egg is so good that you’d consider timing your ride to make it breakfast AND lunch. A generous hunk of Bread41 sourdough makes sure to mop up any escaping flavours but it never gets soggy. We still aren’t sure what kind of kitchen sorcery is used here but it’s frickin' magic. It’s topped with house-made dukkah - a humble addition which in itself takes the dish (okay, box) to another level. 3) All And Any Pizza At Little Forest If Blackrock village’s newest opening was churning out pizzas 24 hours a day, we’re pretty sure it would still be tough to get a slot. Okay, while this place won’t be your impromptu shout for a pie but it’s well worth planning your trip a few days in advance so that you can sit on the wall at Idrone Terrace and dig into your Little Forest masterpiece. You’ll probably feel the need to a pic for the ‘gram too, and we won’t judge you for it. Head chef @ReggieDoesPizza ’s Insta handle is pretty modest: Reggie does THE BEST pizza. Seasonal and staple toppings keep everyone happy, but taking a chance on something you might not always go for pays off every time. 4) Pasta At That's Amore, Monkstown That’s Amor e looks quaint, but Monkstown locals know it as a place where you book a table of four and end up with a table of eight by the end of the night when the staff join your group - that's when you really feel the amore. While everyone should bucket list this place for when indoor dining returns, the cosy spot’s take away menu gives you the chance to feel a million miles from Ireland. Know that whatever you choose from the menu here is going to be the real deal, and trust whatever is on the specials board. If you spot the tonnarelli fresh pasta with lobster on the board, you order that. While you wait, browse the restaurant’s kerb-side retail section for more authentic Italian pantry fillers (hello! more condiments) and radiantly beautiful fresh veg. Take your bike to the scenic and usually less busy Seapoint Park and enjoy your meal al fresco. Italian Riviera or DART line - you won’t know the difference. 5) The 'Picnic Sur Mer' From Bresson, Monkstown Get a reasonably priced bite from one of South Dublin’s finest eateries and practice your best French accent while you’re at it. We are loving the return of Bresson ’s 'Picnic Sur Mer' menu, just as summer weather has pretty much decided it’s here to stay (putting that in writing makes it fact, right?). Their moules frites are always a good shout, but it’s the addition of the seafood platter that’s really caught our eye. Nothing says picnic like a bit of everything, and this platter has a bit of the best of everything. It’s got everything you could possibly want, from calamari to crab claws, with that real fine dining flare. Even the portion of chips comes with peppercorn sauce. We'll take it all, merci beaucoup. 6) An Affogato At Shoe Lane You’re hot and sweaty by the time you hit Dun Laoghaire and, to be honest, the prospect of queuing for anything that offers you 10,706 different combos of toppings just isn’t your thing. You also kinda want a coffee. DILEMMA. That’s where Shoe Lane ’s affogato comes in and whisks you off your feet. The guys here have nailed it for both dairy-lovers and the alternative milk crew. The double cream ice-cream is lush and decadent but once that Full Circle coffee and amaretti crumb hits - wow. The non-dairy version is just as more-ish, swapping in new home-grown brand Lemhain, to create the creamiest of vegan treats. 7) Sandycove Store & Yard When you first walk into Sandycove Store and Yard , you feel like you’ve just found a local’s secret hideaway. That’s actually exactly what you’ve done. If you want to skip the madness of Dun Laoghaire pier this spot’s got your name on it for coffee, treats and post-swim warmers... otherwise called sausage rolls. Their newest addition of a gelato van out back (A Few Scúps) is also a welcome find, with much more adventurous flavours than you’ll get on the waterfront. We’re keeping our eye on what more is to come from this Aladdin’s Cave.

There are a few post-Covid visions that we're clinging to, but one is sitting in Bonobo 's beautiful beer garden in Smithfield with pints, friends and sunshine on our shoulders. While we're still a little bit away from that manifesting into reality, they've decided to tease us by bringing back pizzas for takeaway this weekend alongside a Neighbourhood Wine pop up shop. They've got 3 brand new pizzas on the menu and you'll be thankful you can now meet with one other household outside because you're going to want them all. We really like the sound of the No. 2 with tomato, Fior di Latte, rosemary roast potato, pancetta, creamy egg, parmesan and chives, but also the No. 4, with tomato, Fior di Latte, ventricina salami, roasted jalapenos and creamy nduja. There's also a vegan option with roasted pumpkin, zucchini, cashew cheese and sundried tomato pesto. Neighbourhood Wine will be popping up with a changing selection of wines at retail prices, including producers like Mas Coutelou, Gut Oggau, Testalonga, Lopez de Heredia, Dutraive, and fine (read: expensive) Burgundies chosen by Joey Scanlon (ex sommelier from Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud), who will also be manning the shop. Bonobo will also be selling 500ml cocktails to go, including the 'Lady Marmalade' with gin, honey syrup, lemon juice and marmalade, a lot of craft beers and draught Guinness to go, and plant purveyors Potty Mouth will be filling the pub full of house plants and pots that you can take home (in exchange for money). The Bonobo/Neighbourhood Wine/Potty Mouth pop up starts this weekend until they decide otherwise, and will be open Friday and Saturday from 16:00 - 21:00, and Sunday from 14:00 - 18:00. Bonobo 19 Church Street Upper Smithfield Dublin 7 www.bonobodublin.com

They're soft, they're crunchy, they're creamy, and choux buns are finally getting their moment in the sun. In a new regular feature we're showcasing the foods suddenly popping up around the city, telling you what they are, and most importantly, where to eat them. So what are they? You know choux. You love choux. Profiteroles, eclairs, gougères , churros, beignets, they're all made from choux pastry. Choux is French for cabbage (not the best dessert reference but because of how the pastry can blow up like a cabbage when cooked - if you say so), and it's basically a twice cooked dough-batter, i.e. somewhere between the two. It's made by cooking flour with water and/or milk and butter, and then adding eggs into the cooled mixture, before frying, baking or poaching. Hilary Quinn from the all-star No Messin' bakery in Smithfield thinks Choux has long been overlooked as "a bland ball of dough that most of us remember as fridge-cold profiteroles." Her Mum, a Home Ec teacher, made "the lightest, crispest choux pastry imaginable. She never skimped on the cream for the filling, or the melted chocolate for the top. Her éclairs made an appearance at most birthdays and family gatherings, and were usually the first dessert on the table to be devoured. The word éclair actually means "flash of lightning" in French, because the pastry is enjoyed and gone in a flash." No Messin's 'hun bun' is Hilary's ultimate choux, with a thick layer of craquelin on top of the pastry (a disc of biscuit dough that's placed on top before cooking which helps it to keep its shape and gives the exterior a lovely crunch), and fillings like house roasted hazelnut praline, and lemon curd and mascarpone. Hungry yet? Where Can I Eat Them? No Messin', Smithfield Obviously. We're coming into berry season so expect their choux to take a seasonal spin - we hear there may be some raspberry ripple on the cards. Blasta Bakery, Smithfield Blasta Bakery is a new husband and wife affair from Paul O'Brien and Melina Rangel, who are in their own words, "obsessed with choux". At the moment they're making choux buns and mini éclairs, but they have big plans to show Dublin what choux can do. Flavours include chocolate with salted caramel, and berry with white chocolate ganache, and a box of two éclairs and two choux costs €10. Orders are available for collection from Oxmantown in Smithfield (where Paul works during the week) on Saturdays, or they can deliver to Dublin 6, 7 and 8 for €2. Check them out and order on Instagram here . Aventura, Portmarnock Aventura Coffee in Portmarnock have started selling choux buns from Brazilian chef Higor Martins , and they are special. We've tried dulce de leche with dulce de leche cream and chocolate on top, and lemon with the creamiest, zingiest filling and lime zest, and they're both the perfect accompaniment to a good coffee and a walk. For now Aventura are his only choux stockist, but you can order for home consumption through their partner business here . Bread Naturally, Raheny Bread Naturally in Raheny are known for their real bread mantra, selling sourdough and yeasted bread, but you'll also find cruffins, croissants and choux buns if you pay them a visit. Recently we've spotted lemon meringue with a lemon curd mini choux and a crunchy topping, and a Paris Brest version filled with praliné creme mousseline. Want and want. Bread 41, Pearse Street If it's a cake or a pastry Bread 41 probably make it, and they've just added a new choux bun to the line up. They've yet to be named, but some of the suggestions from their followers include "choux me the money" and "I choux choux chouxs you!" All bets are off on this one. Bresson, Monkstown Our eagle eyes spotted this raspberry and white chocolate choux bun on Bresson 's feed last month as part of their at-home menu, and since then the choux sitch has spiraled, a development we're all thrilled about. I'm feeling brave. What if I want to make them myself? You're in luck. Chapter One's pastry chef Darren Hogarty posted a choux bun tutorial on his Instagram yesterday. Head on over there if you want to let him guide you through making choux buns with a chocolate cookie craquellin, honey cream and a chocolate truffle surprise. He promises they're easy than they look.

We've eaten everything in our 5km, tried every single coffee establishment, and walked in circles working it all off, but as of yesterday the city is ours again. No more roadblocks, no more sneaky café trips to somewhere just outside the boundary, we can once again roam free, and new food is the main thing on our minds. We've mapped out our movements in this whole new world over the next few weeks based on what and where we want to eat, so if you're looking for inspiration for where to spread your wings, feel free to follow in our footsteps... Hong Kong Bakery, City Centre We're equally thrilled and terrified at the thought of our first trip into the city centre in months. Will it feel like 28 Days Later? Can we face paying €16 for four hours parking? Where will we pee after our third single-origin, micro-lot coffee? We're hoping the new Hong Kong Bakery on Eden Quay (from the same owners as Ka Shing on Wicklow Street) will make it worth any potential pain, because thoughts of their char siu buns, pork puffs and Cantonese style egg tarts have taken up firm residence in our brains. Open 12:00 - 19:00 Monday - Saturday. Dosa Dosa, Grand Canal Street After last week's Instagam conversation about all the different foods we wish Dublin had (instead of endlessly multiplying burgers, fried chicken and cookies), we were reminded that we do have dosas, uttapam and Kathi rolls. Dosa Dosa park up just off Grand Canal Street on Saturdays and Sundays from 13:00 - 20:00, and we're dying for a sunny day drive by before settling down in Merrion Square and remembering what it was like to socialise outside with other humans without face masks, social distancing and the fear of accidentally coughing in public. Check them out and order in advance here . Sharkbait Shelby's, Clanbrassil Street Thom Lawson (Lucky Tortoise, Sprezzatura) has yet to have a dud, so we have high expectations for his new seafood shack at Baste on Clanbrassil Street. Sharkbait Shelbys has one of those rare menus where we want ALL THE FOOD, but we'll start with the caviar dippy egg, the crab and bisque mac, and guanciale and tomato Killary Fjord mussels. Find them at Baste BBQ from Thursday - Sunday. The Rock Bakery, Skerries Pearce Carty Heffernan was the baker at Clanbrassil Coffee Shop before the world as we knew it upended, but every cloud, because The Rock Bakery was one of many businesses born out of the pandemic. He's currently selling sourdough, ferrero roché croissants and lemon marshmallow nests from the pop-up shop at Potager in Skerries (10:00 - 12:00 on Sunday) with deliveries from Thursday - Saturday (pastries are only at the weekends). Order here . The Pier House, Howth Oh we do like to be beside the seaside, and we like it even more with a lobster roll in hand. The Pier House in Howth have just started their new bites menu, including Roaring Water Bay mussels, Achill oysters and toasted lobster rolls with spiced Japanese mayo and crispy garlic shallots. You'll find us out on the pier the next day the temperature goes above 10c, lobster roll in one hand, and the other trying to get a seal to wave back at us. Woodruff, Stepaside Barely a day goes by without a new "oooooof" inducing image from Woodruff in Stepaside, and their 'Grab & Go' menu is a good excuse for a walk/hike/ramble in the Dublin mountains. From ham hock and black pudding croquettes, to Curragh lamb flatbread with sumac sheep's yoghurt and wild garlic, to woodruff and pistachio cannoli for afters, if we're going all this way we're probably ordering one of everything. Check their Instagram for this week's menu . McNally Farm & Café, Balrickard, North County Dublin We love a trip to McNally Farm in North Co. Dublin to stock up on organic vegetables, homemade yoghurt and all manner of Irish produce from other small producers, but their café serving vegetable based baps and homemade cakes is another reason to get in the car. Sarah McNally (of The Market Kitchen) has the flavour formula locked down, using what's in season to create vegetarian and vegan sandwiches, and various members of the family have their own cakes and cookies on sale. If it's dry there's outdoor seating to the side (and indoor for when that's an option again). Open Wednesday - Saturday. Order in advance here . The Cali Kitchen, Dun Laoghaire After our official Insta complaint last week about the lack of good Scotch eggs in Dublin, we're using The Cali Kitchen 's free-range pork and black pudding version with house-made chilli jam as an excuse for a walk along the promenade in Dun Laoghaire. It's going to be hard to sidestep the chocolate croissant bread and butter pudding with creme anglaise, so we're not going to even try. Locks, Portobello It's been so long since we had cans on the canal (decades in fact) but Locks are back with their take-away menu from Friday - Sunday so look out swans, we're en route. The opening menu featured oysters with shallot pickle, dressed crab, brown butter, avocado and lemon on brioche, and sucking pork bao with BBQ sauce and mango, as well as their famous tempura salt and vinegar fish and chips. Available Friday - Sunday. See last week's menu here . Órale @ Eatyard, Drumcondra In our quest for quality tacos, Órale Street Food at Eatyard in Drumcondra comes up again and again. On the menu are Korean pork with kimchi and apple slaw, masa fried chicken with salsa macha, and aubergine barbacoa with avocado and tomatillo salsa, as well as quesadillas and burritos, and we're desperate to get to Dublin 9 and check them out. We'll be eating them along the Royal Canal or sneaking them into the Botanic Gardens. Check them out on Instagram here . 3 Leaves, Blackrock There are a few dishes and restaurants that we've thought about obsessively since this time last year, and right at the top is 3 Leaves in Blackrock. The samosa chaat, the pav bhaji and the pepper beef with paratha are perfect for sundown at the beach, or if you're heading home go the whole hog with curries, rice and dahl (although we'd happily eat those at the beach too. Pre-orders are necessary here .

In a roadmap that’s had more twists and turns than a series of Line of Duty, Covid restrictions have changed again and now we can start getting out and about more within our own counties, and 20 kms from our homes if we’re near county borders. Woohoo, fella. Best of all, two households can meet for recreational purposes in parks and outdoor public spaces, so now we just have to remember how to talk to people. Our favourite recreational activities involve eating, food and meals, and after a winter spent hoarding Vegware cutlery and little salt sachets in our gloveboxes, we’re very happy that our dining venue options have moved from driver’s seat to park bench, and temperatures are on the up. Sunshine means salads, so here’s five that will fuel your reunions with friends, and where to eat them outdoors. 1) Honey Truffle Kitchen, Pearse St. For a serious whack of nourishment and flavour Honey Truffle Kitchen always delivers, and this black barley and butternut squash salad with wild garlic, cumin, coriander, lemon watercress, and radish will fuel body and soul, while keeping energy levels up for a power catch-up with your bestie. The obvious choice for this one is nearby Merrion Square but it might get a little busy at peak times. A great alternative is Pearse Square just down the street towards Grand Canal Dock, a small garden square with some of the city’s best Georgian architecture. 2) Little Bird, South Circular Road Poor feta has been used and abused lately, mainly thanks to Tik Tok, but Little Bird on the South Circular Road is righting that wrong with this insanely colourful tabbouleh salad with feta, apricot, and pomegranate. There are lots of options for places to sit and eat around SCR and the canal, but we’d recommend taking a stroll to the small but perfectly-formed Wilton Place Park, across from the Patrick Kavanagh statue, and trying to grab one of the very cute deck chairs. 3) Kale + Coco, Stoneybatter We get it, it's been a while since you've had to actually speak to other people, and you're worried you might forget how it's done. If you're feeling a little socially anxious, you'll need something lovely to talk about in case of lulls. As you’d expect from vegan and vegetarian café Kale + Coco , their nourish bowls are things of plant-based beauty and the perfect conversation-starter. Order for click and collect, then head to the Phoenix Park to meet your pal/family members/tinder date for the ultimate in salad and scenery pairing. 4) 31 Lennox, Portobello Carbs: completed them, mate. If your diet has been a bit of a stodge-fest for the last few months and you’re worried that suddenly going uber-healthy may be too much of a shock to the system, 31 Lennox in Portobello do a chicken Caesar salad that should help you strike a balance. Is it the healthiest salad in the world? No. Is it delicious? Totally. Free-range chicken with bacon, baby gem, croutons, parmesan Caesar dressing. You’re not going to want a 10k hike after this, so dawdle over to nearby Iveagh Gardens and enjoy your day. 5) Tiller + Grain, South Frederick St. When it comes to salads, Tiller + Grain ’s Clair Dowling is the queen of flavour and colour. They have so many options covering vegans, vegetarians, gluten-freers and meat-eaters, that you can’t go wrong whoever you're meeting. Choose from bases like turmeric rice, roasted cauliflower, beetroot with feta, aubergine with yuzu yogurt, and add on more protein like rainbow trout or marinated beef. We’d recommended adding a cake or freshly baked cookie to your order, because we're all about that balance. You’re so close to Iveagh Gardens, St. Stephen’s Green, and Merrion park here, all of which are good choices.

As much as we’ve loved seeing Eric, our trusty DPD driver, three times a day for the past six months, there are some knocks at the door that get us more excited, than others and the promise of alcohol is definitely one of those. Here’s our updated list of where to get cocktails in Dublin, lots of them with delivery options, because staying in-in is never going to be the new going out-out, but at least there’s alcohol. Hen’s Teeth Store The Mr. Freeze and Slush Puppies of our youth have had an adult upgrade thanks to Hen's Teeth Store . Wavey Ice, basically boozy ice pops, are in the freezer, and they’re pouring cherry sake slushies for when you’re wandering around town in the sun. Want. The Shelbourne The Shelbourne ’s afternoon tea at home has been splashed across many an Instagram story over the past few months, but their cocktail offering has been kept a bit quieter, and it's one to seek out. At €20 for two serves with garnishes we think they're pretty decent value, and for the full bar experience, €60 will get you two bottles of cocktails, olives, almonds and sea salt cashew nuts. We love their Pomegranate Zombie with aged rum, Appleton Estate rum, PAMA pomegranate liqueur, Cointreau, Orgeat, pomegranate juice and lemon, but it's The Shelbourne, they're all good. Available for collection or delivery (€10 if you're within 10k of the hotel) seven days a week. More details here . Fade Street Social Fade Street Social ’s At Home offering is pretty substantial with food, desserts, wine, beers, and cocktails. There’s lots to choose from like a tangy blood orange fizz, rhubarb tart, their special sangria, and this rather lovely looking pineapple whiskey. Available for collection and delivery Friday and Saturday. Order here . Charlotte Quay/Coppinger Row Sisters Charlotte Quay and Coppinger Row include cocktails in their Deliveroo offering so you can get an Aperol negroni, raspberry fizz, Havana docks and others right to your door. We can almost smell the sunshine. The Well Click and collect from The Well now includes cocktails. Their twisted classics box gives you a cocktail like a daiquiri, margarita or whiskey sour as well as syrups so you can experiment with flavours, or go for the selection box to keep all the adults in the house happy. They also had a recent limited release of frozen cocktail pouches to take away that we really hope become a permanent feature. Available for collection Thursday - Saturday or for free delivery on Saturday. Order here . Peploe’s If you miss Peploe’s for people-watching, you can recreate the experience at home with their delivery dinner-boxes, and a good nosey out your window at the neighbours. Better yet, just stay inside with their cocktails. Choose from Margaritas, Cosmopolitans, Negronis and Espresso Martinis, and look out for seasonal specials, like Easter's 'Hazelnut Delight', with vodka, Kahlua and Nutella. Order here . Anti Social Anti Social , the Dublin 8 bar, is doing weekend cocktail deliveries across the city with drinks including long island ice tea (so rude that more bars in Dublin don’t do these) and a range of martinis. They come in 500ml and 1 litre sizes and you can order here . Electric Cocktails Electric Bar and Restaurant in Cork are raising money via a crowdfunding campaign to launch a range of cocktails, and keep revenue flowing until they can open safely again. Drinks include Pornstar Punch, Strawberry Mojito, Garden Collins, and a Peanut butter and Jam Old Fashioned which isn’t like anything else we’ve seen on the market so colour us intrigued. Prices from €25, with shipping across Ireland and the UK, and deliveries will start in June. Support them with an order here and give summer you something to look forward to. Monk Cocktail Bar A cocktail bar in a brewery will never be a bad idea, and Monk Cocktail Bar in Cork in the Franciscan Well proves this point. Through their website, you can buy boxes of their beer online, but also cocktail gift sets based around your favourite spirits. Plus, they’ve launched a subscription service to get cocktail kits to your door each month. If you have enough booze knocking around at home, you can even opt for the “Just The Bits” kit so you’ll have everything you need to make great drinks at home. Details are here . Dacha Cocktail Mixers Another handy option if you have a cupboard overflowing with bottles of spirits that you never get through (possibly because you keep ordering cocktails), Dacha Drinks produce natural cocktail mixes for you to create your own at home. With nationwide delivery, flavours include orange & basil, raspberry & thyme, and rhubarb. They can be added to prosecco for a simple fizz, or you can following the enclosed recipe cards to make something a little more fancy. Order here . Dublin Cocktail Lab Remember that feeling of being in a cocktail bar and the seemingly endless possibilities awaiting you in the leather-bound cocktail menu placed in your hands? We miss it too, so had raised eyebrows when. Dublin Cocktail Lab caught our eye with their unusual and aesthetically pleasing Instagram feed. Cocktails like Miso Grapefruit Bloody Marys and Rose Coconut Spritz are available for nationwide delivery, and the site also has loads of lovely add-ons like kombucha, pickle juice, and a hot whiskey syrup that sounds like it would go with pretty much anything. It's €5 for delivery and you can order on their website . Farrier and Draper As much as we’d love nothing more than to be sitting in a bar in Dublin 2, we’re settling for our sofas. Available for click and collection and delivery via Deliveroo, Farrier and Draper has a really big selection, including a Spice Bag Margarita. Might need a few lemon mojitos before we’re brave enough for that one. They also have a vegan range (aren't most cocktails vegan?) including this dairy-free pina colada. Order here . Craft Cocktails If you’ve kept an eye on our Insta stories over the past few months, you know that we’ve been working our way through lots of lovely drinks from Craft Cocktails . From the team at Bar 1661 , these drinks pack a serious punch, and the really cute packaging means they’ve been one of our go-tos for sending a little pick-me-up to friends. Delivery is nationwide through www.craftcocktails.ie but we’ve also spotted them in Baggot Street Wines and Neighbourhood Wine . Catch Events After a brief hiatus, Catch Events are back with their Quarantini boxes, and we were very relieved to hear it. Kits contain all you need to make four vibrant cocktails, plus you can add on a heap of extras if you’re feeling extra extra. Be warned, kits tend to get snapped up once they go up on www.catchevents.ie so don't delay getting our order in. Vintage Cocktail Club Another thing we miss is getting dressed-up and going out. Now, we’re not saying everyone has turned into a slob overnight, but we haven’t seen a pair of heels in almost a year, and lipstick is pretty much a distant memory. If you have a special occasion to celebrate at home, the cocktail kits from Vintage Cocktail Club is certainly a way to inject some instant glam into your evening and are available on Deliveroo. Order here . Fourth Corner We’re sick of winter and need some sunshine. We’re not getting it naturally, we can’t fly anywhere to find it, but we can get little glasses of sunshine delivered right to our homes from The Fourth Corner so it’s ok. Plus, where else in Dublin are you going to get a Mule inspired by actor Paul Mescal? The Mescal Mule, naturally... Order here . Hang Dai Hang Dai has been one of our to-go takeaways over the past year, and we would seriously recommend adding one of their cocktails to your order of sesame toast with yuzu mayo. As we’ve come to expect from the loud and lively Chinese restaurant, the cocktails pack serious flavour, often using Asian ingredients like yuzu and Szechuan peppercorns. Bottles of pre-mixed cocktails can be added on to click and collect orders, or delivered via Just Eat or Deliveroo. Order here . Mulberry Garden Mulberry Garden is doing a weekly home meal kit that’s available for collection or Dublin delivery every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Best thing is you can add on cocktails including their take on a Margarita or The Mulberry Old Fashioned which is laced with mulberry puree. Order here . Drop Dead Twice Drop Dead Twice on Francis Street has takeaway cocktails available for collection and delivery on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. In addition to American diner classics, they also have a Netflix and Chill range with cocktail and dessert options. Or, if you want to be really efficient, you can combine your alcohol and sugar intake for maximum dopamine surge in the form of a 'hard shake'. Order for collection or delivery here . The Blind Pig It feels kind of fitting that The Blind Pig , a speakeasy and prohibition era-inspired bar on Suffolk Street, gets the opportunity to do some bootlegging through home delivery. The cocktail menu is extensive and features extras like bar snacks and syrups for your home bar. They’re also doing a full menu for pizza, pasta, and sandwiches. Check out their website for details. Dillinger’s, 777, The Butcher Grill Frozen margaritas from 777 helped get us through the summer, and sister restaurants Dillinger’s and The Butcher Grill are also offering lots of delightful-sounding cocktails for collection and delivery to certain parts of Dublin, like the 'Easy Tiger' with pecan-infused Bulleit bourbon, maple syrup, disaronno and bitters. See each restaurant’s website for details. Wigwam The little bottles of Espresso Martini from Wigwam that graced pretty much every Dubliner’s timeline at some stage during the summer seem to be on hiatus for now, but you can still order Moscow Mules, Dark and Stormys, and Cuba Libres. In addition to click and collect, there’s local delivery (within 2kms) on Fridays and Saturdays, but Just Eat and Deliveroo give more opportunities for you to get deliveries from Thursday to Sunday. See all the details on their website . Krewe A popular spot for pre-pandemic group outings (remember those?), Krewe on Capel Street is now doing a full menu click and collect and delivery so you can get their extensive range of cocktails right to your door. Sizes start at single serve and go to mega portions - no judgement here. All the info is on their website . The Washerwoman of Glasnevin If you’re on the Northside and in need of a Cosmo or gin cooler (and we’ve never had a time when we didn’t need one of those), The Washerwoman in Glasnevin have them, and lots of others, available for collection. Check out their menus and order here .

2021 is a sly one. While you might think 2020 version 2.0 has been trundling along aimlessly without a care in the world, the truth is it’s been masking a dark, or maybe milk, secret. With all of this extra money some people have apparently been amassing in their bank accounts, premium Easter eggs are in high demand, and you'll want to get on it now to be guaranteed a happy Easter this year. Gone are the days where a Cadbury’s egg in a colourful mug would cut it, this year it’s all about high cocoa solids and having an egg that is truly Insta-worthy because, let’s face it, not much else in your life is worth documenting right now. Skelligs Chocolate Remember that dream we all had as kids of biting into an Easter egg and realising it was solid? Those dreams are a 2021 reality thanks to Skelligs Chocolate . They have solid eggs with a range of fillings from Teelings whiskey crème, mint, salted caramel, strawberry champagne, honeycomb with marshmallow, and hazelnut praline, from €20 - €35. Also, and you might want to take a moment to let this sink in, some of their eggs are available in 1kg. Hollow eggs and hampers are also available from the website for Ireland-wide delivery. And just to sweeten the deal, they’re also making a donation to Heroes Aid for every Easter Egg sold. (Update: we found a solid Skelligs salted caramel egg. We ate some. It even better than in our chocolate fantasies...) Praline Chocolatiers There’s premium and then there’s a €50 chocolate egg, but this one didn’t catch our eye solely because of the price tag. Based in Athlone, Praline Chocolatiers is a new venture from pastry chefs Georgia Quealy and Daniel Linehan, and the triple-layered Crunchy Praline Easter egg looks like a pretty serious first-outing. Two different types of chocolate (64% sustainable dark chocolate and Valhrona’s 35% Azelia) surround a layer of homemade crunchy praline. Inside you’ll find 68% single-origin truffles. Definitely one for the most serious of chocolate-lovers. Pre-orders are currently open on their website , but as eggs are too delicate for delivery, collection points will be arranged in Athlone and Dublin. Lorge Chocolatier Chocolate eggs, bunnies, and even chickens are available from Lorge Chocolatier . For a serious dose of the good stuff, the large egg (€38.70) packed with 20 chocolates weighs in at an impressive 800g, so even if you crack in to it as soon as it arrives, you’ll still have plenty left on Easter Sunday. Details are here . Arcane Chocolate As you’d expect from Arcane Chocolate , their Easter collection combines the quirky with the delicious, with eggs to suit every taste and budget, ranging from €16.50 right up to €750 - yes your eyes have not deceived you. The one-of-a-kind carved, moulded and hand-painted chocolate whiskey barrel weighs over 5kg so we can’t imagine that more than one will be needed, for your whole town. If your wallet (or appetite) won’t stretch to that, there are lots of other options incorporating fruits, nuts and gold leaf, natch. Items are available for collection from Mulhuddart, with some eggs available for delivery across Dublin and in Bray. Details are on the website . Easter Eggs For Pieta House Chef Philip Doyle ( @What_The_4ork on Instagram ) has been on a mission to raise funds for Pieta House during lockdown, and his latest initiative is egg-shaped. You can find his handmade chocolate Easter eggs for sale at Tang on Dawson Street for €20, or you can pay more if you have the spare cash - all profits will be going to Pieta House to fund services to help the prevention of suicide. Koko Kinsale Koko Kinsale has lots of options for dark, milk and white eggs, as well as bunnies, and their handcrafted version of the ubiquitous crème egg looks pretty amazing. Nationwide delivery is available - all info is here . Hazel Mountain Chocolate If you haven’t seen Hazel Mountain Chocolate ’s Wild Atlantic Way Easter egg on Instagram, you must live under a rock, or just hate beautiful things. Their chocolate is high in cacao, low in sugar, and available in lots of forms this Easter; eggs, chicken, slabs, and bunnies. We've already gotten our Wild Atlantic Way Egg, and while it's small, it's perfectly formed. Order here . Chocolate Garden of Ireland We’ve long admired Chocolate Garden of Ireland for the sheer volume of things they can make out of chocolate - eggs, rabbits, lambs, hens… it’s pretty impressive. Their collection is huge and so is the demand so they’ve taken the step of temporarily suspending sales while they clear a backlog of orders, but check the website often and be prepared to swoop in once they’re back up and running. Cocoa Atelier We love Cocoa Atelier and their commitment to Irish ingredients, strong flavours and God-level hot chocolate. The Easter range is now up on the website with dispatch from March 24th, and includes hand-painted eggs filled with Velvet Almonds and Provenance Hazelnuts - a sophisticated option for the more discerning chocolate-lover in your life. Grá Chocolates Grá Chocolates have launched a range of hand-painted eggs which are currently available for pre-order on the website . Priced at €40 each, the eggs are available in a range of flavours including honey, praline, mint, strawberry, and salted caramel. Lir Chocolates When you think of “Easter eggs” and “value” in the same sentence, you probably picture a desperate late-night dash to a petrol station to pick up the dregs of their 3 for €10 offer, but it doesn’t have to be like that. Lir Chocolates have some great options starting at €5, with eggs at €8 and €10. They also produce the Guinness and Bailey’s range of chocolates so the Pint Man, or Woman, in your life can spend their Easter Sunday with a miniature chocolate version. Details are on the website . Bean and Goose Ok, it’s not an egg but you need this in your life this Easter. Bean and Goose have launched 500g slabs of chocolate bark; dark or milk chocolate topped with pecan praline, blueberry, and coconut. 500g. 5.0.0. That’s a pretty serious amount of quality chocolate. You can even add on a handcrafted oak hammer to help you get through it. If for you, Easter isn’t Easter without some form of novelty-shaped chocolate, the beautiful Irish Hare and goose are available in milk and dark varieties. Find them here . Wallace's Executive chef Domenico Santo from Wallace's Wine Bars is a busy bee right now making three different types of handmade Easter eggs. There's a 70% chocolate with edible gold (€23), a 34% white chocolate with matcha tea (€25), and a 41% milk chocolate with hazelnut (€29). Ordering is via WhatsApp on 0873674207, and they can be collected from any of their four locations, either on Millennium Walkway in the city centre or in Drumcondra.

While it didn’t feel like it, St. Patrick’s Day was last week. A day when we as a nation pay tribute to our most sacrosanct traditions - crisp sandwiches, day drinking, and flag-festooned Ford tractors driven through local villages. While this year felt more major-bummer than majorette, it has turned our minds back to the Ireland of our youth and the foods we’d never have dreamed of as we stuffed our little faces with bacon, cabbage, and Findus Crispy Pancakes. Here’s 5 things doing the rounds this week that our 80s and 90s inner-children would never imagine being readily-available in Dublin in 2021. 1) Tamales from Hen’s Teeth Store You know that scene in Home Alone where we know Kevin isn’t in the van, but the rest of the family haven’t figured it out yet? That’s how we feel about tamales. We see all these people just wandering around, not realising that they’re missing the best Mexican food out there. If you want to know what you’re missing, Hen’s Teeth are slinging them with a side of salsa negra, and based on what we've tasted from them so far we're expecting big flavoursome things. 2) Brunch Bap from Love Supreme Hey Gen-Zs, stop pretending like you invented brunch - that’s firmly the IP of millennials. Except, in our day, a brunch was served on a stick and covered in pink and white cookie crumbs but hey, we made it work. While there’s no shortage of great brunch spots in Dublin, we do love Love Supreme and this brunch bap packed with free range bacon, sausage and egg is one of the many reasons why. It's available to take away on Saturdays and Sundays and don't forget to add wine - it's not breakfast after all. The veggie version has halloumi, egg and coconut bacon and is also a very valid option. 3) Choux Bun from Bresson Sure, we grew up in a world awash with chocolate eclairs: a strangely sweaty-looking rubbery thing filled with sweetened yellow cream that would send any self-respecting French person running for cover. We’ve come a long way since then though, and this light and crispy choux bun filled with raspberry and white chocolate mousse from Bresson is like a sweet joie de vivre injection. It’s new and available on their at home menu. 4) Venison Samosas from Street By Sunil Are you still carrying the childhood trauma of watching Bambi? Us too, but his mama isn’t coming back so you may as well comfort yourself with Street By Sunil ’s venison samosas, served with a punchy berry chutney. Side of tears optional. 5) Smoked Mackerel Pâté from Lilliput Stores Remember fantastic sandwiches from the 90s? No, us neither. We figure it’s our brain’s way of filtering out the trauma of lousy plastic ham, watery tomatoes and gloopy coleslaw. Not to worry, Lilliput Stores are righting those wrongs with dreamy smoked mackerel pâté, preserved lemon, green chili, celery, dill, homemade pickles, and crunchy leaves in a pillowy Firehouse Bread roll.

It's hard to believe this is the second year in a row of a pub-free Paddy's Day, but just imagine how much we're going to make up for it next year - actually don't, it's a bit scary. Not ones to let an excuse for ordering food and drink go by, we've found seven ways of injecting a bit of green into your life next Wednesday, and making it feel like a holiday, as opposed to yet another groundhog day... Vice's Irish Coffee Kit Vice 's Irish coffee kit is approximately 12 times better than anything you're going to create yourself, because are you going to use single origin Imbibe coffee from Colombia, Teeling Small Batch Whiskey, and Demerara Syrup. We're guessing no. A 500ml bottle just needs to be reheated, topped with lightly shaken cream, and finished with a few coffee beans and a shaving of nutmeg. Kits are €22.50 (add on €15 for two glasses) and are available for next-day delivery nationwide (€6), or you can collect them from Wigwam on Middle Abbey Street. Check them out here . Bujo's St. Patrick's Weekender Kit Bujo have brought back their weekender kit for Paddy's weekend, and brunch, burgers, brownies and beer is a celebration in itself. It feeds four and costs €55 (€65 with four cans of Wicklow Wolf beer), with nationwide delivery costing €7, or free collection from Sandymount. They're delivering them on Friday 19th, so you can either have a post-Paddy's Day pig out, or save it for Ireland V England in the Six Nations the following day. Either way national pride will be high. Order one here , but we hear they're very close to selling out so don't hang around. The Limited Edition Green St. Sour From Irish Craft Cocktails There's a new addition to everyone's favourite pre-mixed cocktails and it's green. Irish Craft Cocktails have added the limited "Green St. Sour" to their line-up, just for St. Patrick’s Day. It's based on a classis sour using Cocalero Clásico (a South American inspired botanical spirit), melon, aloe vera, and citrus. It's available in the usual two sizes - a 200ml serving two (€12.50) and a 700ml serving 7 (€35). Order here . The St. Patrick's Day Quarantini Box From Catch Events Catch Events have three St. Patrick's Day quarantini boxes up for grabs, with the choice of whiskey sours, Irish apple martinis, or Baileys cocktails. You can order a full kit with all the equipment for €50 (making four cocktails) or an ingredient only box for €35, and they do non-alcoholic versions too (€40 and €28). You can also add on Tayto crisps, Dairy Milk chocolate, Barry's tea, and an Irish flag Hawaiian necklace for the ultimate in tricolour kitsch. Delivery nationwide is €6 and takes 1-3 days. See the full line up and how to order here . The Paddy's Box From The Big Romance The Big Romance on Parnell Street have put a lovely box together for the 17th covering all the booze bases. There's eight Irish craft beers from breweries like Whiplash, Galway Bay and The White Hag, a two-person serving of Irish Craft Cocktails Green Street Sour, two mini bottles of Teelings small batch whiskey as well as a distillery gift set (two visitors passes, mini hip-flasks and St Patrick's day pins), and two packets of Keogh's shamrock and sour cream crisps. It comes wrapped up in a Paddy's Day Box so would make a great gift, and at €49.50 we think it's great value too. Available for collection from the bar (Thursday - Saturday) or for delivery (including the 16th and 17th) for €3.95. Order here . The Irish Cheese Box From KC Peaches KC Peaches are making Irish cheese boxes available for collection or delivery on Deliveroo from tomorrow until the 17th. There's Boile, Cahills Porterhouse, Cashel Blue and Dubliner cheddar, as well as chutneys from Cork and crackers from Sheridans. They'll be available to purchase from their St. Stephen's Green store or on Deliveroo here . White Ralph Goes Green White Ralph is turning green for one day only. The somewhat mysterious, Dublin-based, Instagram only cockail company makes their take on a White Russian with almond milk, vodka, cream liquor and two secret ingredients, and we've been assured that the green is just for colour. One litre bottles cost €35 (Dublin-wide delivery included) giving you eight servings, and it will last up to two weeks in the fridge. DM them on Instagram to order.

We're not sure who decided that a Mum's favourite food experience is Afternoon Tea (FYI every Dad's favourite food is steak in case you were wondering), but according to Instagram, a sugar coma is what Mums really wants this March. If that's the route you want to take you've got options, but also options of a more savoury/fine dining disposition, in case your Mum is more than crab salad than cake, seared striploin than scones, chicken liver parfait than cucumber sandwiches... Brunch / Lunch / Afternoon Tea Toonsbridge X Neighbourhood Wine Our favourite deli Toonsbridge has joined up with Neighbourhood Wine for the Mother's Day box of dreams (collection only from Leeson Street). For €95 you'll get cheese and charcuterie, five cannoli (the best), and two very good bottles of wine - Craven's Clairette Blanche and Selene's Beaujolais. Order here . Tang's Brunch Boxes Tang are delivering a Mother's Day brunch around Dublin (anywhere inside the M50) on Saturday 13th, with a choice of pancakes or shakshuka, and a bunch of dried flowers from Shop The Garden at the Powerscourt Centre. It's €49.50 and €6.50 for delivery. Alternatively it can be collected from their Dawson Street site. Order here . Network's Ultimate Mother's Day Box Network will fully sort you out for €50. Two days worth of brunch dishes for two, flowers, chocolate and even a card with your own message in it. You'll barely even have to lift a finger. It includes pancakes for two, a brunch bap and their famous 'notions on toast', and you can have it delivered on Saturday or Sunday. Order here . Póg's Afternoon Tea Póg 's deconstructed afternoon tea has sweet and savoury included. You can top your sourdough toast with smashed avocado, spicy hummus, or peanut butter and chia jam, then put the kettle on, pop the cork on the bottle of bubbles and crack into the chocolate brownies, raspberry friandes and chocolate chip cookies. It's €60 for collection from Howth or €70 for delivery. Email info@pog.ie to order. The Merrion's Afternoon Tea The Merrion 's Mother's Day Afternoon Tea is €35 per person, with the option to add on a bottle of supremely tasty Henriot champagne for another €55. You'll get a selection of teas, sandwiches, scones, tea breads and pastries, and they can deliver in the greater Dublin area for an additional charge. Call them on 01 6030600 to place an order (if collecting you'll be given a pick up time). The Shelbourne The Shelbourne have gone to the next level of Afternoon Tea with the option to take home all of the silverware, china and linen, as well as the tiered stand to serve it on. The standard Afternoon tea for collection is €100 for two, with increasing prices whether you want delivery, champagne and/or all of the equipment to serve it with (the whole hog is €240). See all the options here or call the hotel to order on 01 6634500. Baked Baked , who have locations in Dundrum, Citywest, Rathmines and Greenhills, are doing a sweet-only Afternoon Tea for €29.90 per person, including a selection of six cakes, scones, macaroons and cookies. Delivery is also available in Dublin and the surrounding areas for €9.90. Order here . Pudding Row's Mother's Day Comfort Kit ***SOLD OUT*** Pudding Row have given their Comfort Kit a Mother's Day makeover, and added in a scent diffuser and a "Máthair" card from Donegal designed Maggie Marley, that they'll even hand-write for you. In the box you also get Wall & Keogh tea, coconut macaroons, a caramel square, an orange and pistachio brownie, shortbread, and a large bag of their granola. It's €70 including nationwide delivery, and they're shipping on the 10th so it gets there in time for Mother's Day. Order here . Dinner Mamó Mamó 's supper club is back and available for collection from Howth or their new Barrow Street Market in the Docklands on Friday and Saturday. The Mother's Day weekend menu features jamon & Hegarty’s cheddar croquettes, a main of Thornhill duck with baked swede and pickled raisin, and treacle tart with whipped mascarpone and blood orange to finish. Order here . The Legal Eagle The Legal Eagle / Winding Stair have four Mother's Day feasts up for grabs, with five courses and the choice of smoked haddock, lamb, châteaubriand or wild garlic and ricotta dumplings for mains. It also includes a bottle of prosecco and a single flower, and you can add on wine and/or cocktails. Meals for one start at €50 (€100 for two) and delivery is an extra €10. Order here . Richmond Richmond are doing dinner for two for €70 including a roast celeriac and comté pie with truffle and hazelnut cream - and that's just the starter. It's glazed beef short-rib for main, lemon cheesecake with blackberry salted caramel for dessert, and chocolate for afters. Available for collection from Portobello on Sunday from 11:00 - 17:00. Old Street Old Street are doing a family meal to feed two adults and two children, with crab cakes and either roast chicken or beef wellington for the adults, and chicken wings and pasta for the kids. Everyone's having bread and butter pudding for dessert. Available for collection from 12:00 - 17:30 all weekend. Order here . Dax Dax 's €48 pp three-course mother's day menu is available for collection from Friday - Sunday, and features some of their greatest hits like Clare Island smoked salmon with dressed Clogherhead crab, Dublin Bay prawn raviolo with lemongrass and ginger sauce, and an opera gateau with dark chocolate and buttercream pistachio. Place your order here . Bang Bang have set menus available on Mother's Day for one, two or four people - this a really nice one if your Mum is having to cocoon solo. Options include rack of lamb and roast halibut, and you get snacks and three courses for €35 - €44 a head, depending on what you choose. Available for collection or delivery Dublin-wide. See the options and order here . Back To Dine Back to Dine 's latest collaboration with London-based Irish chef Anna Haugh went live last week and runs until the first week of April, and they still have availability for Mother's Day weekend. The seven-course set menu, including bread, snacks, sweet and a course for the following day, costs €99 for two, and can be collected from San Lorenzo's on George's Street or delivered to some areas - email them to see if they can come to you. See the menu and order here . Craft Craft in Harold's Cross are doing a pretty swanky five course (six if you include bread) menu for two or four people at €45 a head. There's wild garlic soup with cheddar dumplings, roast rump of lamb with a shoulder pie, and lemon meringue for dessert, and they've promised minimal cooking on anything hot. Collection times are available from 12:00 - 15:30 and you can order here . Bistro One Bistro One in Foxrock were teasing their Mother's Day menu last week and we now know there's going to be options including a fish box starter, slow-cooked short rib with champ laced with wild garlic and spring onion, glazed carrots and braised hispi, and a pink rhubarb, blood orange and Campari trifle for dessert. Order for collection only here . Bastible ***SOLD OUT*** Bastible have just unlocked their March menus and if you're quick you can get in there for Mother's Day. The set menu starts with sourdough and cultured butter and ends with blood orange curd doughnuts, and in between there's treacle-cured sea trout, Black Angus striploin, and buttermilk bavarois. It's €40 for one or €75 for two and you can see the full menu and order here . Harry Quinn Pichet head chef Harry Quinn obviously got fed up of waiting to get back to work, so has started offering a "premium at home dining experience" for collection from his home in Monkstown (all HSE-approved). The Mother's Day menu features a burrata salad with wild garlic and hazelnut dressing, a chicken, mushroom and bacon pithivier, and honey panna cotta with poached rhubarb for dessert. It's €40 per person and you can call him on 0838077598 to order, or send him a DM on Instagram .

Spring has sprung, buds are budding, and somewhere deep down in your dark little soul there's been a shift of mood as you're starting to see an injection of colour in your life, or at least on your phone. After what feels like an endless winter of scrolling through images of fried chicken, burgers, and sushi (possibly made in some randomer's bedroom), we're finally getting some virtual sunshine in the form of blood orange and rhubarb ev'ywhere. Here's all the fruity goodness you need in your life this week and where to find it. 1) Rhubarb and Vanilla Sponge from Two Boys Brew Life is all about balance - ying and yang, popcorn and Maltesers, hopeless crying resulting in helpless giggling. If cake has been a regular feature of your week lately, this one from Two Boys Brew topped with buttercream and rhubarb should inject some fruity balance after all of the chocolate/salted caramel/honeyed doughs that got us through winter. 2) Aperol Spritz Panna Cotta from Osteria Lucio One of our favourite things about food and drink, and it's a looooong list, is how evocative so much of it is. Aperol Spritz is the taste of a summer terrace somewhere in Dublin 2, shopping bags at our weary feet, watching people wander past while we get more vocal and even more hilarious with our friends sitting well within two metres. If you could put that feeling in a jar, you'd have Osteria Lucio 's Aperol Spritz panna cotta, loaded with fresh blood orange. Click and collect and delivery available on this bad boy. 3) Rhubarb Pie from No Messin' Bakery Buttery pastry, poached Ryan's rhubarb and poaching syrup all make for an epic pastry. No Messin' Bakery are no stranger to beautiful bakes and this one looks like it's earned its spot among the brown butter cookies and Cardi-B buns. 4) Blood Orange Cannoli from Woodruff Woodruff is not putting a foot wrong lately. They've been taunting us with cannoli for the past few months, all with imaginative and delicious fillings, and they've just added a blood orange version that's available to grab and go from their restaurant in Stepaside. 5) Vanilla, Rhubarb, Orange and Cardamom Cake from Clare Anne Taylor Creator of bespoke occasion cakes and confections, Clare Anne Taylor's gorgeous creations are available from her website , but Forest Avenue also stock some of her range. While this one is being made for Mother's Day, we think it's so stunning that it could turn any day into a special occasion. Bourbon vanilla sponge, rhubarb poached with orange and cardamom, all wrapped in an orange-kissed Italian meringue buttercream. It's available for pre-order only, and numbers are limited, so get in there fast. It's €65 and you can order here for collection on Saturday 13th.

It's the news that restaurant obsessives around the country have been waiting for - two more Dublin restaurants are launching nationwide delivery. As of today Bao House's Yumo Kits can be ordered to anywhere in the 32 counties, and Sprezzatura 's 'Pasta Club' goes live in the next two weeks. Sprezzatura have taken their time getting a pasta delivery service up and running, trialling various packaging options to ensure the food arrives cold and intact, but they finally think they've cracked it. Their pasta club will have a weekly changing pasta for two, four or six people, available as a one off purchase or an onoing subscription (we've already mentally signed up), and delivery nationwide will be included in the price. Packaging is sustainable and they're going for "simple and delicious". You can sign up for first dibs on orders by filling in the form on their website . Yumo Kits from Bao House, have been providing restaurant quality food and home entertainment since launching a few months ago, and the plan was always to expand to nationwide delivery. Now they're ready and as of today you can order any of their gyoza, dumpling, wonton or kimchi kits for delivery in Dublin and Wicklow for €6, and for anywhere else in the country for €8.50. Rejoice... Place your order here and see below for a special discount. Yumo Kits are giving ATF readers 10% off their first order using the code ALLTHEFOOD when checking out, valid from 2nd - 31st of March.

Poor Pancake Tuesday seems to have been all but forgotten this year. Between Covid and Valentine's Day stealing its thunder, our favourite holiday is at risk of fading into the wallpaper in 2021, but not if we can help it. If any of these places are within your 5km get down there today and pick up a pancake. It's bound to be the highlight of the week. Fable & Stey Fable & Stey in Blackrock seemed to be one of the only places talking about PT a week in advance this year - our kind of excitement. Their "all the trimmings" ultimate pancake set serves four and contains fluffy American pancake mix, fresh fruit, peanut brittle, mini marshmallows, salted caramel sauce, chocolate ganache, mini chocolate chips, orange juice, eggs and prosecco. At the time of writing they had very few left, so if you want to get your hands on one call them asap on 01 5610382. Lennox Street Grocer While they won't actually do the cooking for you, Lennox Street Grocer have lovely looking bottles of Jersey milk pancake mix ready to pour. They also sell organic maple syrup, dulce de leche and Murphy's sea salt ice-cream - you know what to do. Lilliput Stores, Stoneybatter Lilliput Stores in Stoneybatter are taking a slightly different (yet no less appealing) tack with this mill e crêpe c ake, sold by the slice with a tiramisu icing. Kerb, Foxrock Kerb in Foxrock will be topping their wholemeal stacked pancakes with berry compote, yoghurt, cashew caramel and granola. They're available from 10:00 - 12:00 and you can pre-order by calling them on 01 2896735. Honey Honey, Portmarnock Honey Honey in Portmarnock have three pancakes specials on the menu today - bacon and maple; chocolate and banana; and lemon mascarpone and berry. Pancakes on the beach - the actual dream. Five Points, Harolds Cross Five Points in Harold's Cross have five different pancakes to choose from today, including savoury with fried chicken and hot sauce, and sweet with chocolate hazelnut and salt caramel, but our pick is the pancake day special of apple, blackberry and almonds. Order for collection here . Monck's Green, Phibsboro Monck's Green in Phibsboro have crêpes to go tomorrow, including one with rhubarb and lime crème fraîche, AND there's free tea or coffee with every order. Order for collection here . Herb Street, Grand Canal Dock Pancake OG's Herb Street are going pancake crazy tomorrow from 09:00 - 15:00, with options including spinach and ricotta with smoked salmon, double chocolate and raspberry with cream and chocolate fudge, and apple pie pancakes with ice-cream and salted caramel sauce. Order for collection here . Le Chocolat de Frèd, Dun Laoghaire It's pancake day every day at Le chocolate de Frèd in Dun Laoghaire, but if you've been looking for an excuse to try the under the radar chocolate café whose customers couldn't possibly love it any more, Shrove Tuesday might just be the day. The only option here is a chocolate crêpe, clearly . Peperina Bistro Garden Peperina Bistro Garden in Ranelagh serve their pancakes every day with fresh berries, banana, yoghurt and maple syrup, and it's business as usual on Pancake Tuesday. Order in advance here . Tang, Dawson Street Pancake perfectionists Tang will be dishing up pancakes from their Dawson Street branch until 11:30 today, and their buckwheat versions come topped with homemade nutbutter, Greek yoghurt, baked pears, blackberries and honey. 31 Lennox Portobello café 31 Lennox will be serving up a FREE lemon and sugar pancake tomorrow with every Bell Lane coffee sold, and if there's anything better than a pancake, it's a free pancake. Alma, Portobello Argentinean café Alma in Portobello have kept the pancakes going year-round, with their dulce de leche pancake kit to finish at home. For €22 you get pre-cooked pancakes, homemade dulce de leche, brandy and orange mascarpone, seasonal fruits, orange zest, mint and toasted almonds, with bacon as an additional extra. Order for collection here . Aventura, Portmarnock Aventura Coffee House at Portmarnock train station are doing traditional Brazilian pancakes made from sweetcorn flour called 'pac pacs' (thicker and fluffier than most), with either bacon and maple, or berries and sour cream. We're intruiged... Social Fabric Café, Stoneybatter Stoneybatter's Social Fabric Café has three pancake options on the menu - chocolate ganache with raspberry and pistachio; butterscotch sauce with fresh fruit and caramelized peanuts; and maple syrup with streaky bacon. They're suggesting you have one each for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and we've definitely heard worse suggestions. Metro Café, South William Street The Metro Café on South William Street may be closed for people watching, but you can still get their buttermilk pancakes with honeyed butter for click and collect all day. Berry compote or nutella are optional extras, and you can order in advance here . Lemon Crepe and Coffee Co. Open for an amazing 22 years, Lemon on South William Street is Dublin's original pancake house and still going strong. We would usually expect queues all day on Pancake Tuesday, but with the city centre quieter than ever you'll probably be able to order one of their 56 different types of crepes pretty swiftly. Pick from sweet ones like the Chocolate Supreme with chocolate, strawberries and banana, or savoury ones like the Mexicano with cheddar cheese, guacamole, salsa and tomato. Worth it for the nostalgia apart from anything else. Eathos Baggot Street healthy eating café Eathos specialises in very brightly coloured food, and their pancakes are no exception. On Pancake Tuesday they'll be serving their regular buckwheat pancakes with blackberry compote, fresh berries and coconut whip, available for collection or via Deliveroo. Order here . Did we miss your favourite place for pancakes? Let us know by emailing info@allthefood.ie.

It’s been a weird week. Netflix’s Prom got a Golden Globe nom, half the country has been hooked on a poor-quality recording of an online Cheshire Parish Council meeting (go you Jackie Weaver), and we’ve all been abnormally entertained by a lawyer cleverly disguised as a kitten. Hey, it’s 2021 and anything that makes us feel an emotion other than despair is fine by us. But you know what the internet is also great for? Showing us delicious food. Here’s the five things it's taunting us with this week. 1) Buttermilk Fried Chicken Burger from Bujo Bujo are the queens of tease when it comes to new products, such is their determination to get things unarguably perfect, and we've been waiting a long time since this picture of an up and coming chicken burger appeared on their Instagram page last September. So we take great pleasure in telling you that one of the ATF team happened to stumble into Bujo while they were doing taste tests and immediately sent frenzied texts about the "incredible" crunchy fried chicken with pink pickled onions, and zingy secret sauce, and a chicken to bun ratio that's "fantastic". While they're not quite ready to launch it yet, if it is on the menu on your next visit you know what to do. 2) Sugar Pit Rib Beef from Baste BBQ Consider this your official Baste BBQ klaxon, because they’re back with a meaty bang. They've got takeaway every Friday and Saturday plus an online store and at-home kits are available, but this short rib really caught our eye. Each one is over 300g of slow-cooked, smoky goodness. Insert Homer Simpson drooling gif right here. 3) Orange-Soaked Sourdough from Ground State Coffee Much like our brains at the moment, there’s a lot to unpack here - sourdough soaked in orange with a spiked crème anglais, labneh, poached pears, cinnamon, and nut brittle. Ground State Coffee say it’s their most popular brunch dish and we can see why. Available for click and collect or delivery via Deliveroo.. 4) Prawn Laksa from Soup Two In any other year, the announcement of the opening of a second restaurant from the gang in Soup Ramen would be grounds for excited text messages written ENTIRELY IN CAPS, but for now you'll have to make do with click and collect or local-ish delivery from Soup Two , their new digs on King Street North near Smithfield. This coconut-based laksa with prawns, glass noodles, cashews, and crispy onions looks like a great introduction to their menu. 5) All the Cookie Sandwiches from My Cookie Sandwich Rory Shannon from Bistro One set up My Cookie Sandwich late last year to really positive feedback, and now the online store is back open, this time with nationwide delivery. The cookie sandwiches are packed with flavour and incredibly moreish so we’d recommend ordering what you think you’ll need, then doubling it (maybe treble it for the loaded chocolate). It looks like they’re just about sold out now but keep an eye on their website for the next release dates.

As much as we’ve loved seeing Eric, our trusty DPD driver, three times a day for the past six months, there are some knocks at the door that get us more excited, than others and the promise of alcohol is definitely one of those. Here’s our updated list of where to get cocktails in Dublin, most of them with delivery options, because staying in-in is never going to be the new going out-out, but at least there’s alcohol. Dublin Cocktail Lab Remember that feeling of being in a cocktail bar and the seemingly endless possibilities awaiting you in the leather-bound cocktail menu placed in your hands? We miss it too, so had raised eyebrows when. Dublin Cocktail Lab caught our eye with their unusual and aesthetically pleasing Instagram feed. Cocktails like Miso Grapefruit Bloody Marys and Rose Coconut Spritz are available for nationwide delivery, and the site also has loads of lovely add-ons like kombucha, pickle juice, and a hot whiskey syrup that sounds like it would go with pretty much anything. It's €5 for delivery and you can order on their website . Farrier and Draper As much as we’d love nothing more than to be sitting in a bar in Dublin 2, we’re settling for our sofas. Available for click and collection and delivery via Deliveroo, Farrier and Draper has a really big selection, including a Spice Bag Margarita. Might need a few lemon mojitos before we’re brave enough for that one. They also have a vegan range (aren't most cocktails vegan?) including this dairy-free pina colada. Order here . Craft Cocktails If you’ve kept an eye on our Insta stories over the past few months, you know that we’ve been working our way through lots of lovely drinks from Craft Cocktails . From the team at Bar 1661 , these drinks pack a serious punch, and the really cute packaging means they’ve been one of our go-tos for sending a little pick-me-up to friends. Delivery is nationwide through www.craftcocktails.ie but we’ve also spotted them in Baggot Street Wines and Neighbourhood Wine . Catch Events After a brief hiatus, Catch Events are back with their Quarantini boxes, and we were very relieved to hear it. Kits contain all you need to make four vibrant cocktails, plus you can add on a heap of extras if you’re feeling extra extra. Be warned, kits tend to get snapped up once they go up on www.catchevents.ie so don't delay getting our order in. Vintage Cocktail Club Another thing we miss is getting dressed-up and going out. Now, we’re not saying everyone has turned into a slob overnight, but we haven’t seen a pair of heels in almost a year, and lipstick is pretty much a distant memory. If you have a special occasion to celebrate at home, the cocktail kits from Vintage Cocktail Club is certainly a way to inject some instant glam into your evening and are available on Deliveroo. Order here . Fourth Corner We’re sick of winter and need some sunshine. We’re not getting it naturally, we can’t fly anywhere to find it, but we can get little glasses of sunshine delivered right to our homes from The Fourth Corner so it’s ok. Plus, where else in Dublin are you going to get a Mule inspired by actor Paul Mescal? The Mescal Mule, naturally... Order here . Hang Dai Hang Dai has been one of our to-go takeaways over the past year, and we would seriously recommend adding one of their cocktails to your order of sesame toast with yuzu mayo. As we’ve come to expect from the loud and lively Chinese restaurant, the cocktails pack serious flavour, often using Asian ingredients like yuzu and Szechuan peppercorns. Bottles of pre-mixed cocktails can be added on to click and collect orders, or delivered via Just Eat or Deliveroo. Order here . Mulberry Garden Mulberry Garden is doing a weekly home meal kit that’s available for collection or Dublin delivery every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Best thing is you can add on cocktails including their take on a Margarita or The Mulberry Old Fashioned which is laced with mulberry puree. Order here . Drop Dead Twice Drop Dead Twice on Francis Street has takeaway cocktails available for collection and delivery on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. In addition to American diner classics, they also have a Netflix and Chill range with cocktail and dessert options. Or, if you want to be really efficient, you can combine your alcohol and sugar intake for maximum dopamine surge in the form of a 'hard shake'. Order for collection or delivery here . The Blind Pig It feels kind of fitting that The Blind Pig , a speakeasy and prohibition era-inspired bar on Suffolk Street, gets the opportunity to do some bootlegging through home delivery. The cocktail menu is extensive and features extras like bar snacks and syrups for your home bar. They’re also doing a full menu for pizza, pasta, and sandwiches. Check out their website for details. Dillinger’s, 777, The Butcher Grill Frozen margaritas from 777 helped get us through the summer, and sister restaurants Dillinger’s and The Butcher Grill are also offering lots of delightful-sounding cocktails for collection and delivery to certain parts of Dublin, like the 'Easy Tiger' with pecan-infused Bulleit bourbon, maple syrup, disaronno and bitters. See each restaurant’s website for details. Wigwam The little bottles of Espresso Martini from Wigwam that graced pretty much every Dubliner’s timeline at some stage during the summer seem to be on hiatus for now, but you can still order Moscow Mules, Dark and Stormys, and Cuba Libres. In addition to click and collect, there’s local delivery (within 2kms) on Fridays and Saturdays, but Just Eat and Deliveroo give more opportunities for you to get deliveries from Thursday to Sunday. See all the details on their website . Krewe A popular spot for pre-pandemic group outings (remember those?), Krewe on Capel Street is now doing a full menu click and collect and delivery so you can get their extensive range of cocktails right to your door. Sizes start at single serve and go to mega portions - no judgement here. All the info is on their website . The Washerwoman of Glasnevin If you’re on the Northside and in need of a Cosmo or gin cooler (and we’ve never had a time when we didn’t need one of those), The Washerwoman in Glasnevin have them, and lots of others, available for collection. Check out their menus and order here .

It's official. There are only so many walks we can go on and so much Netflix we can watch before it all becomes a bit samey. Although we can’t spend time with most of our family and friends in person, anything is possible in a virtual world, and we've found upcoming events as a (somewhat) social alternative to the unending circle that is Netflix and Chill (followed by rage and worry). Sign up with some pals or fly solo for some much needed alone time. Cooking Classes From Airfield Estate There's a lot going on at Airfield estate with cooking demos for every age and skill level. On Wednesdays there's a free live ‘lockdown lunches cook along’ with Chef Lisa Davies (she's done pad Thai, butternut squash hash, frittatas, edible playdough and cake pops for the younger audience), with required ingredients posted on their social media channels the day before. They have a series of e-learning events scheduled for February including a four-part teen chef cook along (€70) and masterclasses in perfecting the fakeaway (Indian, Italian and Middle Eastern featured so far) costing €25 per class, and there are also free tutorials on their community food hub including meal planning, healthy eating on a budget and recipes to feed a hungry family on a budget. Get all the details on their website . Dublin City Brewing's Tasting Club Fancy brushing up on your food and beer pairings? Yup, us too, and doing it in your pj’s from the comfort of your own home has mega appeal. From Thursday February 25th, the newly opened Dublin City Brewing Company on Parnell Street launch their monthly tasting club with head brewer Fergal Murray and a guest food producer. First up is Kwanghi Chan of Bowls by Kwanghi Chan, and for a mere €20 you can register for the zoom event and receive a pack with three Dublin City Brewing beers, a branded glass and a jar of Kwanghi’s Chanchan Black Garlic & Peanut Rayu. The price also includes delivery. Bargain. Book your place here . An Online Wine Tasting Of d'Arenberg Wines By all accounts, d'Arenberg Wine's Chester Osborne is a bit of a character, being referred to as ‘the Willy Wonka of the wine world’, and this week you have the chance to be entertained and informed by the man himself, while drinking a lot of wine in the process. The tasting, hosted by Wine Online , costs €135, for which you'll get six wines from down under (RRP €170) delivered to your door, a wine and food pairing masterclass, and a booklet of Aussie recipes to compliment the wines, like seared scallops with parsnip puree, and slow-cooked lamb shoulder with gremolata and parsnip mash - not too shabby for a Thursday night during mid-term. You'll need to be quick for this one as orders close tomorrow at 12:00 (so they can get the wine to you in time), with the event taking place on Thursday evening at 20:30, but if you miss this one they have others coming up in March. Book a place here . The Blind Pig's Cocktail Masterclasses You may have missed the Valentine’s Day cocktail masterclass with The Blind Pig but there are still plenty of private masterclass slots available, and the next public one is scheduled for St. Patrick's day - shamrock shakes be gone. Participants are sent a list of required ingredients ahead of the class along with household suggestions to replace the more professional cocktail equipment, after all, not everyone has a bar cart crammed with pourers and jiggers to get the job done. You will also be sent a pdf to keep with step by step instructions. Private classes have the option to level up and have cocktail ingredients and/or equipment delivered, along with a hard copy of the manual. Prices from €20. See all the details here . Fermentation Classes From River Run Ferments Apparently fermenting is the new baking, and one thing's for sure, making our own miso, kimchi and kombucha would save us a small fortune (anyone else eating kimchi by the kilo? All about that microbiome...). If you could do with shaving a few hours off level 5 lethargy, and develop a skill that's actually useful, River Run Ferments in Co. Wicklow run monthly online workshops at a cost of €30 a pop. The classes are delivered via zoom on weekends so taking part won’t interfere with ‘working from home’ and each workshop is limited to 15 people. See what's coming up here . Cookery Classes From Sprig Cookery School Professional chef Eamon Lynch (formerly of Brother Hubbard and The Dublin Cookery School) has set up Sprig , a new cookery school that will be operating virtually for the moment, and moving into a real-life premises whenever possible - imagine being in a room with strange humans again, will we even cope. His classes are inexpensive and look educational while not taking themselves too seriously. Tomorrow from 18:30 you can learn to make three different types of breads, on Thursday it's pasta making (no machine needed), and other upcoming classes include brunch entertaining and a Mexican masterclass. See what's coming up here .

As much as we don't overly buy into Valentine's Day it's been such a rough 12 months that we think everyone deserves a treat at every possible opportunity for the foreseeable future, so the heart-shaped holiday is just an excuse to buy more food and drink. If you've predictably left your present buying to the last minute, here are some things you can order online that an be collected or that should (unforeseen circumstances aside) arrive before V-Day. Brunch / Afternoon Tea / Grazing The Cake Café Maybe you don't want to do dinner, or maybe you want to have a day of eating. Either way there are some really nice brunch and afternoon tea options available this year. The Cake Café have a very pink Valentine's 'Love Lunch', available for collection or delivery on the 14th. It's €65 and includes sandwiches, crostinis, cakes, cookies, salads, teas and prosecco cocktails. Order here . Brunch From The Divine Foodie The Divine Foodie deliver their brunch boxes across Dublin on Saturdays. For €32.50 you get homemade sausage rolls, chilli chutney, North Wicklow free range eggs, homemade brown bread, Belgian waffles with chocolate sauce, granola with yogurt and fruit compote, and optional extras including Kilmullen Farm Apple juice and smashed avocado. Order a brunch box here . Anduma's Cheese And Charcuterie Box Anduma 's Valentine's box contains four different cheeses, Spanish ham, salame milano, crackers, Ferrero Rocher, mini honey pot, Sheridan's chutney, dried fruit and nuts. You can also include an optional cheese knife. It's €29 and another €5 for delivery, which they'll be doing on Saturday 13th. Order here . Eatyard's Wine & Cheese Box Eatyard 's Valentine's wine and cheese boxes are available to purchase from their sites at The Bernard Shaw in Drumcondra and The Lighthouse in Dun Laoghaire. For €40 you'll get Irish cheeses, charcuterie, crackers, chutney, Bean & Goose chocolate and red wine. Available from Thursday 11th. The Valentine's Box From Baa Baa Baa Baa in Chapelizod have sweet and savoury covered with their Valentine's Boxes containing an Irish cheeseboard, red wine, homemade cheesecake brownies and homemade love heart chocolates with rose petals and sea salt. It's €70 and available for collection on Saturday 13th, or delivery to certain areas for an extra €10. Check them out here . Sweet Teeth The Bean And Goose Tasting Club We love a good food club, and we love chocolate, so the Bean and Goose tasting club is right up our street. Each month members receive two bars, a one off from their Bean Lab and another from their core range. Both come with tasting notes and it starts at €45 for a three-month subscription. Sign your lover up here . The Cupcake Bloke's Valentine's Treat Box The Cupcake Bloke 's Valentine's treat boxes went on sale for postal delivery last week and sold out straight away, but they can be purchased directly from the bakery on Friday 12th and Saturday 13th. For €21 you get a red velvet cookie stack, a chocolate and Irish cream liqueur truffle cake, a heart-shaped raspberry and coconut mikado, a white chocolate and raspberry bakewell bark, and a brown butter triple chocolate brownie. Serious sugar coma potential, but totally worth it. Póg's Valentine's Boxes Póg 's Valentine's boxes are €35 or €53 with a bottle of bubbly (we presume prosecco or similar), and include brownies, caramel chocolate popcorn, loveheart cookies, rose cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate bombs and heart-shaped marshmallows. Collection only. DM them on Instagram to order. Valentine's Alfies From Gordita We love Gordita 's Argentinean alfajores - two soft biscuits sandwiched with dulce de leche caramel - and they're delivering their pink boxes across Dublin on Saturday 13th. Choose any combination of flavours from chocolate, white chocolate, ruby, gold, Italian meringue and vanilla (our favourites were gold and vanilla), and order by sending them a DM on Instagram . Butlers Valentine's Chocolates Butlers have a whole range of heart-shaped/pink/floral themed chocolates to choose from, and it's a good time to stock up as the Christmas chocolate has probably just run out. There's a gifting bundle for the serious chocolate lover, loads of different sized boxes, tins and trays, and our personal choice, the cocktail menu, with flavours including whiskey sour, passion fruit margarita and an espresso martini. See the range and order here . Kale + C0co's Chocolate Fondue Box For the sweet toothed vegans/coeliacs, Kale + Coco have a vegan and gluten free chocolate fondue box, with fruit, banana bread, dates, granola, coconut chips and rose petals for dipping. It comes wrapped up in a gift box with a red rose for €25, and is for collection only on Saturday 13th. Order here . Krispy Kreme's Love Heart Doughnuts If you have someone in your life who happily gets in the drive-through queue for Krispy Kreme , they'll probably be into their Valentine’s Day collaboration with Swizzels Love Hearts. The limited-edition heart-shaped (obvs) doughnuts come with messages like "I love you" and "BFF", and all the sherbet flavours (as well as chocolate). They're €2.95 each or €18.95 for 12, and you can get them through their click and serve, via the drive-through, or delivered on Uber Eats, Just Eat and Deliveroo. See the range and order here . Food Hampers & Booze The Hen's Teeth Gift Box "The world's in bits but you're not" gift box from Hen's Teeth has so many of our favourite things in there we're tempted to order it as a gift from me to me. For €80 you get a bottle of pet nat, a two-person Pornstar Martini from Irish Craft Cocktails, Harry's nutbutter extra hawt, Kold hot sauce, coco caramel hazelnuts and a Wary Meyers soap, as well as a card and the best gift box we've seen in some time. Order for collection or delivery between 11th - 13th February here . Nan Wang's Sauce Selection Chefs Alan Wang and Adam McCloskey started Nan Wang 's a few months ago selling Chinese condiments to spice up your meals, and these have a big fat ATF seal of approval - running out of their black bean sauce has been the most devastating thing to happen in 2021 so far. The sesame chilli oil has a smokier, spicier kick than rayu, and the Asian tomato chutney is made for curry. Jars are €6-€7 and you can add a gift box for €2. Order by DMing them on Instagram . Union Hall's Food Box West Cork smokehouse Union Hall 's €50 food box contains all of their smoked fish products, like whiskey infused smoked salmon and smoked mackerel paté, as well as cheeses, biscuits and other treats. Boxes come packed with ice to keep them fresh, and you can order your own taste of West Cork here . Jamon From Spain Iberico Let's be honest. One of the main reasons we return to Spain time and time again is to bring back copious amounts of jamon, and we're found this new 'no-flying anywhere' normal particularly hard to take from a food standpoint. So when we stumbled across Spain Iberico recently, set up by people like us , for people like us who are struggling to find the good stuff on home turf, we wasted no time placing an order. It was dispatched the same day with delivery due a few days later, and because they're EU based there's no custom-related issues to worry about. You'll also get 15% off your first order by signing up to their mailing list. See their range here . Valentine's Cocktails From Craft Cocktails Is it really Valentine's Day if you haven't had a cocktail? This year take all the stress, shaking and stirring out of it by ordering a Valentine's bundle from Irish Craft Cocktails . They've re-packaged some of their pink and purple classics, and added Cosmopolitans to the line up, and a set of four will set you back €60 with free delivery. Order here . The Green Man Wine Club's "Love" Edition If wine is more your bag, sign your lover up to Green Man Wine 's wine club this week and your first box will be themed "Love of the land", exploring the theme of love in wine. Uber romantic. A three month subscription is €199, and you can sign up here .

With 11 days to go you'll want to be quick if you plan on grabbing yourself a restaurant meal for V-Day. Lots have already sold out (including Bastible, The Butcher Grill and The Cali Kitchen), but there are plenty still available. Just don't dawdle too much on this one. Note: lots are available for collection or delivery on Friday 12th or Saturday 13th, but will stay good until the 14th, so don't worry if you can only get one of those dates. Also PSA: This article contains a LOT of steak, which appears to be our national Valentine's Day dish. Allta Allta 's Valentine's Day offering goes on sale on Monday the 8th at 12:00 and you'll need to be on the ball for this one. It's €130 for two people but includes two killer bottles of Gobillard 1er Cru Champagne and Le Grappin's red Beaujolais, as well as the usual sourdough and shiitake miso butter, charcuterie, pickled veg, dressed leaves, shortrib cassarece to share, chocolate fondants and miso caramels to end. There's a vegetarian option too. You can collect from Allta on Friday 12th or they're delivering to Dublin, Wicklow, Kildare and Meath on Saturday 13th for €9.95. Boxes go on sale here on Monday at midday. Neighbourhood Wine New Leeson Street wine shop Neighbourhood Wine have put together a 'Hopeless Home-Antics' box for two, which can be collected from the shop on Friday 12th or Sat 13th. For €89 you get a John Stone Côte de Boeuf, David Bradshaw’s (ex-Potager / Lyle's in London) dauphinoise, Young Buck blue cheese sauce, long stem broccoli, a Bread 41 Loaf for two, Allta's shiitake miso butter, and a bottle of that same Le Grappin 'Saint Amour' Beaujolais. Stretch to €149 and you'll get a bottle of Bollinger Champagne too. Order one here . Back To Dine Back To Dine 's collaboration with JP McMahon has just opened up for Valentine's Day. It's €99 for seven courses and dishes include venison pithivier with Jerusalem artichokes, whiskey and oyster mushroom sauce and potato gratin, pavlova with lemon curd and forced rhubarb, and ham hock and egg terrine with Durrus cheese & linseed crackers for the next day. It's available for collection from San Lorenzo's on George's Street, and they can sometimes do delivery - email them to check. Order one here . The Legal Eagle The Legal Eagle have a really wide range of options available for your Valentine's Day feast, including mains of Châteaubriand, smoked haddock, and a vegetarian option of Jerusalem artichoke and Crozier Blue cheese pancakes. They even have meal options for one - ideal if you and your partner are being kept apart by Covid/quarantine/travel restrictions. They're available for collection only on Sunday 14th and you can see all of the options here . Overends Kitchen, Airfield Estate Overends Kitchen have an excellent value meal box available for collection on Friday 12th or Saturday 13th, for €55 for two people. A celebration of the estate's produce, it includes gildas, taramasalata and brown bread, grilled purple sprouting broccol with a miso dressing and sliced pancetta, potato and parmesan gnocchi with Cashel blue cheese and a rosemary sauce, Airfield Estate Lamb served two ways, with Jerusalem artichoke and cavolo nero, a craquelin choux bun with beetroot molasses and sweet woodruff pastry cream to share, and petit fours. Probably the bargain of 2021 so far. Order yours here . 777 777 have a Valentine's dinner for two for €80, and it's one of the few options on this list that doesn't involve steak. Instead you're looking at a main of braised pork belly with red mole sauce, and lots of other lovely things like totopos with salsa and guacamole, chicken liver paté with mango salsa, and elotes. It's available for collection from Thursday 11th - Saturday 13th, or delivery on Friday 12th for an additional €7. Order here . Bang Bang is another restaurant with multiple Valentine's meal options at €50 a head, with a choice of fillet steak from Peter Hannan, côte de boeuf for two, roast halibut, or a vegetarian option of parmesan triangoli with Jerusalem artichoke & crème fraiche sauce. There are snacks, starters, sides and desserts too, and optional add-ons of cocktails and wine. It's available for collection and delivery from Friday 11th - Sunday 13th, and you can order here . Casper & Giumbini's Casper & Giumbini's in Dun Laoghaire are doing a four-course menu with cocktails featuring dressed crab, rib-eye steak, chocolate fondants and petit fours for €100. You can also add on wine from a limited selection for €20. Collection only. Details are on their website . The Port House The Port House haven't opened their orders yet but you can register your interest on their website and they'll email you when boxes are live. Their four course menu comes with wine or cava, a candle, Spotify playlists, a video to create the Port House atmosphere, and a 20% discount card to use at one of their restaurants when they reopen. They'll also deliver free within the M50. No price yet but you can register your interest here . Le Perroquet Le Perroquet on Leeson Street have made their Valentine's dinner boxes available to order for collection or Dublin-wide delivery (€5), over Valentine's weekend (Friday 12th - Sunday 14th). Main course options are striploin, salmon or a vegetarian option o f Mushroom and Leek Pitivier, and there's lots of other lovely things like s ourdough and whipped duck fat butter, chicken and black pudding terrine, and homemade chocolates to finish. Order here . Peploe's Peploe's have three simple Valentine's options available, of a main course and a dessert for €80 for two. The choices are a Rick Higgins 30 day dry-aged côte de boeuf, a JJ Young Beef Wellington, or pan-fried black sole, which all come with sides and sauces. Order here . Dax Dax is opening their collections service as a one off on Sunday the 14th (it's usually only available Friday and Saturday nights). The food comes ready to eat and collections are usually between 17:00 and 20:00. No word on the menu or price yet but it goes live on their website this Sunday the 7th. Asador/Prado Asador (Ballsbridge) and Prado (Clontarf) have a dinner box available on Friday 13th and Saturday 14th for collection or delivery to most parts of Dublin. It's €79 for two and contains a four-course menu which includes a chargrilled monkfish & mooli salad, a dry-aged chateaubriand for two, comté with crackers and chutney, and Valrhona chocolate hearts to finish. Order here . Sophie's Sophie's on Harcourt Street are doing a three-course cook at home meal kit, containing the ingredients for roasted butternut squash, pine nut & goats cheese cannelloni, Irish beef wellington, and a chocolate and strawberry dome for dessert. There's also a chocolate box with bon bons, macaroons & Bailey’s chocolate truffles. Kits are €85 and can be ordered for collection or delivery on Saturday 13th. Order here .

The recent weather is just the icing on the cake when it comes to the tyranny that 2021 has brought us so far. It’s beginning to feel a bad remake of Groundhog Day with little to brighten the mood and depressing talk of restaurants being kept closed until early summer. One small ray of light however in this fog of samey days, is the increase in drive-through places to go for decent coffee without having to brave the weather or have a run in with the person behind you who's forgotten that social distancing was ever a thing - although some of these spots will still involve jumping out of the car to order and pay. Sometimes, walks are overrated. 1) Aventura, Portmarnock/Malahide With an excellent sea-facing location at the car park of Paddy’s Hill in Malahide, and another in the train station car park in Portmarnock, Aventura is perfectly positioned for those travelling by car, with plenty of space to pull up, order and hop back in. Coffee is their own house blend from Koffy in Newry and the treats from Mud Bakery, The Carrot Cake Lady and Medialuna Croissanterie are even more reasons to visit. The sandwiches are top class too. 2) Thru The Green, Windy Arbour Thru the Green , in Windy Arbour near Dundrum village, is the ideal pit stop for those who want to limit their interaction with the outside world, whether for health reasons or just because of a bad hair day (which most of us are having too many of lately). The coffee on the bar is from Roasted Brown and there are sandwiches and cakes for take away too. One of the owners is Australian so it’s no surprise that last year on Australia Day (January 26th) there were Anzac biscuits and lamingtons on the go which we hope to see repeated this week. 3) Cheeky Rascal Coffee, Howth Junction Industrial Estate While not primarily a drive through, Cheeky Rascal have been known to serve customers directly through their window if the situation presents itself, but parking nearby is ample anyway. Coffee is the shiringa blend from Blue Butterfly Coffee in Waterford, and this is the only place in town to drink it. Treats are handmade by The Middle Child, and pre and (hopefully) post Covid, they're available as a pop up horsebox bar/cocktail bar for events and parties, when we finally have something to celebrate. 4) The Coffee Kid, Sallynoggin Another coffee kiosk making use of a lonely parking lot is The Coffee Kid (aka Alex Flynn) in Sallynoggin. Located in the car park of M Kelly Interiors (between Lidl and Woodies) there is tonnes of space to do a park and dash for your daily dose. Coffee is from 8th Corner Coffee in Dun Laoghaire and there are freshly baked vegan cookies, biscotti, fudge and sage and apple sausage rolls to go. 5) Grindstone, Balally Luas With their own dedicated house blend from 3fe and more Kombucha than you can shake a stick at, Grindstone seems to have it all going on. There are homemade jambons and sausage rolls, teas from Wall & Keogh and salads and sandwiches for lunch. Located at Balally Luas stop, you can pick up your coffee to go while reminiscing about the good old days when you had to trudge in to work in a cramped carriage. Guest roasters are featured monthly with PS Coffee Roasters and Bell Lane just a couple that have made an appearance. If you're walking (or the passenger) they also serve Baileys coffee and hot chocolate to go. 6) Morilles, Stillorgan & Rathfarnham If you thought park and ride car parks were eerily empty, spare a thought for the pub car parks throughout the county, with all that prime space and not even a lone ‘I’ll drive and collect the car tomorrow’ vehicle hanging around. Not so for the car parks of The Yellow House in Rathfarnham, The Ballinteer House and The Mill House in Stillorgan with the arrival of Morilles drive through coffee at all locations. Coffee is from JJ Darboven, roasted in Dun Laoghaire, and there are lots of freshly baked breads and pastries to go. 7) Mint Coffee, Blackrock If your weekends used to involve traipsing children around muddy rugby and football pitches in the rain, you may well feel slightly nostalgic with a pit stop at Mint Coffee , located just inside the gates of Blackrock Rugby Club. Coffee is from Eighty9, also roasted in Dun Laoghaire, and there's an extensive hot chocolate menu and toasties that look pretty good. This one is completely drive through also so feel free to go in your pj’s with full confidence that you won’t be spotted. 8) Goat's Gruff, Strawberry Beds Another lockdown success story, Goats Gruff is perfect for that 5k Sunday morning drive. Perched on the banks of the Liffey in the car park of The Strawberry Hall, this is another fully drive through option. The sandwiches are wood-fired, the coffee's from Imbibe and the pastries and bread are from Tartine. The queue can be brutal at the weekends but with surroundings (and coffee) as good as this, who are we to complain. In the evenings, they do wood-fired pizzas which are also worth queueing for. 9) Fools and Horses Coffee Walkinstown Roundabout used to be the stuff of nightmares for learner drivers (or any drivers), and while the advent of the Red Cow roundabout helped, it’s still busy. The arrival of Fools and Horses Coffee has probably not improved the traffic, but these days it’s not that much of a worry. The horse box/coffee box serves coffee from Upside and there are mascarpone cookie sandwiches. They also have a pitch in Dundrum but it’s on pause for now. 10) Bean Box, Greenhills While not exactly a drive through, there is plenty of parking at Bean Box for a quick coffee refuel. One of the few places to offer local delivery, Bean Box also do crepes, cakes and most importantly, the coffee is Ariosa. 11) Smack Drive Thru Coffee Another true drive (or walk) through, Smack Drive Thru Coffee is located on the Sandyford Road in Dundrum, beside Ballawley Park. The oldie of the gang, Smack has been going for over 5 years and Red Rooster Loco Leghorn is the coffee of choice. One of the few places to open early, coffee is on the go from 07:00 for the early risers. 12) Galloping Green, Stillorgan Galloping Green at Byrne's pub in Stillorgan is not just a drive through coffee shop, it's also a drive through off-licence - so you can pick up a tandoori chicken ciabatta, a delicious flat white from Two Fifty Square , and grab a bottle of tequila while you're there. Unfortunately the off-licence is temporarily closed due to the current restrictions, but under normal circumstances click and collect is available online , where you'll also find their sandwich and coffee menu. 13) Cob Coffee Company, Rathfarnham In Rathfarnham, Cob Coffee Company have found a new home adjacent to Mulch Garden Centre (also a garden waste recycler) on Nutgrove Avenue. This is one to watch with coffee from relative newcomers (and apparently Ireland’s most sustainable coffee brand) Woodland Coffee in Dublin 24, treats from The Cupcake Bloke and tea from Nik’s Teas. There's loads of space to park and drive through is also an option. 14) Dash Container at the Hole in the Wall, Dublin 7 On Blackhorse Avenue, beside the Phoenix Park, Dash Coffee serve their own Triangle coffee signature roast, in collaboration with Khanya Craft Coffee in Dublin 11, along with monthly guest roasts. Dash has a full takeaway menu for breakfast and lunch including pastries, porridge, overnight oats, sausage rolls, soup and smoothies along with some sweet stuff too. They also host running tours of the Phoenix Park (when permitted) and Dog Days on Thursdays which involve free puppy-cinos for your four legged friend. Open later than most, you can get caffeinated at Dash up until 20:00 and there is loads of parking. Pre–ordering is on the way too. Know any other drive-through coffee spots? Let us know by emailing info@allthefood.ie

One of the few things that's made us optimistic in the middle of Ireland’s COVID-19 crisis is seeing the ingenuity and adaptability from so many restaurants, producers and suppliers. While we know it’s not possible for everyone to turn themselves into an artisan Amazon overnight, we’re heartened to see that more and more delivery services are being launched, and we now have so many new ways of getting quality products to our doorstep. Here's our updated list of the suppliers currently delivering to Dublin, though many are now operating nationwide delivery. Meat, Fish, Dairy Higgins Butchers Probably best known for steaks, Higgins Butchers in Sutton have a huge range of beef, lamb, pork and poultry all with nationwide delivery and arriving in a very well insulated cold box. They also did a recent surf 'n' turf collaboration with Michael's that saw people outside of Dublin finally getting their hands on the goods we've been talking about for the past four years - more collabs, please. See their online shop here . Kish Fish Kish Fish are delivering their fresh fish and smoked salmon with a €12 delivery fee. Details are available from www.kishfish.ie where you’ll also find lots of great recipes. Sheridans Cheesemongers Judging by the amount of orders Sheridans are managing online it looks like we’re not the only ones seeking solace in a slab of Brillat-Savarin at the moment. Their online shop is packed full of cheeses, meats, wines, crackers, dips, sauces, pretty much everything you could hope for during a global pandemic. Delivery is €5 but free on orders over €100. Demand seems to be high, and some delivery times can be a bit long so check the website and plan accordingly. On The Pigs Back On The Pigs Back are operating a collection service from their premises in Cork but a flat delivery fee of €15 will give you ample opportunity to have French and Irish cheeses, charcuterie, meats, meals and pâté delivered to your door. See their selection here . Andarl Farm We’re not sure if we’re allowed to get excited about anything at the moment, but hearing that Andarl Farm, home of that amazing velvet pork chop that’s been blazing across Dublin restaurant menus, are now delivering was a welcome distraction. Their full range of bacon, pork, ham and sausages, delivered nationwide, is available from www.andarlfarm.ie . Cashel Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers The folks at Cashel Cheesemakers are not only allowing us to purchase entire wheels of their lovely cheeses, but they've also teamed-up with other Tipperary suppliers like The Apple Farm and Cooleeney Farm to create boxes containing cheese, juices, yogurt, meats, and preserves. Hamper prices start at €58 and delivery is free. See www.cashelblue.com for the details. Burren Smokehouse While they’ve had to close their visitor centres, Burren Smokehouse are still supplying their smoked Irish organic salmon, trout, and mackerel for delivery. Details are on www.burrensmokehouse.com . The Little Cheese Shop The Little Cheese Shop has long been one of our favourite places in Dingle, and the world. It's like a treasure chest of amazing Irish cheese. While we haven't been able to get there as frequently as we would like, one of the best things about 2020 was that they found a way of bringing their cheese to us thanks to nationwide delivery. You can shop the entire range online at www.thelittlecheeseshop.ie or really treat yourself with a subscription to their selection of the month, which single-handedly made our January. James Whelan Butchers Lots of products and recipes are available from James Whelan Butchers where delivery is €10 or free on orders over €100, and if money (and freezer space) is no object right now you won't beat their salt-aged meat hampers. See www.jameswhelanbutchers.com for info. The Whole Hoggs You can order pretty much every pork product you can think of (and also duck eggs) from The Whole Hoggs - cured ham, lots of varieties of sausage, pork burgers, fillets, chops, loins, basically the whole hog... Details are on www.thewholehoggs.com with delivery available to Dublin, Louth and Meath. Silverhill Duck Based in Monaghan, Silverhill Duck have launched www.duckshop.ie that sells pretty much everything the duck-lover in your life could ever need, from mixed hampers to bumper packs of hoisin duck pancake kits. Nationwide delivery is a very reasonable flat rate of €7, and the perfectly cooked half roast duck and confit duck legs have really been livening up our midweek meals, so it's worth stocking up if you have the space. Fruit and Vegetables Hussey Fruit & Veg While Hussey Fruit and Veg seem to be supplying many retailers at the moment, they’re also delivering boxes of fruit and veg to homes. As well as their usual A-grade suppliers like Ard Mhaca Shiitake, Ryan's Rhubarb and Drummond House garlic, they've also teamed up with people like Velvet Cloud and St. Tola so there's lots to browse. Currently, their fruit and veg boxes are available for collection or Dublin delivery only, but lots of products are available for nationwide delivery. Check www.husseysfarm.com for info. The Green Grocer, Stoneybatter Home delivery of fruit, vegetables, groceries, eggs, and cupboard staples is available from The Green Grocer in Stoneybatter. Next day delivery around Dublin is free. See www.greengrocerathome.com . Grocery/General Toonsbridge If you've been in either of the Toonsbridge shops in Dublin or Cork, you'll know that they're really well stocked with fantastic cheeses, charcuteries, dips, pantry staples, and of course, lots of olives. Their pesto is unbeatable, their feta dip perfection, and their 12-year aged balsamic a steal at €10. While the Cork store is closed currently, you can order online for nationwide delivery from their website www.therealoliveco.com . Weekl.ie Online grocery store Weekl.ie has an impressive selection that covers everything from fruit and veg, meat, fish, poultry, dairy, baked treats, wine, flowers, cheese, condiments, pantry supplies and just about everything else your greedy little heart could want some from of Ireland's favourite suppliers. They also have a curated selection of 'Nosh Boxes' if you're planning a special event. One-off or subscription deliveries to Dublin and North Wicklow are available from www.weekl.ie . Avoca Avoca is doing what it does best - keeping us well-stocked with basics, meals and lots of treats. Delivery is available if you live within 20kms of selected Avoca stores (Monkstown, Kilmacanoge, Ballsbridge,or Malahide). Details are on www.avoca.com . Mr Bell's Global Food Emporium Mr Bell , in Cork's English Market is your one stop spice shop, as well as a great source of noodles, sauces and hard to get ingredients like miso, freekeh and orange blossom water. Nationwide delivery in the ROI is €6.95 for packages up to 25kg. Details are on mrbells.ie . Fallon & Byrne In a similar vein to Avoca, Fallon and Byrne are offering fruit, veg, prepared meals, meat and fish, breads and cakes, cheese, charcuterie and grocery items with nationwide delivery for orders over €75. Details on www.fallonandbyrne.com . Asia Market Wondering where on earth to get gochujang, black rice vinegar or frozen dumplings right now? Praise the Lord, Asia Market on Drury Street delivers. It's long been one of our go-to spots for pretty much any ingredient you could need to create fantastic Asian meals at home, and delivery is a flat fee of €7.50. You can see everything in stock on www.asiamarket.ie . Cakes and Chocolate Mud Bakery We really loved our all-too-frequent deliveries from Mud Bakery over the summer and showered our outside-Dublin friends with Mud boxes when they were launched for nationwide delivery. Keep an eye on www.mudcakeaway.com for details of stock releases and deliveries. Lorge Chocolatier One of our favourite small producers of luxury chocolates is Lorge Chocolatier in Kerry, who deliver across Ireland for €5 and offer free delivery on orders of over €50, so it really does make fiscal sense to stock-up. If you’re quick, you may even be able to grab an Easter egg. If not, we’re big fans of the Reglise – a box of 48 handmade chocolates. Check out www.lorge.ie . The Chocolate Garden of Ireland If you ever get a chance to visit The Chocolate Garden of Ireland workshop in Co. Carlow, you really should. However, from the comfort of your own home, you can order their products online. From novelty items (chocolate sliotar and hurley anyone?) to hampers and boxes of chocolates, there’s a huge selection on www.chocolategarden.ie . Hazel Mountain Chocolate We first took notice of Hazel Mountain Chocolate when Rory Shannon (of Bistro One) launched My Cookie Sandwich and we spotted it was an ingredient. Intrigued, we did extensive taste testing and can confirm that Hazel Mountain Chocolate is good - oh Lord is it good. Post-Christmas, stock seems low but we're hopeful of a restock very soon on www.h azelmountainhocolate.com . My Cookie Sandwich Speaking of which, My Cookie Sandwich is on a little break but keep an eye on www.mycookiesandwich.net as deliveries, including nationwide, should be back soon. Le Patissier Le Patissier is turning-out amazing cakes and pastries for collection. Delivery is county Dublin only, and slots tend to fill up fast. Details on www.lepatissier.ie . Tea & Coffee For coffee check out Proper Order , Cloud Picker , Imbibe , Soma , Roasted Brown , Upside Coffee and 3FE , who are all delivering to Dublin currently, whereas Clement and Pekoe and Suki Tea have you covered for tea. Did we miss anywhere you love? Let us know by emailing info@allthefood.ie.

It’s January, it’s cold, and we’re now in what feels like the 348th month of Covid-related restrictions; we’re pretty much all over the place emotionally. The highlight of our evening is an update on the “What’s New” section on Netflix as it gives us more stuff to mindlessly scroll past for an hour before settling for The US Office, again. Jannui (January ennui) has truly set-in and we’re having all the feels, but none of the culinary motivation. Worry not though, we’re here to guide you through finding the perfect meal, whatever your mood. Anger Mindfulness has really come to the fore in recent years as a way to calm a chaotic mind. If you need to calm down, you can definitely do some guided breathing exercises, but, when you open your eyes, you’re still going to be hungry. Our top tip is to do something that involves using your hands and concentration, but ultimately results in beautiful food, and Yumo Kits from the Bao House team on Aungier Street fit the bill. There’s a selection of different kits meaning you can make authentic dumplings, wontons, or bao at home. If you’ve ever made dumplings, you’ll know the feeling of getting lost in concentration as you pull and fold the sides. Kits are available for collection, or delivery across Dublin, Meath, Wicklow, and Kildare with the promise of nationwide delivery coming soon. Browse their meal kits here . Happy Hey, if you can find happiness in all of this, you do you, but please tell us your secret. Unsurprisingly, great food makes us happy, and our love of Allta Box is set to continue into 2021 as their first box of the year went on sale yesterday and no shock, sold out in jig time. Each week’s menu goes lives at noon on Mondays for nationwide delivery at the weekend and you'll need to set an alarm for happiness of the Allta kind. Check it out here . Sad It’s impossible to be sad while eating fried chicken. Fact. While chicken joints seem to be popping-up around Dublin faster than Bernie Sanders memes on our Twitter timeline, one we’ve tried lately and really liked is Happy Endings , a pop-up based out of the Dorset Lounge with collection or delivery (via Deliveroo). Crispy buttermilk fried chicken fillet burgers and tenders teamed with sauces and dressings bursting with flavours of ramen and gochujang set these faaaar apart from anything you’ll get in a greasy bucket. Topped fries and sides like chicken toast (their take on the ubiquitous Chinese take-away prawn version) will get you through the saddest of days. Fearful There’s a lot to be fearful of right now, and sometimes the best way to face the unknown is to remember the familiar. While we’re really missing our favourite cafés and not all are open for business, many are still operating on a more limited take-away business. If you’re able to get to them, a walk to your local café will clear your head and you’ll be rewarded with friendly smiles and baked goods; win-win. Currently, lots of your favourites are open, including ALMA , Two Pups , Laine My Love , BaaBaa by Blacksheep , Fia , Noshington Café , and Two Boys Brew . Frustrated Had lots of plans for the 2020s? Feel like repeatedly hitting your head off a wall and smashing things? We hear you. Take the pain-free option and have a smash burger from Dash Burger on Kevin Street instead. Definitely our preferred way to release some pent-up frustration right now.

Dede in Baltimore, Cork, from chef Ahmet Dede, is the only new one-star Michelin restaurant in Ireland, after this evening's Michelin awards. Dede was formerly head chef at Mews in Baltimore, which also won a star under his cooking before announcing they were closing 12 months ago. Dede opened during the summer, and we loved the Turkish take on barbecue when we visited in August. In a night much less eventful than last year's, there were no new two or three stars, but also no deletions of stars - much to restaurant teams across the country's relief. New Bib Gourmands for Dublin (awarded for both good quality and good value) were given to Volpe Nera and head chef/owner Barry Sun (formerly head chef at Etto where he also won a Bib), and Stephen McAllister's Spitalfields in Dublin 8. Two more Bibs went to Goldie in Cork and Table Forty One in Gorey. Barry Sun/Volpe Nera Spitalfields Six Irish restaurants have lost their Michelin Bib award, including Clanbrassil House in Dublin 8, Circa in Terenure, and Two Cooks in Kildare (Circa and Two Cooks were both given a 'plate', for "very good food"). Three others, Giovanelli in Killorglin, Dillons in Timoleague and Browne's in Tuam have permanently closed, also losing their Bibs. Circa's ex-chef/owner Gareth Naughton left the restaurant during the first lockdown which may have something to do with the decision, but restaurants can also lose their Bib due to their pricing - you must be able to eat a three-course meal for under €40 (£28 in the UK), which is getting harder and harder to do in Ireland, and particularly in Dublin. Clanbrassil House / Circa A new "Mentor Chef Award" for 2021 was awarded to Ross Lewis from Chapter One who called it "very emotional", and another new "restaurant service award" for 2021 went to Saul McConnell of Noble in Holywood, Co. Down, whose service we were very impressed with when we visited for our guide on where to eat in Belfast . The Michelin Guide's first ever green stars for restaurants "committed to sustainable gastronomy" were awarded to Inis Meáin Restaurant and Suites , Kai and Loam (all in Galway). Loam Here's hoping for a bit more excitement in 2022.

2020 was the year of the pivot, the pirouette, the tailspin, and 2021 looks like it's going to be more of the same. With so many people in the food and drink industry out of work or faced with on and off employment, we've seen a whole new level of creativity this year, from pop up takeaways to food trucks, bottled cocktails to brand new condiments, borne out of boredom-filled bars and kitchens, so this year's Food Works programme couldn't be coming at a better time. The initiative, set up by Bord Bia , Enterprise Ireland and Teagasc , supports innovative Irish food businesses and helps bring their products to global markets, so if your side (or full-time) hustle has been doing well but you're ready to go to the next level, get your application in before Friday 29th January. So far they've helped over 90 Irish food entrepreneurs scale their business, including some ATF favourites like Clinton's crisps, Bean and Goose chocolate, vegan meal company FIID, Wicklow Wolf beer, Kilbeggan Oats and Beekon Batches. The programme is worth over €50,000, with access to feasibility grant funding of up to €35,000 for each company. Food Works will provide applicants with the support they need to develop their early stage product into an investment ready food and drink product with international potential, along with business supports including consumer market research, research & development expertise, investor ready business plan development, technical advice and commercial viability planning. Participants in last year's programme include Beekon Batches, The Proper Dairy Company, Soothing Solutions, Vegan Sandwich Co and Brady’s Coffee Company, and past participants say it totally transformed their business. " Two years on and we've achieved milestones beyond what I could have imagined for a small Irish startup. "We went from a team of 1 to 7, hit seven figures in retail sales in our first year with all of Ireland's key retailers and expanded internationally ... I can't stress enough the positive impact Food Works had on me as an entrepreneur as well as for fiid and would recommend it for anyone with ambitious goals to disrupt the food industry not just in Ireland but internationally." Shane Ryan, FIID "If you are truly serious about succeeding with your food or beverage venture, Food Works is a must. From Financial, Marketing, Strategy, Commercial, Category, RTM, Production, Export, Personal Development, you name it, it’s provided. There was not one area of our business that wasn’t affected by this program." Karen O'Neill, Beekon Batches “This hands on programme gave us peer to peer practical, mentored and supported guidance to enable us to grow our business, and gave us the confidence to see its potential.” Sean Clinton, Clinton's Crisps. With everything happening at the moment the team at Food Works think 2021 could be the most interesting year yet, with Nicola Nic Pháidín from Enterprise Ireland saying, “The challenges now facing business owners have never been greater and we are here to support and guide Irish food and drink entrepreneurs to scale their businesses and become successful brands. Often in times of crisis comes creativity and this year we are looking for businesses that are demonstrating innovation and resilience despite the impact of Covid-19.” If this sounds like you (or someone you know), applications can be submitted here until 17:00 on Friday 29th January. 2020 may have been a write off, but 2021 could be the year you take lemons and make internationally successful lemonade. This article is in partnership with Food Works , an initiative from Bord Bia , Enterprise Ireland and Teagasc to help Irish food and drink business scale and reach international markets. Find out more about the Food Works programme on their website .

If ever there was a year to send your favourite food-lover a little something special for Christmas, this is it. Not only will you make their week, but you’ll be helping to support Irish businesses too. Sure, you can send a voucher (and we recommend throwing a few in the bag), but if you’re looking for something that shows just how much you’re thinking about them when you can’t actually be with them, the gift of food is what Christmas is truly about. Please note that prices below are excluding delivery - you’ll need to check out the websites for delivery costs depending on where you’re sending the goods. What to Get The Work Colleague You Really Miss Months of Zooms, virtual team building, and seeing more of your colleagues’ cats (and babies) that you’d ideally like, can mean that some workplace relationships are a little terse. However, if you’re genuinely missing your lovely workmates and want to start their Christmas off on a happy note, you might want to arrange a surprise delivery to say thanks for all the whatsapp voice notes this year. Cheese from St. Tola Because friend don’t let friends run out of cheese, top of our list is a cheese selection from goat's cheese gurus St. Tola , starting from €35. Order on their website . A Dumpling Making Kit Yumo meal kits spun out of Aungier Street restaurant Bao House a few months ago, and we've been properly impressed at the quality of dumplings we can now make at home. We've been known to not let our stash of frozen dumplings from the Asia Market run dry, but these are a big jump up (crispy, chewy, juicy and full of filling) - plus you have the fun of actually making them. They've also added bao and wonton kits, and deliver in Dublin, Meath, Kildare and Wicklow. Order one for you and one for your colleague, and hit up zoom for (hopefully) the last time this year. Get your meal kit here . A Mud Box For something sweet, the Mud Boxes from Mud Bakery are hard to beat. You can add up to four of your friend’s favourite Mud goods, including their famous cookie sandwich, Oreo biscuit cake, and the gooiest brownie on record. Prices start from €32, and we already have our order in for their Christmas selection box . Order here . Christmas Hampers From The Cupcake Bloke The Cupcake Bloke's hampers are filled with lovely contents like their Earl Grey, cranberry and orange tea brack, 'funky' chocolate biscuit cake, and homemade granola, and cost from €40 - €60 plus postage. You can see the three hamper options here , and email orders to thebakeryrialto@gmail.com. A Cocktail Making Kit From Catch Events Catch Events started out over the summer delivering weekly cocktail Quarantini Boxes to mix at home, and have grown their range impressively. Cocktail kits start from €35, but you can add on glasses, party items, and even cheese and wine pairings. It's the most fun you can have at home alone on a Saturday night. What to Get Your Best Friend While anything above is bound to tick the box, a first tier friend deserves a first rate present. The White Mausu Collection You can now order a six-pack of your favourite White Mausu sauces. Get one for you, one for a friend, and enjoy a heated Zoom snacking session. Priced at €36 for six jars from www.whitemasu.com . Pro tip: buy these for a friend who can cook, and invite yourself over for dinner when restrictions allow. The Harry's Nutbutter Collection More lovely stuff in jars from Harry’s Nut Butter , where €41.40 will get your friend six jars of the salty, sweet and a little bit spicy peanut butters, and the really great news is they've just launched two new flavours - Coco Buzz with cacoa nibs and coffee, and Extra Hot with added heat. That should keep most people going for about a year, but this stuff is hard to stop shovelling into your mouth so we’d recommending stocking your bestie up as much as you can. A Box Of Cookie Sandwiches Friends send friends cookie sandwiches, so it's a very good thing that chef Rory Shannon (Bistro One) has started My Cookie Sandwich , making organic, wholegrain biscuits stuffed with buttercream. They come in four flavours - coffee, honey and hazelnut, oatmeal and raisin, and loaded chocolate (our personal favourite), but friends send friends all of them. Order here . A Coffee Subscription A Cloud Picker Coffee subscription (www.cloudpickercoffee.ie) will mean your friend is thinking of you fondly each morning. They're priced from €55 with options for monthly or weekly deliveries, or if you’re not looking for a long-term commitment, you can order coffee directly from the website, including a Christmas Coffee with tasting notes of roast chestnut, nougat, and truffle. Sign them up here . Ice-Cream Sauces One for the big kids, if your friends are as obsessed with Scrumdiddly’s Kinder Bueno sauce as ours are, you can help them recreate all the missed ice-cream opportunities of 2020 in their own home. Starting from €19, you can have any of Scrumdiddly’s sauces or toppings delivered all over Ireland. All they’ll need is a spoon, and possibly some ice-cream if they’re feeling fancy. Order online at www.scrumdiddlys.ie . Luxury Chocolate If you really want friendship brownie points, you can’t go wrong with luxury chocolate gifts. Lorge , Grá Chocolates , and Erik Van der Veken’s Arcane Chocolates are all a serious step-up from a selection box. Hazel Mountain Chocolate are a boutique chocolate factory based in the Burren, Co. Clare. There’s lots of gift options on the website, but we think the Hot Chocolate Kits complete with chocolate covered marshmallows is the perfect hug in a mug for your favourite pal. Details are on their website . Something Special for Your Parents It’s been a tough year for families. If you’re not going to be able to see yours this Christmas, or can visit but want to help out with a present to really take the load off after a stressful year, any of the Christmas Food Boxes from this list is bound to be a luxurious time-saver. A Hamper From Fallon & Byrne Fallon & Byrne have just launched an online shop which is going to make it way too easy to spend far too much money on luxury food and wine items. They've designed a range of hampers especially for Christmas and we can think of no better box of food to see arriving on your doorstep. There's a very wide range to choose from including wine, cheese and meats, the best of Irish, and one especially for truffle lovers, and prices start at €40 for wine and chocolate, going up to €500 for 'The Extravaganza Extra'. Check them out here . A Comfort Kit From Pudding Row If your parents are facing a Christmas with fewer visiting offspring around the table, the Comfort Kit from Pudding Row in Sligo is stuffed with bagels, brownies, flapjacks, jams, granola, and lots more to make them happy that they don’t have to share. There’s also a Christmas version with mince pies and pudding. Comfort Kits start at €60 and are available for delivery nationwide. Order here . Free-range Pork From Andarl Farm If you’re not going to be with your family on Christmas Day but still want to contribute to dinner, Andarl Farm has been one of our favourite direct suppliers that we’ve discovered this year. They have everything your family need for a Christmas morning fry-up, their famous Velvet Pork for a welcome alternative to turkey, plus great quality ham, bacon, lamb, steak, and offal. Order directly from www.andarlfarm.ie and your order will arrive vacuum-packed and ice-cold. A Cheese And Meat Platter From Anduma If making any sort of (purchased) contribution to Christmas dinner means your mother will never forgive you for trying to steal her thunder, you can always ease the load in the days before or after by sending a cheese and meat platter, perfect for picking at in the storm of kitchen activity before the big day. Argentinean couple Matti and Sole started Anduma (meaning 'let's go') earlier this year, hand-delivering beautiful platters around Dublin containing charcuterie, Irish cheeses, dried fruits, nuts, chutney, honey and crackers, and they come wrapped in a big gold bow. Christmas platters are available in two sizes and start at €30. Order here .

It's no big shock that we're not ones to deny ourselves when it comes to food and drink year round, but some things are worth saving up for your Christmas list - if for no reason other than to limit the amount of Boots gift sets and Penney's pyjamas under the tree. Send this to your other half/siblings/parents and get something you'd really like this year. The Mister S Larder Box We've been working our way through the Mister S larder box over the past couple of weeks and have a few observations: their rayu is our new favourite condiment, their dill oil takes seafood to the next level, and their bacon butter should be illegal (we've had it on pancakes, fresh sourdough, omelettes, we just can't stop). In there you'll also find charcoal ketchup, spice rubs for all types of meat, onion salt and fermented hot sauce, and it's the perfect way to up your kitchen game with someone else having done all the hard work. It's available for nationwide delivery (€65) or collection from the Camden Street restaurant (€60) and can be ordered here . The Sidecar's Special Edition Gin If you're missing cocktails in The Sidecar as much as we are, you can now take a bit of the cocktail bar home, as they've launched their first special edition gin with Dublin's Stillgarden Distillery. It costs €50 (or €90 with two balloon glasses) and there's only 300 bottles up for grabs so you'll need to get the hints in about this one fast. The Sidecar will also be serving it (on request) with 1724 tonic, orange, juniper and mint, and you can buy it in The Westbury's Christmas shop, or through their online store . Nigella's New Book Queen Nigella can do no wrong, and her new book 'Cook, Eat, Repeat' might be her best one yet. Filled with not just recipes but stories and musings about her relationship with food, it's immediately become a cook book no collection is complete without. Buy from any good book shop (the smaller the better). A Wine Club Subscription Who wouldn't love the thought of excellent wine arriving on their doorstep every month? Two of our favourite wine shops, Green Man Wines and 64 Wine have just launched wine clubs, and we can guarantee that both will be a treat. Green Man's has a minimum three-month subscription for €199 giving you three bottles per month, while 64 Wine's is €150 a month for six bottles. You can sign up for the Green Man one here , and 64 Wine's here . Upside Coffee's Christmas Pack A few weeks of being in closer proximity to your family than is generally recommended, plus lots of booze-fuelled late nights, means you're going to need a lot of good coffee to get through the festive season. Fairview based roasters Upside are selling gift packs containing a Christmas blend, their classic espresso, and an Ethiopian for €30, and they're available whole bean or ground. They also come with the most beautiful illustrations by Alex Mellon on the bags which will definitely cheer up your hungover head when you open the kitchen press in the morning. Get them here . The Cocktail Selection From Irish Craft Cocktails Irish Craft Cocktails launched a few months ago selling a selection of hand-mixed cocktails from the bartenders at 1661 Bar, in one of the best pivots of the year. They start at €12.50 for two servings and it's hard to imagine pre-bottled cocktails being this good, but 2020 has brought all kinds of surprises. Our homes (and weekends) are no longer complete without them, and we are dying to try their two limited edition Christmas specials - the Belfast coffee and the Christmas Old-Fashion. Order here . Glasses From Industry People who like nice drinks need nice glasses to drink them from. Industry are selling the most beautiful, hand-blown glasses, with options for wine, champagne, cocktails and water, and we can think of nothing else but owning the whole collection. Buy them from Industry's website , or we've also spotted them in Neighbourhood Wine on Leeson Street. A Sourdough Making Class 2020 was the year we dabbled in sourdough, 2021 should be the year we perfect it. For those of us still struggling with kneading, proving and scoring, getting a masterclass from one of the professionals should be on your New Years to-do list. At the time of writing Bread 41's monthly classes were sold out until May, so all the more reason to get a date in the diary now. Book a place here . 777's Margarita Boxset Something else a lot of us attempted to master during multiple lockdowns was making our favourite cocktail at home, and none seemed to be as popular as the margarita. If your marg-making still isn't hitting the spot, you can now get a lesson from the masters at 777 with their at home margarita boxset. For €199 you'll get a bottle of Don Julio tequila blanco, a bottle of triple sec, limes, salt, margarita glasses, and all the equipment you'll need to juice, shake and strain a lot of margaritas, as well as the all important instructions for how they make theirs. Available here . Cocoa Atelier Chocolate We have a not very secret love affair with Cocoa Atelier 's at home hot chocolate (made using bags of their milk and dark chocolate and topped with marshmallows), and the launch of their online shop has made gifting the good stuff that much easier. Hot chocolate sets are €35.95, while boxes of handmade chocolates start at €12.95 for a box of nine. See the full shop here . A Sheridan's Cheese Club Subscription For a gift you'll be enjoying way past Christmas, a Cheese Club subscription from Sheridan’s can be purchased from anything from one month up to a full year with prices starting at €45. It's a great way to up your cheese knowledge and something to look forward to each month. Sign up here . All The Spanish Food One thing we've badly missed this year are holidays, and if you're anything like us you return home from every destination with a suitcase weighed down with food and drink. During each trip to Spain we pack enough jamon, boquerones and sherry to last a good six months, but as we're not likely to get there or anywhere else any time soon, we'd be happy waking up to the tapas Christmas gift box from Heart of Spain , filled with chorizo, jamon, morcilla, roasted peppers, cheese, olives, almonds, paprika, olive oil and wine. See the full selection of hampers here .

One of the main perks of the festive season is the excuse to eat way more than we normally would, and the Christmas sandwich is one of those things we like eating throughout December - leftovers or no leftovers. The competition is particularly fierce this year but these are 15 of the best options out there if you can't wait till St. Stephen's Day. Carb coma guaranteed... 1) The Happy Cheesemas Toastie, Meltdown First up it's the 'Happy Cheesemas' from Meltdown , who know a thing or two about making toasties worth travelling for. Stuffed with turkey, crispy bacon, homemade stuffing, brie, mature white cheddar, mayo and fresh cranberry sauce this one will keep you going until dinner. 2) The Christmas Special, Hush Over in Rathmines, Hush are keeping it simple with a classic Christmas Special with roast turkey, glazed ham, homemade stuffing, cranberry sauce and gravy. 3) The Ultimate Christmas Sambo, Urbanity In Smithfield, the chefs at Urbanity are being challenged to create the ultimate Christmas sambo with the winner decided by their customers. Contenders include the 'Turkey Xmas Sandwich' with turkey, fennel, leek and orange stuffing, lemon & thyme aioli, O’Neill’s bacon bits and gravy on Firehouse white bloomer, or the 'Duck Xmas Sandwich' with confit duck, orange stuffing, braised red cabbage, with duck fat and citrus tarragon mayo on a Firehouse white brioche bun. Life is full of difficult decisions and this one is a real pickle. 4) The MC, Joe's Tartine sourdough, Wicklow brie, turkey, ham and cranberry sauce – what’s not to love about this festive feast from the Kemp sisters' stable, Joe’s Coffee at Arnotts. 5) The Christmas Croissant, Bread 41 Bread 41 have gone in a slightly different but no less delicious direction with their Christmas croissant stuffed with Wicklow brie, Irish baked ham, sourdough stuffing and cranberry sauce. Flaky, buttery croissants are one of life’s simple pleasures and this one looks extra special. 6) The Crambo, Griolladh T he folk from Griolladh upped their toastie game last week with the introduction of the Crambo. Crammed with their home baked marmalade ham⁠, shredded turkey, roast potatoes soaked in gravy,⁠ cranberry, walnut and herb crispy stuffing⁠ and Christmas veg pickles on Tartine sourdough with a house cheese blend. There's even a cranberry feta dip on the side. Available in all of their locations. 7) The Christmas Sandwich, Tiller + Grain Focaccia lovers will appreciate the Christmas offering from Tiller + Grain filled with roast chicken, homemade stuffing, homemade mayo, spiced braised red cabbage and slow cooked ham hock. Like everything else from this kitchen you know this one will be good. 8) The Turkey & Stuffing Sambo, Fable & Stey In Blackrock, Fable and Stey are doing a roaring trade with their turkey and stuffing sambo filled with roast turkey crown, bacon, herb and onion stuffing, Gubbeen cheese and cranberry sauce. 9) The Christmas Special, Legit Coffee Co. If the gingerbread latte isn’t a good enough reason to make your way to Legit on Meath Street, the Christmas special should be. Cranberry roast chicken with onion stuffing, brie andhoney glazed ham on sliced sourdough is comfort food at its finest. 10) The Christmas Sandwich, Provider Turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and mayo is the recipe at newly opened Provider in Harold's Cross, and if you manage tto nab a quadruple chocolate fudge brownie with Maldon Sea Salt on your way out you'll be all the better for it. 11) The Christmas Special, Póg It’s not just all about the pancakes at Póg , the Christmas sandwich looks like a strong contender in this category with more Brie than any person realistically needs, but hey, it’s Christmas. 12) The Sambo Clause, The Sambo Ambo Located at The Guinness Storehouse for December, The Sambo Ambo is serving up Christmas sambos to hungry patrons and the 'Sambo Claus' looks worthy of a trip. Roast ham and roast chicken are soaked in gravy, with sage and onion stuffing and cranberry sauce. 13) The Christmas Special, Soup Ramen Something a little different, but everything we've eaten in Soup has been A1 so we're expecting no different with this. Roast turkey and ham are paired with glazed carrots, gravy and kimchi tare, and let’s face it, kimchi makes everything better so why would things be different with a Christmas sambo. 14) The Santa Baby, Goat's Gruff Apart from their excellent coffee and phenomenal pizza, Goat's Gruff have recently expanded their menu to include wood fired sandwiches, including the obligatory Christmas offering. The Santa Baby has all the requisite components for an epic Christmas toastie with the added special touch of being wood fired. Turkey, ham, stuffing, cranberry sauce on a sourdough ciabatta sounds like it would give Monica’s a run for its money. 15) The Christmas Burger, Chimac Trust chicken sandwich slingers Chimac to come up with the goods whatever the season. Their Christmas burger features a free-range chicken breast in stuffing spice breadcrumbs, with brussel sprout kimchi, sriracha candied bacon, cranberry mayo and house pickles, and comes with a side of adobo gravy for dipping. They're only doing a limited amount each day so get in early if you want one. See you there.