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That’s Amore 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. 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, order it. That's Amore Website @Thats-Amore Address 107 Monkstown Road, Monkstown, Co. Dublin Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story That’s Amore 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. 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, order it. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Formerly Three Twenty Ice-Cream Lab, the guys behind açai bowl purveyors Roots took over and renamed it Spilt Milk. Ice Cream is made fresh on site daily in their small batch production kitchen, from organic milk sourced from one of 12 jersey herds in the country. You'll always find Dublin-centric flavours, like Harry's nutbutter, and a Jameson whiskey/stout combo. Spilt Milk Website threetwenty.ie Address 30 Drury Street, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Formerly Three Twenty Ice-Cream Lab, the guys behind açai bowl purveyors Roots took over and renamed it Spilt Milk. Ice Cream is made fresh on site daily in their small batch production kitchen, from organic milk sourced from one of 12 jersey herds in the country. You'll always find Dublin-centric flavours, like Harry's nutbutter, and a Jameson whiskey/stout combo. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Pala Pizza and Trattoria A Foxrock trattoria better than plenty in Rome Posted: 4 Oct 2022 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Lisa Cope What's the story? Back in early 2020, just a couple of weeks before Covid entered our lives, we told you about chef Rory Shannon, who had returned home from cooking in London and taken over the stoves at his family restaurant Bistro One in Foxrock, shaking things up in the process. We knew he was plotting his own restaurant, but a pandemic has a way of ruining best laid plans. The family has a long connection with Italy and a house out there (they even make their own olive oil), and during one of the many lockdowns, Shannon Jnr started Pala Pizza, as a way to make clever use of a few parking spaces outside the upstairs restaurant. He is shamelessly obsessed with Roman-style, crispy, topped pizza slices, and wanted to bring something new and different to the pizza scene here. The result was one that we and plenty of others became shamelessly obsessed with. Despite Pala's success, we still thought Shannon would hold out for a city centre site of his own, but in June the family announced that after 30 years Bistro One would close, and the next in line to the throne would open Pala Pizza & Trattoria in its place. A trattoria? In South County Dublin? It's the kind of word mediocre suburban restaurants insultingly throw around, like 'tapas', and 'fresh fish', but this wasn't any two-bit chef with a dream and an ill-advised investor. We were quietly confident that this was going to be one of the most needed, wanted and affirmative openings of 2022. Not to mention something genuinely fresh for the city. Where should we sit? The dining room has been transformed from its Bistro One days (see here for a throwback), and is all muted greens, soft lighting and dark wood. It's bright and inviting without being cold, and there's plenty of space - something parents of children who can't sit still will be appreciative of. There are two main rooms, the main one and a small one at the back, which would be ideal to take over as a group or for a family gathering and have what feels like your own private space. What's the menu like? Trattoria by name, trattoria by nature, Shannon Jnr's ticking all the right boxes with this one. Antipasti, pasta, pizza, secondi, deep-fried parcels of deliciousness (otherwise known as suppli and macaroni rimasto) - it all feels so simple, yet bizarrely rarely seen here at this inviting a level. What did you eat? Shannon's been curing his own meat for months and it's clearly a huge passion project, so that's a no brainer/while you wait must-order. They range from €4 - €6 a plate and both the Finocchiona and Mortadella tasted straight outta Bologna. Do not pass on the pickled vegetables and olives - they're electric with tang and heat. Of the deep-fried options we went with the lesser spotted Macaroni Rimasto (which means 'remaining') - deep fried macaroni in a cheesy bechamel with odds and ends of salumi, fried in panko and sitting on top of a vivid, herby, lemony salsa verde,. As deep-fried pasta goes, it's unexpectedly balanced, and expectedly delicious. Filled focaccia is another menu anchor, and we'd seen (and wanted) the Dexter beef ragu one when it was paraded on the gram . At first we thought they must have had trouble with the dough rising as it was missing the bready bubbles we associate with focaccia, but thinner and crispier seems to be the style here, and it works. The sound of the bread snapping against the rich ragu now sits among our favourite dinner soundtracks of 2022. Pastas are priced between €12 and €15 and they are not big portions., so you will likely need to order a few different ones to share, or just a load of antipasti/pizza to go alongside it. We tried the Tordelli Lucchesi (meat filled ravioli) which has the unmistakeable taste and texture of freshly made, but needed a touch more salt in the sauce. We also had the Carbonara which was silky and rich and heavy on the black pepper, with perfectly crisp guanciale dotted throughout. The pizza slices Pala initially became known for are of course on the menu here, ranging from €2.50 for a basic slice up to €6 for more expensive toppings, like burrata, smoked bacon and Cais na Tire Sheeps' cheese. Our 'Finocchiona' with fennel and black pepper salami and marinated artichokes, and our Anchovy & Whipped Ricotta with Kalamata olives were such perfect pieces of crisp, flavour-laden food that we've spent a disproportionate amount of time thinking about them since. How far in advance is the dough cooked? Is it reheated before toppings are put on? In the oven? For how long? How, how, how? There are four 'Secondi' type dishes too - bone-in prime rib, organic chicken with potatoes, whole sea bream on the bone and osso bucco, and we would have loved to try every one of them, but every stomach has its limits. Pala keeps it simple when it comes to dessert with tiramisu, and a deep-fried apple and cinnamon calzone. The Tiramisu is thinner than most we've encountered, but in no way suffers on flavour, and it's easily one of the best we've had. The deep-fried apple calzone with caramel sauce is the show-stopper (like a McDonalds apple pie if it was worth eating), and while you may think "€14 for flour and apples?", this is a dessert to share with a minimum of two, if not more. If you can tackle the whole thing yourself you're made of stronger stuff than we are. It's so rich and so OTT and yes, so very good. What about the drinks? A clear level up from your average trattoria, with plenty of bottles on the walls we would be very happy drinking. There's a nice selection of natural if you're a fan (we are) and everything's Italian, as it should be. There's also an aperitivo/digestif menu that's practically winking at you, and we can vouch for the Negroni Sbagliato. And the service? Servers were all young, friendly and perfectly proficient, and despite it being opening weekend and packed from one side to the other, things seemed (from outside anyway) to be running very smoothly. It's a casual place so they won't be hanging around your table and you may have to wave to get someone's attention, but when they come over smiling and upbeat you really don't mind. Anything else we should know? At 18:00 on Sunday it was packed with families, everything from newborns on the floor in car seats to teenagers fresh from the sportsfield. There was breast-feeding, there were toddlers shouting for food, there was laughter and animated chat and parents so happy to be dining out as a family eating food this good - it was all so Italian. Apparently they had a complaint over the weekend about the amount of children eating there. If you don't want children to be part of your dining experience you can eat out after 8pm when they're all in bed. Pala has Italian sensibilities running through every ounce of it, and that clearly includes catering for all ages. What was the damage? We spent around €40 a head before tip (including a drink and a half), and for the food and drinks we had there were zero complaints. What's the Pala Pizza & Trattoria verdict? If you haven't already gathered, we loved it. We wish every Dublin post code came with a Roman Trattoria so good you'll eat better here than in many places in Rome, but that's unlikely to happen outside of our food fantasy land, so this is somewhere we see ourselves travelling to regularly. And we're bringing the whole family with us. Pala Pizza & Trattoria 3 Brighton Road, Foxrock, Co. Dublin palapizza18.com New Openings & Discoveries More >> !

Bang 3.0 has risen from the ashes of its former incarnations with the new guard running the show. Eric Matthews and Richie Barrett made their name with Kicky's, and have now taken over Richie's family restaurant (where the pair originally met) to do it all again, this time with a focus on all things Spanish. Bang Website bangrestaurant.com Address 11 Merrion Row, Dublin, D02 KW61, Ireland Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Bang 3.0 has risen from the ashes of its former incarnations with the new guard running the show. Eric Matthews and Richie Barrett made their name with Kicky's, and have now taken over Richie's family restaurant (where the pair originally met) to do it all again, this time with a focus on all things Spanish. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Low-lit, narrow-roomed Aperitivo, with its waistcoat-clad Italian waiters and limoncello spritz on repeat, is like something lifted from Venice and dropped onto Nassau Street. The tiny room is made for intimate meals, where feet and forks are sure to touch, and the menu full of small plates, snacks and pasta is meant to be shared. For our money the fritti are the best things on the menu, and the cocktail and wine list are worth a deep-dive. Aperitivo Website aperitivo.ie Address 47 Nassau Street, Dublin 2, Ireland Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Low-lit, narrow-roomed Aperitivo, with its waistcoat-clad Italian waiters and limoncello spritz on repeat, is like something lifted from Venice and dropped onto Nassau Street. The tiny room is made for intimate meals, where feet and forks are sure to touch, and the menu full of small plates, snacks and pasta is meant to be shared. For our money the fritti are the best things on the menu, and the cocktail and wine list are worth a deep-dive. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Note opened in October 2021 and in about three minutes became the go-to place for the city's wine lovers. An eclectic, ever-changing wine list, and delicious bistro style dishes meant they were an instant addition to the Dublin's hottest restaurants list. Sundays sees hospitality staff flood in to drink the serious stuff, but it's packed with cool kids every night. Note Website notedublin.com Address 26 Fenian Street, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Note opened in October 2021 and in about three minutes became the go-to place for the city's wine lovers. An eclectic, ever-changing wine list, and delicious bistro style dishes meant they were an instant addition to the Dublin's hottest restaurants list. Sundays sees hospitality staff flood in to drink the serious stuff, but it's packed with cool kids every night. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

A neighbourhood café from the former owner of V-Face which sat in the same spot previously. Vada's main focuses are on sustainable food and drink and creating zero waste, so water kefir is made in house from kitchen byproducts, meat and veg are locally sourced, and as little as possible goes in the bin. The menu changes week to week but you might find a porchetta sandwich, a coconut laksa, or a miso pumpkin salad, with something sweet for afters. Vada Website hellovada.com Address 30 Brunswick Street North, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story A neighbourhood café from the former owner of V-Face which sat in the same spot previously. Vada's main focuses are on sustainable food and drink and creating zero waste, so water kefir is made in house from kitchen byproducts, meat and veg are locally sourced, and as little as possible goes in the bin. The menu changes week to week but you might find a porchetta sandwich, a coconut laksa, or a miso pumpkin salad, with something sweet for afters. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Daytime restaurant on Bath Avenue, open for breakfast, brunch and lunch, inspired by New York and Italian cafés. Their buttermilk chicken and waffles are an Insta-fav, with the 'Biggie Mac' their riff on the world's most famous burger. Junior's Website juniors.ie Address 2 Bath Avenue, Beggar's Bush, Dublin 4 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Daytime restaurant on Bath Avenue, open for breakfast, brunch and lunch, inspired by New York and Italian cafés. Their buttermilk chicken and waffles are an Insta-fav, with the 'Biggie Mac' their riff on the world's most famous burger. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

The Dunmore Rathmines' newest bar and restaurant brings seaside chill to the suburbs Posted: 12 Dec 2023 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Ronan Doyle What should we know about The Dunmore? In welcome contrast to certain other, flashier recent arrivals, Rathmines' newest bar and restaurant The Dunmore opened its doors at the start of the month with lit tle fanfare . There was no glitzy queue of influencers sharing suspiciously generous servings, just the quiet word of some locals pleased to see a new neighbour open for business. (c) The Dunmore It’s the Dublin debut of brother-sister duo Clifden and Louise Foyle, who’ve built themselves a reputation for premium Irish hospitality at Waterford’s Strand Inn Hotel . From the top-tier fitout they’ve given this cavernous space, to the team they’ve assembled to serve it, we get the sense they’re looking to bring that same sense of coastal chill to the city suburbs. Where should we sit? Even if you’d spent some time in the Bowery pub that previously occupied this building, you might not be able to hold back from mouthing a wow at the way The Dunmore opens up before you on entry. A low-lit lounge area flanks the front doors and extends to the small loft above, all cosy wing chairs and mahogany panelling: an intimate space that screams out for a pre-or post-dinner drink. Things get more expansive as you move through the narrow but suddenly very open room – the building is much longer than wide, but the high arched ceiling that towers above gives the dining area to the rear an airy openness that never leaves the space feeling crowded. There’s an abundance of artwork on the walls of this back area, every nook and cranny given its own distinctive colour pop. Big wraparound booths for groups of up to six flank the right wall, with two and four-tops arranged along the left - both are a good mix of comfort and vantage point. Down the centre, there’s a scattering of two-seaters we’d steer clear of if you can to avoid the two-lane traffic passing on either side. (c) The Dunmore What’s on the menu? Quite a bit of seafood – their years at the southeast seaside have certainly given The Dunmore’s team their pick of the waves, and they’ve carried plenty of that experience into this suburban menu with a few Strand Inn favourites cropping up. They’ve also brought onboard ex- Asador chef Josef Cervenka, whose influence seems clear in the charcoal oven options dotted through the menu’s sections. We put that to the test with the starter of crispy chicken, marinated in buttermilk and chili, and served over charred baby gem with a dollop of romesco (€12). As appetisers go this is utterly on-point - tender thigh meat perfectly rendered beneath the chargrilled skin, a rich and fatty flavour that leaves you longing for more. Where the lettuce lightens things a touch, we did find the romesco a little redundant, its muted spicing lost amidst the chili already there in the chicken – an added vinegar kick could have made all the difference. No surprise for a seaside restaurant, Kilmore Quay crab claws (€18) are a Strand Inn staple, and one they’ve wisely carried over. These are great, the meat’s sweetness finding a suitable foil in the pond of garlic butter it’s served swimming in, with a just-right squeeze of lemon acidity cutting through. Your sourdough on the side will not go to waste. Seafood chowder (€12) came off a little less exciting in comparison – where the prior plates made for unfussy entrées done well, this bowl felt a little bit like filler. Great chowder comes off as an old favourite delivered with fresh flair; this serving has the air of a practical pub standard. The house wheaten pulls its weight with a lovely treacle intensity, though we’d have to hope the lack of butter was by mistake and not design. We will never not leap to attention for turbot (€33), and The Dunmore treat it with appropriate pomp, laid out on a bed of girolles and spinach and propped up against two wedges of dauphinoise, with potato sliced so thin it practically dissolves on contact. The mushrooms’ umami earthiness is all that stops this descending into full-fledged decadence – we mean that in the best possible way – with seared flesh flaking into buttery, fish-infused sauce and creamy, cheesy potato. It's a high price point for a main, but we didn't feel mugged off. Venison (€34) gets similar value-for-money kudos, with medium-rare saddle slices layered over a base of colcannon mash – it’s every bit as good as it sounds. With components like that, we would not have bet on the honey-roast parsnip stealing the day, but their root veg treatment is a revelation. Sticky, chewy, caramelised chunks play off the gaminess of the meat for a main that's both familiar and fresh – a nail-on-head example of where this restaurant really excels. The potato and spinach “pie” (€21) was not what we expected – it’s a tart, to start - but that’s just semantics, and what matters is it’s very tasty, featuring more of those miraculously-thin potato slices spread over a spinach and onion base, and dotted with chermoula herb paste and a crumbled feta. In a fish and meat-heavy venue it’s not uncommon to see a token veggie main rolled out, but there’s more thought than that here: sharp flavours are in concert with contrasting textures of crisp spud and flaky pastry. There’s a growing movement we’re none too happy about of sides moving toward a pre-requisite rather than an indulgent extra – gladly The Dunmore has said no thanks to that trend with mains that hold up as more than enough in their own right. That said, it’s not Some of the Food you’re reading so we didn’t hold back. York cabbage (€6) is less a generous wedge than a whole half-head plonked down before you. The charred edges are lovely with lashings of chili butter, but by any standards this is a lot for any but the biggest of tables. The portobello plate (€6) is a bit of a dud - if the menu-listed pesto was ever included here, it must have melted away on the grill. For all the good of the Knockanore cheese, the soggy slabs of mushroom could really have used something sharper. After all that the dessert menu comes off as just sadly uninspired, with predictable choices like crumble, cheesecake and chocolate fondant giving the sense of being there for the sake of it more than any real effort to impress. We reckon you’re better off retiring back to the bar area with one of their dessert cocktail choices instead. What are the drinks like? We were sorry to see The Dunmore’s online cocktail menu somewhat whittled down from what’s up online to what we were presented with at-table - the front half of the space definitely lends itself to lingering about and working through the list between a few friends. Still, there’s enough choice here to suit most palates among the 'classical twist' recipes they’ve gone for. The 'Angels Abyss' won the day for our money with nutty notes of amaretto and walnut bitters elevating the rum and maraschino cherry flavours. 'Bulleit in the Blue Sky' is an amenable aperitif with bourbon sweetness and the citrus lift of San Pellegrino lemon, but the herbal notes of Benedictine struggled to break through and the limp sprig of rosemary didn't help. The 'Tokyo Iced Tea' takes colour from Midori, and wields the sweetness well to ward off the heaviness of several spirits. The wine list has some great deals by-the-bottle – you can’t go wrong with the natural Ciello Blanco at €30 – but there’s less to shout about in the largely commercial by-the-glass list. Some selections are clearly geared to pairing with mains, and we found the richness of Seguinet Bordet Chablis a good fit for the turbot. Horgelus Rosé had a smattering of berry acidity to offer up against the venison, but the heavy Alibes Verdejo floundered against the lightness of the tart. If you can agree on a bottle you’ll be on firmer footing. How was the service? Relaxed and friendly to the last – the Foyles’ intention to build a great hospitality experience has wisely started with the team, and everyone here seems full-on committed to the aim. Even as the place filled up as the night waned on, there was no sense whatsoever of anyone struggling to keep up - good training goes a long way. And the damage? Dinner for three came in at €215, a pretty reasonable price for this part of the city in 2023, especially with a glass of wine and a cocktail apiece. If you can agree on a bottle between you and steer clear of the menu’s higher end, you could have a good night here for under €50 a head. What’s the verdict on The Dunmore? Not everything at Rathmines' new bar and restaurant is a success, but what The Dunmore gets very right is exporting the laidback coastal vibe of its sister restaurant to the Dublin suburbs. From the space to the staff to the plates of homely, wholesome food at prices that won’t leave you with a bad taste in your mouth, this is a new neighbourhood arrival that locals and blow-ins will be welcoming to Dublin 6. New Openings & Discoveries More >>

The Pig's Ear The Nassau Street stalwart looks to the past for its future Posted: 1 Apr 2025 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Ronan Doyle What should we know about The Pig’s Ear? James Joyce once claimed an aim of Ulysses was to offer a portrait of Dublin so complete that the city could be reconstructed out of the book, if ever it disappeared. Well here comes a reimagined Pig’s Ear to give it a shot, in culinary terms at least, with a menu of dishes inspired by Joyce’s works and a handful of other literary and local food sources. Stephen McAllister and Andrea Hussey’s Nassau Street stalwart dished up classical Irish fare for 16 years before reinventing itself last summer as Lotus Eaters . We were all-in on the wagyu beef burgers and Asian-feeling menu, but didn’t get the sense the owners themselves were, with unchanged décor and glasses still etched with the previous brand giving the potential for a swift reverse should things not work out. Lotus Eaters And reverse they did, so back we went for The Pig’s Ear 2.0 . This time they're looking to the past to imagine their future - head chef McAllister has plumbed his own family recipe repertoire and worked with academics from TU Dublin to recreate Dublin dishes of yore and give the restaurant a high concept kick and fresh relevance in the crowded scene of 2025. Where should we sit? Save a few tweaks in the wall art, it’s once again as-you-were in this dining room, which maybe makes more sense in a back-to-the-well revival than the previous concept’s clean break. Warm wood tones and leather upholstery under soft lighting have always made this a welcoming space, and surveying the city from the sash windows is always our preferred option. On our visit, as Joyce might have put it, drizzle was general all over Dublin, and settling into our snug seats out of the rain had us all set for a feast. What’s on the menu? Ghastly type to start with - we’re no font snobs, but the choice of lettering to lay out the concept on the menu’s intro page had us wincing. Especially in a place that invokes Dublin’s literary heritage as a core inspiration - the early internet era “fun” style sticks out like a sore thumb. Okay, maybe we’re slight font snobs. We soon ceased clutching our pearls and picked up our oysters instead – much safer territory. The former Friendly Brothers’ Club on Stephen’s Green (now home to Cellar 22 and Floritz ) is the muse for these meaty morsels, with a punchy beef tartare packed under chive-scattered specimens. We can’t fault either element but they play more competitive than complimentary in practice, as though each were trying to outshine the other – at €8 a pop, we’d welcome more harmony. Boxty is among the reimagined old dishes that punctuate the menu, and it’s an inspired overhaul, with thick Cáis na Tíre custard layered over the potato pancake, liberally sprinkled with grated cheese and black truffle. This could easily make for an over-indulgent starting plate, but the smart pairing of a lighter batter with a sweeter, fruitier cheese cut through the earthy depth of the truffle for a snack you'd easily eat more than one of. It's the same story for the farl, whose plainer presentation gets dressed up with an accompanying cup of bone marrow gravy ripe for pouring. The softer dough here soaks up the thick sauce with almost as much relish as we did ourselves, while the fat-browned crust delivers a crisp texture. Smearing the soft nuggets of marrow across that golden skin is a sensual experience – do remember you are still in public. In a menu not short on creative curios, nothing caught our eye more than “Famine soup” – were we to be treated to an empty bowl? Actually the dish takes its cues, and at least partly its recipe, from Alexis Soyer, the OG celebrity chef whose soup kitchen in Croppy’s Acre out Kilmainham way funded its food by charging the rich an entry fee to see the starving masses. That ugly footnote is something we wish we’d learned on our visit rather than online afterward - neither the menu’s brief note nor the staff’s answers to enquiries dug into the story with anything like the detail that might bring the concept to life. Absent that, it’s a serviceable oxtail-adjacent soup studded with still-firm diced veg and served with (admittedly delicious) bone marrow toast – biting into that it’s hard not to feel more like morbid toffs looking out on soup-slurping peasants. In Joyce’s “Two Gallants”, the thirty-something Lenehan wonders over a plate of peas whether he’ll ever afford a home of his own – in Dublin, some things never change. Peas are pretty consistent too, and the "peas and vinegar" here might be our pick of the lot. Pickled pearl onions and tart redcurrants pierce through the sweetness of the freshly-shelled peas and the puree beneath, all fresh flavours and well-balanced textures in every forkful. Lenehan pays three halfpence for his peas, which we make about 78c in today’s money, to this plate’s €11.50. In Dublin, some things change a lot – this one's worth every penny regardless. Ulysses usefully gives us the then-cost of a kidney (the perils of picking from such a detail-rich oeuvre) at threepence, or just north of €1.50, which makes the "tongue and cheek kidney pudding"'s near-€30 price point seem all the more stark. To savour this dish you will want, like Leopold Bloom, to eat “ with relish the inner organs of beasts and fowls ”. As it happens we do, and did. The well-packed pudding oozes chunks of tongue and cheek alongside its kidney contents, a flood of “ toothsome pliant meat ” as Bloom would have it. We’d have relished it all the more were it not for a pre-poured gravy with a too-salty tang that told us it’d been reduced just a little too long – this is a very good pud that deserved better. “The earth garlic” is the most baffling inclusion on the menu – cracking our copy of Ulysses we can see where the name comes from, but not why: “ after all there’s a lot in that vegetarian fine flavour of things from the earth garlic of course it stinks after Italian organgrinders crisp of onions mushrooms truffles ”. Happily it’s a vastly better dish than name, three types of mushroom studded with slivers of truffle, all readily accepting the burst egg yolk in a mess of umami excess. It’s less Joyce’s Dublin that it conjures than San Sebastian, but having a taste of the iconic hongos plancha from Ganbara in Ireland isn’t something we’re opposed to. Smoked potatoes would have fared far better were we into the pudding’s gravy – these shrivelled baby spuds pay for their superb smoky flavour with a desiccated internal texture that demands to be drenched in something – sadly they come alone. The last sad streaks of egg yolk were all we had to offer, but we'd we’d expect the Mulligatawny chicken pie (a smart effort to repeat the rightly iconic reputation of sister restaurant Spitalfields ’ cock-a-leekie) to be a better pairing. Ulysses features a “ rhubarb tart with liberal fillings ” and given ‘it's the season you can imagine our faces when we realised the menu doesn’t – next time, perhaps. A violet and rose jelly-topped blancmange made do instead, far though it be from the “blocks” dished out in “The Dead”. This is a lovely light finale, buttermilk-rich but beautifully soft, spiked by the satisfying crunch of honeycomb and spiced kick of candied ginger. We couldn’t contemplate not trying gur cake ice cream, a nostalgic nod to memories of Manning’s Bakery in the Liberties - its simple, smooth, sweet pleasures scooped atop a base of chocolate mousse and corn flakes would send the hardest of hearts harkening back to simpler childhood days. What are the drinks like? The wine list is effectively unchanged from Lotus Eaters. Though the available BTG options have narrowed, the same punchy markups now commonly found all over the city remain (a glass at €16 when you can pick up a bottle for €23 right round the corner) - we weren’t surprised to see several diners sticking to water. The quality is solid if you can take the price point, with a Louis Moreau Bourgogne complimenting the peas perfectly and a Borgogno Nebbiolo great with the offal. The star of the show was the Pedro Ximinez with dessert – ‘tis a long way from that with gur cake we were reared. How was the service? Very friendly but less invested in the concept than we were expecting. We had to actively invite more detail on dishes at every stage, and thought between the novel development they’ve undergone here and the dish naming that doesn’t exactly sum up what you’re getting, those kind of explanations would be front and centre. And the damage? Just in below the €200 mark before a (pre-added but discretionary) 12.5% service charge, which ably but not excessively fed two. You could easily outdo our bill with fancier starters like the salmon gravlax and lobster omelette, or by veering into the steak and chops section, never mind going in on a full bottle. Keeping the belt tighter (in all senses) with bitterballen and coddle could see you fed for bang-on €30 before service, without anything to sip on. What’s the verdict on The Pig’s Ear? You could read the start-stop fate of Lotus Eaters (stated plans are for the concept to reappear in another venue but there's nothing more solid than that as of yet) as either a sign of the difficulty of landing a new idea in an ever-harder market, or as a cautionary tale about how you really need to commit to the bit if you’re to have any hope your public will too. Something like Suertudo shows how a bold reinvention of a restaurant with many successful years behind it can pay off in spades, but big gambles carry big risks. The Pig’s Ear has always done well in taking Irish food seriously, even through the periods where that was unfashionable. If this new iteration marks a safer bet than what came immediately before, it’s still one that it needs to go all-in. There is in this marriage of literary and culinary history a novel conceit that could work wonders in a UNESCO city of literature to which tourists flock to retrace the steps of Joyce and his characters, and excepting a few easily-overcome hiccups, everything about the food here has what it takes. The idea and atmosphere need to row-in behind it - not in the diddly-eye mode of Davy Byne’s boaters or Sweny’s Chemists serenading, but in the Bar 1661 sense of a menu that takes pride in telling a story. We’d love to see them lean in hard, and see the new Pig’s Ear go the whole hog. New Openings & Discoveries More >>

The Galway-born burger restaurant, once named the best burgers in Ireland, opened their first Dublin city location in summer 2024. There's beef, chicken and vegan beyond burgers on the menu, as well as plain or loaded fries, and a basic drinks menu. Indoor seating is limited but people tend to eat fast and move on. Handsome Burger Website handsomeburger.com Address Handsome Burger, Chatham Row, Dublin 2, Ireland Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story The Galway-born burger restaurant, once named the best burgers in Ireland, opened their first Dublin city location in summer 2024. There's beef, chicken and vegan beyond burgers on the menu, as well as plain or loaded fries, and a basic drinks menu. Indoor seating is limited but people tend to eat fast and move on. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Ethically sourced food, elevated to new levels of deliciousness by their clever staff have had Dubliners converging en masse to Dublin 8 since The Fumbally opened in 2012. High ceilings, mish mashed furniture and a “let’s all be friends” vibe make it feel like you’re in someone’s living room, in the best possible way. The Fumbally Website thefumbally.ie Address Fumbally Lane, The Liberties, Dublin 8 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Ethically sourced food, elevated to new levels of deliciousness by their clever staff have had Dubliners converging en masse to Dublin 8 since The Fumbally opened in 2012. High ceilings, mish mashed furniture and a “let’s all be friends” vibe make it feel like you’re in someone’s living room, in the best possible way. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Southern Italian cooking with only the best Italian ingredients and wines, some of which come from family friends and their farms in Calabria. Owner Roberto Mungo's Mama flew over for the first month of opening to teach the kitchen some family recipes and proper pasta making and they've been packed ever since - she also likes to return every few months to check on things. A pretty perfect neighborhood restaurant, and we're eternally envious of everyone who gets to call it their local. Book well in advance if you want a hope of getting a table. Grano Website grano.ie Address 5 Norseman Court, Manor Street, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Southern Italian cooking with only the best Italian ingredients and wines, some of which come from family friends and their farms in Calabria. Owner Roberto Mungo's Mama flew over for the first month of opening to teach the kitchen some family recipes and proper pasta making and they've been packed ever since - she also likes to return every few months to check on things. A pretty perfect neighborhood restaurant, and we're eternally envious of everyone who gets to call it their local. Book well in advance if you want a hope of getting a table. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Little Dumpling Dublin gets a dedicated dumpling shop Posted: 28 Jan 2020 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Lisa Cope What’s the story? In December, what had been Fudo Izakaya on Little Mary Street, reopened after a short and unsuccessful stint selling sushi, as dedicated dumpling shop Little Dumpling . Cautious excitement followed - we love dumplings but had been to Fudo and memories consist of every roll, whether it was meat, fish or fruit tasting the same. The stodge factor was high, the post-digestion was slow. Would this new concept from the somewhat secretive team behind several restaurants in the city be any better? Within weeks the praise was rolling in for the xiao long bao (soup dumplings), spicy prawn and fish egg wontons, and the dish throwing most of Dublin's food obsessed Insta heads into a spin - nutella dumplings. So dirty. So irresistible. So off we went. Where should we go for a drink first? Any time you're near Capel Street you would be doing yourself a disservice not to stop for a drink in Bar 1661 , Dave Mulligan's hypnotic cocktail bar on Green Street (below). Once there you will understand why they were named cocktail bar of the year at last year's Craft Cocktail Awards, despite only opening in April. Trying their signature Belfast coffee is non-negotiable, and they have the best obscure spirits list we've seen - including a very impressive array of mezcal, at even more impressive prices. If for any reason you're off the booze you can head to The Virgin Mary , Ireland's first non-alcoholic bar, or for cocktails, New Orleans inspired Krewe is getting a good name for their Louisiana Bowlers and Sazeracs. Where should we sit? Going off our visit on a Saturday at lunchtime you'll be lucky to get a seat, so will probably have to take what you're given. You may have to queue (but can book by calling the restaurant - advised), and there are tables for two and four, as well as a couple of window seats. It only seats around 20 and it's a squeeze, but most people will be in and out relatively fast. What's good to eat? In the interests of thorough research, and because there were five of us, we ordered the whole menu. If you can find four friends to go with we'd advise you do the same. There were no dud dumplings, but some were definitely more standout in terms of flavour than others. The xiao long bao, those elusive soup dumplings, are on the menu with Silver Hill roast duck and hoisin sauce, or Castletownbere crab and pork. For us the duck was the winner on flavour, with deeply savoury threads of saucy meat, but no soup. While the crab and pork had plenty of soup, but were more subtle on the flavour front. The chicken satay dumplings with fried peanuts and the beef dumplings with shallots and teriyaki sauce were both excellent, with scuffles over the beef in particular, and at €7 for six pieces (so just over €1 for each) really felt like fantastic value. The wrappers on the beef however were quite slippery and not sealed very well so they were hard to pick up. Probably (if unexpectedly) the dumplings that came out on top were the beetroot with prawn and crabmeat, which had perfect chewy wrappers, and a slightest earthiness from the beetroot up against the fishy richness of the prawn and crab. The spinach and wild mushroom dumplings also got the nods of approval, and it's nice to see vegetable based options that don't suffer on flavour. The other two dumplings are carrot and spicy kimchi (is there another type?), and spicy prawn and fish egg wontons with chilli sauce. Both good but slightly less memorable, although kimchi in dumplings is something we could get on board with. On the day we were there the only available sides were jasmine rice, kimchi and miso soup. Two mystery sides were crossed out in black - maybe they'll make an appearance again in the future. We loved the addition of edamame beans in the rice, and the kimchi had the crunchy/spicy balance licked. No complaints. Finally to the outlier, the Insta-dish, the caption grabber - Nutella dumplings with vanilla ice and mini marshmallows. We'll admit to one or two eye rolls when we saw these surface, but for whatever reason they just work. Go with it, live your life, order more than one portion. What about the drinks? Very basic - white or red wine with no information on what they are (presume the worst), prosecco (same), Krombacher or Heineken for beer, limited soft drinks and green tea. So many places miss the opportunity to put together an interesting, compact drinks list that will increase the per head spend and we will never understand it. And the service? The queueing system was non-existant, with no one coming out to give an idea of wait times or to take names. This meant everyone who newly turned up walked into the crammed restaurant first to see what was happening, and at times things got confusing (and a bit tense) as twos who had just arrived were seated ahead of threes and fours in the queue. A little communication would have gone a long way. Once inside staff couldn't have been nicer, and they did take a portion of nutella dumplings off the bill to apologise for the wait. They did however bring almost every dish at the same time - a pet peeve of ours - meaning half of it was cold by the time we got around to eating it. Next time we would order two or three plates at a time. The verdict? Little dumpling is a solid addition to Dublin's food scene and our first dedicated dumpling shop. It's tasty, fast and cheap, and while we're not going to say it'll change your life, we're glad it's there and would happily return. We're very much in favour of anywhere putting suppliers like Silver Hill duck and Wright's seafood on the menu, and hope the team continue to innovate and perfect the menu over the coming months. Judging by the current buzz it will be jammed regardless. Little Dumpling 28 Mary Street Little, Dublin 7 littledumpling.ie New Openings & Discoveries More >>

When you want a good steak, start with a good butcher. The FX Buckley brand started life as a butcher shop in the 1930's and now operates a small chain of shops and restaurants across Dublin. Offering classic steakhouse vibes with leather banquette seating, heavy wooden furniture and moody artwork, the menu is meaty and the steaks are cooked over charcoal. Although they have a few locations, our pick for the best atmosphere is the Crow Street FXB in Temple Bar. FX Buckley Crow Street Website thebuckleycollection.ie Address 2 Crow Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story When you want a good steak, start with a good butcher. The FX Buckley brand started life as a butcher shop in the 1930's and now operates a small chain of shops and restaurants across Dublin. Offering classic steakhouse vibes with leather banquette seating, heavy wooden furniture and moody artwork, the menu is meaty and the steaks are cooked over charcoal. Although they have a few locations, our pick for the best atmosphere is the Crow Street FXB in Temple Bar. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Japanese bar with small plates, sushi and a robatayaki grill in Temple Bar, just off Dame Street. Daily sushi specials, plenty of vegetarian options, and more interesting small plates than most Japanese restaurants around town. They do a great line in sake, either in low alcohol cocktails or straight up, and it's worth walking in if you forgot to book somewhere for dinner. Daruma Website @daruma_dublin Address 13 Parliament Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Japanese bar with small plates, sushi and a robatayaki grill in Temple Bar, just off Dame Street. Daily sushi specials, plenty of vegetarian options, and more interesting small plates than most Japanese restaurants around town. They do a great line in sake, either in low alcohol cocktails or straight up, and it's worth walking in if you forgot to book somewhere for dinner. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Plant-based dining from Australian chef Mark Senn, which started in a food truck in Portobello and found a permanent home on Dorset Street in 2018. Regularly changing menu featuring riffs on different cuisines each month. Veginity Website veginity.com Address 101 Dorset Street Upper, Dublin 1 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Plant-based dining from Australian chef Mark Senn, which started in a food truck in Portobello and found a permanent home on Dorset Street in 2018. Regularly changing menu featuring riffs on different cuisines each month. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

You might think Good World Chinese on George’s Street is just another Cantonese catering to Irish taste buds, but those who know ask for the dim sum menu as soon as they sit down and don’t look beyond it. Char siu puffs, cheung fun (steamed rice paper rolls), stir-fried turnip cake and shrimp har gow are some of our favourites, but it would be a crime to visit and not order the xiao long bao (soup dumplings) too - they’re a Dublin dumpling benchmark. Good World Website facebook.com/GoodWorld Address 18 South Great George's Street, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story You might think Good World Chinese on George’s Street is just another Cantonese catering to Irish taste buds, but those who know ask for the dim sum menu as soon as they sit down and don’t look beyond it. Char siu puffs, cheung fun (steamed rice paper rolls), stir-fried turnip cake and shrimp har gow are some of our favourites, but it would be a crime to visit and not order the xiao long bao (soup dumplings) too - they’re a Dublin dumpling benchmark. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

If you've never tried a Southern Indian crispy pancake made from fermented rice and lentil batter, and dipped into coconut, fresh herb and tomato chutneys, get thee to Dosa Dosa for the best in the city. Apart from their namesake, you can (and should) also order kathi rolls, parotta and vada (like pillowy, fragrant Indian doughnuts), with a mango lassi to wash it all down. They have a second truck at Hynes Bar in Stoneybatter, and the only regret you'll have after visiting either is that you didn't go sooner. Dosa Dosa Grand Canal Website dosadosa.ie Address Albert Court East, Grand Canal Street Lower, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story If you've never tried a Southern Indian crispy pancake made from fermented rice and lentil batter, and dipped into coconut, fresh herb and tomato chutneys, get thee to Dosa Dosa for the best in the city. Apart from their namesake, you can (and should) also order kathi rolls, parotta and vada (like pillowy, fragrant Indian doughnuts), with a mango lassi to wash it all down. They have a second truck at Hynes Bar in Stoneybatter, and the only regret you'll have after visiting either is that you didn't go sooner. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Inexpensive, excellent Neapolitan style pizza, with a margherita coming in at under €10. The MacHugh brothers were inspired to open Sano after a trip to Naples, seeing how delicious, affordable and popular pizza is there, and it's loved by locals, tourists and students in equal measures. Unlike their original Temple Bar location bookings are taken all day. Sano Ranelagh Website sano.pizza Address 62 Ranelagh, Dublin 6 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Inexpensive, excellent Neapolitan style pizza, with a margherita coming in at under €10. The MacHugh brothers were inspired to open Sano after a trip to Naples, seeing how delicious, affordable and popular pizza is there, and it's loved by locals, tourists and students in equal measures. Unlike their original Temple Bar location bookings are taken all day. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Xi'an Street Food Xi'an food diluted for a fast food nation Posted: 5 May 2026 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Lisa Cope What's the scéal on the newest Xi'an Street Food? Originally founded in Galway in 2016, Xi'an Street Food opened their first Dublin location in 2018, and have just opened their third and largest site to date on Suffolk Street (where Tolteca used to be). The faceless, Chinese-owned hospitality group behind it was set up in 2012, and seems to have retail shops, Chinese takeaways, and even a smashburger restaurant as part of their portfolio. Xi'an is the one they've hit it biggest with though, thanks in huge part to getting in early on the spice bag train, which has gone on to become a global phenomenon . Did you even visit Ireland if you didn't have one while you were here? In an EU Business article, an unnamed company spokesperson said that Xi'an Street Food had " found a great balance between authenticity and modernity ", which we read as: " Irish people's palates can't handle real Xi'an food so we've made it less spicy/more sweet/less authentic ", but this Suffolk Street branch is the biggest yet, with the biggest menu to match, so maybe our previous underwhelming visits would be banished by this new beauty? Is there more seating here? This is their biggest dining room by far. While the former Tolteca site is relatively narrow, it's long, starting with plenty of two tops and counter seating at the front. At the back it opens up into a wider space, with more two tops, three booths for four, and one long wooden table in the centre that sits 10/12. What's on the menu? A LOT. Too much. There are so many options, and customisable options on those options, that you might feel like running for the door while clutching your head in your hands. It will also come off as nonsensical for anyone familiar with this thrilling cuisine. Why do Biang Biang and Liang Pi noodles have a choice of sauce? Liang Pi in Laksa curry sauce is not Liang Pi. Biang Biang in Dan Dan sauce is not Biang Biang - it's dan dan noodles. Are they trying to mess with our heads? It's like asking what sauce you'd like with your bacon and cabbage - parsley, tartare, or chip shop curry. You order via a QR code with your table number, and the menu online didn't exactly match the printed ones, so steel yourself for some possible on the hoof changes. Then we were brought fortune cookies. Shouldn't these come at the end of the meal? We estimated that 50% of customers were having a spice bag (€9.50), an enormous plate of spicy chips, non-free range, non-Irish chicken, and supposedly vegetables, made with their "secret blend of spices". As we were on a try as much as possible mission we ordered a "tapas" sized (kill us now) mini version (€5.50), and apart from a few cursory chillies on top there was barely a vegetable in sight. It doesn't come with curry sauce either - you'll have to add that on for another €3. We've seen this mini spice bag show up online with plenty of veg, and if inconsistency is this much of an issue with their most popular dish, we can only wonder about the rest. Apart from that major omission, these ain't homemade chips, and we'll happily never eat that chicken again. Here's what else we had... Smashburger spring rolls (€9) : These flavourless, unseasoned parcels would give smashburgers a bad name. Staff didn't know what the sauce was - eventually said "tomato sauce". We found out online it's Ballymaloe relish. A travesty in comparison to Hang Dai's version, which actually tastes like a cheeseburger Pan fried pork dumplings (€9.50 for eight) : These had good flavour, juicy meat and a nice dumpling skirt, but came with no dipping sauce. Vinegar and soy are on the table but no sauce bowls to mix your own. We asked and were brought some but another basic item missed Pickled cucumber salad (€6) : This is a decent smacked cucumber, but sweetness comes through more than acid or heat Stewed beef bao bun (€6): Did you order a swimming pool with your bao? A soggy, claggy, gummy mess. The radish will not save you... The main event, " Xi'an Specialty Noodles " are served in comically large bowls about the size of an adult's trunk, which only serve to make the portions of food look tiny. They're not, but optics and all that. You pick your dish, pick your meat, and pick your sauce, but if like us you want your dishes with the correct ingredients, you want to order the Biang Biang noodles with the home-style special sauce, and the Liang Pi with the Qishan spicy and sour sauce. For the gun gun, soba, rice and other noodles, go nuts. Biang Biang noodles with home-style special sauce and pork (€17.50) : These noodles were pretty good, wide, rough and chewy, but they were slightly overcooked and should have been chewier. The pork (belly, we presumed mince) was minimum 50% fat, and that veg came out of a freezer bag (those swollen, sweaty cubes of carrot will linger on for a while). If they improved the quality of the meat and veg this would be substantially more enjoyable Gun gun noodles with dan dan sauce and duck (€18.50) : These noodles are thin and springy, as opposed to the biang biang's wide and chewy ones, and the sauce was rich in peanuts and chilli. We forgot we'd ordered duck until close to the end - it was so overcooked it had more of beef/pork texture. Stay away from this as your meat choice if you know what's good for you Liang Pi "tapas" (€7) : If you order the full sized version of this (from €15.50) you're forced into choosing meat/veg/tofu to go on top - traditional Liang Pi never has anything else added. This was a sad sample of one of Xi'an absolute best bangers, with all of the savoury, tangy, spicy flavours on mute. And where were the traditional spongy gluten pieces, washed out and reformed in the process of making the rice noodles, to soak up that sauce?? ATF calls this woeful. Go to Biang Biang on Mary Street to taste real Liang Pi. What about drinks? The most interesting drinks on offer here are "Xi'an cocktails" and bubble tea. Although some might consider sangria in a Xi'an restaurant just as interesting. Wine is "white or red", beer is Tiger, Asahi or Tsingtao, and there's soft drinks too. At least some effort has gone into the cocktails, although the "Xi'an spice bag margarita" was just a regular (good) margarita with a tajin rim. A "Ganbay" with baijiu, lemongrass, ginger, kiwi, basil, fresh lime and ginger ale was very nicely done, but served in a silly little glass and was gone in three sips - a child-sized portion of alcohol. How was the service? Friendly but vacant. Helpful but clueless. We asked two different people what the usual sauces for Biang Biang noodles and Liang Pi were. Neither knew, they had to bring in a third. We asked another if the food was spicy, we were told no, mild, when the reality is you pick your spice level when you order. We asked another server what the sauce with the spring rolls was. She didn't know. Our Liang Pi never arrived, and despite staff asking several times if we'd received everything we'd ordered, and telling them no, we still had to flag someone down four times over 30 minutes, and eventually tell them we just wanted a refund so we could leave this torturous place, before it eventually arrived. What did you pay? €110 for enough food for four sharing everything, with three drinks. It's a relatively inexpensive option for a quick bite with friends or family, but as we know, cost and value are two very different things. What's the verdict on Xi'an Street Food? Throughout a very long 90 minutes in here we kept thinking about it as the McDonalds of Chinese food. They're not concerned about keeping the food authentically Xi'an, using quality ingredients, making each dish the very best it could be. This is pile 'em high, turn 'em over stuff, where you may look the other way if you care about where exactly what you're eating comes from. The increasing global fandom of the spice bag has put Xi'an Street Food firmly on the tourist map, and they're going to ride that wave as long as it lasts, but you're not a tourist ticking off a bingo card of Irish Instagram dishes. If you want to eat real Xi'an food go to Biang Biang on Mary Street instead, or get on a plane to any of Guirong Wei's Xi'an restaurants in London, but a few years ago we ate in both on the same week and honestly there was very little in it. If you're just hungover and want a spice bag then knock yourself out. New Openings & Discoveries More >>

Tiller + Grain's owner/chef Clair Dowling worked for Ottolenghi and Skye Gyngell in London, before bringing her flavour-popping salads and sandwiches to Dublin city centre. Meat and fish is cooked on an indoor barbecue, bread is from Bread 41, fruits and vegetables are predominantly Irish and seasonal, and it's hard to surpass the flavours in their salads. Tiller And Grain Website tillerandgrain.ie Address 2 Frederick Street South, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Tiller + Grain's owner/chef Clair Dowling worked for Ottolenghi and Skye Gyngell in London, before bringing her flavour-popping salads and sandwiches to Dublin city centre. Meat and fish is cooked on an indoor barbecue, bread is from Bread 41, fruits and vegetables are predominantly Irish and seasonal, and it's hard to surpass the flavours in their salads. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Anywhere that has a note on their website pleasing "please don't ask us for chicken in your pasta" gets the seal of approval from us. Bar Italia does a lot of things really well: house-made pasta, pizza bases that have been been fermented for 72 hours, and some of the best people-watching in the city thanks to floor-to-ceiling glass overlooking the Millennium Bridge. Bar Italia Website baritalia.ie Address 26 Ormond Quay Lower, Dublin 1 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Anywhere that has a note on their website pleasing "please don't ask us for chicken in your pasta" gets the seal of approval from us. Bar Italia does a lot of things really well: house-made pasta, pizza bases that have been been fermented for 72 hours, and some of the best people-watching in the city thanks to floor-to-ceiling glass overlooking the Millennium Bridge. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Lip-tingling, totally legitimate Thai food, without compromises for Irish palates. Don't miss the Laab Moo (spicy pork salad), Pad Kra Pao (spicy Thai basil stiry fry) and the whole deep-fried fish. Spice levels can be high but staff will advise based on your threshold for heat. Full Moon Website fullmoon.ie Address 8 Parliament Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Lip-tingling, totally legitimate Thai food, without compromises for Irish palates. Don't miss the Laab Moo (spicy pork salad), Pad Kra Pao (spicy Thai basil stiry fry) and the whole deep-fried fish. Spice levels can be high but staff will advise based on your threshold for heat. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Set in an iconic building overlooking the Liffey and the Ha'Penny Bridge, the same team behind The Winding Stair serve a varied menu featuring some of the best Irish produce from breakfast till late, seven days a week. The outdoor terrace is the place to be for people-watching when the sun shines. The Woollen Mills Website thewoollenmills.com Address 42 Ormond Quay Lower, Dublin 1 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Set in an iconic building overlooking the Liffey and the Ha'Penny Bridge, the same team behind The Winding Stair serve a varied menu featuring some of the best Irish produce from breakfast till late, seven days a week. The outdoor terrace is the place to be for people-watching when the sun shines. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Chongqing Hotpot Dinner and a show (of yourself) for €20 a head Posted: 21 Apr 2026 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Ronan Doyle What’s the story with Chongqing Hotpot? Restaurateurs Ryon Wen and Ian Keegan’s well-established knack for landing Chinese concepts on the Dublin dining scene is best summed up as plugging gaps in the market—ing. They may not be the first to do it, but you can bet they’ll be the sleekest. So where pastel pink Hakkahan gave Sichuan spice a Stoneybatter lease of life, and an impending rebrand of the genuinely novel Nan ’s Huaiyang cuisine in Hong Kong café-style looks set to poach poky Hong Kong Wonton ’s customers from down the road, now here’s Chongqing Hotpot ’s bubbling broth to fill your feed – and no doubt their seats too. The cutesy panda mascot and “ how to eat like a local ” branding speak to the drive, key to this group’s ongoing success, to broaden the appeal from a nostalgic diaspora market to a wider public with minds and wallets equally open. Hotpot is nothing new here - as ever with Chinese cuisine in the city, Parnell Street’s been at it for years - but this bright, branded take is a clear effort to free it from IYKYK turf. Should we order anything other than hotpot? That’d be like stopping by a steakhouse for the salad. There’s really no need, especially knowing most appetisers are transplants from the group’s other outlets, including new arrival Chuna Hunan next door. Not having been yet we were tempted by the century egg but let down to hear it wasn’t on that night (a few years still to go maybe). Typhoon shelter squid (€12) was no consolation, with none of the distinctive dish’s garlic or crunch present half as much as the sodden sensation of under-drained oil. Just get straight into the action. Alright, how do we do this? Start with the broth (€11.90 - €14.90). Sichuan-style spice with beef tallow is traditional, and it’s hard to beat the sights, scents and eventual savour of a chunk of fat dissolving amongst dried chillies and peppercorns. Most will be okay going straight down the middle on medium spicy - level up and lean hard on the cooling sesame oil side bowls if you’re feeling braver. The traditional nine-grid shape grew out of a culture of communal hotpots and individual items zealously guarded – there’s no faux pas fouler than nicking a nugget of someone else's good stuff. If you’re not here to share they can do it for you, but then what are you doing here at all? Another advantage is less chance for ingredients to go AWOL, but then you forfeit the fun of dragging each other’s dire chopstick skillz. As well as an S-shape that leaves more room for fishing fun, double- and triple-pot options give the chance to try pork bone, mushroom, or tomato broths alongside the classic. We’re all for the inclusivity on half-veggie crowds, but we reccomend pork if you’re doubling down on seafood or more delicate vegetables – the mild, rich, sweetness is a welcome balm to benumbed lips. Be warned - the handy menu card you might have studied in advance only partly matches the bilingual listings on the tabletop tablet you order from. Friendly staff are on hand to aid navigation, and to send the order through (oddly you’re asked for a table number when none are in sight). https://video.wixstatic.com/video/79af6f_63433c21f1a54f8d989c08fca6d888bd/720p/mp4/file.mp4 Versus this group’s usual focus on provenance (next door they proudly tout Buckley’s meat, Silverhill Duck and Andarl Farm pork), the “premium” and “organic” labels here go unattested (and our questions about them unanswered). In terms of meat, it’s more cut than provider they mean - premium beef slices (€8.90) are wafer-thin rolls, only needing the barest broth-blanching to bring out their best. The quick-cook effect is a great first intro to the alchemy ahead. Ultimately, the shared joy of hotpot is in the sense of a communal cooking lesson – trial and error as much as anything else. Wouldn’t spicy beef (€8.90) flavours get lost in an already-spicy broth, you might rightly wonder. On the surface, sure, less so the marinated depths of these thicker cuts. In the back-and-forth fishing for every possible permutation, in the wide-eyed and full-mouthed signs of a winning combination, there is the contagious fun of shared discovery. https://video.wixstatic.com/video/79af6f_f75e61093952457897e4098ba152db60/720p/mp4/file.mp4 That’s truer and truer the more adventurous you are – ample offal is where you can really take the plunge. Hotpot has its roots in cash-strapped fishermen looking for flavourful ways to spice up cheap cuts. Cast yourself in their boat and go all-in on iron-rich pork liver (€6.90), or slices of duck blood (€6.90), amplified or overrode to taste by the endless combinations you can make up at the dipping sauce station (€1.98pp, go big on black vinegar). Queasier customers can dip their toes with a thousand-layer tripe (€6.90). Free of the metallic tang, its crunchy layers come alive with a short swim in the tallow. There wasn’t a plate we finished faster. https://video.wixstatic.com/video/79af6f_ff9b3172fa8c461baeabfab057adbc93/720p/mp4/file.mp4 The mushroom averse may erupt in hives at the sight of black fungus (€3.50), but they're a non-negotiable where hotpot’s concerned. Also known as wood ear, they plump up in the furious heat of the broth and yield to the bite with an elastic snap so satisfying it might tempt some braver fungiphobes to give it a go. Save such spongier stuff for the final stretch, when the broth has bubbled down to a concentrated sauce. That’s where the likes of Chongqing dry potato (€3.50) step to the fore, sun-dried slices that survive a simmering with delicious bite. Few options better showcase the tableside theatre than sweet potato noodles (€5.80), whose pale palor on the way into the broth couldn’t be further from the glassy glory that emerges after – expect oohing and aahing all round. Tofu puffs (€3.50) are marvels of spongy structure ripe for lapping it all up as greedily as we’d like to – just let them cool a little before spraying it all out again. Stodgier still are glutinous rice noodles (€4.90), very much the final boss of the meal with an elusive form to put even the most chopstick-cocky among us right back in our place. https://video.wixstatic.com/video/79af6f_ec1e36f6afc64bc6b81989f0c5d36d02/720p/mp4/file.mp4 Should we save room for dessert? Everyone but curious completists and nostalgists need not. Appealing as the price point of the classic ice jelly (€2) is, its simple soft and subtle sweet sensations are solely there to soothe tongues numbed by all that málà mouthfeel – if you’re not suffering, no need. Only the chalky candy consistency of haw flakes sprinkled over gives this anything of note. It’s a similar story for the glutinous cake (€6.90), little fingers of rice flour that cool to a gentle chew. Roasted pear (€6.90), another Chinese classic, lacks any hint of either word in its insistently aquatic flavour – this is one sad spoonful, and one only. The efforts of floating goji berries and red dates to add a hint of intrigue are valiant but in vain, leaving this sorry syrup akin to the dregs of a tin can, and not half as tasty. https://video.wixstatic.com/video/79af6f_17b001b684474a1494c4226787e3cad8/720p/mp4/file.mp4 What’s good to drink? Cocktails, like appetisers, are available from next door, and in the same vein they aren’t quite the right fit. On any other day, the sour-sweet sharpness of a passionfruit saketini (€14.50) is something we’d sip with just about anything, but when you’re talking hotpot it’s beer or bust. Stick to a Tsingtao (€5.50) to cool the taste buds. How was the service? By definition you’re on your own here. Save a helping hand on the initial order and intermittent offers of a hot drop (say no unless you’re running low; concentrating the flavour is part of the fun), staff stay out of your way unless you flag one down to add to the order. Given the size of the place, that rarely proves a challenge. https://video.wixstatic.com/video/79af6f_8e1c60fccacf44c88087bf47ef1c6782/720p/mp4/file.mp4 What should we budget? True to hotpot’s humble roots, you’re in for a cheap night out. Our underwhelming appetiser and desserts still landed us at less than €30 a head before drinks - cut that faff and keep to fewer rice or noodle items and you’d easily come in at €20. Ribeye, scallops, prawns and the likes will swing things the other way if you’re so inclined. What’s the verdict on Chongqing Hotpot? Some restaurants rely on the prowess of kitchen craft to offer a two in one deal - dinner and a show. At Chonqing Hotpot , the only show is the one you'll make of yourself, fishing stray chunks from bubbling broth like a blind angler. Bring some friends and be brave with what you order – it’s a lot of fun. New Openings & Discoveries More >>

One of the best places for dim sum in Dublin, with prices that make it accessible any day of the week. They have an à la carte mainly Cantonese menu too, but the dim sum is what most people come for. Don’t miss the mince pork crystal dumplings, stir-fried mooli cake and the BBQ pork rice noodle rolls. Ka Shing Website ka-shing.site Address 12A Wicklow Street, Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story One of the best places for dim sum in Dublin, with prices that make it accessible any day of the week. They have an à la carte mainly Cantonese menu too, but the dim sum is what most people come for. Don’t miss the mince pork crystal dumplings, stir-fried mooli cake and the BBQ pork rice noodle rolls. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Modern café from sisters Domini and Peaches Kemp in a beautiful basement attached to the MoLI museum, just across from St Stephen’s Green. A simple menu of eggs, toasties, soups and salads, with a hot dish or two and all the treats for afterwards. The terrace out the back is a particularly lovely place to escape the city centre crowds. The Commons At MoLI Website moli.ie/cafe-gardens/the-commons Address 86 St Stephen's Green , Dublin 2 Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story Modern café from sisters Domini and Peaches Kemp in a beautiful basement attached to the MoLI museum, just across from St Stephen’s Green. A simple menu of eggs, toasties, soups and salads, with a hot dish or two and all the treats for afterwards. The terrace out the back is a particularly lovely place to escape the city centre crowds. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

One of Dublin 8's most loved cafés has crossed the Liffey and opened site number two in Fairview. This one is more petite than the original, with a small but potent menu, and the hash browns with caramelised onion, fried egg, cheese sauce & crispy onions looks set to be the star weekend dish. Pastries are homemade and coffee from these guys is always excellent. Two Pups Fairview Website twopupscoffee.com Address 30 Annesley Bridge Road, Fairview, Dublin 3, Ireland Good For Tag 1 Cuisine Tag 1 Once Over Read our Review >> The Story One of Dublin 8's most loved cafés has crossed the Liffey and opened site number two in Fairview. This one is more petite than the original, with a small but potent menu, and the hash browns with caramelised onion, fried egg, cheese sauce & crispy onions looks set to be the star weekend dish. Pastries are homemade and coffee from these guys is always excellent. Where It's At Nearby Locales Mongoose Chongqing Hot Pot Boco Clontarf Bell Pesto Bang Gloria Osteria Cantina Valentina D'Lepak Pera Borgo Amai by Viktor Kaizen Chubbys Badam Table 45 Comet Daruma Malahide Lena The Pig's Ear Notions @ Two Pups The Rooftop @ Anantara The Marker Sofra Little Geno's Mama Shee Nutbutter Smithfield

Daddy's Brunch in a pub has never been this good Posted: 10 Mar 2020 Neighbourhood Neighborhood Name Address Restaurant Address Website Website Name Restaurant Info View the Listing >> Written by: Lisa Cope What’s the story? Last December, the team behind Lucky's on Meath Street opened a new multi-purpose venue in a neighbourhood that really needed it - Rialto. The Circular is the pub part, serving craft beer and pizza from Coke Lane with a "beer yard" out the back (yet to be seen), and at the front is Daddy's - the bright, vintage style pink-toned café. Daddy's serves breakfast, lunch and 'early dinner' during the week, with brunch on weekends, and very quickly locals (and those from farther afield) were singing the praises of their Turkish Eggs, savoury tarts and the nostalgia inducing 'mashed eggs in a cup'. The suppliers list is impressive, with O'Neill's bacon, Annascaul black and white pudding, organic free-range eggs and Tartine bread and pastries, and there's a cabinet in front where you can buy many of the same ingredients to take home. If you're planning on rocking up to do a bit of work, be aware that they only allow laptops in the café part at the front, and on a separate visit, another member of the ATF team felt staff were a bit snippy when she asked if she could move into the main room with hers. Sounds like it's a bit of a sore spot. What else is around? If you're in this neck of the woods you've got to pay a visit to The Bakery by The Cupcake Bloke , to stock up on almond and honey, lemon and raspberry and oreo cupcakes, their award-winning Earl Grey, cranberry and orange tea brack, and if you're lucky a giant mikado or a jambon. You're also a 10 minute walk from Kilmainham Gaol if it's somewhere you've been meaning to tick off your bucket list (guilty), and a 20 minute walk to Teelings Distillery if you're in the mood for some whiskey tasting. Where should we sit? Although Daddy's is technically only the front part with high stools, high tables and counters, there are three seating areas in the venue, so plenty of room whatever the size or needs of your group. The front has the best light but you need to be okay with a bit of leg dangling. Then in the main pub there's "the good room", an annexed section with red booths and blue wall panelling, then into the main pub with round booths, counter seating and regular tables for two or four. If you don't want to be in the café at the front, the "good room" is definitely where it's at, feeling cosy yet bright at the same time thanks to the high windows. Because the main pub is so big, and they only fill a few tables for brunch, it's somewhat lacking in atmosphere in comparison to the other areas, but if you want peace, space, or just to have a private conversation it'll do the job. What's good to eat? This is one of those brunch menus that you immediately know is a cut above most, due to twists on some classics and the produce being used. The counter is filled with Tartine pastries, scones, bakes and tarts, and if you can avoid ordering one while waiting for your food you have more self-control than us. We opted for a pain au chocolat which was exactly how it should be, with the coveted two rows of chocolate and crispy strips on the outside for extra crunch. Clearly we couldn't come here without trying the Turkish eggs (why don't we see more Turkish eggs on menus here!?) and they were very good with a generous amount of sourdough, but we'd argue that the bowl they were served in wasn't ideal. The spiced oil had risen to the top with the garlic and herb yoghurt sitting at the bottom, and it took a lot of digging to get down and get a decent amount of it on the bread. We prefer Turkish eggs in a wider, more shallow bowl where both oil and yoghurt are easy to scoop up. Saying that the flavours were excellent and the eggs perfectly poached. Next time we'd probably just gently empty the bowl out onto the plate. Next up the impossibly perfect 'organic mashed eggs in a cup" with Annascaul black and white pudding, kale and toast. It's hard to imagine mashed eggs tasting this delicious (we're guessing lots of butter), but our parents certainly never made 'em like this. Both the black and white pudding have to be some of the best in the country, soft and spreadable, and the kale was beautifully seasoned with crispy edges. A really perfect breakfast plate, barring the single wrapped butter pats which in this day and age are pretty unforgiveable. We also couldn't resist the double baked croissant pudding with vanilla custard, O'Neill's smoked, streaky bacon and honey, and if sweet breakfasts are your thing, this is a triumph. Like the best bread and butter pudding, which could only be made better by chucking a load of salty, streaky bacon on top, from one of our favourite bacon producers. We wanted to try pretty much everything on the menu (a rare occurrence), but sadly stomach space is limited. On the list for next time are the boxty with kale, poached eggs and garlic herb yoghurt, and the fried egg sandwich with bacon and brown sauce, with a slice of seasonal fruit tart for afters. What about the drinks? Coffee is by Two-Fifty Square and is excellent - special shout out for the decaf which is among the best we've tasted. Tea is from Clement & Pekoe and they also do freshly squeezed orange juice and Bloody Marys if you're feeling delicate (or just like booze with brunch). And the service? Everyone was bright, warm and welcoming, and the food arrived in good time. The verdict? We loved Daddy's and think Rialto is very lucky to have it. There's no doubt it's going to be packed with weekend brunch crowds, and the word's probably not fully out yet so now is as good a time as any to get in there and try it for yourself. You can't go wrong with the menu, the vibe is ideal for some weekend chill time, and despite Dublin's brilliant brunch scene, Daddy's feels unique and different to the rest. Now if only they'd take over a big pub on the Northside and do the same. Daddy's 538 South Circular Road, Rialto, Dublin 8 www.instagram.com/daddysdub New Openings & Discoveries More >>