Pete and I were recently invited to Dublin by Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board responsible for forging links between Irish producers and potential customers around the world. As well as showcasing excellent Irish produce, Bord Bia also aim to develop markets for Irish suppliers and bring the taste of Irish food to more tables world-wide.
During our 2 day Dublin visit, we were taken out for lunch and dinner at a number of local restaurants.
My favourite of the three was Ely Gastro Pub located on Grand Canal Square in Dublin’s Docklands.
Ely (and sister venues Ely Brasserie and Ely Wine Bar) are owned by Erik and Michelle Robson who source as much as they can from their own family farm in County Clare. The rest is sourced locally, with strong focus on seasonality and quality.
The pub has an outside terrace that would be just lovely on a sunnier day. Sadly, though we visited at the end of May, we were met with rain and cold winds. Inside was warm and dry though, with high ceilings and elegant modern design.
The Guinness bread served with our drinks was absolutely fantastic, sweet and moist and wonderful with salted butter. For my lunch I chose the day’s special, a fillet of salmon cooked to perfection, with crispy skin and moist flesh over a seafood bisque and lightly cooked vegetables. Pete’s burger with “haystack onions”, Bandon vale cheddar and bourbon BBQ sauce was enormous and bursting with flavour. Sides such as giant onion rings, chips served with aioli and green beans were very good.
What I liked was the combination of excellent food, friendly service and an attractive and comfortable setting.
On our first evening, we dined at L Mulligan Grocer in the Arbour Hill area of Dublin.
This was a much more casual kind of venue, and our group took three tables with bench seating on the raised level towards the back. The menus were presented within old hardback books and a scrabble board “reserved” sign made us smile.
Although the food was pretty good and service was friendly, it was also very slow and there were a number of mistakes in orders served to at least two of the three tables, resulting in some people almost finishing their mains before others were served. Pete’s scotch egg starter was good. My potted crab was OK – a small portion of only white crab meat, with a very thick layer of butter on top, there wasn’t much flavour, though the crab was no doubt fresh. Mains were better, with some great quality sausages and steak.
The drinks menu was particularly impressive, with a really long list of Irish craft beers on draft and in bottles, not to mention a huge selection of Irish and international whiskies.
The Dublin Wine Rooms include a wine bar and a restaurant. In the wine bar, we had fun using the specialist Enomatic serving system to try tasting, half glass or full glass measures of the many bottles available. Staff were very helpful in suggesting wines to try according to our tastes. We were also invited to sample a range of Irish cheeses with the wines.
Upstairs in the restaurant, we enjoyed excellent starters and mains. Pete’s parsnip and honey soup was one of the best we’ve tasted and my quail and lentil starter was excellent. Steaks and kangaroo mains were also delicious. The big let down came with desserts, which were mediocre; a shame given the great impression made by the savoury courses.
All three of our dining experiences showcased the excellent quality of Irish produce and brought home to us that Dublin really is a great destination for a food and drink lover. There are also some great day trips from Dublin and it makes a good starting point for backpacking around Ireland.
Kavey Eats was a guest of Bord Bia and of Ely Gastropub, L Mulligan Grocer and Dublin Wine Rooms.
Please leave a comment - I love hearing from you!11 Comments to "Eating Out in Dublin"
I’ve never been to Dublin but I would really like to visit, it sounds like there are some great places to eat and drink!
Kathryn, there’s also plenty to visit too. More food and drink places, which we visited during our walk around the centre, but of course, the regular tourist attractions too. Well worth a weekend away, I’d say!
I love going back to Dublin (though, happen I’m somewhat biased). So many excellent places to eat & drink – for all tastes and budgets. Still, I always gravitate back to Bewley’s for breakfast and afternoon tea & The Winding Stair for a lazy lunch. I’ve visited L Mulligan Grocer and have to say on that occasion the food & service were outstanding 🙂
I went to Bewley’s the first time I visited Dublin, long long time ago, over 2 decades ago! 😀
I agree that Ely was the best of the bunch. Just a shame the menu was so limited!
Aah, I’m lucky, I don’t have any allergies or intolerances, and only a very small handful of things I dislike (aniseed/ licquorice/ celery/ fennel) so there was lots of choice for me. All were tasty, though!
Sounds like a wonderful time, Kavey! 🙂
Indeed!
Hi Kavey I am sorry I missed that you were in Dublin – I think you were at Blooms Garden Festival and I was in Dublin for the Womens Mini Marathon.
I notice you have a piccie of Curim Ale which is local to the town that I live in and a micro brewery that is well worth sampling.
Was a short trip, and full itinerary. How did the marathon go?
Yes, I think the Curim Ale was served in one of the restaurant meals. x
That was my favourite place too. 🙂 I’ve loved it. Very good food, beautiful place 🙂 It was a pleasure to meet you too. Please let me know if you come to France 🙂