It’s an exciting time to be a food-loving visitor to Dublin. In a perfect storm of culinary magic, talented young chefs who have honed their talents in hotspots such as Denmark, New York, and London are now firing up the kitchens in the city’s most exciting restaurants. A new European-style bistro that could have been plucked from Copenhagen or Paris proves how much the bar has been raised in recent years. There’s a neighborhood café innovatively championing sustainability and smash-hit second and third acts from local favorites. Flavors from around the world reflect Dublin’s ever-growing multicultural mix, while a sweep of fabulous new hotels means there’s a room suited to every type of traveler once they’ve eaten their way around the city. Of course, most evenings here will either be topped or tailed by a visit to a Dublin pub, but for everything in between, these are our favorite Dublin restaurants across the city right now to grab an indulgent bite to eat.
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Comet
Tucked down a lane off super-central Dawson Street, on the site of a former wine bar, new arrival Comet is a European-style bistro that’s got foodies in the Irish capital all aflutter. The pedigree of the team who run it is impressive: chef Kevin O’Donnell cut his teeth at Dublin favorite Bastible before working in starry kitchens in Denmark and returning home to roll out popular supper clubs. Along the way he met his wife, Laura Chabal, who now brilliantly runs the front of house at Comet, which they set up with O’Donnell’s old Bastible bosses. Anyone feeling daring can roll the dice on the four-course carte blanche for $90. Otherwise, there’s liver parfait with fermented blood oranges, a Wagyu featherblade skewer with anchovy, and a quail roasted on toast with vin jaune sauce that some critics have named their dish of the year. The brilliant low-intervention wine list is a worthy pairing for the sublime cooking.
Hawksmoor
It makes infinite sense that Hawksmoor, a choosey source of the highest quality beef, would settle on Ireland for one of its outposts. Thirty-five day, dry-aged beef aside, the setting is reason enough for a booking where you can dine beneath the soaring 40-foot-wide dome of the former banking hall of the 19th-century National Bank on College Green. The magnificently restored city landmark sets the tone, while the menu is infused with just enough Irishness to give it a proper sense of place. Start with some Flaggy Shore oysters from County Clare and move on to the extensive steak menu, which runs the gamut of cuts sourced from small producers the length and breadth of Ireland including rare breed meat from The Burren. Then, round it off with an Irish coffee tiramisu. The $32 Sunday roast lunch is particularly keen value.
Bread 41
Eoin Cluskey, the owner of Bread 41, is something of a pin-up for the artisan bread movement in Ireland and is evangelical about natural sourdough bread-making, having gathered his expertise at both Ballymaloe Cookery School and stints abroad in places such as Tartine in San Francisco. The freshly baked aromas hit you as soon as you walk into the ground-floor bakery and café, where you can choose from its delectable display of sweets and savories—from seasonal pumpkin pie croissants to sugar-dusted morning buns—made on-site to sit and enjoy with a coffee.
Library Street
Part of the Unlisted Collection, which includes the Michelin-starred Burnt Ends in Singapore and two-starred Da Terra at The Town Hall Hotel in London’s Bethnal Green, Library Street has a convivial air that is all about sharing. The pleasing, light-filled dining room festooned with trailing dried flower garlands and terrazzo floors is very much the contemporary face of skilled but unshowy Irish cooking at its best. Chef Kevin Burke turns out small and larger plates of carefully sourced local produce complemented by other ingredients. Favorite dishes such as choux horseradish and Cantabrian anchovy and chargrilled pork chop with morel velouté are already menu classics. Order the Paris Brest with stout, yuzu, and espresso if it’s among the dessert offerings.
Mamó
One of Dublin’s quintessential neighborhoods and a must for visitors, Howth is a charming fishing village and well-heeled residential suburb on the north side of Dublin Bay, known for the seafood restaurants lining its small working harbor. Mamó is an affectionate term for grandmother in the Irish language, and this small restaurant feels like a warm embrace as soon as you walk in. The food here is a spin on contemporary Irish fare—even the cod chip from the nibbles section of the menu is a clever culinary nod to the restaurant’s location. Work up an appetite on the panoramic trail around Howth Head before lunch (there’s a shorter menu in the ground-floor bar) or look out over the twinkling lights of the harbor at night from the first-floor dining room.
The Legal Eagle
In the shadow of Dublin’s Four Courts on the north bank of the River Liffey, the aptly named Legal Eagle reopened in late 2023 rebooted and reimagined. With its exposed brick walls and bar at the front, this is somewhere to come for a relaxed pint of Guinness, not far from where it is brewed, accompanied by a bowl of homemade chips sprinkled with cheese and bacon dust. Then move on to the gastropub-style menu with main courses that are meant to be shared: monkfish scampi with pea guacamole, dry-aged Angus steak with peppercorn sauce. This is the place to come for some of the best Sunday roasts in the city, with plates of juicy chicken, pork belly, or nut roast piled high with crispy potatoes, stuffing, and fluffy Yorkshire puddings, plus the option of extra sides of cauliflower cheese and buttered cabbage.
Forest Avenue
Tucked on a street off the Grand Canal, Forest Avenue is firmly established as one of the go-to Dublin restaurants for fine dining with an effortlessly relaxed atmosphere. It’s named after the street where co-owner Sandy Wyer grew up in Queens, New York. Her husband chef John’s approach is to use simple ingredients from Ireland’s best producers. The lunch and dinner tasting menus feature everything from Dublin Bay shrimp bisque to duck with damson and pepper sauce memorably enhanced by just enough cheffy artistry, and there’s an expertly chosen wine list. The couple are also behind popular haunts Little Forest pizzeria in Blackrock, French bistro Forêt, and artisan bakery Una.
Note
Most evenings, Note thrums with a pleasing bustle as people drop in for an after-work Negroni and snack at the bar, or something more substantial from the bistro-style menu served in the wedge-shaped dining room. With its short but succinct menu, it includes plenty of crowd-pleasing classics with a twist such as fried potato bread with caramelized onion and anchovy and the must-order beef rib with béarniase for two, followed by a chocolate and coffee cremeux with buckwheat ice cream. The carefully put-together wine list features a cherry-picked roster of natural and low-intervention wines and grower Champagnes from small producers, as well as beers and a tight line-up of 12 classic cocktails, including two non-alcoholic options. Despite being pretty much in the center of the city, it still manages to retain a casual neighborhood feel. It’s also one of the few standout restaurants that opens for dinner on Mondays—worth noting if you are in town for a long weekend.
PI Pizzas
This buzzy no-reservations spot is a combination of obsessive research into technique and ingredients and inspiration from standard-bearers such as Roberta’s in Brooklyn. The result is some of the best pizzas in Dublin. The dough adheres to the strict Neapolitan principles, cooked in the obligatory wood-fired oven, and the 10 pizzas on offer include vegan and vegetarian options. Irish ingredients give the pizzas an appropriate local twist with swap-outs such as Toons Bridge cows-milk mozzarella and Gubbeen salami from artisan producers in County Cork as well as honey made by three-generation beekeepers the Healy family. The PI Pizzas brand also has an outpost at 23 Essex Street East in Temple Bar.
Vada
Northside enclave Stoneybatter has become a restaurant hotspot in recent years, with classic Italian at Grano and modern Chinese at Hakkahan. And this new neighborhood café is adding a zero-waste ethos to the mix. Vada was founded by Sarah Boland, who trained at Ballymaloe Cookery School in County Cork, and head chef Hannah O’Donnell, formerly of Galway favorite Kai, steers the kitchen. For weekday lunch, there could be sweetcorn fritters with green chutney or a pork meatball sub with candied jalapeños, while a weekend brunch of s’mores croissant French toast is as over-the-top and treat-yourself as it sounds. For dinner (on Friday and Saturday), focaccia comes with whipped tahini butter, mussels are Thai-style with coconut curry gazpacho, and the Middle East-inspired steak with zhoug béarnaise nods to Boland’s respect for the innovative cooking of Yotam Ottolenghi.
Chapter One
Chef Mickael Viljanen has been the talent behind the stoves of one of Dublin’s best restaurants since 2021, and the culinary creativity he brought with him was rewarded with two Michelin stars the following year. Born in Sweden, raised in Finland, and a long-time resident of Ireland, Viljanen combines his Nordic sensibilities with sublime skills and decadent ingredients such as foie gras and hand-dived scallops at Chapter One. His inventive renderings of Irish produce could include dishes such as roasted hare with fermented Kampot pepper, beetroot, blackberry, and crème de cassis. The three-course lunch is a more affordable way to experience one of Ireland’s most exciting dining rooms—be sure to save space for the dedicated Irish coffee trolley.
D’Olier Street
Michelin-starred D’Olier Street is smart and slick—the culmination of three friends’ dream to open a fine-dining restaurant in Dublin. Occupying the striking and stuccoed Victorian D’Olier Chambers opposite Trinity College, the restaurant serves just one option, a leisurely paced, 13-course tasting menu for $156 that extends through micro bites to more substantial plates, so there is no need to feel daunted. There is also a five-glass wine pairing curated by one of Dublin’s best sommeliers, plus a non-alcoholic cocktail pairing. Australian-born chef James Moore spent time working in the two Michelin-starred kitchens of Manhattan’s Atera, so there are some serious cooking skills on show here—try to bag one of the eight seats at the chef’s counter and pray that the foie gras custard with pineapple and dinky English muffins is still on the menu.
Nomo Ramen
The ramen revolution was a little slow to arrive in Dublin, but now there is an ever-increasing count of places to get your hit. Nomo Ramen is a small pared-back space just off Camden Street, Dublin’s unofficial bar and restaurant row. Nomo imports its main ingredient from the same supplier as David Chang’s US Momofuku chain, and there are seven types of ramen on offer, which include chicken-based broth noodles plus pork and vegan options. There is also chicken katsu with rice and an izakaya-style lineup of starters—pork buns, gyoza—and an accompanying list of beers, natural wines, and soft drinks to wash it down.
Cavistons
This local institution, which also incorporates a fishmongers and food store next door, is something of a fixture in the southern coastal suburb of Glasthule. Irish seafood plays a starring role on the menu—there are Galway rock oysters, County Louth crabmeat, torched and cured Clare Island salmon, as well as wild halibut and rich clam linguine. Non-pescaterians can tuck into short rib of beef with horseradish and Cashel Blue cheese tartlet. Cavistons's two-course early bird menu is great value, and children and large groups are well catered for too. Try to snag a table on the first floor, where you are also treated to panoramic views across Dublin Bay.
Uno Mas
Spain informs the overriding theme of the food at this perennial favorite spot in a long narrow space on Aungier Street. Uno Mas's menu kicks off with small tapas-inspired plates such as moreish croquetas, padrón peppers, and squid à la plancha and moves on to more substantial starters: rabbit rice with aged Manchego or wild sea bass crudo with chili, perhaps. Mains follow the same cue—the salt-aged Delmonico steak for two accompanied by béarnaise, beef dripping potatoes, and Bordelaise sauce is a favorite, and there is an extensive list of lesser-known Spanish and Portuguese wines and sherries. The modest-sounding flan de queso is the standout choice among the desserts.
Volpe Nera
You won’t regret the trip out to Volpe Nera, a hidden gem, which is worth the effort despite being hidden away in one of south Dublin’s well-heeled neighborhoods. The menu leans towards Italy, but chef Barry Sun Jian’s Chinese heritage also shines through. The delicately plated dishes and ingredients vary with the seasons, but must-eats include the shiitake dumplings in a herb oil and squash and ricotta mezzaluna with burnt walnut and egg. The pocket-friendly four-course neighborhood menu, which changes weekly, reflects the popularity of this place among its many regulars.
Liath
It might be a slightly unlikely spot for a two-Michelin-star restaurant. Still, Australian-born chef-owner Damien Grey continues to wow diners at this tiny Dublin restaurant hidden in a covered market off Blackrock’s main street. Grey is a genial host and his tasting menus, which take up to three hours, are an explosion of unexpected flavor combinations, all delivered with hyper-seasonal ingredients—some appearing on the menu for just a few days. And while the cooking is seriously good, Liath's warm welcome and personal touch add informality and a fun sense of occasion. Undoubtedly one of the best restaurants in the country.
Fish Shop
For one of Dublin’s more elevated fish and chip experiences, perch at one of the stools along the bar or wall of diminutive spot Fish Shop in Smithfield. There’s a handful of small plates to start—oysters, smoked haddock croquettes, or a single gilda—and the main event is a selection of sustainably sourced species from Irish coastal waters such as hake, haddock, and plaice, which can be served without the crisp beer batter if that’s your preference, and hand-cut chunky chips. Accompany it all with a glass of something from the highly selective wine list, which also includes sherries, regular, and skin contact vintages, plus Champagnes from a range of new and old world producers. There’s a side of apple, fennel, and mint slaw to add crunch and a zingy lemon posset for dessert. Also, try Fish Shop's sister wine bar on the other side of the river, Bar Pez, on Kevin Street.
Lena
This newly unveiled neighborhood Italian is set in a prime spot on the canal in Portobello, where classic haunt Locks traded for many years. Grab a seat at the counter for kitchen views and a quick bite, bag the window seat to watch canal life float past or bring a whole crew and fill one of the two private dining rooms upstairs. A cherry Negroni or low-alcohol peach spritz is a perfect aperitivo to accompany snacks of sage leaf and anchovy fritti or melting lardo on toast. Primi might include thick pici cacio e pepe, followed by salt-aged Delmonio steak with beef dripping potatoes and roast garlic aioli, with tiramisu or chocolate and olive oil tart for dessert. Due to the perennial successes of its sister restaurants Etto and Uno Mas (known for their excellent service and consistent cooking), Lena was one of the most hyped openings in recent years, but it’s lived up to the buzz.
Bunsen
When it opened its first outlet on buzzy Wexford Street, word quickly got around, and Bunsen immediately shot to the top of the list of Dublin’s best burgers. Now with eight outlets dotted around the city and suburbs as well as outposts in Cork and Belfast, this micro-chain’s popularity and quality remain undimmed. The formula is deceptively simple—hamburgers and cheeseburgers delivered in the form of perfectly sized prime beef patties, specially baked buns, classic toppings, and three types of fries to choose from when only a burger will fill that hunger gap.
Notions
Francis Street café Two Pups has cleverly evolved since it opened on a corner spot in the up-and-coming Liberties a decade ago. A second outpost in the northside suburb of Fairview has since been added, as well as a micro-bakery upstairs in the original spot. And now that Dublin 8 address has a fun after-hours alter ego in the form of Notions, a neighborhood restaurant and wine bar with the same laid-back attitude. The name is a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Hiberno-Irish term for having ambitions above your station. However, the ambition is proudly on display in the set evening menu ($63 per person), which might include ferments and pickles, followed by Connemara oysters with jalapeño granita, veggie-forward small plates featuring oyster mushrooms and cabbage with gochujang, and large plates of gnocchi with preserved lemon and Comté. Good-value natural wines by the glass are ranked from “elegant and playful” to “mad funky.” The menu is ever-changing, showcasing local producers, so no two visits are the same—and that’s the beauty of the place.
Pickle
Book well in advance for a table at Pickle, one of the city’s standout restaurants, where the cuisine of northern India is married with locally sourced Irish ingredients. Culinary talent obviously runs in this Madhya Pradesh-born family; head chef Sunil Ghai’s brother, Rohit Ghai, was the original chef at Mayfair’s Michelin-starred Gymkhana and now runs Chelsea restaurant Kutir. Sunil is dedicated to sourcing the best spices from his homeland and experiments with lots of different techniques such as pickling and fermentation. Cult menu items include the goat keema pao, made with Irish goat meat, and the dal bukhara plate, an addictive Punjabi-style black lentil speciality, and the order-in-advance, slow braised leg of lamb.
Allta
The latest iteration of Allta, which has occupied four different spots around the city, opened in 2024 in a vaguely '70s-styled space on Three Locks Square in the heart of Dublin’s Silicon Docks. Chef Niall Davidson’s talent shines through in the menus, which are divided into short (nine courses) and long (13), and could include ray wing cooked over open coals, Wicklow venison with cacao and coffee miso, and hand-dived scallops with punchy raspberry hot sauce followed by apple and canalé bread and butter pudding. Sit at one of the individual tables in the main dining room to watch the goings on in the open kitchen, or book the new chef’s counter experience (available for both lunch and dinner). The adjacent bar—once known for its DJs and burgers—has recently morphed into a cosy 14-seat seafood bar, Allta na Farraige, serving dishes and drinks championing the best Irish produce.
A version of this article originally appeared in Condé Nast Traveller.
