Tuesday 29 November 2016
TRAVEL: Places to eat and drink in Dublin
My Dublin post got super long as I was writing it, so I felt it made sense to split it into two parts. We ate a lot of good food when we were there, and went to some great bars, so I wanted to create a compendium of our favourites. Honestly, I think we barely scratched the surface - there's just SO MUCH there, and in my limited experience, it's basically all amazing. Aaaanyhoo... here are our faves.
Fade Street Social
As you may not remember given that our trip was two freaking months ago (WHERE HAS TIME GONE?), we were there for Matt's 30th birthday. I wanted to take him out somewhere nice for our first night there, and I wanted to book somewhere for that first night so we didn't end up traipsing around because that's the ultimate worst. I was recommended Fade Street Social, and we were not disappointed. There's a chalkboard at the back which lists the cuts of meat they have available, so you can choose the amount you want to eat and how much you want to pay. It is not a cheap restaurant. But it is an excellent one. The open mushroom ravioli was TO DIE FOR, and the chateaubriand was the best I've ever had, served in a jus made up of its own juices. The sides were out of this world too - weirdly, my favourite was the cabbage, which came topped in bacon and steeped in cream. We somehow squeezed in desserts, and mine was one of those funky chocolate globes that melts when you pour hot chocolate over it. SO COOL. I felt so sick afterwards but so happy. Yum.
Vintage Cocktail Club
VCC is a hipster little speakeasy which knows exactly how cool it is, but that was okay with us. You ring the buzzer, then enter through a non-descript door near Temple Bar, and come out in a room that looks like it belonged to a grandmother in the 70s. The cocktails are amazing - I'm still thinking about my pineapple fizz. We shouldn't have got into VCC at all, but we followed another group in and then sat at a table which was due to be filled at ten, but they never showed. Birthday magic.
Queen of Tarts
When we had a wander around the castle and got caught in the rain, we realised we needed cake. Everyone had recommended this place to us - just opposite the castle - and we weren't disappointed. Matt had chocolate pear tart, and I had chocolate pecan pie. Both were excellent. There were also various cheesecakes and scones that looked amazing - definitely one to return to.
The Brazen Head
This is the oldest pub in Ireland, and is handily super pretty and instagrammable. They also do food, so we both ordered stew as it was cold and miserable and perfect stew weather. Mmmm. Thick chunks of beef, huge dollops of mash and just... exactly what I wanted. And the cider wasn't bad, too.
San Lorenzo's
I booked a spot in their #BrunchOfChampions on the Sunday before we got our flight home, on Charlie's recommendation. My only criticism is that the portions were too big and I couldn't fit in dessert, because I really wanted to try their Coco Pops encrusted french toast. But their jerk chicken tacos were amaaaazing - they came with fried chorizo, avocado salsa, coriander, chilli and lime... basically all my favourite things. The service was really great, too.
Boojum
We were so exhausted after our first day in Dublin that we decided to have a quiet night in on the Saturday to watch TV, order Deliveroo and go to bed early. And that's just what we did. Boojum burritos had already been recommended to us by Roisin, and so we got them delivered to our door. They were darn good burritos. Although, top tip - don't get diced chorizo added, as it pushed it to a slightly over-salty place. But other than that (which I blame myself for), they were excellent.
Hatch and Sons
I would have totally missed this place if the lovely Helen hadn't recommended it, but handily it was right up the road from our Airbnb (which was excellently located). It's a little restaurant/coffee shop just under The Little Museum of Dublin, which does excellent breakfasts. Matt had the baker's basket, which sounded underwhelming, but it was filled with freshly baked bread, scones and fruit bread with homemade jams. I was a little jealous, except... well, this is a picture of my avocado toast. Look at how good it looks. Although if you don't eat bacon, do check if it's included before you order something, because it wasn't mentioned on the Specials board. But it was VERY good bacon.
We'll definitely be planning a return visit to Dublin - we LOVED it. Where are your favourite places to eat?
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Essbeevee | Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, St Albans, Tring food, lifestyle, & parenting blog. All rights reserved.
So many more places for me to visit on my next trip there! Glad you liked San Lorenzos though. You have so much more restraint than me, I booked a main and the Coco Pops French Toast just so I could force myself to eat it! I had to have a nap afterwards!
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Yaaay, so glad you loved Hatch & Sons! We loved VCC too and Queen of Tarts is basically top of my list for next time after seeing that picture! x
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