On our travels, we have seen umpteen photos of delicious-looking food items that have been posted from food businesses across Dublin. We have pulled 12 of our favourites together into a concise list of Dublin-based food porn that should get everyone’s stomachs a-rumbling.
With the freedom weekend behind us, there has never been a better time to hit the road and tick some of those must-try dishes that you have been drooling over since lockdown 9. Here’s a sampling of what dishes are on the “must try” section of our notes apps:
12. a Dó’s Pop’s Potato Curry Box
Opened April 2021, a Dó out in Malahide has developed into a bit of a foodie darkhorse. Their Pop’s Potato Curry Box has been on our “to eat” list for quite some time now, made up with potato curry, roti, coconut yogurt, chili mint chutney, and homemade slaw. It’s also vegan-friendly if you skip the yogurt, happy days.
You can find a Dó on Malahide’s New Street, for more information visit the Instagram.
11. M&L’s Green Beans
A visit to M&L should be high up on your list anyway, but no visit to the spot on Cathedral Street is complete without ordering the green beans. The treatment of the french beans that have been flash-fried with Szechuan peppercorns, mince, and lashings of chili, from the team in M&L is second to none. Come for the green beans, stay for the hand-made pork dumplings that are nothing short of addictive.
You can find M&L Szechuan on Dublin 1’s Cathedral Street for more information visit the Instagram.
10. Kakilang’s Popcorn Chicken
Kakilang on Bachelors Walk is a bit of a hidden gem along the quays. Opened in Dec 2020, the spot sells everything from bubble tea to the viral sensaysh souffle pancakes, alongside some savory Taiwanese cuisine options. Their Taiwanese popcorn chicken definitely deserves inclusion on this list, the chicken has been deep-fried in a light batter with a salt and chili Taiwanese spice seasoning, then paired with thick-cut chips, and lashings of whatever dipping sauce takes your fancy.
You can find Kakilang on Bachelors Walk, for more information visit the Instagram.
9. Bakeology’s Empanadas
New enough on the food scene, Bakeology has been doing a roaring trade selling Argentinian baked goods. While they are probably best known for their dulce de leche filled pastries, they also sell something that wouldn’t oft be seen in spots in Dublin, empanadas. A flakey pastry turnover with a filling, empanadas can either be baked or fried. While there are many variations of empanadas, we would love to try the baked beef ones from Bakeology.
You can find Bakeology on Dublin 8’s Meath Street, for more information visit the Instagram.
8. The Old Spot’s Sunday Roast
There’s more than one reason to head to The Old Spot on a Sunday, their Sunday offering being one of them. Their roast is unofficially known as being one of the best in Dublin, rare beef, crispy roasties, charred root veg, cauli & cheese topped off with some gravy and a Yorkshire pud. There’s something very special about going out for your Sunday dinner and a true accomplishment for having the wherewithal on the weekend to actually follow through with it.
You can find The Old Spot in Dublin 4’s Bath Avenue for more info visit the Instagram.
7. Bahay’s Mushie Sisig Bowl
Operating out of the back of The Glimmerman, a visit to Bahay can correspond nicely with consuming some cold ones. Bahay have been trialing loads of Philipino dishes since opening the food truck last year, but are leading with some bowls while they find their feet in the pub. The Mushie Sisig Bowl looks fresh as, with a finely chopped pork belly accompanied by fresh greens and a fried egg.
You can find Bahay at the back of The Glimmerman for more info visit the Instagram.
6. Table Wine’s Pickled Eggs
If you think about pickled eggs they don’t sound appealing, they bring an aroma of sulfide to the nose and a squeaky texture to the mouth. But these ones from Table Wine look absolutely incredible, straight from the jar they glisten, some of them also have a pleasing pink hue to them which strangely makes them even more appetising.
You can find Table Wine on Pleasants Street for more info visit the Instagram.
5. Bread 41’s Croissant Benedict
A couple of weeks back Bread 41 basically caused a stampede when they opened up the upstairs of their Pearse Street bakery to the public. Using the ample baked products at their disposal the spot serves brunch that includes a croissant benedict. Now when you shove anything into a croissant we are generally pretty happy but this one from the 41 team sounds truly eggcellent, two poached eggs, glazed pork, hollandaise, spinach with a dash of chopped chive.
You can find Bread 41 on Dublin 2’s Pearse Street for more info visit the Instagram.
4. Sushi Sakai’s Deep-fried Temaki
While you might be familiar with temaki, the sushi that’s been hand-rolled into the shape of a cone, you might not know that this can be deep-fried. Sushi Sakai on the North Circular Road are doing god’s work and selling them hot out of the fryer, and we’ve been pretty much dying to try them since we saw them post about it on the ‘gram.
You can find Sushi Sakai on North Circular Road for more info visit their Instagram.
3. Striptease Burger’s Lap Dance
Opened a couple of months back by the good yolks behind Cluck Chicken, Striptease Burger sling burgers, and milkshakes from their bright pink food truck out in Walkinstown. While all the burgers are looking pretty fire emoji, one little number called Lap Dance caught our eye. Triple stacked aged beef patties, Dubliner cheese, beef dripping fried onions, crispy bacon, all sloshed with some “sexy” burger sauce. This burger holds a little special place in the hearts of the stripper team, who said that while they were developing the menu this burger was the first to make the cut.
You can find Striptease Burger off the Walkinstown Roundabout, for more information visit the Instagram.
2. Monsoon’s Papri Chaat
The team at Monsoon in Stillorgan are selling something they have termed “Indian nachos” and we are absolutely here for it. A crispy wheat dough cracker makes up the base, which is piled with chaat masala spice mix, fluffy boiled potatoes, chickpeas, yogurt, sweet-and-sour tamarind chutney, and coriander.
You can find Monsoon in Stillorgan’s The Hill, for more information visit the Instagram.
1. Library Street’s Chicken Wing
It’s difficult to explain the pull of mixing high and low cooking styles together. Taking something that wouldn’t look out of place in a cardboard bucket and elevating it into a dish synonymous with one of the buzziest restaurants around isn’t to be sniffed at. The skin of the chicken wing is filled with chanterelle chicken mousse, which is steamed then deep-fried with panko breadcrumbs before being artfully chopped into three and dropped on a bright green bowl of tarragon mayo. It looks crispy, succulent and for only €6, worthy of ordering two per person.
You can find Library Street on Dublin 2’s Setanta Place for more information visit the Instagram.
READ ON: 6 places you should *try* getting a booking for in 2022
