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20th December 2016
12:10am GMT
Rathmines is having a bit of a moment. There’s lot of new places springing up and one that we’re really happy to see open up is Martcade. It’s an art food hall that holds events from music to comedy gigs. It’s run by the same people who set up The Mart further down the road in the old Fire Station, which holds community art exhibitions.
The sign outside the door caught my attention as I walked past it into work one morning and I only had to see the words “cheese” and “chorizo” to decide I had to check it out ASAP. They have a nice outdoor seating area with low couches which is an absolute sun trap on a nice day, but we decided to head inside and check it out. The entrance is a bit mad with bathtubs and toilets filled with flowers and the walls coloured psychedelic patterns but it’s a really nice open space that feels really chilled out and welcoming.
At the moment there’s two main areas for food, to the left where you can order your toasties, coffee, tea and cake. And the right where Pieman have a stall selling fresh, hot, savoury pies.
They use really nice Wall and Keogh teas and there’s definitely a ‘support local’ vibe in here.
Pieman have a couple of different pies to choose from. One of us got the chicken and mushroom pie with mash and gravy and it really hit the spot. It was really comforting and tasty (no soggy bottoms!) and would be perfect if you’re either starving or hungover.
I went for the ‘Gringo’ toastie which was the most buttery, oily cheese toasty I’ve had in a long time. It was amazing. It was packed with gorgeous Coolea cheeze, chorizo, relish and jalapenos peppers. It was really decadent and the perfect lunch if you’re hanging for something bold and comforting.
We also decided to try out the peanut butter chocolate brownie which was really nice, very filling but tasty all the same.
The inside of the food hall is crazy, the walls are covered in graffiti and there are couches, baths filled with sponges, board games, record players and an Xbox. It’s the kind of place you could sit down and spend a few hours chilling out with friends if you had no where to go.
Martcade is a bit of a crazy place that’s definitely worth a visit. It’s not too far from Portobello bridge so if you work on Harcourt Street you could reach it on your lunch break. They also have gigs on most evenings and weekends so it’s worth checking out after hours too!
