Jon’s favorite part of any vacation or just daily life is food. I typically spend an hour looking at places to eat and Jon usually complains the whole time. Then, we get there and the food is delicious. You’re welcome.  We just got back from a two-week driving tour around Ireland, so I categorized recommendations by city and put our favorite places at the top.

Side note: If you are looking for pubs, this isn’t the list for you.

 

Galway Restaurants

We spent the most time in Galway.  This was the best food all trip. We didn’t end up eating on the main strip, but I’m sure there was good food there too. Galway is so small you can easily walk to all of these places when staying near the city center.

The Pasta Factory

Best. Place. Ever. It is the cutest little Italian restaurant. They make their pasta and sauces in house. Their menu changes weekly. We actually ate here twice, because who knows when we’d ever be able to eat it again. It was also a really good deal – two small pastas, two glasses of house wine, two appetizers for 30 euros. Shout out to the random American we met in Kinsale for the recommendation.

When we were leaving, a female employee asks us if we enjoyed our meal. We raved about it. “Did you try our plates? They’re edible.” Without missing a beat, Jon starts eating the plate. His internal monologue saying I hope she wasn’t joking.  They tasted like rice cakes.  Visit their Facebook page for the weekly menu.

 

Sheridan’s Cheesemonger & Wine Bar

Not only does this cheese shop have a cute story, they have a wine bar right over the shop. Stop here for a before dinner drink. I tried my first Nebbiolo here and loved it. Get a bottle of wine to go or drink there. The glasses were a little pricey, but not too bad. Facebook page.

Brusker Brownes

If you are in town on Monday, check out the live jazz band here. The good dancers show off their skills in the center and everyone else hangs around and drinks in the back. It starts around 10 p.m. We had some pretty comical experiences with drunk people here including an Irish woman, who told us we have accents. “Do we have accents?” I asked innocently. ” “DO YOU HAVE ACCENTS?” the drunk woman responds with an exaggerated and mocking tone. Now Jon and I say that to each other all the time. Shout out to our Airbnb host for the recommendation. Brusker Brownes website.

Dela

Sometimes you need brunch on a weekday. Dela is the answer. Brunch is from 11:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. Tuesday – Sunday. Their avocado toast game is strong. But you know Millennials will never be millionaires if we keep spending money on avocado toast. (Oh the news these days). Skip the mimosa. It is served with ice and that’s just weird. Oh and if you like your bacon crispy be sure to ask. Ireland seems to like uncooked bacon. Dela’s website

Neo

After spending more than a week in Ireland, you start craving another cuisine. The Asian street food restaurant, Neo is the perfect fix. The pad thai was delicious. Jon wasn’t crazy about the Tikka Massala, so skip that dish. I wish we had it here because I would eat it all the time. Facebook page.

Dough Bros Pizza Company

Can’t go wrong with a place that started as a food truck. The atmosphere is casual and aesthetically pleasing. They have part of the original food truck on the wall and Where’s Waldo books. If you are craving pizza in Galway, I definitely recommend it. Make sure to get the wild garlic dipping sauce. Visit their Facebook page.

 

 

Kinsale Restaurants

Kinsale is a coastal town about 3 hours away from Dublin. We spent two nights there. While the town didn’t have much to do, we really enjoyed the live music.

The Black Pig

If you love wine and charcuterie and cheese boards, we should be friends. Plus, you should visit this amazing place in Kinsale. The wine list is extensive and they’ve won all sorts of awards. The place gets packed even on weeknights, so try to get a reservation. If you are feeling overwhelmed, ask the server to make a recommendation on the wine. He let us try a few and was very considerate on price point. If you get wine, they will bring you a little thing of cheese. They have a small food menu. We opted for the meat and cheese boards. Seriously, go here. It’s so good. The Black Pig’s Facebook page.

Harvey’s

On Thursday’s, Harvey’s has a two-man band play. They were one of our favorites from the whole trip and we listened to a lot of live music. It’s not traditional Irish music, you can find that at plenty of other bars in town. They also turned a beautiful wood boat into a table. It’s pretty neat. I can’t find their website. : (

 

 

Killarney Restaurants

Tourist destination alert. This town sits on the edge of the Ring of Kerry, the popular driving route, and is home to the visit national park in Ireland. We love hiking, so we were drawn to this location. We stayed in an Airbnb with the best host we’ve ever had and walking distance to the main area of town. Killarney is much bigger than Galway and Kinsale, so lots of dining options. We only spent two nights here and really only liked this one place.

Porterhouse

The first pub to make the list. The food was pretty good and I enjoyed the atmosphere. I guess not too memorable. I think they also have a location in Dublin. Porterhouse Killarney website.

 

 

Dublin Restaurants

So here’s where I failed a little bit. Dublin is a large city and I didn’t put enough research into where to eat. If we visit Ireland again, we would skip this city.

Queen of Tarts

You know I love Rick Steve’s. (If you don’t know who he is, we need to have a conversation). Queen of Tarts is in his travel books for places to eat in Dublin. It didn’t disappoint. Try to go here for breakfast. There are two locations, we were able to get in pretty easily, but it was a weekday. Order the tea. Some guidebooks said they only take cash, but this wasn’t true for us.  Website.

The Jar

You know Jon and I are marketing/graphic design nerds when we can’t stop talking about their menu design. For a low key night, visit this cocktail bar and pizza place. Facebook page.

 

 

Moral of the story: Go to Galway and eat lots of food.