🍴Delicious Dublin – May Bites
Hello everyone!
And just like that, May is over—and it’s time for my second newsletter. I’m still figuring out Substack and the format of this newsletter, but I hope you find some of the recommendations helpful.
🦊 Mr Fox
When people ask me what my favourite restaurant is (a very tough question, as dining out is so subjective), Mr Fox always comes up in my top five. It’s owned by Anthony Smith, a sound Dubliner who has been cooking great food with his team ever since they opened in 2016.
I’ve had many celebratory dinners there— a graduation, birthdays, and anniversaries.
After COVID, they switched from à la carte to a monthly changing tasting menu, which they kept doing for five years. More recently, they’ve returned to à la carte. It means I don’t have to reserve Mr Fox just for special occasions anymore.
They now offer a midweek set menu for €65 on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings. The rest of the week, you can order freely from the menu: snacks (their own sourdough with parmesan and cep butter is a must-order), starters (I loved the octopus hash brown), pasta dishes (available in starter or main size), mains, sides, and desserts.
We shared the Chateaubriand for two (€85), which came with generous trimmings: Caesar salad, roasted baby potatoes, Café de Paris butter, and Roscoff onion. Starter portions were quite substantial—we didn’t really need them before the steak. It’s wiser to order a selection of snacks when getting the steak to share, and to go for the starters when you’re opting for the other mains.
The crème brûlée with gingernut was a simple but satisfying dessert at the end, even if it was an unnecessary order.
With a wide-ranging menu and a mix of international flavours, Mr Fox’s new à la carte format is likely more appealing to the general public than the previous tasting menu. It’s been consistently excellent since they opened, and it’s hands-down the best option in the area if you’re looking for something that’s neither too casual nor too fancy. (Chapter One is just around the corner.)
A great place for dinner before heading to the Abbey Theatre or The Gate, and one to pair with post-dinner drinks in Bar 1661 or the Sackville Lounge.
Service at Mr Fox is always wonderful. Ceri, the manager who has been there since day one, is delightful. The staff are consistently attentive and welcoming.
I do hope they bring back the walnut whip and coffee iceberg to the dessert menu—two brilliant examples of food nostalgia done right.
🇫🇷 Forêt
When I heard that John and Sandy Wyer from Forest Avenue, Little Forest, and Una Bakery opened a French restaurant last year, my curiosity was piqued. I haven’t gotten over the loss of Forest & Marcy, which was my absolute favourite when Ciarán Sweeney was the head chef there many moons ago (he’s since gone back to Donegal and is now cooking at The Old Glen Bar).
Forêt is above O’Brien’s Pub on Sussex Terrace and next door to Forest Avenue. As a French person, I personally felt like I stepped into an Irish pub with a very French menu, rather than a French bistro—and that’s perfectly okay, we’re in Ireland, not Paris.
I’ve visited twice: once for a date night and another time for an overdue catch-up with a food-loving friend.
The menu is divided into snacks or petites assiettes (€3–14), starters (€14–16), mains (€26–48), and desserts (€8–14).
On both visits, snacks and starters were the highlights, and the menu varied slightly between meals. They have charcuterie (saucisson and Bayonne ham), a delicious leek vinaigrette (not the sad one you get in a French canteen), and I loved the egg mayo with celeriac on my first visit.
The white anchovy with wet garlic and white peach, or the oyster pastis granita with apple, are more on the lighter and refreshing side—adequate to open the appetite.
The pâté de campagne with cornichons and violet mustard gave me the French feels. The pig’s head ballotine with sauce gribiche and fennel salad was also very satisfying.
The chicken vin jaune with riz à la paysanne seems to be the signature dish, and I preferred it to the rich duck leg with orange sauce and lentils I had on my second visit.
The croissant pudding with Calvados caramel and custard is a must-order—just indulgent enough, and the perfect way to end a meal with Gallic flair.
🥖 Arty Baker
I’ve been following Arty Baker since the pandemic and before Romain Tessier had opened his first bakery pop-up in 2021. Since then, he and his wife Suzanne Hodgkinson have built an empire of five locations: Dalkey, Kimmage, Sandymount, Grand Canal Dock Station, and Blackrock.
It took me a long time to finally try it, but I finally made it to the Sandymount location in May—not only once, but twice.
It’s a modern French bakery, with all the classics (croissants, almond croissants, pain au chocolat, pain Suisse) and not-so-French things like morning buns and bagels. The ham and cheese croissant is excellent if you’re on team savoury pastry.
I was excited to see chocolate marble cake in their selection, bringing back memories of goûter (the snack French kids eat at 4pm). They certainly make one of the best baguettes in Dublin.
🍳 Small Bites
One of my favourite cafés, The Pepper Pot, has been consistently serving great quality food over the years. I tend to order the same old faves, but I recently tried the Turkish eggs, served with their own sourdough, for a change. Various versions of Turkish eggs seem to be a bit of a trend in Dublin cafés at the moment, but the ones from Bibi’s would probably stay my favourite.
One place that’s good for a healthy and tasty lunch during the week is Tiller + Grain. If you’re an Ottolenghi fan, you’d enjoy their flavour-packed salads and treats. I stopped there for a quick lunch—they have a few seats outside, which is a nice spot on a warm day.
In my first newsletter, I mentioned The Dough Bros pizza kit and their Kai collab from last year. Soon after, they announced its return—and it was every bit as good as I remembered. Dutch Gold-braised Connemara lamb and Buckfast hot sauce on a pizza? It works.
🎉 Delicious Dublin Tours News
May marked the 10-year anniversary of Delicious Dublin Tours!
It’s hard to believe that what began as French food tours of Dublin (some of you were there!) became a celebration of Irish food history, introducing thousands of visitors to the Dublin food scene.
The tour has obviously changed over the years due to Dublin’s ever-changing food landscape. Some businesses have shut down or moved elsewhere, but I’ve never tired of meeting people from all over the world—from every continent, in fact.
It survived the pandemic, weathered some personal challenges, and grew into something I’m proud of. Being pregnant in 2022 made me step back and trust others with the business. Now, I’m lucky to work with a fantastic team of food professionals who lead most of our tours.
Here’s to many more years of sharing the love of Irish food! 💚
🎟️ Join a Food Tour This June
Got visitors in town—or just want to see Dublin through a food-lover’s lens?
👉 Book your spot now
📸 Follow along: @deliciousdublintours
💌 Final Bite
Thanks so much for reading! I hope you found some inspiration in this month’s bites.
If you visit any of the places I mentioned, I’d love to hear from you—reply to this email or tag me on Instagram @kettyquigley.
Until next time,
Ketty