The 9 Best Tasting Menus In Dublin In 2023

Last updated on April 7th, 2023 at 05:17 pm

There are few things in life more indulgent than enjoying a delicious tasting menu at a fancy restaurant. With no choices to be made, you can sit back and savour the meals as they come. What’s more, a tasting menu can often expose you to delectable dishes that you otherwise may never have tried. 

Restaurants that offer tasting menus often include an additional wine tasting menu that is chosen to perfectly accompany each course for an even more luxurious experience.

Happily, Dublin is home to several excellent tasting menus from a variety of top quality restaurants.

In this post, we share the 9 best tasting menus in Dublin in 2023.

Map of Tasting Menu Restaurants

The following map shows the location of every tasting menu restaurant highlighted in this post:

Chapter One

One of the finest restaurants in Dublin, Chapter One needs no introduction. Overseen by the respected Michelin star chef Ross Lewis for three decades, the restaurant is now in the capable hands of Mickael Viljanen. Best known as the former chef of The Greenhouse, a former Michelin star restaurant in the capital, Viljanen has brought his energy and passion to Chapter One, qualities that are evident in the mouthwatering tasting menu on offer at the restaurant. 

The restaurants refined, luxurious, yet understated interior makes Chapter One the ultimate environment to soak up some culinary delights. 

With seven courses, the menu opens with a selection of canapés, followed by two starter plates, two main courses, and finally two exquisite desserts. An optional complementary wine tasting menu is available, with a hand-picked wine pairing for each course. 

While the menu undergoes regular changes, some of the delights on offer have included smoked eel foie gras, BBQ lobster, milk-fed lamb and anchovies, and mousse laitière with dried sea kelp and citrus.

While it certainly isn’t cheap, the tasting menu at Chapter One is a once in a lifetime experience and worth every penny in our opinion. 

Location: 18-19 Parnell Square North, Rotunda, Dublin

Website: https://chapteronerestaurant.com

Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud

Since opening its doors in 1981, Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud has been consistently recognised as one of the best restaurants in Dublin. Operated by the French chef and restaurateur Patrick Guilbaud, the restaurant earned its first Michelin star in 1988 and its second in 1996, making it one of only a handful of restaurants in Ireland to receive two Michelin stars. 

Housed in the plush surroundings of the Merrion Hotel just off stately Merrion Square, the restaurant has always prided itself on serving up only the finest and freshest produce available. Locally sourced ingredients and seasonal produce are key tenets of the restaurant. 

The tasting menu consists of eight courses, with an emphasis on surprising and delighting the diner. Each course is designed to tantalise the senses using seasonal ingredients cooked to perfection. For a taste of what to expect, think blue lobster ravioli, croquette of suckling pig, anjou squab pigeon, and iced caramel and peanut parfait. 

In line with the restaurants two Michelin star status, the tasting menu is expensive. However, we’re sure you’ll agree that it is the ultimate in luxury and the perfect experience to celebrate a big occasion or anniversary. 

The tasting menu is only available to an entire party, so make sure to plan ahead. 

Location: 21 Upper Merrion Street, Dublin

Website: https://restaurantpatrickguilbaud.ie

Liath

Liath’s rise to culinary excellence has been nothing short of meteoric, with the Blackrock restaurant being awarded its first Michelin star in 2021, followed shortly after by its second in 2022. Named for the Irish word for the colour gray, Liath is a small, intimate restaurant, and reservations are accordingly hard to come by. 

The chefs at Liath have elevated the dining experience to a true communal celebration. The restaurant scours the country for the finest ingredients, and prepares their dishes with respect for the food and the farmers, fishermen, and foragers who produce it. 

The restaurant offers three tasting menus; a lunch menu experience, a preview menu experience, and the full tasting menu experience. Both the lunch menu and the early evening preview menu are collective dining experiences, with all guests served at the same time. A beverage package must be selected to accompany the full tasting menu, with a choice of alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages. 

Although it can be difficult to get a reservation for this unique restaurant, it is more than worth the wait. The tasting menu dining experience at Liath is truly stunning and unforgettable. 

Location: Blackrock Market, 19a Main Street, Blackrock, Dublin

Website: https://www.liathrestaurant.com

Variety Jones

A Michelin star restaurant since 2020, Variety Jones serves up a holistic dining experience with a focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients. Named after the online alias of one of the founders of the Silk Road marketplace, Variety Jones has been trading since 2018 in its restaurant in The Liberties on the north side of the city. 

Run by the highly respected head chef Keelan Higgs, the restaurant offers a chef’s choice sharing menu only. While the actual dishes may change according to the season, the menu is structured into six courses; snacks to open, a cold and warm starter, a pasta course, a main course, and dessert. 

A sample of some of the delectable bites that have featured on the menu include squid crackers, Vietnamese dressing oysters, salt-baked celeriac, halibut in a mussel and roasted fish bone sauce, and rhubarb and elderflower cake with a white chocolate and yoghurt cremeux. A pescatarian menu is available on request, but a vegetarian, vegan, or dairy-free menu is not.

The restaurant features an excellent wine list, with wines sourced from small producers only. Wine is available by the glass or by the bottle.

There’s no doubt that Variety Jones is one of the most exciting new restaurants in Dublin to open in recent times. The tasting menu is excellent value for money for those looking to experience an amazing, fresh dining experience without breaking the bank.

Location: 78 Thomas Street, Dublin

Website: https://www.varietyjones.ie

Bastible

Bastible is one of the most recent restaurants in Dublin to receive a coveted Michelin star, having been awarded one in 2022. The Portobello restaurant serves up a stunning set menu based around the best Irish produce available at the time. 

Some of the delicacies that have featured on the menu include Lissadel oysters, beef tartare, lacquered and smoked sea trout, and stem ginger caramel with smoked sea salt. A vegetarian menu is also available. While relatively concise, the drinks menu features some terrific wines from a selection of vineyards all over the world. 

Reservations are highly recommended but the restaurant does take walk-ins where possible if you’re in the area and feeling lucky. 

Location: 111 South Circular Road, Dublin

Website: https://www.bastible.com

Glovers Alley

A Michelin star restaurant since 2022, Glovers Alley operates out of a gorgeous dining room overlooking St. Stephen’s green in the heart of the city centre. The restaurant focuses on simple food perfectly cooked, with stellar service and attention to detail.

The restaurant offers a tasting menu, with the option of adding a complementary wine menu. A selection of the dishes featured are Dublin Bay prawns and lardo, beet ‘tartare’ with hazelnut and mustard, and Wicklow Ban cream cheese with truffle honey. 

Glovers Alley is the place to go to for a classic yet modern tasting menu experience in the lap of luxury.

Location: 128 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin

Website: https://gloversalley.ie

Mulberry Garden

The cute and eye-catching restaurant Mulberry Garden offer a 3 course set menu packed with delicious, local Irish ingredients. The restaurant is vibrant and welcoming, with friendly staff and a warm atmosphere.

The restaurant features a heated outdoor terrace, perfect for enjoying a cocktail or two before your meal. The simple, yet elegant seasonal menu features such classics as Irish lamb, saddle of rabbit, and fine Irish cheeses, with dishes tailored to reflect the season. 

The provenance of their food is of the utmost importance to Mulberry Garden, with their menu featuring all producers prominently. 

Location: Mulberry Lane, Donnybrook, Dublin 

Website: https://www.mulberrygarden.ie

Dax

The French themed restaurant Dax on Pembroke Street Upper in the city centre is a little slice of heaven in Dublin. Nestled in a cosy basement location, the restaurant serves up mouthwateringly good food with first class service and an elegant, refined ambience. Operated by Olivier Meisonnave and head chef Graham Neville, the restaurant is named after the small French town of Dax, where Meisonnave was born.

The tasting menu features an amuse bouche to begin with, followed by starters, a main course, and dessert. Dishes have included roast scallops, asparagus in vin jaune sauce, organic chicken and wild garlic, and Wexford rhubarb sorbet.

For the height of French dining in Dublin, look no further than Dax.

Location: 23 Pembroke Street Upper, Dublin

Website: https://www.dax.ie/restaurant/

Ananda

The final entry on our list is the magnificent Ananda, a superb Indian restaurant perched at the top of the sprawling Dundrum Shopping Centre. With a name meaning ‘bliss’, you can rest assured that you are about to experience a masterful culinary encounter and wonderful service from the moment you walk in the door.

While there is an a la carte menu, the jewel of the restaurant is its tasting menu. Featuring six dishes, the menu is nothing short of an Asian culinary extravaganza, and must be tasted to be believed. 

Location: Cinema Building, Sandyford Road, Dundrum Town Centre, Dundrum, Dublin

Website: https://www.anandarestaurant.ie/

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