Some Delicious Irish Meals

Dublin is a very cosmopolitan city, and most Irish that we met were well traveled and enjoyed the cuisines of different cultures as much as Americans do. On almost every corner there was a Thai restaurant, and yes, even Burger King and Little Cesar's Pizza and "All You Can Eat" Chinese buffet restaurants. Espresso and cappuccino are new favorite drinks, and wine is as popular as beer.

My cappuccino came to me one day with a face drawn in chocolate syrup at an Italian restaurant in Dublin!


But, since we were tourists in Ireland, we desired to try traditional Irish foods more than anything else. Honestly, I don't think I've ever taken photos of my meals in the past, but because of this blog, I thought it would be fun to record some of the traditional dishes that we enjoyed.

The traditional Irish breakfast is very hearty and suitable for a long day of hard work .... or tourist travels. It usually consists of a fried egg or two, three kinds of sausages, baked beans, a grilled tomato, potatoes and a thick ham bacon called "rashers," toast, and juice, coffee or tea.

I also enjoyed having just porridge some mornings. It is a creamy version of oatmeal and our hotel served it with lavender honey, which made it taste divine!

An Irish breakfast and porridge:

After such a big breakfast we usually skipped lunch, but we had a wonderful cream of vegetable soup in a pub one afternoon. Soup is always served with bread, and the traditional brown bread is thick and flavourful and the rolls were large and soft.

Sometimes we'd just have tea and a scone for lunch, or teatime. I love scones of all flavors and I indulged in quite a few! I figured I could do some extra miles on the treadmill when I got back home to burn them off. I omitted using the clotted cream which is sometimes served with them but couldn't resist using the strawberry preserves as a garnish.

Look at the size of the scones we had in Bewley's Cafe on Grafton Street!


Having lunch or dinner in a local pub is very popular in Ireland. Most have a hot selection and a carvery of roasted meats with which they will make as a sandwich or serve with vegetables. Many families, workers, tourists come in and the atmosphere is very casual and cozy.
Some good pub meals:
Shepard Pie -- a mixture of ground meat and onions, carrots and celery in a gravy sauce and smothered with mashed potatoes.


Fish and Chips -- fried fish fillet, french fries, and minted peas. This dish also came along with a small salad. The traditional dressing for the chips is vinegar, but ketchup was readily available everywhere we went, too.

Beef or lamb stews are delicious, and rich and hearty.

Ireland has rich pastureland, and lamb, beef and pork dishes are plentiful on the menus. Here is a mixed grill dinner that had a little of each:


I'm sure you've noticed all the Guinness accompanying our meals. How could we resist when we are in the city where Guinness is brewed? It was the perfect accent beverage to drink along with the meat and potato meals. We even had a dish that incorporated the stout into the sauce a very delicious Guinness steak pie, that was served roasted garlic potatoes on the side.


I found some online videos from the United Kingdom on how to make Beef in Guinness, Irish Stew and Dumplings, Shepherd's Pie, Scones, Fish and Chips.

I hope you enjoyed this culinary peek of our favorite meals in Ireland!