The 10 Best Restaurants in St Stephen's Green, Dublin

Shanahan’s On The Green is an American-style steakhouse which also offers a plentiful selection of Irish seafood and excellent pastries. Portions are extremely generous and the staff are very eager and pleasant. The downstairs bar (called ‘the Oval Office’) features an extensive collection of memorabilia from American presidents with Irish heritage, and the restaurant itself is based in an 250 year old Georgian townhouse which has since undergone a lovely restoration.

The Shelbourne is a world class five star hotel overlooking St. Stephen’s Green, and within its walls is the The Saddle Room, named after the hotel’s historic dining rooms. Featuring an open kitchen and two private dining rooms, here the staff take pride in the fact that they use only the freshest local ingredients in their modern, seafood-focused menu. Open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner, there is also an impressive oyster bar and an overall atmosphere of class and sophistication at all times.

Located in the basement of a terraced Georgian house just across from the People’s Art Exhibition, where local artists display and sell their work to the public, this extremely busy restaurant offers a modern menu and, as the name implies, a bountiful list of delicious wines from across the Europe and beyond. The well-deserved popularity of Peploe’s means that you should probably make a reservation well ahead of time in order to avoid disappointment.

Oozing an aura of quality and exclusively, Restaurant FortyOne has built up a name for itself as one of the premier destinations for fine dining in Dublin. The presentation is impeccable and service is nothing short of first class, and there is also perhaps the most extensive wine list in the city. Highlights of the menu include courgette flower stuffed with prawns and the moulard duck breast. The restaurant also takes pride in to the fact that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was hosted in the private dining room during when she visited Dublin.

The Cliff Townhouse is a delightful Michelin starred restaurant that beckons patrons inside with its unique red-brick façade and its focus on seafood. In addition, the building serves as a luxury hotel and guest house, situated within easy walking distance of the National Museum of Ireland and other prominent destinations for visitors. There is also a swanky cocktail bar and a private dining room upstairs for functions such as birthday parties and weddings.

This aesthetically unique establishment can be found within the larger Dandelion bar and bistro complex (also containing a cosy bar and lively club) located at the top of the busy shopping thoroughfare, Grafton Street. Here you will be seated amongst shelves packed with vintage hardback books (hence the name) as you sample choice dishes such as pan-fried dry aged rib eye steak and gourmet king tiger prawns scampi.