Discover food, markets and traditions
From busy markets to family kitchens and cookery schools, Ireland’s food scene is rooted in tradition and alive with flavor.
The rhythm of daily life in full swing at Cork’s historic English Market. Established in 1788, its vaulted ceilings shelter stalls of farmhouse cheeses, warm bread, spiced beef, smoked salmon and handmade sweets.
Stalls at Galway’s weekend market beside St Nicholas’ Church are brimming with vegetables, preserves, street food and crafts.
Belfast’s St George’s Market is full of local character. Fresh oysters, wheaten bread, hot apple juice and chowder keep shoppers happy as buskers fill the air with music.
Eating out? Family-run restaurants across the island welcome you with the famous Irish warmth.
The Woollen Mills Eating House at Dublin’s Ha’penny Bridge serves traditional dishes like Dublin coddle and soda bread in a fun, relaxed setting.
Galway’s Kai Restaurant is known for its inventive use of local produce and highlighting wild Atlantic seafood and seasonal fare.
Overlooking Baltimore harbor, County Cork, Dede blends Irish foods with Turkish-inspired flair, showing how global influences can enrich local traditions.
In Belfast, Michelin-starred OX has redefined fine dining, focusing on seasonal, local ingredients. The Mourne Seafood Bar is loved for its fresh catches and relaxed setting.
Belfast’s vibrant, diverse street food scene blends traditional Northern Irish flavors with global influences at outdoor spots such as Halt and The Boneyard.
Family-run restaurants cook community traditions into every dish. The Brewer’s House in County Tyrone, O’Dowd’s of Roundstone in County Galway, and The Fatted Calf in Athlone, County Westmeath, all prepare cherished recipes with local produce.
If you’d like to do more than taste, go behind the scenes at Ireland’s cookery schools!
At Ballymaloe Cookery School in County Cork, Darina Allen carries forward the vision of her mother-in-law, Myrtle, teaching farm-to-fork values on an organic farm where herbs, fruit and vegetables grow just steps from the kitchen.
Catherine Fulvio’s Ballyknocken House and Cookery School in County Wicklow offers a family-farm welcome and classes ranging from baking soda bread to traditional stews.
In Waterford, Paul Flynn’s Tannery Cookery School, winner of Cookery School of the Year three years in a row, is known for excellence, with menus that reflect the best of the southeast’s produce.
Neven Maguire provides intimate classes in County Cavan where students learn to cook with the finest ingredients.
Belfast Cookery School has the city’s growing food scene at heart, offering classes from bread making to global cuisines taught by expert local chefs.
At Waterman House Cookery School, run by the team behind Belfast’s Michelin-starred OX, visitors can learn refined skills while using the same seasonal produce celebrated in the restaurant.
Exploring Ireland through its food is more than a culinary adventure — it’s a cultural one.
Which flavors of Ireland will you discover first?
