10 Best Italian Restaurants in Dublin
Italian food is part of the Dublin dining landscape; whether you prefer pasta or pizza, you will be pleased to know there are loads of Italian restaurant Dublin City Centre. Irish people love Italian food, and it is not surprising that Dublin Ireland Italian restaurants appear across this city. There is a place for everyone to enjoy a mouthwatering Italian meal. Below, we have listed the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland that offer finger-licking food, from fine dining to filling family-style feasts.
10 best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland
The simple mention of Italian food has everyone going into a misty-eyed daydream as they picture forkfuls of delicate tagliatelle, perfectly charred pizza crusts, and all the rest. While Ireland’s capital is away from Italy, the Italian restaurants Dublin on our list are worth paying attention to.
Our top Italian restaurants in Dublin Ireland embrace excellent food, quality service, and attention to atmosphere. If you are looking for the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland, these spots lead the charge as they offer food cooked by a professional chef and served in a relaxed setting.
1. Pi Pizza
As one of the Italian restaurants Dublin that makes some of the best pizza with unique flavor combinations, Pi Pizza was born in the cathedral city of Winchester. Its first restaurant was situated on Stockbridge Road. Pi Pizza chefs have perfected their crispy pizza bases with fresh, slow-proven dough.
Toppings are packed with flavors, such as the spicy nduja drizzled with chili and honey. The Margherita also packs a punch with its scrumptious Fior di Latte from Cork. Pi Pizza is the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland for vegans, as there is a range of courgettes, cashew ricotta, and a classic marinara.
This Italian restaurant is fully responsible for anything they serve to its guests. That’s why they make everything on their menu in-house. They only source fresh ingredients and produce from the best artisan producers in Spain, Italy, and local independent UK suppliers. The restaurant used seasonal ingredients because they are a healthy option and flavourful.
If you are feeling thirsty, Pi Pizza is one of the top-rated Dublin Italian restaurants that serve organic wines, craft beers, and seasonal cocktails. It offers a friendly and relaxed dining experience ideal for celebrating with family and friends on any occasion.
2. I Monelli
Located in Portobello overlooking the stunning Grand Canal, I Monelli is among the best Italian restaurants in Dublin Ireland that offer flavors made from high-quality ingredients with exceptional attention to detail. This family-friendly eatery is warm, cozy, and inviting. Their top-notch service creates a relaxed, authentic atmosphere.
Ivano is the owner and head chef of this Italian restaurant; he’s a passionate Italian chef with years of international experience. Before Ivano settled in Dublin, he worked in various 5-star hotels and Michelin-star restaurants worldwide, where he prepared African, Irish, Spanish, and Italian cuisines. In 2019, I Monelli won Dublin’s Best Authentic Italian Restaurant award by The Love Italian Life.
If you are seeking an Italian restaurant Dublin City Centre that serves rustic Southern Italian cuisine, I Monelli is a good option. This restaurant serves thin, crispy-crusted pizza that’s layered with unique topping mixtures. The menu includes homemade fresh pasta, many weekly dinner specials, and weekly dinner specials, such as veal and classic tiramisu.
3. Rosa Madre
Considered the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland for those who love seafood, Rosa Madre offers meals prepared with the freshest fish this city has to offer. Local suppliers deliver their fish daily to ensure the finest quality. The restaurant is situated in the heart of the vibrant Temple Bar, which is Dublin’s cultural quarter.
Rosa Madre is one of the most authentic Dublin Ireland Italian restaurants, and it always has an element of spectacle. The menu includes full sea bass baked in salt, then set alight while coming out of the kitchen. Rosa Madre’s specialty is fresh Gamberi and Calamari served with the Carpaccio di Carne Scottona or spicy spinach.
Pasta lovers can try out their Ravioli al Tartufo or Lobster tonnarelli made by their chef Antonio Dedola. When it comes to the main course, you can take Sea Bass in a salt crust, baked turbot with fresh vegetables and Irish potatoes, or grilled seafood. You can pair your meal with a bottle of champagne.
The decor is visually appealing and casual, with linen tablecloths, large windows, exposed brick, floorboards, and leather banquettes. Rosa Madre is perfect for people looking for a Dublin Italian restaurant that offers comfortable and convivial space.
4. Enoteca delle Langhe
There are several restaurants in Dublin’s self-styled Italian Quarter, and Enoteca Delle Langhe is one of them. Tango dancers perform outside this square in summer. Enoteca Delle Langhe is one of the go-to Italian restaurants in Dublin Ireland for people craving a top-quality bowl of pasta. A homely, welcoming atmosphere matches the food.
Enoteca Delle Langhe carries a variety of Italian meats, panini, cheeses, and more. You can bite from the exciting selection of high-quality food or wander around checking out the wines displayed. You can also enjoy cold deli plates or plates of bruschetta with different toppings, such as mortadella and black olive tapenade.
If you are looking for an Italian restaurant Dublin City Centre that serves hazelnut biscuits with Italian apricots and peaches in amaretto, Enoteca Delle Langhe has got you covered. This is one of the top Dublin Italian restaurants that offers a relaxed and warm atmosphere suitable for any occasion.
5. Grano
Stoneybatter residents could not believe their luck when Grano opened its doors to the public in 2018. It’s one of the top Dublin Ireland Italian restaurants selected for the Michelin Guide. The restaurant offers contemporary modern cuisine respecting the traditions and roots of Italian cooking.
Grano is the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland for those looking for Italian food made with the freshest ingredients, cultivated using organic and biodynamic techniques. They source their ingredients from small food and wine producers in Italy, which allows them to play an essential role in preserving local food cultures and reviving ancient cultivation techniques.
Grano is truly a family restaurant, as their mamma often comes over to cook. You’ll love their Cacio e Pepe spaghetti, as it comes swaddled in black truffle. The wild boar ragu with pappardelle pasta is also pure heaven. You could also try out their anchovies marinated Calabrian style that comes with roasted marinated peppers, toasted bread, and candied San Marzano tomatoes.
Keep in mind that this Dublin Italian restaurant regularly changes its menu. They also offer a range of wines, including Calabrian white, sparkling, and orange.
6. Terra Madre
With its homey vibe and perfect pasta, Terra Madre is undoubtedly one of the top-rated Italian restaurants in Dublin Ireland. This independent, small, owner-run cafe-restaurant serves simple, delicious, top-quality Italian food and wine. They carefully source the ingredients they use in their food to ensure guests experience the taste of unique and rare regional Italian cuisines and wines.
Terra Madre prides itself in supporting numerous small-scale food producers and family farms dedicated to preserving traditional skills and ways of food production and conserving rare landrace and heirloom plants, livestock, and crops.
Suitable for those looking for an Italian restaurant Dublin City Centre serving their food and wine in a simple atmosphere, Terra Madre’s menu is based on traditional dishes the grandmothers of the owners used to make at home. You can enjoy the Ravioli del Plin doused in black truffle; you’ll also find olive oil on your table, which is a spicy delight that you can splash on your warm hunks of bread emerging from the kitchen.
7. Sano Pizza
If you are looking for the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland that serves authentic Neapolitan pizza made with high-quality traditional ingredients sourced from Italy, check out Sano Pizza. Their hand-made pizza dough is proven for 48 hours before their pizza maker bakes them in 450-degree heat, creating a light, delicious crust.
Sano Pizza is one of the Dublin Ireland Italian restaurants that want its guests to enjoy their pizza the Italian way, bursting with joy and packed with intense, fresh flavor. The ingredients in Pizza Marinara are tomato Sugo, basil, garlic, and oregano, while the vegan pizza features carrot cream, grilled artichoke, semi-dried red cherry tomato, walnuts, and parsley.
The idea for Sano was born after the MacHugh brothers visited Naples, where all pizzas are prepared using a sourdough base, then cooked at 500 degrees in traditional stone ovens; this inspired them to open a Neapolitan-style pizzeria in Ireland’s capital. They bought two traditional stone ovens directly from a manufacturer based in Naples.
8. Dunne & Crescenzi
Since it was opened in 1999, Dunne & Crescenzi has become one of the favorite Dublin Italian restaurants for many people. Located in Frederick Street South, this is one of the Italian restaurants in Dublin Ireland that provides dinner, lunch, and breakfast while serving its guests award-winning coffee all day.
The menu uses the best local organic vegetables and Irish beef. There is a whole menu of burrata and mozzarella and some great nibbles, and the wild mushroom ravioli are exceptional. In the evening, Dunne & Crescenzi add specials to their menus, such as pine nuts with aromatic herbs or swordfish steaks with cherry tomatoes.
They also serve Risotto with clams, courgettes, flat parsley, saffron, white wine, or tasty Ravioli filled with mascarpone or Gorgonzola cheese. Guests can also enjoy a fab Fettuccine Nero, which is squid ink with octopus, aromatic herbs, and tomato sauce.
You’ll also find other outposts in Kildare and Dundrum Village. Dunne & Crescenzi is one of the Italian restaurants Dublin that’s a Good Food Ireland member. Their list of wine include red, white, and rose wines.
9. Da Mimmo
If you are out by the North Strand, then Da Mimmo is one of the must-visit Italian restaurants Dublin. It’s well known for its homemade wood-fired pizzas, antipasto, and pasta. There is a variety on the menu to suit people with different preferences. You can keep things simple by ordering buffalo mozzarella and basil or decide to go all out and have Italian sausage and artichokes.
Da Mimmo is among the leading family-run Dublin Ireland Italian restaurants that offer desserts, an immense range of delicious in-house wines, white wines, and beers. The restaurant combines Italian products from regions close to Dublin and locally sourced ingredients to make their food and wines.
They prepare all their dishes fresh daily using family recipes. Their skilled chefs can add flare to the food. Da Mimmo specials board changes every day to offer flexibility. With a homey atmosphere and attractive decor, this restaurant is well known for its excellent service and friendly staff, ready to help guests to ensure everyone has an exhilarating Italian experience.
10. Dolce Sicily
We could not make our list of the best Dublin Italian restaurants without including Dolce Sicily because it makes authentic Italian cuisine using first-rate locally sourced produce and renowned suppliers from Italy. Situated in the heart of Dublin, this restaurant believes the food they serve is a reflection of their terroir, made up of the environment where they source their products and the different cultures and people who make up Sicily.
Dolce Sicily started its adventure as a Pasticceria, where they only served traditional Italian desserts and cakes with Italian espresso. They later moved to a larger building on South Anne Street and introduced Aperitivo and a menu for lunch and dinner.
You can enjoy fish, hand-made pasta, and Risotto at this Italian restaurant. If you are seeking the best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland that offers a breakfast of mini fruit tarts, Dolce Sicily is one of the city’s greatest pleasures.
Wrapping up the 10 best Italian restaurant Dublin Ireland
Now that you know the finest Italian restaurants in Dublin Ireland, you can enjoy a delicious, authentic Italian meal. Just like the country itself, the Italian-restaurant scene in Dublin is rich and varied, as you will find both traditional trattorias and chic new eateries. Whether you are looking for fresh antipasto, boozy tiramisu, or bowls of steaming Risotto, these Italian restaurants Dublin suit people with different tastes and budgets. That means there is a perfect Italian restaurant in this city for you.