The Best Lunch In Galway City: 12 Tasty Spots To Try

In search of the best lunch in Galway City? Look no further!

From brunchy style options, like eggs Benedict, to traditional fares, like hearty soups and sambos, there’s endless lunch spots in Galway.

And, while we often find ourselves returning to the same few places time and time again, Galway’s food scene has seen some glorious recent arrivals.

Where we think does the best lunch in Galway

Below, you’ll find a mix of our favourite places for lunch in Galway City, along with several restaurants that have consistently racked up rave reviews online over many years.

The result is a smörgåsbord of gorgeous Galway lunch options for you to ponder. Dive on in!

1. Dela Restaurant

You’ll find Dela on Dominick St Lower, a stone’s throw from the Corrib. This place is special. And we’re basing this on many… many visits that members of our team have made over the years.

On the menu here, you’ll find everything from avocado and poached eggs and the hearty Dela fry to crispy potato fish cakes to mushrooms on toast.

If you’re in need of a real feed, there’s also the brunch burrito, a stunning steak sambo and a fat stack of buttermilk pancakes.

Dela does, in our opinion, the best lunch in Galway City, and we’ll keep heading back here on every visit to the city.

2. BóTOWN

Another beaut of a Galway lunch spot is BóTown, and you’ll find it just down from Dela, also on Dominick St Lower.

This is a chilled and relaxed burger restaurant that serves up fast food with a difference – it’s quick, super tasty, and made from quality ingredients.

There’s plenty of indoor seating available, with leather-backed booths and small tables with smaller chairs, or you can head outside into the patio area and make the most of the sunshine.

And, while the burgers are the business here, there’s also everything from mac n cheese and chicken wings to cauliflower wings, halloumi sticks, and a classic take on an American icon with Sloppy Bó fries on offer, too.

3. The Lighthouse Café

Fancy a vegetarian lunch in Galway City? Look no further than The Lighthouse on Abbeygate Street Upper. This beacon of vegetarian dining in Galway has been casting its light across the city for a number of years.

Inside, it’s bright and cheerful, with dappled lighting, whitewashed walls and tables and chairs to seat a dozen or so guests. Outside, there are a few Parisian cafe-style tables and chairs, and it’s definitely a great spot to watch the passing parade.

Need a warming bite to ward off the chill? Get stuck in with some Moroccan courgette and chickpea burgers, or maybe the plant-based hot pot, and they also make a cracking vegan chorizo sandwich on sourdough!

4. Hooked

Hooked is another of our go-to Galway lunch spots, and you’ll find it on Henry St, about an 8-minute stroll from The Latin Quarter.

Inside, it’s all about life by the seaside; rope balustrades, reclaimed timber tables with a salty whitewashed vibe, and colourful nautical wall art!

But it’s the food that’ll get you Hooked here (terrible pub, I know…) with dishes like coconut, polenta and chilli-coated calamari, tempura battered prawns with chips and sweet chilli mayo, and the house’s take on the classic fish pie with smoked haddock, cod, hake, and salmon all in a rich and creamy sauce.

5. Ard Bia at Nimmos

Not far from the banks of the River Corrib, the dishes from this nouveau Irish restaurant have been making tongues wag for a while now; if not for their eclectic decor of unsealed reclaimed timber tables with wax-encrusted candlesticks, then for the delicious and tempting dining options that they serve up with beautiful consistency.

Do check the daily specials board as you can expect to see dishes like Pigs on the Green, hot dogs with caramelised onions, mustard, roasted potatoes and rocket with a drizzle of aioli, or sizzling chorizo with a red pepper hash, Turkish-style fried egg and sour cream all on sourdough.

Ard Bia at Nimmos is widely considered to dish up some of the best lunches in Galway City by many for a good reason.

6. Kai Restaurant

Located in the west of the city, Kai is a cheery blend of timber and exposed stonework, with plenty of small tables for couples or groups of friends to sit around over a nosh.

You can sit inside or outside if the weather’s with you. Just be sure to get there early for lunch, as it’s a popular spot amongst locals and tourists alike.

Highly recommended are the fish fingers made from black pollock, the Waldorf slaw with Steve’s leaves on brown bread, or something heartier like their stews which are guaranteed to fill you up.

7. Brasserie On The Corner

Brasserie On The Corner on Eglinton St (a 3-minute walk from Eyre Square) is one of the fancier Galway lunch spots.

It opened back in 2012 and since then has earned a reputation for creating beautifully prepared dishes (the service is also top-notch, and if you’re fond of a tipple, few places in the city know their wine like this crowd!).

On the lunch menu, you’ll find everything from soups and the Brasserie seafood chowder to wild Atlantic tiger prawns, warm goat’s cheese salads and the very tasty McGeough’s smoked pulled pork.

If you’re looking for lunch in Galway City to mark a special occasion, Brasserie On The Corner is well worth considering.

8. Rúibín Bar & Restaurant

Sitting on the dock of Galway Bay, Rúibín’s is a visually stunning restaurant with some tables offering views out over the water.

Tucked inside, amidst the columns of exposed brickwork, rustic stonewalls, and leadlight lampshades, it’s easy to relax and unwind over a delicious meal that’s prepared by a team of experienced and knowledgeable chefs.

The lunch menu here boasts a mix of options. On our most recent visit, one of the party opted for the vodka and honey battered fish while another went for the grilled Toonsbridge halloumi – both were the business!

9. The Quay Street Kitchen

You won’t find many Galway lunch spots that command as central a location as the buzzy Quay Street Kitchen.

Inside, it’s aesthetically pleasing, with parquetry flooring and small square wooden tables with classic wooden cafe chairs (the exposed ceiling is a nice touch and makes it feel bigger than it really is).

On the menu, there’s excellent mains, like the lamb shank and the sirloin steak, but there’s also light bites, with old fashion potted crab, light and crispy calamari and clubhouse sambos available to order.

If you like to pick places to eat based on Google reviews, this place does some of the best lunch in Galway City (4.7/5 from 1,260+ reviews at the time of typing).

10. Zappi’s Restaurant

Zappi’s is one of our ‘old reliables’ when it comes to eating out in Galway, regardless of whether it’s for lunch or dinner.

For starters, the Herterich’s award-winning “morcilla” black pudding starter is the bee’s knees. It comes with king prawns and chorizo in a Napoli sauce served with homemade bread.

For mains, you’ve your pick of pasta, pizza and salads. For dessert, the only question you need to concern yourself with is one scoop or two?

11. Pasta Factory

Another place that’s widely considered to dish up some of the best lunches in Galway City is Pasta Factory.

Not the place to come if you’re worried about carbs, this restaurant celebrates everything to do with one of the world’s favourite dishes!

Part cafe and part delicatessen, this spot does a rip-roaring trade in preparing and selling fresh pasta as well as serving it up to enjoy at the handful of dine-in tables. 

A three-step process is involved in arranging your lunch; pick a size and then choose your pasta style (all the usual suspects are there, including spaghetti, rigatoni, fusilli and ravioli).

Next, it’s the sauce and your customisations, and there’s way too many to mention! Give Pasta Factory a bash – it’ll make your belly happy!

12. Scotty’s Burgers & Wings

As you might have guessed, Scotty’s specialises in burgers and wings, and you’ll find it across from Dunnes on the Headford Road.

Most of the burgers have a themed name, like the Maui-Wowie chicken burger with grilled pineapple and Swiss cheese or the AlaSlamma Double that comes with two beef patties, chilli, salsa and jalapeños.

If you’re coming for lunch, you best come hungry and maybe cancel your dinner plans.

What Galway lunchtime options have we missed?

I’ve no doubt that we’ve unintentionally left out some brilliant places to go for lunch in Galway City from the guide above.

If you have a place that you think does the best lunch in Galway, let me know in the comments below and I’ll check it out! Or, nip into one of our many other Galway food guides:

• 10 Of The Best Places For Breakfast And Brunch In Galway
• 7 Of The Best Indian Restaurants In Galway In 2024
• 10 Places Pouring The Best Cocktails In Galway In 2024
• 10 Places Dishing Up The Best Pizza In Galway City And Beyond
• 10 Of The Best Seafood Restaurants In Galway In 2024
• 9 Of The Best Italian Restaurants In Galway In 2024
• 7 Best Places To Eat In Galway For Sushi

Galway lunch FAQs

We’ve had a lot of questions over the years asking about everything from ‘Where’s good for lunch and drinks?’ to ‘What’s a good date spot?’.

In the section below, we’ve popped in the most FAQs that we’ve received. If you have a question that we haven’t tackled, ask away in the comments section below.