A Guide To The Finest Michelin Star Restaurants In Dublin

If you’re in search of the best Michelin Star restaurants Dublin has to offer, you’ve landed in the right place.

There are some cities where you hit the jackpot when it comes to eating out, and Dublin is one of them (see our guide to the best Dublin restaurants to see why!).

From sumptuous seafood to mighty meat, perfect pastries to luscious lobsters, there’s an almost endless number of restaurants that excel at fine dining in Dublin.

In the guide below, we attempt to pinpoint the best Michelin Star restaurants Dublin has to offer, with a mix of fine dining, unique restaurants and very funky spots.

Our favourite Michelin Star restaurants in Dublin

In the first section of our guide, you’ll find what we think are the finest Michelin Star restaurants in Dublin – these are places that one or more of The Irish Road Trip Team have eaten in.

Below, you’ll find everywhere from the brilliant Variety Jones and the mouthwatering Chapter One to some 5 star restaurants in Dublin that are often overlooked.

1. Chapter One Restaurant

Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen is place where people don’t just rave about the food—the service gets a mention too, with many diners describing the whole thing as the best dining experience they have ever undertaken.

The tasting dinner menu is €150, with a matching wine flight priced at €105. Courses include hand-dived scallops with caviar and an elderflower and jalapeno bouillon, while dessert options present delicacies such as a frozen blackcurrant meringue along with a seaweed condiment and blackcurrant leaf milk.

Lunch is served from 12.30 to 2.00pm Thursday to Saturday, while dinner is 6.30 to 9.30pm Tuesday to Saturdays. If you’re looking for Michelin Star restaurants in Dublin to mark a special occasion, look no further.

2. The Greenhouse

The Greenhouse has not just one but two Michelin Stars. The Michelin Guide describes the venue as “chic” and “intimate”, with a nicely relaxed atmosphere.

The menu is classically based—think French with an Irish twist—but there are some unusual flavour combinations that make it stick out, and the dishes are suitably refined.

The specialities are hand-dived scallops with horseradish, grouse ‘en crepinette’ with celeriac, blackberry and sauce grand veneur and a cholate, praline and tonka bean dessert.

It’s located on Dawson Street, and you can expect your meal to cost from between €80 to €180. This is arguably one of the most popular spots to experience fine dining in Dublin.

3. Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud

Another two Michelin starred restaurant, Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud can be found in Dublin city centre next to the Merrion Hotel. Its cuisine is contemporary Irish with French classical roots, and it has a national and international reputation for the exceptional quality of its food.

The restaurant has been open for 40 years and describes itself as “dedicated to the pursuit of excellence”. The a la carte menu changes seasonally, and the lunch menu every day.

Fish courses include a native blue lobster tail served with kumquat-glazed rhubarb and a mandarin lobster velouté and poached sole with salt-baked Jerusalem artichoke and toasted hazelnuts.

Related read: Check out our guide to the best lunch in Dublin (from Michelin Star eats to Dublin’s best burger)

4. Variety Jones

Those in the know head to Variety Jones for a more intimate experience. This is a chic restaurant with a relaxed atmosphere and an open kitchen where you can watch chef and owner Keelan Higgins cook up a storm.

Many of the dishes are cooked over an open fire and its menu avoids the usual classifications with the use of snacks, cold, warm, pasta, family style (dishes big enough to share) and afters (one dessert and one cheese).

There is a changing wine list of mostly organic wines and you can expect delightful dishes such as grilled cauliflower with a caramelised yeast mousse and smoked trout or duck with charred broccoli and confit leg.

Variety Jones is one of the most talked about Michelin Star restaurants in Dublin for good reason. Do your tastebuds a favor and book in here soon!

Other very popular Michelin awarded restaurants in Dublin

Now that we have our favourite Michelin Star restaurants in Dublin out of the way, it’s time to see what else the capital has to offer.

Below, you’ll find some other fantastic restaurants where you can experience a bit of fine dining in Dublin.

1. The Liath

The Liath is the successor to the Heron and Grey and is run by Australian chef Damian Grey, and describes itself as paying the utmost respect to food by injecting it with all the team’s experience, passion, self-belief and love for their craft.

It’s Michelin-starred and specialities include: white soy, cep and walnut; Anjou pigeon, blackberry and amaranth; and Pear with black pepper and Grand Cru.

2. One Pico Restaurant

Located close to St Stephen’s Green, One Pico is a Michelin-plate restaurant where you can relax on comfortable banquettes or velour chairs and tuck into modern Irish cuisine.

Lunch is served Tuesday to Saturday 12.00pm to 2.15pm, while dinner can be taken those same days from 5pm to 9.15pm. The lunch menu is two courses for €45, while three will set you back €50.

Choose from beetroot and peaches with smoked almonds and goat’s cheese, or aged beef tartare served with a salt-cured egg and pumpkin seeds. Main courses include roast saddle of lamb, or turbo with courgette flowers and lobster mousse.

Related read: Check out our guide to the best steakhouse in Dublin (12 places you can grab a perfectly cooked steak tonight)

3. The Pigeon House Clontarf

The Pigeon House in Clontarf is bib gourmand awarded, meaning that the Michelin Guide views it as high quality cooking at a good price.

It’s a bistro that you will find just off a coast road that has a buzzy feel to it, and which services up delicious dishes full of flavour.

It’s open all day and for weekend brunches. If you do fancy brunch, the Pigeon House does the Irish fry-up, but those seeking something more exotic can opt for the Turkish eggs—poached eggs dressed with tahini yoghurt and harissa butter, topped with dukkah and served with sourdough to scoop it all up.

4. Delahunt

Delahunt is another Michelin-plate venue where stunning cooking prevails, and it is famous for its mention in James Joyce’s Ulysses. “But wait till I tell you, he said. Delahunt of Camden street had the catering and yours truly was chief bottle washer“.

Bloom and the wife were there. Lashings of stuff we put up: port wine and sherry and curacao to which we did ample justice. Fast and furious it was. After liquids came solids. Cold joints galore and mince pies …”

At the restaurant, the aim is to provide the best seasonal and local produce in a welcoming setting. As the building is Victorian, the menus are influenced by traditional cookery techniques and Delahunt prides itself in championing Ireland’s small, local producers.

Related read: Check out our guide to the best brunch in Dublin (or our guide to the best bottomless brunch in Dublin)

5. Locks Windsor Terrace

Great in winter, thanks to its welcoming fire (a good one for those of you looking for date ideas in Dublin!), Locks overlooks the canal and is Michelin plate awarded.

You can choose from small plates, starters, mains, sides and desserts, and some of the options include potato gnocchi in whey and brown butter, or a Delminico rib-eye for two.

Make sure to order the ‘wild’ local organic potatoes and lovage as an accompaniment. If you’re looking for slightly more relaxed fine dining in Dublin, the food here is sensational.

6. 3 Leaves Blackrock

The Michelin-plated 3 Leaves is also in Blackrock and it’s arguably the finest of the many Indian restaurants in Dublin.

3 Leaves offers a great value taster menu for those who always find it too difficult to choose from all the lovely options on offer.

It’s also ‘bring your own bottle’, which lowers the price of a gourmet meal out considerably. The restaurant provides itself in its authentic Indian offering.

At weekends, they serve street food and the 3 Leaves special chicken biryani. There is plenty of choice for vegetarians and vegans.

Fine dining Dublin: Where have we missed?

I’ve no doubt that we’ve unintentionally left out some brilliant places to experience fine dining in Dublin in the guide above.

If you have a place that you’d like to recommend, let me know in the comments below and I’ll check it out!

FAQs about the best Michelin Star restaurants Dublin has to

We’ve had a lot of questions over the years asking about everything from ‘What are the coolest places for fine dining in Dublin?’ to ‘Which are the most adventurous?’.

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.

What are the best Michelin Star restaurants in Dublin?

In our opinion, the finest 5 star restaurants in Dublin are Chapter One, The Greenhouse, Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud and Variety Jones.

What are the most unique places for fine dining in Dublin?

If you’re looking for unique luxury restaurants, you need to check out Variety Jones. If you’re looking for sheer swankyness, get yourself to Chapter One Restaurant.