Irish food has improved enormously since the 1990s. The country now has a genuine food culture, built on excellent raw ingredients — dairy, seafood, beef, lamb — and a growing number of chefs and producers who take it seriously.
The basics: A full Irish breakfast (soda bread, eggs, rashers, sausages, white pudding, black pudding, grilled tomato) is still the best hangover cure available and is served at almost every B&B and hotel. Soda bread and brown bread are genuine Irish staples and the real thing, made fresh, is worth seeking out. Seafood is excellent in the west — Galway oysters, Connemara smoked salmon, crab, and lobster from small harbour restaurants along the coast.
Where to eat: The cities have good restaurants across most price ranges. Dublin in particular has a serious restaurant scene, with a number of places holding Michelin recognition. Cork's English Market is the best place in Ireland to buy food — the stalls sell artisan cheese, charcuterie, fish, and baked goods, and several restaurants and cafes operate inside. Galway has the oyster festival in September but good seafood restaurants operate year round.
Pubs: The pub remains central to Irish social life. Food is served in most pubs — at lunch, and often in the early evening — typically solid comfort food (chowder, sandwiches, fish and chips, stew). The quality varies but has generally risen. Craft beer has arrived in Ireland and most pubs now carry a few local options alongside the standard Guinness, Heineken, and Smithwicks. The ritual of ordering and drinking a pint of Guinness is best experienced in an old-fashioned pub rather than a tourist-oriented one.
Coffee: Has improved dramatically. Specialty coffee has spread well beyond Dublin; you will find decent espresso in most large towns.
Eating times: The Irish eat lunch between noon and 2pm and dinner from about 6pm. Many restaurants stop taking food orders by 9.30–10pm. In rural areas, dinner service can end earlier. Sunday roast lunches are common and popular.