Your Seasonal Guide to the Perfect Day in Dublin Town

Start Your Day Right with These Cafés:

Every good day should start with a cup of coffee and a nice breakfast, so here are some of the best café’s you can hit up before you start the ultimate day in the city centre.

Central Brew Coffee:

• Central Brew Coffee can be found on the top of Talbot Street, across from Carrolls Irish Gifts.
• They take pride in three things. Great hospitality, excellent coffee & amazing food you won’t find in other cafés.
• They are the perfect place to grab a bite and a coffee while you relax and watch the hustle and bustle of the city.

 

Kaph Café:

• Kaph is located at the top of Drury Street.
• Kaph have a wide selection of classic coffees, house blends, pastries and more.

First Chapter:

• First Chapter can be found on the edge of Fade Street.
• They sell what you’d expect from a café, coffees, pastries, breakfast and brunches, but what makes them so unique is the interior. Everything inside of First Chapter looks like it is straight out of a comic book, looking entirely hand drawn.

 

Beanhive Coffee:

• Beanhive can be found at the top of Dawson Street.
• They are an independent, family run business managed by Jin and Jiamin, along with their husbands Fan and Ming.
• They sell a wide slection of wraps, sandwiches, full Irish brekfasts, smoothies and, of course, coffees.

Looking for even more coffee spots? Check out more café options on our website

Best Places to Shop in The City Centre:

It wouldn’t be a day out in town if you didn’t do a bit of shopping, so whether you’ve got your list of shops and items or you just want to do a bit of window shopping, these are our suggestions for the best shopping spots.

Grafton Street:

Grafton Street is a haven for all things shopping, there are a seemingly endless number of shops that are perfect for whatever gift (for yourself or for others) you may be looking for. From jewellers like Claddagh and John Brereton to clothes shops like Levi’s and Massimo Dutti or toy shops like the LEGO store and the Build-A-Bear Workshop.

 

Drury Street:

Drury Street is the ultimate place to go for clothes shopping in Dublin, with shops like Jenny Vander, LOOT, Emporium, Om Diva, Costume and much more, it’s safe to say Drury Street is number 1 if your looking for new looks.

Want to explore more shopping ideas? Our shopping list can guide you to the right direction.

 

Gotham Café:

• Gotham Café is located on Anne Street South.
• They are a family owned Irish restaurant that prides themselves on having a relaxed atmosphere, with reasonable prices and excellent food.

Krewe:

• Krewe is located at the top of Capel Street.
• They are a New Orleans Louisiana bar and eatery  that are bringing a new kind of food to Dublin stomach’s.
• They source all of their ingredients locally, bringing the freshest Cajun Creole to people that they can.

 

Bagel Bar Coffee House:

• Bagel Bar Coffee House can be found at the top of Upper Abbey Street.
• They were founded to be a healthier alternative to your regular sandwich shop.

 

Boojum:

• Boojum can be found on Lower Abbey Street.
• They are a Mexican eatery, offering a wide variety of tacos, bowls and burritos.

Umi Falafel:

• Umi Falafel is located inside of George’s Street Arcade.
• They are a vegetarian only falafel eatery with a plethora of different styles of falafel sandwiches, soups, mezze options and some sweet treats.

 

You’ve got the shopping done, you’ve got your lunch, but what next? here are our suggestions for the best past time spots around town.

Chester Beatty Library:

• The Chester Beatty Library is located in Dublin Castle on Dame Street.
• It is a free admission museum that holds a wide selection of manuscripts, rare books, paintings, decorative arts and much more.
• It is also a research library for various scholars.

Douglas Hyde Gallery:

• The Douglas Hyde Gallery can be found in Trinity College Dublin.
• They are open Wednesday to Sunday, and frequently give a platform to lesser known contemporary artists in Dublin, if you happen to be near Trinity College, we highly recommend the Douglas Hyde.

Grafton Street Buskers:

Between the plethora of fantastic shops and incredible vibes, Grafton Street has one other selling point, the buskers. For those of you who don’t know, buskers go around town playing live music for anyone with the ears to listen. So if you find yourself on Grafton Street, maybe take a beat and give a listen, and f you really like it, maybe chuck them a few bob.

Want more? Check out live events happening today in Dublin.

 

After the long day, we assume you’ll be pretty hungry, so these are our picks to turn a hangry frown upside down.

Bah33°

• Bah33 can be found in Royal Hibernian Way.
• They sell traditional BBQ from Uruguay, Argentina and parts of Southern Brazil, with a variety of different cuts of meats (and vegetables)

 

Yamamori:

• Yamamori has three locations in the City centre. One on Ormond Quay Lower and one on South Great George’s Street, including an izakaya on South Great George’s Street, which is more of a bar setting.
• They are a traditional Japanese cuisine restaurant, offering authentic tempura, sushi, Japanese grill (which is commonly known as hibachi) and authentic ramen bowls.

Reyna:

• Reyna is a Turkish eatery located on Dame Street.
• They sell traditional and authentic Turkish meals, like the classic Doner Kebab and their treasured Çiğ köfte which they prepare entirely vegetarian, which is made with lettuce, parsley and lemon.

Kaldero:

• Kaldero is an Irish-Filipino restaurant found in the Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre.
• They make authentic Filipino meals with the best Irish ingredients they can get. In their own words “This isn’t about fusion or substitution. It’s about making food that both reflects where we come from, and where we are now.” Combining the best of both worlds if you ask me.

Saba:

• Saba is located on South Williams Street, right beside the Dakota Bar.
• Saba makes award-winning Thai and Vietnamese food. Saba has become a big name in the Irish restaurant scene, and rightfully so, their late head chef Taweesak Trakoolwattana was formerly a cook for the King and Queen of Thailand.

Planning ahead? See our full Dublin restaurant guide for more ideas.

The perfect day should include, of course, the perfect end, and what better way to end it that by checking out some of the DCC Winter Lights.

During the month of December, Dublin City Council erects a number of light artworks around the city, and these are our suggestions for the must see works in this years line up.

Dublin Castle Courtyard:

‘Flux’ from French artists collective ‘SCALE’ redesigns its surroundings and offers a unique, playful and frenetic show in which the choreography intimately dialogues with the music.

Meeting House Square:

This immersive 3-dimensional lighting installation will feature over 3,000 balls of light. ‘Meeting House Cubed’ is a collaboration with designer Anthony Murphy.

Temple Bar Square:

‘Xs & Os’ is a game that dates back almost 1000 years. People can play one of the world’s oldest games in a new way with this large scale light structure in the heart of the city.

Wolfe Tone Square:

An interactive motion sensing wall of LED pixels will capture the movement of the daily commute.

The Custom House:

Colourful projections by Irish artist James Earley will be projected onto this famous 18th century building.

GPO:

Dynamic digital projections of stunning artworks by 8 leading national and international digital artists will feature on this iconic building.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: What are the best cafés in Dublin for breakfast?

A: Some top-rated breakfast cafés include Beanhive Coffee, Central Brew, and Kaph for their strong coffee and unique offerings.

 

Q: Where can I go shopping in Dublin city centre?

A: Grafton Street and Drury Street are two of the best shopping areas—perfect for gifts, fashion, and quirky finds. Other spots that you may want to check out are George’s Street Arcade, Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre and Powerscourt Townhouse Centre.

 

Q: Is Dublin walkable for a day trip itinerary?

A: Yes! Most of the locations in this guide are within a 15–20-minute walking radius.

 

Q: Where can I find vegetarian or vegan food in Dublin?

A: Umi Falafel and Kaldero are great options, with full vegetarian menus and locally sourced ingredients.

 

And there it is, from coffee and a meal to beautiful lights in the Dublin night, from the start to the end, we hope that this guide helps you have the greatest day in Dublin that you can.