We will be in Dublin over Christmas, and I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for a restaurant where we could enjoy a nice Christmas dinner. We are flexible as to budget and type of food.

Thanks!

Hi Abby,

Don't know if you mean a place to stay or just Christmas Dinner.

I love the Killiney Castle Hotel (now called Fitzpatricks) but it is outside the centre of Dublin.

I have never been there for Christmas Dinner, as Christmas in my family is very much a 'family affair' I have however been there for New Year and loved it. At Christmas it would be fantastic.

In Dublin centre The Shelbourne would also be special but it has been closed for renovations and I don't know if it will be opened for Christmas.

A lot of restaurants will be closed but times are changing and more and more people are looking for something other than the traditional turkey and ham.

Having said that I would book somthing quite soon as those places that are open will fill up quickly.

Have a great trip

Thanks, cambe! Sorry it took me so long to respond. I was called out of town unexpectedly on a business trip.

In any event, I will call your suggested restaurants. We don't need a place to stay -- we're staying with a friend who recently moved there -- but we wanted to take him out for a nice Christmas dinner.

Thanks!

Abby97 Most likely the hotels will be open. There is a FourSeasons in Dublin which might be nice. For something more "hip" have a look at Halo in the Morrison Hotel.
Enjoy your Christmas in Ireland

Thanks, AnnieP! I will look into those and report back once we have decided on our plans . . .

Book now. I am unsure what would be open but we did consider this option 2 years ago after a death in the family and no one wanted to cook. There were few places open and I would check first with your friend and make sure they want to do this option. Its a real family day here in Ireland and going to restaurants on the holiday is still not very common.

The Shelbourne will not be open this christmas and only hotel restaurants will probably be open. Try calling the following hotels

Brooks Hotel - Drury street
Morrison Hotel
Stephen's Green hotel
Try Roly's Bistro - Ballsbridge (Restaurant not hotel)
Clontarf Castle - Castle Ave Clontarf
Grand Hotel Malahide ??
Fitzpatricks castle hotel (mentioned by cambe)
The Westbury Hotel - Off Grafton Street
The Westin Hotel - Westmoreland street
The Four Seasons Hotel

Etc.

Let us know what you decide!

Just wanted to report back on our Christmas trip to Ireland. We decided to cook dinner at our friend's house and had a wonderful Christmas dinner of ham, potato and leek soup, root veggies, and pumpkin pie.

We had a wonderful time in Ireland and were lucky enough to have good weather on all but one day. We flew into Dublin on the 23rd and stayed there until the 26th, when we headed South to Newgrange (which was closed, but we ended up driving to the Hill of Tara, which was great!) and Monasterboice.

From there, it was on to County Wicklow, where we visited the Avoca factory, spent some time in Glendalough, and drove through the beautiful Wicklow gap. From there, it was on to Kilkenny, my favorite stop of the trip. We visited a pub that was recommended to us by the hostess at our B&B, and we ended up spending several hours chatting with some new Irish friends and listening to traditional Irish music.

From Kilkenny, we day-tripped to the Rock of Cashel, which was spectacular. After that, we returned to Dublin for a couple of days to relax and visit with our friend.

All in all, it was a glorious trip. The country is beautiful, the people are fantastic, and the beer was great. Our only disappointment was that Trinity College was closed the entire time we were there. Ah well, an excuse to return!