Daniel's in Dublin

We were visiting our son who was studying abroad in Ireland. We were staying in Dun Laoghaire, and happened upon a sign for the restaurant advertising lobster thermidor. Well, we knew we had to come back for dinner, and it was the most AMAZING meal! It was a quiet Sunday night, so we were the only customers, and Daniel invited us into the kitchen to watch him cook scallops! Never had that happen before! The fresh caught scallops were the best I’ve had, and we live by the sea in California. My husband had the lobster bisque, which you can see in other reviews, it’s is made with care and is fantastic! For mains I had the lobster thermidor, my husband had the duck, and our son had the lamb shanks. All were exceptional. For dessert we had the profiteroles, the fried ice cream, and crème caramel. We were full, but still managed to finish dessert! All of this was paired with a wonderful wine Daniel recommended. The price for the meal and wine were remarkable given the high level of quality. Thank you, Daniel, for one of the most memorable meals we have ever had!

Excellent food, good value, well located

The most perfect flavourful food I have ever tasted in my entire life. It was a truly gastronomic experience and I enjoyed every bite! Daniel is a lovely person and explained all dishes and drinks that go with it. Highly recommend!

I enjoyed a lovely meal, first of many I hope, in Daniel’s last night. A personal and comforting experience paired with hearty, classic French style food. Daniel took the care to explain the stories, inspiration and reasoning behind each of his dishes and recommended two delicious combos: lobster and twice baked potato as well as ribeye steak and a phenomenal pepper sauce. Definitely a worthwhile visit, especially for anyone who appreciates the moorish food of the French.

Very good cuisine, presented by a passionate chef.

I had known about Daniel’s for years but never eaten there for no other reason than my own slothfulness. What a mistake on my part! An old fashioned dining experience in the absolute best sense of the word. An extraordinarily friendly and helpful chef who will recommend dishes and wines to accompany them. I had lobster bisque, the steak and bread pudding. Dining companions had soup, pate, fish and duck. All exquisite. Food is hard to review and I am no expert but this was certainly one of the best dining experiences I’ve had and I will be back, especially to sample some of the seasonal dishes.

This is one of the best restaurants I ever had in Dublin. I love the idea of putting mushroom and crab meat together combing the fresh taste from both materials. I also love the lobster with baked potato. And fried ice cream with butterscotch is amazing as different kinds of sweet flavour are mixed together but not too much. The price is also pretty reasonable and we just can’t stop eatting more!

I’ve been to Daniel’s many times before and it is always an absolute pleasure. He sets the standard for food in Dublin above the rest. Daniel tells us the stories of each dish and how he sources every ingredient by hand. He’s also a wine enthusiast, and imports South African wine from vineyards he has visited in person. Daniel tells us about the Wexford strawberries he sources from Europe, or the different places he sources the chips depending on the season. He spends 8-10 hours making the lobster bisque from scratch - one of the only places in Dublin to do it by hand, and it is a sensational starter. I’ve never had such a nice lobster dish. His chicken kiev is a personal favourite, and my grandmother has ordered it religiously for over two decades - the sauce he uses is a perfect complement. His deep fried ice cream is one of his earliest specialties; Daniel opened this restaurant 35 years ago, but this recipe is even older, and he came up with it 48 years ago and still sells it as far as South Africa! Daniel runs a lot of the business by himself and even when he is tired, he will sit nearby and talk with you while you are ordering, and he has lots of stories to tell from 50 years of experience. His restaurant is a true hidden gem, and can be found very quiet on the right Sundays. If you value high quality food above all else, there is no alternative to his restaurant, and he’s served the community for a very long time - and I hope he continues in years to come.

Another beautiful meal in Daniels! The scallop starters were delicious on a bed of spinach and in a mouthwatering sauce! Mains of fillet of plaice with a curry glaze was delicious as was the lobster Thermidor, the baked potatoes on the side went very well with the mains and all washed down with a lovely South African red!

Our family group of three pre-booked by telephone as there is no online booking. The premises are very unassuming, low key but comfortable. The restaurant is at first floor level containing perhaps only 8 to 10 tables. there is a specials’ board together with 2/3 course deals and a full à la cart menu – making the menu choice very comprehensive indeed. It seems that on our particular visit Daniel was operating on his own with no assistance - meaning he was the chef and waiter combined! There were six tables to be served and he worked extremely hard to do so. In fairness, he did advise us upon arrival that we would need to wait for service which turned out to be very true indeed. He did promptly provide water for the table but then we had to wait a further half an hour for him to have time to take our food and drinks’ order. He delivered our drinks after 10 minutes but we then had to wait a further 3/4 of an hour before our food eventually arrived by which time we have to admit that we were feeling somewhat disheartened. However, on the plus side – the quality of food was superb and the skills of Daniel as a chef were very evident. We had various dishes and each was very good indeed. This applied to the main courses and to the desserts. Whilst Daniel is evidently a convivial character, he had no opportunity whatsoever to enter a rapport with his customers and his stress levels were evidently very high which made us feel a little uncomfortable and concerned for him. How he coped and succeeded as well as he did in dealing with his customers on the occasion of our visit – we shall never know. By way of further observation we noted that at least three of the other tables were occupied by customers who had previously dined at the restaurant and one of whom had been going on occasions over the last 30 years which does illustrate something very positive about his business. Interestingly, Daniel himself started this enterprise 35 years ago. In conclusion – we found the occasion unusual by virtue of the very uncomfortable delays being just about compensated by the cuisine excellence. It’s such a pity because on another occasion – a great experience could possibly be enjoyed but we shall leave it for others in future to determine.