The best restaurants in Kilkenny

22/07/2025: Great place. Food is tasty and portions are large. Really liked capri special and onion rings.

30/06/2025: Probably the best burger I’ve had in a long time. There is no place better than a local chipper

22/08/2025: Good coffee for a quick breakfast, although with few options for allergy sufferers.

08/08/2025: It was good! Nice and cozy and the baristas were kind. Ordered some sort of pizza roll up sort of thing, it was awesome, an amazing snack for when you want something good, but not filling. The chocolate chip cookies size had me wondering why i bought it, but when I took a bite, it was delicious. It was gooey and rich and chocolate on the inside, i would recommend sharing that one though, since it was big and sweet, and trust me you'll need a huge glass of water afterwards. Ordered a mango passionfruit refreshment drink for myself, it was really good, and the textured was more smoothie like. I'm not quite sure how the other refreshers are, since this one was in a different category under refreshments, but this one didnt have the usual thin, liquidy consistency people usually like. I personally really enjoyed it, I asked my sister to order the smallest size and it was quite big, im not sure whether she forgot to specific the size, or if this is genuinely the smallest they have. I would just ask and double check in case. Anyways, It was really good. Enjoy!

15/09/2025: I guess it would be grand if you are with a man. In 20 minutes my sister and I were ignored twice while tables with a man were waited on. Only four tables in total and one was done so to have such rude disregard from the waiter was so unacceptable we left. Excellent service and food just a few steps down the street at the Hibernian bar with excellent door and Service Beautiful bar area

22/07/2025: Quick coffee stop - great service and atmosphere. May come back for lunch.

26/06/2025: Estábamos en un día de trabajo y utilizamos este lugar para nuestra parada de almuerzo. Había llamado para asegurarme de que pudieran acomodar a 40 personas para el almuerzo y lo hicieron con facilidad. Dimos una lista de comida requerida y llamamos 30 minutos antes y cuando llegamos nos recibieron con un gran personal y un encantador pub irlandés de estilo antiguo. Las porciones de comida eran brillantes y también sabía muy bien. Sin duda recomendaría este como un buen punto de parada para todos los grupos de tamaño.

30/05/2025: Sadly the only saving grace to Paddy's was the lady who served us. We were the only customers and I think that is generally the case during the day. I'm sure this was a fine place for food and drink in it's day but sadly no longer the case. Nice spot for quiet drink but not for food.

28/08/2025: Best value hot breakfast in Kilkenny. The vegan and veggie option is all fresh ingredients, no UPF, and includes your drink for €12 (Aug 2025). Its possible the brunch of avocado and eggs with beetroot hummouse beats it for taste. The value is fantastic, portions really generous. And beautiful old Georgian architecture doesn't hurt either :)

28/08/2025: Consistently friendly service, tasty food. Love the Capri ciabatta. Yes prices have gone up here same as everywhere else and it's the top end of what I'd pay for a sandwich without any sides but I like this place, for bottomless brunch or just dropping in for a coffee it's always been good

31/05/2025: Wonderful local ‘chipper’ spotlessly clean with friendly hard working staff. The food was excellent with generous portions. I had Southern fried chicken , chips and chilli sauce, excellent. But the highlight was the smiling friendly staff. It is worth going in just to see the pizza ladies smile, Rosalia I think was her name. I will be ordering Pizza next time 😁

14/02/2025: Love the pepperoni pizza and onion rings all round great food and friendly staff

22/06/2025: Cake was a little stale and my mug handle was all cracked so had to get it changed, but there was plenty of people in this kilkenny branch. Sorry but not as good as the Thurles branch.

20/06/2025: Awesome cafe popular with locals. Great coffee.

15/06/2025: Stopped in for lunch. Friendly staff, beautifully built around old church ruins, very interesting place. Lunch was good, no complaints

04/03/2025: Lovely bar. Very friendly staff.

16/08/2025: Exquisite dining experience. Enjoyed the tasting menu with accompanying wines selected by the sommelier. Beautiful dining room in the Manor House. Food was amazing and enjoyed speaking to the Head Chef who visited our table to discuss the food and his preparation of the dishes.

29/07/2025: Lady Helen – An Overwrought Experience in a Stodgy Setting Visited: July 26, 2025 | Tasting Menu Dinner | Birthday Trip Lady Helen may be a Michelin-starred restaurant, but for us, it missed the mark — especially in pacing, atmosphere, and guest experience. 🍽️ Food & Pacing The menu leans heavily into conceptual creativity, which we usually enjoy, but here it overshadowed the dining experience. The Parmesan tomato was a highlight, but overall, flavors were good—not exceptional. The real issue was timing. Despite the first few courses being single bites, the meal dragged on for over 3.5 hours, with 15–30 minutes between dishes. By the time we reached the mains, we were fatigued and just ready to leave. It felt like a test of endurance, not a celebration of food. 🥤 Non-Alcoholic Options We don’t drink alcohol, and Lady Helen is not set up for guests like us. There were no mocktails or tea offered, and the non-alcoholic wine was cloyingly sweet. My husband asked for a 0.0% beer, which wasn’t on the menu but was eventually provided. Once our sparkling water ran out (two bottles), our glasses were cleared without any offer of tap water — which oddly is offered at breakfast in the same room. Other tables were served coffee and tea at the end of their meal; we were skipped entirely. 🪑 Atmosphere & Service The room’s layout is disorienting. All guests face inward toward a cluster of center tables, creating an odd “spotlight” effect on whoever is seated there (we were). No background music means the space gets louder as drinks flow — not ideal for a fine dining setting. Staff were kind but seemed undertrained and inconsistent. Despite the 15-minute staggered seating model, pacing was all over the place. Guests seated after us were served ahead of us and left nearly an hour earlier. For a venue at this level, service should feel seamless — it did not. 💡 Final Thoughts We wouldn’t return or recommend it. While pricing is lower than other Michelin-starred restaurants, the value matches. If you’re willing to dedicate 4 hours to a drawn-out meal in a formal, oddly laid-out space with little ambiance, it may still be worth a try. But we left disappointed, uncomfortable, and counting down the courses.

31/08/2025: Nice service with even better food! The Hawaiian pizza was delicious.

22/06/2025: Good takeaway, staff are nice, food is lovely,

18/07/2025: A lovely country pub will definitely return they facilitated delivery of food for us for which we were grateful no other food options available

17/07/2025: What a wonderful place. One of last bastions of proper music pubs for proper music fans. Wonderful spot

22/07/2025: Rather good fish & chips! Everything is made & cooked fresh to order. Staff are friendly & lovely, & you're treated like family! It's cash only so be prepared as the nearest ATMs are over 5 minutes walk away

09/06/2025: Extremely friendly staff and so so welcoming . Food is always very good and the black pudding is a must try. Great spot 😁

14/08/2025: Super little cafe. Tasty food. Great location for people watching.

07/04/2025: I wish I could rate this business higher because they are kind enough to let you order before your Kilkenny tour and pick up after. The food was very bland. I got a pulled pork and it had no flavor. Perhaps I chose the wrong dish. However, my husband's sandwich did not look too much more appetizing.

18/09/2025: Air pressure machine just made our tire flat! They came out - tried the same thing and left us to it. We have no spare with this type of car so very stuck and extremely unhappy😠.

10/08/2025: The Applegreen on the M9 has some great food options and is a convenient stop for a break. The only drawback is the location of the EV chargers. They are right at the entrance, which can cause queues of cars and block traffic. It would be far better to have them at the back of the premises with more chargers to handle demand.

26/08/2025: Consistently good chips and very polite service. Wonderful aroma of curry in the shop - haven’t had the pleasure yet but will definitely give it a go soon. Totally recommend their salad burger and quarter pounder. Pizzas are very good too. Very reasonably priced which is a plus! Shop is walk-in rather than sit-in type. Be prepared to wait 10 minutes for food as everything is cooked fresh to order.

23/08/2025: Great food, chicken tikka biryani was so flavorful