Dinner And A Show: 5 Great Dublin Pre-Theatre Spots


Posted September 21, 2023 in Food & Drink Features

With the curtain about to rise on this year’s jam packed Dublin Theatre Festival, we’ve been checking out some of the pre-theatre offerings to be enjoyed across the city.

 

101 Talbot

For audiences making their way to The Abbey or The Gate, the always reliable 101 Talbot currently offers two courses for €28 between 5pm and 6.30pm, with a nice choice of mains including gorgeous Smoked Haddock & Crab Arancini, Pea & Chervil Veloute, Baby Leaf Salad and Parsnip Crisps.

As co-owner Neal Magee put it in an interview with this publication a while back, diners can look forward to ‘good food, good produce, served well and done well for a competitive price’. We couldn’t agree more!

101 Talbot, 101/102 Talbot Street, Dublin 1, 01-8745011

Bar Italia

Bar Italia on Lower Ormond Quay is perfectly located for theatre goers either side of the Liffey. It has a group dining option available, with a three course set menu for €47.50 per person.

Antipasti, Primi e Secundi, Dolci… For a taste of the kind of Italian authenticity you can look forward to, check out our review from earlier this year here. Bella!

Bar Italia, 26 Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin 1.

 

Piglet Wine Bar

Those heading to Smock Alley or The Project Arts Centre might like to check out the appealing tapas selection at Piglet Wine Bar. Their early bird offering runs between 12.30pm and 5.30pm with two courses for €29.50 and three courses for €35.

Starters include delicious Octopus Carpaccio, with Organic Pork Chop, Seasonal Ratatouille, and Pickled Mustard Jus just one of the many tasty options to follow.

Piglet Wine Bar, Cow Lane, Temple Bar, Dublin 2.

 

The Troc

Thespians and their lovers can avail of a nice Sunday Lunch offering at The Trocadero, where three courses costing €48 are available between 3pm and 6pm.

Soak up the atmosphere in the Dublin restaurant that prides itself on attracting many of those treading the boards on stage and lighting up the big screen during its impressive lifespan, which now numbers seven decades, many of them spent in the company of leading man and inimitable maitre d’ Robert Doggett.

The Trocadero, No. 4 Andrew St, Dublin 2.

 

Charlotte Quay

Further afield, the always buzzy Charlotte Quay has a great value Pre-Theatre menu available between 5pm and 7pm, where diners can enjoy two courses for €36 and three courses for €45.

Their selection of locally sourced produce ranges from delicious chargrilled gambas, to Pat McLoughlin’s stunning Braised Featherblade, and Miso and Honey Roasted Aubergine, with Velvet Cloud Labneh and Pomegranate Salad.

There’s a standing invitation for diners to drop back in afterwards and digest the evening’s proceedings over a convivial post-theatre dessert accompanied by a refreshing bevvie or two.

Charlotte Quay, Millenium Tower, Dublin 4.

Words: Martina Murray

Wanna read more?…

In Setting The Scene: Dreams of A Brighter Future, Director Wayne Jordan and actor Paul Reid ponder Dublin and their relationship with it ahead of Somewhere Out There You, a new show written by Nancy Harris, which receives its world premiere at the Abbey Theatre this month.

Dublin Theatre Festival Returns With Its Most Ambitious Line Up of Recent Years

Shake Hands With the Devil: INO presents Faust at The Gaiety as Part of Dublin Theatre Festival 2023

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