Alright here we go! Foodies unite to find all the delicious food and some good drinks in Belfast in this Food Guide
I could waste your time with some introduction but this is a Food Guide to Belfast so let’s dive straight into it so you can get that grub asap.
The Muddlers Club (High Class Fusion Cuisine)
After bagging his first Michelin star, Chef Gareth McCaughey is back in action creating delectable dishes for the Belfast(ians) who want to experience his creative take on classic dishes. I can absolutely recommend going for the Tasting Experience as I always love to see the chef and the whole kitchen flexing their culinary muscles. Starting off the menu with truffles is always a good idea, followed by a fluffy halibut with cauliflower and curry, back to a grouse with red cabbage, a grilled carrot and selected infused sauces and creams and finishing it off with two dessert courses both a sensation for the taste buds.
Don’t miss it. PS: The Muddlers Club is named after a secret society in 1790 that is linked to the United Irishmen who met in that area. 🙂
Food Guide to Belfast
Kelly’s Cellar (Beer)
So this pub is already listed on a lot of “Where to go lists” around the internet. I would say it’s a bit rundown greasy pub, dark even if it’s sunny outside but it has its charm and serves a delicious Irish beef stew with a pint of Guiness. If that sentence doesn’t make you wanna go you can skip this one. Also the pub has a huge historical importance as it used to be the meeting place of the United Irishmen back then.
Co Couture (Chocolate and Hot Chocolate)
This award winning Chocolatier is a good place for a stopover on your shopping tour or whatever you are doing in Belfast for a lovely cup of hot chocolate. I can also recommend buying a couple of those mouthwatering chocolates that are fresh and handmade. Oh and it is in the cellar of a house so keep a look out so you don’t walk past it ;).
Food Guide to Belfast
Sawers (Almost anything Supermarket/Deli)
This supermarket or in better words “gigantic deli” is the place for all locals to buy their more extravagant ingredients from black garlic butter to various cheeses, spices, teas and meats. A perfect place to pick up some souvenirs or even better stuff for yourself. Sawers opened in 1897 I would say everyone in the city knows about this lovely deli. Also keep an eye out for their own produced items from crackers to marmalades.
The Crown Liquor Saloon aka a Gin Palace (Gin & Tonic or even Gin & Ginger Ale)
First of all the interior is from 1880 and still in splendid condition. Let that sink in. 40 kinds of Gin but you are there to drink the local ones like the Short Cross (YUM) or the Boatyard Double Gin. If you join a Gin Tour or get there with more than 3 people and you are charming to the waiters they might give you one of their booths. These booths feel like a tiny room just for you and your friends. And you should definitely try a Gin Ginger Ale which is claimed to have been the original pairing before Tonic. It also tastes great.
Manny’s Fish & Chips (Pasty or Pastie – not the Cornish kind)
So the Pastie is known mostly because of the Cornish Pastie but here in Northern Ireland (better in Belfast) there is a different kind which looks like a battered burger patty and is made of minced pork, onions and spices and is served with chips. It’s heavy, it’s weird and I love it. Hope you do too. Manny’s Fish & Chips has really good ones (Take it to go and enjoy it outside in the sun). What I like about this is that no one makes a big deal out of it. There is no Pastie Association (like the Cornish one) or friggin guidelines how it should be done. Just fry and batter….either between a bun or with fries and move on with your life.
Friend at Hand (The freaking finest Whiskey)
This lovely Whiskey shop guards probably one of the largest Irish Whiskey collections in the world – around 600! Most of them are “Never Never ever ever for sale” (actual plaque) but I am guessing if you got the right amount of sacks of cash (or dublones) you might be able to buy a 200 year old bottle. But I was there to get my hands on their first self produced whiskey called Reconciliation (a sign of friendship) and it is just wonderful. I should have bought the Port infused Whiskey too. You can only buy their Whiskey in the shop. Nowhere else!
Cafe Parisien (Lovely French Cuisine)
The restaurant or cafe that is inspired by its namesake on the RMS Titanic and thankfully never got hit by an iceberg is serving a classical French cuisine in the heart of the city with a lovely interior open air concept and a cute terrace for those warm summer evenings. I stuck to a selection of appetizers and was very pleasantly surprised. My favorites were the scallops, the chicken liver pate and the duck confit leg. Bon Appetit.
St. George’s Market (Well…. a lot of stuff. It’s a market after all 🙂
Definitely one of the highlights to visit on your trip to Belfast, the market has been on this location since 1604. Sometimes good things should stay the way they are. Come here for everything from street food, tea, coffee, beer, meats. Also check before you go because everyday (Fri/Sat/Sun) has a bit of a different theme to it.
There is loads more in Belfast to eat and drink from the Duke of York pub to the street food style restaurants like Slums or Kitch and I just didn’t have time to try it all. Hopefully I will be back for part 2.
Wanna read more about Belfast – How about a Street Art tour of the city?
History of Belfast? Check out the extensive article on Wikipedia – Belfast
