Best coffee shop in Ireland

Blisterman · 12-05-2007 8:51pm #1

What are your opinions.
Personally, I really like Barnies, on Westmorland Street in Dublin.
Excellent coffee, free samples, and if you can answer the question of the day, you get a free coffee.

Close second is the one beside the powerscourt centre. Used to be called Gloria Jeans. It's something else now, but it's still got great coffee.

sharkman · 12-05-2007 10:25pm

I think Barnies is gone !:(

silja · 12-05-2007 11:50pm

Barnie's closed a few weeks ago

Even though it's horrendously overpriced, I like Starbucks because they make all those fancy coffees.

johnnyskeleton · 13-05-2007 5:54pm

I miss Chompys in the Powerscourt shopping centre...

Sea Devils · 14-05-2007 7:18am

fruitcake · 14-05-2007 1:35pm

coffee pod on lapps quay cork, great coffee, great views, overall nice ambience!

RE*AC*TOR · 14-05-2007 1:38pm

Some of the better coffees I've had in Ireland have been in little restaurant/cafés not in coffee chains. Harlequin in waterford makes a nice espresso.

Gloria Jeans ain't bad.

segadreamcast · 14-05-2007 7:44pm

Blisterman wrote:

What are your opinions.
Personally, I really like Barnies, on Westmorland Street in Dublin.
Excellent coffee, free samples, and if you can answer the question of the day, you get a free coffee.

Close second is the one beside the powerscourt centre. Used to be called Gloria Jeans. It's something else now, but it's still got great coffee.

Beacon Cove? I agree, it's quite fantastic alright - though it is beginning to creep up behind Starbucks in price... I paid €3 for a regular vanilla latte there today, whereas in Starbucks it's €3.30. Not much of a saving at all anymore. It used to be €2.65 until recently.

olaola · 14-05-2007 7:55pm

I love La Corte in the Epicurean.

Capt'n Midnight · 14-05-2007 8:41pm

I really miss the old Bewleys, where you could stay all day

Sparks · 15-05-2007 10:31am

Cafe Napoli on westland row near the Pearse St. dart station. Excellent coffee. My ideal breakfast remains coffee from here and croissants from the Jewish bakery in Portabello.
West Coast coffee company. Like starbucks, but using coffee that actually has a taste. It's where I'll go for my pudding-in-a-cup coffees
Butlers. Okay, that's for hot chocolate, but it's the best in town and deserves a mention.
Insomnia. Only for when it's a decaf soy milk latte dieting day. Because frankly, their normal coffee is appalling. But they seem to do the best non-coffee coffee substitute in town.
Bewleys. Again, only for the decaf soy milk coffee diet days.
Barnies. Good coffee. Shame about the pastries (sorry lads, flies on danishes are not extra treats). With Gloria Jean's gone, it seems to be trying to fill their shoes, but noone knows they're there - which might have been what finished off GJs.

BendiBus · 15-05-2007 12:11pm

Caffe Noto on Thomas St is quite good.

Also a very nice place to sit & read a paper or take advantage of their free wi-fi.

segadreamcast · 15-05-2007 1:14pm

Sparks wrote:

Cafe Napoli on westland row near the Pearse St. dart station. Excellent coffee. My ideal breakfast remains coffee from here and croissants from the Jewish bakery in Portabello.

West Coast coffee company. Like starbucks, but using coffee that actually has a taste. It's where I'll go for my pudding-in-a-cup coffees

Butlers. Okay, that's for hot chocolate, but it's the best in town and deserves a mention.

Insomnia. Only for when it's a decaf soy milk latte dieting day. Because frankly, their normal coffee is appalling. But they seem to do the best non-coffee coffee substitute in town.

Bewleys. Again, only for the decaf soy milk coffee diet days.

Barnies. Good coffee. Shame about the pastries (sorry lads, flies on danishes are not extra treats). With Gloria Jean's gone, it seems to be trying to fill their shoes, but noone knows they're there - which might have been what finished off GJs.

Apart from Cafe Napoli, I'd have to say that Starbucks easily trumps all of these...

Sparks · 15-05-2007 1:23pm

I'd have to say that Starbucks easily trumps all of these.

*bucks?
You're kidding me. I wouldn't use their coffee externally, let alone drink it. There is something fundamentally wrong when a company deliberately chooses weaker coffee over something with flavour. (Or when they choose columbian beans for espresso like Fresh do).

segadreamcast · 15-05-2007 1:41pm

You do realise that you can always ask for a different blend? The concept of marketing a weaker (weaker, not weak - I'd rate it a 6/10) coffee is so it will catch a larger portion of the market... for me, their blends and range therein work so much better than Insomnia (poor beans to begin with, and often overroasted) or Barnie's (which, incidentally, I'd also rank about a 6/10 on a strength scale). Sometimes I think, though I'm not accusing you of this, that most people just begrudge Starbucks their success: the bottom line is, there's a reason they became popular...they make really, really good coffee.

Gran Hermano · 15-05-2007 1:47pm

Whilst not wishing to offend any boards members who work there....
Starbucks are the McDs of the coffee world...

“Will that be a Tall, Grande or a Venti?” can they not say small.
Some of the worst coffees I've had have been in Starbucks

Sparks · 15-05-2007 1:51pm

the bottom line is, there's a reason they became popular...they make really, really good coffee.

There's definitely a reason, but that ain't it. Predatory business practises, anti-union actions (just look up the website for the Starbucks Workers Union), and economising on the coffee beans, those are a lot closer to the mark.

Besides which, if there's a Starbucks five minutes from the average joe, and a good coffee shop 15 minutes away, guess which one gets average joe calling in for a coffee? The good shop will get the connoisseur, but they're rare, the bulk of the market wouldn't know kenyan from java, it's all just coffee to them - so if you can get more shops than your competitors in more strategic locations, you will automatically be more popular for reasons that have nothing to do with better coffee.

billyblanks · 15-05-2007 2:21pm

I think we should have a thread Dedicated to the Starbucks debate, It comes up on every coffee forum sometime or another...surprised it took this long!

Starbucks has its good and bad points. Its bad point is its coffee, over roasted and expensive and badly made. Good point, they have introduced coffee to the masses, a lot of people who now love coffee were introduced to it through Starbucks.

Also Starbucks are good at making coffee based drinks. I don't know how many time I have heard people say "Starbucks make the best coffee" only then to hear "I love their Mint mocha frappachino" a drink like this has nothing to do with coffee, you could use instant to make it and people would not even notice.....or even just leave the coffee out.

Just over a year ago I went into Starbucks with an open mind, decided to see if their coffee had improved, I ordered an Americano....It was truly awful, over roasted bitter coffee served in a huge Mug....brutal, never again.

rockbeer · 15-05-2007 2:27pm

*** OT rant warning ***

I must say as a coffee professional I find it scary how many people express a preference for Starbucks. They deliberately serve dumbed-down, over-roasted coffee, encourage the addition of sugary cr*p (take a look at the ingredients lists on those syrups - makes me shudder) to a drink that doesn't need it, and generally go out of their way to standardize an item that by its nature should show regional variations.

They remove virtually all of the skill element from the making of coffee by using fully automated machines, which may cut out the worst shots but also makes achieving the best impossible. Their beans are mass-roasted long before they are used, which has a demonstrably negative effect on the flavour. They steam milk for lattes/cappuccinos in vast quantities when this is far better when done in smaller batches... I could go on.

And through market dominance alongside a process of mass-marketing, they have convinced people that all this amounts to good coffee. Where does tha leave those of us who try to provide quality individual coffee to the discerning drinker? Just try asking your local *$ barista to make you a latte the way YOU like it. More likely than not they'll tell you the machine can't do that, or they haven't been trained to do that, or they're under strict orders to do it the standard *$ way... The more people think that *$ = good coffee, and the more they come to expect to be served a standardized brew that tastes like *$ dishwater everywhere they go, the more they are likely to reject quality coffee served up by independents.

And that's without even mentioning their employment and purchasing practices.

Now I know there's no accounting for taste, and everyone is entitled to their view, but I'm not sure if people realize that *$ really are the Microsoft of the coffee world. When it comes right down to it, what they offer has almost nothing to do with quality and everything to do with standardization. If you want a uniform world where you can get the same drink everywhere you go from Auckland to Amsterdam, go ahead and vote for Starbucks.

Then again, maybe it's just me who doesn't like them.

*** OT rant ends ***

Miguel_Sanchez · 15-05-2007 2:34pm

That Beacon Cove place is only alright. It's got all the ambiance of a lift. The music in there is always woeful and the coffee is only adequate.

Bought a fruit juice in there one day and it was 3 months past the sell by date. That's shoddy by anyone's standards.

stolenwine · 15-05-2007 11:36pm

Dunne & Crescenzi or Cafe Napoli, I'm not a Connoisseur so the safest option for me is to assume that the Italians know what they're about. Napoli for coffee on the run but Crescenzi is a nice place to sit and contemplate life.

Starbucks, urgh!

Dori Duz · 16-05-2007 12:36am

For tea fans out there, Le maison de gourmet beside the entrance to George's street Arcade ( Cooke street, I think) do amazing tea.
Green tea with orange and jasmin.....YUM!

Sparks · 16-05-2007 11:12am

Where's Crescenzi?

stolenwine · 16-05-2007 3:22pm

I mean Dunne & Crescenzi.

Georgina Campbell Guide

http://www.ireland-guide.com/establishment/dunne_and_crescenzi.4272.html

dudara · 16-05-2007 11:14pm

My favourites in Dublin so far...

1. The italian place in the Epicurean and it's sister place Bar Italia on Wood Quay . Just great coffee.

2. Cafe Cagliostro in the Italian quarter near Jervis Street. Very nice, run by Italians.

Mr Magnolia · 17-05-2007 7:23am

Hughes and Hughes in Dundalk have a nice coffee, must find out the name.

MonkeyTennis · 17-05-2007 7:40am

The smell of coffee coming from hughes and hughes is just gorgeous.

Mr Magnolia · 17-05-2007 7:51am

MonkeyTennis wrote:

The smell of coffee coming from hughes and hughes is just gorgeous.

I can't go past the place with out dropping in and asking for one.

Sparks · 17-05-2007 12:39pm

Blisterman wrote:

Personally, I really like Barnies, on Westmorland Street in Dublin.

Hey what gives? When did Barnies close?

John Mason · 17-05-2007 12:53pm

the only good thing about starbucks is their frappecuppinos, i havent found anywhere else that taste as good

i like coffee society on liffey street, the only problem is that you have to use paper cups even if you are sitting

Sundy · 17-05-2007 2:39pm

dudara wrote:

My favourites in Dublin so far...

1. The italian place in the Epicurean and it's sister place Bar Italia on Wood Quay . Just great coffee.

2. Cafe Cagliostro in the Italian quarter near Jervis Street. Very nice, run by Italians.

Yeah their coffee is quality, although i got sour milk there once. A noteable mention for their paninis too

segadreamcast · 17-05-2007 8:37pm

"I must say as a coffee professional"

...I've never heard the phrase coffee professional used seriously before. Care to elaborate?

rockbeer · 17-05-2007 9:50pm

NoelRock wrote:

...I've never heard the phrase coffee professional used seriously before. Care to elaborate?

Well I was using it with tongue a little in cheek... but since you ask, I run a mobile coffee bar; I'm head barista, source and buy my own beans, and prepare coffee drinks among other things for a living. I hope to add my own blending and roasting facilities in the future, although the investment needed to do this properly is quite high so it's probably a way off, and I need more expertise too, before I can do this to a standard I would be happy with.

People seem to like what I do. At least they keep coming back for more, so I must be doing something right.

Then again, they keep going back to Starbucks too so maybe I shouldn't read too much into that

olaola · 17-05-2007 11:26pm

http://www.lacortedelcaffe.ie/epicu.htm

I think La Corte and Dunne & Crescenzi are the same company?

arac · 19-05-2007 1:51pm

goyas in galway, best for coffee and best for scones and chocolate cake in the west of ireland:)

segadreamcast · 19-05-2007 9:55pm

rockbeer wrote:

Well I was using it with tongue a little in cheek... but since you ask, I run a mobile coffee bar; I'm head barista, source and buy my own beans, and prepare coffee drinks among other things for a living. I hope to add my own blending and roasting facilities in the future, although the investment needed to do this properly is quite high so it's probably a way off, and I need more expertise too, before I can do this to a standard I would be happy with.

People seem to like what I do. At least they keep coming back for more, so I must be doing something right.

Then again, they keep going back to Starbucks too so maybe I shouldn't read too much into that

Good job; are you the guy at the IFSC during the week? It's the only one I've ever seen/heard of; though I guess there would be more than one!

I'll have to stop by and try you out some way - maybe I too will keep coming back

.

segadreamcast · 19-05-2007 11:37pm

Sparks wrote:

There's definitely a reason, but that ain't it. Predatory business practises, anti-union actions (just look up the website for the Starbucks Workers Union), and economising on the coffee beans, those are a lot closer to the mark.

Besides which, if there's a Starbucks five minutes from the average joe, and a good coffee shop 15 minutes away, guess which one gets average joe calling in for a coffee? The good shop will get the connoisseur, but they're rare, the bulk of the market wouldn't know kenyan from java, it's all just coffee to them - so if you can get more shops than your competitors in more strategic locations, you will automatically be more popular for reasons that have nothing to do with better coffee.

And to come back to this - why do you think the stores hit a tipping point and started to expand beyond the early cluster of stores? Was it predatory business practices? Anti-Union actions? No. It was because, in many respects, they were a market leader - and were one of the few places, much like Coffee Republic in the U.K., that recognised this market. That and <i>at the time</i> they were ahead of the curve in terms of the coffee they produced - i.e. it wasn't generic stuff that you get in a petrol station/greasy spoon. Maybe there are other brands that cater to more specific coffee tastes, or niches, but Starbucks hits the nice equilibrium that previously wasn't being catered to.

Barnie's, Bewley's, Insomnia (PARTICULARLY Insomnia - these guys, incidentally, seem to be guilty of your 'predatory business practices' in the Irish market too) and West Coast all make absolutely DIRE coffee, which most impartial people would agree is worse than Starbucks (or, if not, 9/10 would say it's on a par at the very least), which makes me think that your irrational disliking of Starbucks isn't actually based on coffee at all.

Sparks · 20-05-2007 11:54am

Noel, if you honestly think starbuck's coffee is better than Barnies, Bewleys (okay, I'll give you that one), and West Coast's coffee, then frankly, you need your tastebuds realigned.
(And yes, Insomnia's coffee is appalling. Reread why I had them on the list, would you?)

supersheeps · 24-05-2007 8:38pm

I'm lactose intolerant, have to use soya milk, (espressos send me crazy and rather milky coffee) so I'm limited in my cafe choices, boo. HAve to say that Butlers is my personal favourite, I don't think I've ever got a bad coffee there (and the free sweet and the fact that I work all of 1 minute from one helps too!) Insomia's coffee isn't great, but they manage to get the soya milk all creamy which is good. Starbucks seems to be involved in brainwashing, I hate their coffee, gives me cramps, hate their pokey little cafes full of OC wannabes and yummy mummys, but every now and then I'll walk past the one in Dundrum and think "mmm, that would go down really well right now", weird! Costa Coffee is good too, at least the ambience is nicer in their cafes. Anyone know of anywhere else in Dublin that provides soya milk? I've given up asking the guys in La Corte...

Dero · 24-05-2007 10:42pm

olaola wrote:

http://www.lacortedelcaffe.ie/epicu.htm

I think La Corte and Dunne & Crescenzi are the same company?

Yes they are. They also have a place in the Village Outlet centre in Kildare town, but nice as the coffee is there, it isn't as nice as Palombini.

billyblanks · 25-05-2007 11:21am

supersheeps wrote:

Starbucks seems to be involved in brainwashing, I hate their coffee, gives me cramps, hate their pokey little cafes full of OC wannabes and yummy mummys, QUOTE]

Jaysus....must start going back to starbucks...

Fantastico · 20-06-2007 11:15pm

Bewleys...quite simply is the best.

The standard of every cup of coffee (take-away or sit in) is of the highest quality. Yes true Bewleys may have changed in some ways for the worse, one thing is for sure their coffee certainly didn't.

As for Starbucks - please...

eclectichoney · 23-06-2007 6:38pm

got to give a mention to the rhubarb cafe - they usually grind the beans just for your coffee

Sparks · 16-02-2009 4:58pm

Reanimating a zombie thread to give a good recommendation for Gloria Jeans in the new shopping centre in Kilkenny (McDonagh Junction). Smaller range of beans than there used to be in powerscourt, but more than made up for by a barista who knew his stuff - there's something downright pleasant about being able to talk to a barista about coffee for five minutes and slag off starbucks as being responsible for the wave of people who think a macchiato is a caramel latte or an espresso with a mug of milk dumped in it. And the guy was honest enough to give a recommendation for another chain of coffee shops to go to for a replacement for the old GJs in powerscourt house. Granted, he was from cork, but we can't all be perfect.

montyballs · 17-02-2009 11:54pm

i love coffee infact i would die if i dont drink at least 8 or more a day...........
just like to say MORTON'S CAFE in dunshaughlin is a very nice and clean shop
and the coffee is fantastic..... you can't beat the small local cafe...

Rattlehead_ie · 19-02-2009 12:52pm

Coffee Soc in Ranelagh, always a buzz about the place + even if they are busy they seem to take their time with your coffee and no just slop it out to you. Also nice to just sit down and watch the world go by. Coffee is amazing also may I reccomend an extra shot!

johnmacward · 23-02-2009 12:56pm

pink fluffy bunny wrote: »

the only good thing about starbucks is their frappecuppinos, i havent found anywhere else that taste as good

i like coffee society on liffey street, the only problem is that you have to use paper cups even if you are sitting

Coffee Society in Liffey St. have normal cups, not paper ones. At least I get a normal cup / mug. The one in Ranelagh is the only one I know that uses paper cups exclusively. There also ridiculously cheap. €2.40 for a small cappuccino and it's NOT small at all, although it's not amazing coffee, and often its not that hot.

L31mr0d · 23-02-2009 2:46pm

johnmacward wrote: »

Coffee Society in Liffey St.

If I'm in Dublin city centre I will usually stop into Coffee Society for a Mocha, not only is their coffee fairly good imo, but I also like the décor of the café and its location, it feels quite insular and also a good place to people watch. Alternatively, if it's a Saturday, I'll go to the temple bar farmers market and pick up an espresso from Ariosa.

johnmacward · 23-02-2009 10:15pm

I like the decor too for some reason, it's a relaxing place, I don't feel under pressure there like other places or like I'm being watched, which could just be ME and horrific psychological problems. Great for people-watching and life contemplation. Very important for a healthy individual. Oh, and the Aussie dude is cool, gave me two stamps on my loyalty card before. Check out the music there at the moment, they've got rid of the (not bad) 1950's stuff and now the staff are playing "alternative" stuff like Pixies, Nick Drake, Wishbone Ash even (I think I heard it one day).

Fad · 24-02-2009 12:09am

There was a Gloria Jeans in Dublin :eek:

(Was it part of the chain?, I was in one in Vietnam and it was on of the best coffee experiences I ever had, (Partly due to the fact vietnamese food is so bad the you need to burn out the taste, partly because it was damn good coffee)

Eilishr · 24-02-2009 5:31pm

NoelRock wrote: »

Beacon Cove? I agree, it's quite fantastic alright - though it is beginning to creep up behind Starbucks in price... I paid €3 for a regular vanilla latte there today, whereas in Starbucks it's €3.30. Not much of a saving at all anymore. It used to be €2.65 until recently.

The very best coffee I've tasted recently was at Kildare Village - the Italian restaurant L'Officina is connected to La Corte in the city centre and they do a wonderful, simple, Italian black coffee. I've holidayed in Spain quite a lot and they serve tiny coffees and after my last 2 week holiday there last year I found I just couldn't stomach a huge, watery bucket of coffee. The small, intense cups they serve here are the perfect compromise between an espresso which I still find a bit too bitter, and the bucket as outlined above.

Best coffee shop in Ireland

Comments