Four Courts by River Liffery in Dublin

Guest Post: The Canals of Dublin and The Places To Hangout Near Them!

Ireland

A hustling-bustling vibrant city, Dublin has plenty of hidden parks, rivers, man-made canals, historic sights, and iconic building. From the majestic museums to heritage trail and eating in a castle, Dublin has many more things to cater to each and every visitor. It’s a very small, medieval, and an extremely beautiful city and all the places to see and visit are easy to access.

Now coming to the canals in Dublin, there are two main canals namely Royal Canal and Grand Canal. Encircling the inner city of Dublin, both the canals are perfect for a scenic stroll. Both the canals have been made beautifully to accentuate the elegance of the city.

Grand Canal

Of both the canals, Grand Canal is the old one and originally commenced in the year 1751 by the corporation named as ‘The Commissioners of Inland Navigation’ for promoting inland navigation in Ireland and the actual work for the physical building started in the year 1756.

The canal is also part of a National Waymarked Trail by the National Trails Office of the Irish Sports Council. The trail is z a 117-kilometre long-distance trail where you’ll find swans and ducks. Typically completed in 5 days, the trail follows the towpath from the Lucan Bridge to Shannon Harbour. While you take the trail, you can hang out at some of these cafés that are a bliss near the Grand Canal.

Grand Canal in Dublin. Image from Wikipedia.
Grand Canal in Dublin. Image from Wikipedia.

Herb Street

You can get here at any time during the day and find the fresh dishes available. All the fishes used in preparations are caught locally in Irish waters. This café is famous for using sustainable products and they do everything in order to reduce carbon footprint. You’ll also love the vintage chairs designed by Harry Bertoia, the famous Italian sculptor and furniture designer from 1956.

Herb Street in Dublin.
Herb Street in Dublin.

Café Bar H

An ideal location for fine-dining and drinks near the canal. Located on the Grand Canal Dockyard, it can be your ideal destination for after work drinks and for having a nice Mediterranean meal in an informal setting with your family & friends during the trail.

Café Bar H in Dublin.
Café Bar H in Dublin.

Milano Grand Canal

Located right in the heart of the Grand Canal square, Milano Grand Canal is a unique and modern restaurant with an open spacious kitchen, where you can watch your food being cooked. That’s THE speciality of this place. Famous for its sumptuous pizzas, the café is very user-friendly and prepares food sans gluten, and have specialized menu for kids.

Milano Grand Canal in Dublin.
Milano Grand Canal in Dublin.

Osteria Lucio

Producing the best Irish and Italian food, this restaurant is the brain child of chef Ross Lewis and Luciano Tona and is based at Grand Canal Quay. They also serve the best Italian wines hand-selected by the Luciano Tona.

Osteria Lucio in Dublin.
Osteria Lucio in Dublin.

Royal Canal

Incorporated by a charter of George III, the Royal Canal was made into the year 1789, and since then has been used for navigation from Dublin to Longford and Shannons. The canal is administered by Waterways Service of the Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht and has a 145.6 km long trail. Its trail is named as The Royal Canal Greenway and goes from Westmeath boarder to Abbeyshrule in Langford and can be covered ink 3 hours straight. While you travel a lot and after a lot of sightseeing, you’ll have some hunger pangs and to curb those you can visit some of the nearest eateries that’ll surprise you with their yummy food.

Royal Canal in Dublin.
Royal Canal in Dublin.

Hokkaido

Located at Cellbridge, it is one of the authentic and fine-dining Japanese restaurant you can find in Dublin. People come to this restaurant from across the world. It can be a good place to hang out after you’ve had your share of travelling.

The Abbey Lodge

Having the most-friendly staff, it provides the best of services and food to the visitors. Catering to different palettes, the restaurant serves streaks, pasta, seafood and the famous Fajitas. The café also has excellent wine collection to pair with your choice of food.

Abbey Lodge in Dublin.
Abbey Lodge in Dublin.

Michelangelo Irish Italian Restaurant

Opening its door to public in 1982, this café serves authentic Italian and Irish food to its visitors. It is equally famous for its takeaway service for the wide-range of dishes it serves. The restaurant has also won TripAdvisor’s Certificate of Excellence for two-years in a row.

Michelangelo Irish Italian restaurant in Dublin.
Michelangelo Irish Italian restaurant in Dublin.

Picaderos

If you’re a fan of Spanish and Latin cuisine, this should be your destination to curb your hunger pangs. Here you’ll experience a unique fine-dining experience, tapas, paellas, burritos and what not to offer to the people. With a great ambiance for a person to have a relaxed experience, the restaurant uses the freshest of the ingredients and the meats for all its dishes.

Picaderos restaurant in Dublin.
Picaderos restaurant in Dublin.

About the Author

I am Krishna, a traveller by heart and blogger by profession. I like to dream, meet new people, explore places and share my experiences. Currently, I am working with London-based travel company thesqua.re  that offers premium serviced apartments in cities like Dublin, London, Paris and New York on rent to business and leisure travellers.

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