Dublin: what a lovely place! Vibrant and laid back, this city is perfect for a short weekend break.

Robert and I happened to spend the bank holiday weekend there – my first time in Ireland.

Dublin has a reputation for being incredibly expensive (and I have to say, it is!), but I was not going to renounce good food and wine – so, before we left, I spent a lot of time researching for nice, but not over-priced, restaurants.

I came across The Pig’s Ear a bit by chance on Tripadvisor, mainly because it seemed to be the best place near our B&B, near Trinity College. I then realised that it also features in the Lonely Planet guide.

One interesting fact about this restaurant is that the chef, Stephen Mcallister, was crowned ‘Dublin Chef of the year’ in 2014.

Even before dining there, I was intrigued by the traditional recipes presented with a modern twist and I was really looking forward to my meal!

A bright pink door marked the entrance to the restaurant, followed by a steep staircase which led into a relatively small, but cozy, dining room.

We were shown our table, with a lovely view on College Green that created a romantic atmosphere. We were served a small bread basket with butter (I loved the wooden knife!) and we chose a bottle of 2011 Cuvée Bredif from the long wine list. 

I already noticed some interesting dishes on the online menu, like the Irish beef check with ox tongue and bone, but both Robert and I preferred to keep it simple.

I ordered a creamy summer squash soup with toasted pumpkin seeds and oats. Simply delicious.

As a main, I had organic salmon with broccoli, samphire and almonds – very tasty and light. The fish was cooked to perfection.

Robert decided not to have a starter, having indulged on ice cream few hours earlier, but he ordered the most elegantly presented shepherd’s pie I have ever seen.

As dessert, I ordered the usual selection of cheese (an Irish trio in this case) and Robert had a deconstructed vanilla cheesecake with berry jam and ‘Hob Nob’ biscuit. Again, the presentation was absolutely fantastic – it came as a wrapped little jam jar. And he really enjoyed it.

The bill came to around €100, which was amazing value for such high standard. 

Definitely one place to visit if you are ever in Dublin!