/ / G A L W A Y / /
I’m oh so glad I chose you! I’d been tossing up basing myself either in Dublin or Galway and going by the amount of real Irish peopled who told me Galway was the winner, I certainly wasn’t wrong. What a charming little town! The NUI University is in this town which makes the student population very heavy. Like most students towns, you get a barrage of trendy places to visit. I’ve noticed that Ireland is into the ‘foodie’ stuff here – quinoa, flat whites and pulled pork to name a few. As an English speaker who lives in Germany, those are some small delights which I do miss from home.
During my trip, my favourite food & coffee experiences in Galway were:
Ard Bia at Nimmos – A quaint, trendy little cafe selling the tastiest food and freshly pressed juices. It’s right on the water too which is divine. I think the owner has her own hand-crafted fashion label and sources ethically sound tweed fabric so you will see a lot of the staff members wearing cool aprons and the cafe does sell a few quirky pieces too. http://www.ardbia.com/
Coffeewerk + Press – Wooden interior, minimalist with flair in the products they sell. The minute you walk in you know you’re about to get a delicious coffee. Ask for a flat white of course. They also have a kind of design gallery upstairs with so many cute little things for sale – lots of crazy little gift ideas. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed! http://coffeewerkandpress.com/
Kai Cafe – Uhhh-may-zing food. Each morning the chefs source local produce and cook whatever is in season. I went for brunch on Sunday morning and admittedly had to wait quite a while but seeing as the Irish are always up for a friendly chat, I managed to make new friends in the queue. The food was exactly what I’ve been missing from that typical ‘foodie’ scene back home so Kai Cafe, my tastebuds are thanking you! http://kaicaferestaurant.com/
Aniar – I haven’t been here yet but as I walk past every day and look at their interior and menus so I know this is absolutely worth the money for a treat. It seems like they do 8, 10 and 12 course degustations. As soon as you look at their website you will know what I’m talking about. The restaurant seems to have won every Irish food accolade there is – take my word for it, it looks pretty good. http://www.aniarrestaurant.ie/index.html
Degustation is a culinary term meaning a careful, appreciative tasting of various foods and focusing on the gustatory system, the senses, high culinary art and good company. Dégustation is more likely to involve sampling small portions of all of a chef’s signature dishes in one sitting.
Biteclub – What a combination! Streetfood + disco. Brilliant layout, cool music and delicious drinks. We went on student night on a Thursday and had two watermelon juice + tequila cocktails for 10 euros. For you Australians playing at home, yes that’s a good deal for Ireland. http://biteclub.ie/info.html / http://thisisgalway.ie/eat-galway/biteclub/
Dough Bros – Woodfired pizza with nice gourmet toppings. Pizza and craft beer or cider will set you back around 12 euros. Freshly made, nice dough and great service to boot. It’s a new business, all family owned and the owners are indeed super friendly. Highly recommended for a cool, laid-back atmosphere. http://www.thedoughbros.ie/
Pearla na Mara – This little gem of a place happens to be right opposite my house. They have only recently opened at this location in Galway so I had the waitress all to myself and was treated like a queen. The owners are really nice people and are really passionate about their business. I had a roasted beetroot salad with fantastic local goats cheese. Gosh it was yummy! Give it a try – they do good lunch deals too. http://pearlanamara.ie/
If you find any other places worth mentioning, just get in touch in the comments section. I only spent just under two months in town so perhaps I didn’t find everything.
By the way, Galway is the quintessential place to base yourself if you want to do amazing Wild Atlantic Way day trips. I recommend using the company Lally Tours. We were able to see so much by booking with these guys. http://lallytours.com/
/ / Phoebe/ /
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I’ve written a lot of articles on Ireland:
My Experience Living in Galway
