Silk Road Cafe review

The Silk Road Cafe is a gem of a cafe thats hidden away in the Chester Beatty Library in the grounds of Dublin Castle. Despite being in the centre of Dublin its not a place I would ever think of going to. I only ended up visiting after a friend mentioned that our maternity leave needed a bit more culture. Five of us with our five small people went along for a Wednesday lunch time visit last week.

Food - As the name suggests the food is heavily slanted towards what you might find on the silk routes of old - think falafel, moussaka and curries. I had the falafel plate with 4 salads, my choice included tabouleh and stuffed vine leaves. My friends had moussaka and curries. All the mains are around the 9-10 Euro mark and hearty enough to keep you going for a long day of sightseeing/babyschlepping. They have an amazing selection of cakes (pictured above) which through some amazing feat of willpower were avoided on this visit!

Accessibility - The cafe is on the ground floor of the Chester Beatty Library and was no problem to access. The entrance had automatically opening electric doors as did the entrances to all the library floors

Changing facilities - Excellent. Theres a separate changing room (without loo) which has a large fixed ledge for changing.

Highchairs - Only 2 available

Space for buggy - Plenty. We, along with 5 babies and buggies, sat in the atrium area and there would have been space for a lot more.

Service - The cafe is self service style but the staff were really helpful and brought dishes to the table for a number of us that went to the counter carrying babies.

Table booking - Not needed for a weekday lunch






























Overall rating - 4.5/5 - Great value for really hearty tasty food. Im marking it down a half mark only because I fancied something a little lighter today and everything was quite heavy for a lunchtime feed. I will definitely be back here again when Im a little hungrier than today.

Baby friendly rating - 5/5 - Of all the places Ive been since having thelittlefoodie I felt more comfortable here than anywhere else. It might just be me, but often I feel like a bit of a nuisance taking up space with my screamy baby. We lounged around for a few hours chatting and drinking coffees and didnt feel that we were disturbing anyone. At one point a member of staff of the library even welcomed us and the babies and asked for our opinion on the new changing room. There are quite a few of the salads and side vegetables that would be perfect for baby led weaning (all of us had food with us today though)

The damage - €13 for a large cappuccino and falafel plate with 4 salads.

Best brunch in Dublin with a baby - Herbstreet brunch review

Things have been a little quiet around these parts recently with nobody getting much sleep as the littlefoodie has been sprouting his first two teeth. Due to this lunches have been much shorter affairs and bed times have been early enough for me to barely get close to a computer!  

While my other recent reviews have all been for week day lunches, today's review is for one of my favourite weekend haunts. Herbstreet is one of the older unsung heroes of the brunch market in Dublin. It gets very little press but always has a queue out the door on a Saturday or Sunday morning and while Ive had dinner there, brunch is definitely the speciality. If you have a hangover this is the place to go as it has a great brunch menu. If you have a hangover and a small child, there's even more of a draw. 

Food - Every time I come here its always a challenge to pick what Ill have but this time I had the french toast with bacon and maple syrup and the mr had the eggs benedict. Its a real challenge because the pancakes, full Irish and eggos mexicalos are all pretty good too. At around 12 euro for most of the mains its a little more expensive than some other brunch places but the quality is great and portions will keep you going half the day. Their orange juice is freshly pressed and they make a mean coffee too (as seen below served with side salad of giraffe)

Accessibility - There is only a ground floor so accessibility is not an issue. 

Changing facilities - There is a large wheelchair/buggy accessible loo beside the other toilets with changing table and fancy nappy wrapping bin. 

Highchairs - The littlefoodie was particularly fussy on our most recent visit and went from sitting in his buggy, to our laps to a highchair and back again. I saw at least 2 other kids in high chairs while we were there so they must have plenty of them.

Space for buggy - Not a massive amount inside but the staff are more than willing to make room. There is also a large terrace at the front (heaters and retractable awning for the cold) which would be perfect if you had a few buggies along. 

Service -  Our server was really lovely in helping us get a space that the buggy would fit and chatting to the littlefoodie. Some of the other staff also came over for a chat with him while we had breakfast. Service is professional and prompt, without you ever feeling rushed over your lazy Sunday brunch. 

Table booking - They dont take bookings for brunch at the weekend but if you turn up and there's a queue they will give you a time estimate and tell you to come back which is handy if you have a little one in tow. Ive heard that you can (and should) book tables for lunch during the week.

Overall rating - 5/5 - Anyone I have ever introduced to Herbstreet has become a regular, the service and food are great

Babyfriendly rating - 5/5 - Ive regularly seen babies and older children here. Its a busy enough place that you wont feel self conscious about a screaming baba and the staff will make you feel at home. 

The damage - Brunch for two, 2 orange juices and cappuccinos came to just under €40

Airfield Overends review

I had never been to Airfield before I had the littlefoodie but was informed that I wouldnt last maternity leave without a visit because its "where all the southside mothers go" according to my own one. Ive now been 3 times since being on leave and have found it both delicious and baby friendly. The clientele consists about 60% of older ladies having lunch and the rest is moms with babies so there is no fear of your screechy little one interrupting an interview/important business deal here. The dining room is full of light and beautifully designed with views onto a pond and wildflower meadow. 

Food - This and the last time I visited I had the empanada of the day - today was puff pastry filled with sausage, cheese and horseradish. My sister in law (who also had a baby in tow) had the chicken liver pate. Thankfully neither of us are dieting as a lot of the menu is fairly calorific. Airfield really caters towards the ladies that lunch as the special of the day comes with a glass of wine and theres a fairly impressive selection of cakes on view as you enter the door. I arrived for lunch at 1:45 and it was still fairly busy when we left at around 4. We both had coffee and a cookie and some Madelines for dessert. The cakes are particularly good here too. 

Accessibility - There is only a ground floor here and its easy to get buggies in and out. The entrance is really wide so no problem getting buggy through the doors. 

Changing facilities- There is a disabled loo with changing table just inside the door. 

High chairs - I spotted a bunch of high chairs at the back of the restaurant

Space for buggy- There is plenty of room for buggies around the place. Saying this, its the second time that Ive been shepherded into one of the nooks at the side where they seem to hide all the children away and there isnt so much room for buggies in these areas.

Service - Our server was really lovely and attentive. She couldnt resist the womanising charms of the littlefoodie and picked him up for a cuddle before we left

Table booking - No need - plenty of space and even though it was busy we wouldnt have had to wait too long

Overall rating - 4/5 - Would be lovely to have more salads on the menu, that being said I havent tried the ones that are on the menu (next time Im not having the empanada). Also as most things are over the €10 mark its definitely not an every day lunch option. 

Baby friendliness rating - 5/5 - No problem bringing babies here at all (although the parking spots are a bit tight for getting car seats out). 

The damage - Just shy of €30 for 2 very light lunches, coffees, cookies and madeleines.

The Woollen mills review

When the littlefoodie was born first one of the things that I missed most was getting out to restaurants for lunch and dinner. I feared that when I became more mobile, restaurants wouldn't be as accommodating as when I went without a baby. Over the last few months Ive become braver and now get out as much (if not more) than I did before, although mostly for brunch and lunch rather than dinner. The topic of how baby friendly restaurants regularly comes up with friends so as I eat my way around Dublin for the remainder of my maternity leave I will post restaurant reviews here with comments on how baby friendly they are. Yesterdays visit was to the Woollen Mills at the Ha'penny bridge.

Food - I had the turkey sandwich with salads and my friend had the cuban sandwich. Both sandwiches were so good that neither of us wanted to share. The sandwiches came on homemade ciabatta with a choice of salads or soup (both come in at under 10€). This was by far the best sandwich I have eaten in Dublin in a long time and consisted of turkey, guacamole, crushed tortilla (strange) and chipotle mayo. We shared a starter of jerusalem artichoke hummus to share which had a lovely smoky taste to it but wasnt really necessary given the size of the sandwich plate. As dessert I had the doughnut of the day, a magical concoction of doughnut perfection stuffed with apple and topped with an amazing cinnamon mascarpone and my friend had a peach custard tart (too much custard, not enough peach). Ive been to the Woollen mills twice before and really enjoyed on both occasions so I will definitely be going back. They take excellent ingredients and know what to do with them.

Accessibility - The ground floor is buggy accessible but Im not sure that you can get to the lovely outdoor terraced first floor other than by stairs. The ground floor outdoor area is covered and has plenty of room so is perfect for buggies and people watching 

Changing facilities- The main toilets are down a stairs but there is a wheelchair/buggy accessible toilet on the ground floor with a changing table

High chairs - I spotted one while on the way to the toilets. There were no other kids in the restaurant during lunch but there may have been more high chairs upstairs

Space for buggy- Fairly limited, you wouldn't want to be meeting friends who also have buggies unless you were willing to sit outside. Calling in advance would be advisable if you are meeting a few people with buggies.

Service - Our server seemed to be a bit disinterested in helping get the buggy to the table when I arrived. When ordering both courses we had to ask other people who told us they would ask our server to come over. Service of 10% was added to the bill automatically which may be part of the reason that the service wasnt great. Overall the staff didnt seem at all bothered that I had a baby with me which was good as said baby has just learned how to shriek! 

Table booking - I booked the table using their online booking system and notified them through this that I would have a buggy with me. 

Overall rating - 4.5/5 Only thing Im marking down on is the service

Baby friendliness rating - 4/5 Not a lot of space for babies unfortunately

The damage - Just shy of €50 for a starter, two sandwiches and salads, 2 desserts a coffee and soft drink. Service at 10% was included