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IF YOU VENTURE into Dublin’s city centre at an ungodly hour, it can be difficult to find a place that’s open and also serves up a decent breakfast or coffee.
So we asked early risers – the people who are well acquainted with the best and most convenient spots – for the places they pop into, just as the rest of the city is waking up.
Charlotte Leonard Kane of Scéal Bakery
6.30am: Grindstone Speciality Coffee opens at 6:30am during the week which is perfect for our market stall schedule. On Friday mornings, we go to Naomh Olaf Farmers Market (Naomh Olaf GAA, Stillorgan, Dublin 18). The staff are incredibly friendly and coffee is always spot on. Big plus is that they stock Oh Happy Treats breakfast muffins, which are the ideal snack to grab and go.
Grindstone Speciality Coffee: Monday to Friday 6.30am – 6pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am – 6pm
Eimear Shannon, morning radio content creator for Dermot and Dave on Today FM
7.00am: The first time I went to Keoghs, they gave me a steak sandwich to go with loads of chips on a paper plate and I’ve been in love with them ever since. I walk by them on my way to work and I swear they pump the smell of scones into the street. Their scones with a smoothie or a freshly squeezed orange juice is my order.
Keoghs Cafe: Monday and Tuesday 7am – 7pm, Wednesday to Saturday 7am – 8pm, Sunday 9am – 7pm
Diarmaid Nolan, children’s nurse in Temple Street
After a night shift: When I’m on day shifts, I’d have breakfast at home and bring a gallon of coffee with me for the drive! Post night duty, I’d normally stop at the Applegreen on the N7 for jambons, hash browns and a few minutes’ sleep.
Applegreen is open 24 hours
Andrew Moore aka Fitness Goose, personal trainer
7.45am: I use the Good Food Store opposite FLYEfit Georges Street. It opens at 8am but I usually knock at the door and get a coffee at 7.45am. If it’s not ready, the staff are happy to let me sit inside until all systems are go. Flat white is the standard but at Christmas I sometimes order a Dirty Chai Latte.
Good Food Store: Monday to Saturday 8am – 5pm, Sunday 10am – 4pm
Bob Johnston, owner of Gutter Bookshop
7.30am: If I’m off to an early start, I’ll load up my KeepCup with an Americano with soya milk from Fonté Coffee or the Music Café. I’m no coffee connoisseur but it tastes good to me and sets me up for the day!
Fonté Coffee: Monday to Friday 7.30am – 5.30pm, Saturday 8am – 5pm
Music Café: Monday 8am – 10pm, Tuesday to Saturday 8am – 11.30pm, Sunday 9am – 10.30pm
Jess Redden, fitness expert and trainer
7.00am: My favourite for early starts at the moment is Eathos. I love the variety on their menu and the freshly baked treats are amazing. The staff are so friendly and I love the fun coffee art they do on their hot drinks! My order is the buckwheat pancakes with all the trimmings.
Eathos: Monday to Friday 7am – 4.30pm, Saturday 8.30am – 4.30pm
Harry Colley, chef
8.00am: On my way to work, I pop into Meet Me in the Morning for a black coffee. There’s no time for frills or messing at that hour.
Meet Me in the Morning: Monday to Friday 8am – 4pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am – 4pm
Finbarr O’Sullivan, driver for An Post
6am: There’s weeks where I’m starting work at 4am, 5am or 6am and other weeks I start at 10.30pm, so it all depends on where I’m going and if there’s a shop open.
If I’m in for 4am, it’s Weetabix at home – but if I’m in at 5am, it’s a breakfast roll in Circle K around 6.
Circle K: 6am – 10pm
Ruth Medjber, photographer
8.00am: I love Two Pups Café and I always get the avocado on sourdough toast with peanut butter and chili. Or the homemade brownie! I love it because it’s got extremely good vibes – provided mainly by Zoe and her wonderful staff – and it’s got great natural lighting and the acoustics are lovely and smooth; a must for a jaded photographer with tinnitus.
If I’m working on a shoot that requires the early morning light – we’re talking sunrise early – or fuelling up before a weekend working at a music festival, Two Pups is my reward.
Two Pups: Monday to Saturday 8am – 5pm, Sunday 9am – 4.30pm
Aifric Ní Chriodáin, managing director of ShoutOut
7.30am: My work brings me all over the country to schools and youth groups, which means a lot of bleary-eyed trips to Busaras because I don’t drive. That area is a bit of a blackspot for good coffee and breakfast but I love Tang. Their food is sustainable, healthy and delicious, especially the shakshuka. The coffee is always perfect.
Tang: Monday to Friday 7.30am – 5pm
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The trough just keeps getting bigger.
@Mel Fitzpatrick: not nearly as big as the social welfare entitlement trough.
@John Terry: Lol, silly comment
With less population per TD now, are they up for a paycut? Seems only fair.
They’re the least of our concerns at the moment going week to week watching those gombeans talk nonsense in the dail year in year out they’ve certainly done a fantastic job with the housing crisis over the last 10 years the future looks great if you can live in a house the size of a kennel
Now we have to listen to more waffle, pay more to hear it , this country is going down the swamp, since these crowd have taken over , we need a new party for the Irish taxpayers, not the European Puppet masters.
Netherlands 15 million has 150
Wixford lol
@Modern Irish Dad: Where’s that?? Lol
Gombeens, party comes first, then the pinsion, then the unvouched expenses, then the subsistence for turning up to do your job, What a great little country.
Lucky for Josepha Madigan but less lucky for others.
Swings and roundabouts!
@Nestor:
Definitely.
Senator Malcom Byrne FF will be counting his lucky stars, he’s based in gorey which will probably be the biggest town in the new constituency. I’d say one SF, one FF and anyones guess for the last.
Which Wexford TD will lose out?
If I was Paul Kehoe I would be worried as would the Green TD in Wicklow
@P.J. Nolan: I’m in Gorey and I’d absolutely vote for the Green TD in Wicklow over Snr Malcolm Byrne.
Unlikely you will get the chance, Steven Matthews is based in Bray.
It’s about time we had more TD’s to make us feel safe in our homes…
Is wixford a new constituity.
@Terry Mckenna: don’t give them ideas they might actually try it wouldn’t surprise us
@Terry Mckenna: ya, not to be confused with Wexlow
I read all these comments and I think, if you think you can do better then get elected. But ye won’t because you prefer to belly ache. Get over yourselves, it’s Democracy
Amazing how they adhere to the constitution when it suits them.
Anyone who votes for any one of this crowd in government who have lied consistently to their own people with regard to illegal migrants, fake Ukrainian refugees, their anti farmer stance, the price gouging by the banks and ultility companies, their attack on our freedoms during the Covid scam, the climate emergency BS etc etc etc should hang their head in shame. They are working for the WEF/EU/UN not the Irish people. They were able to get beautiful modular homes ready in jig time for military aged men from around the globe while Irish families struggle to put a roof over their heads. Please stop voting for these EU shills. The only reason we don’t have more youth homelessness is many of our graduates have left the country thinking they’ll be fine when they come back with their UAE tax free money, come back to what. Ireland in another decade of the current demographic change being implemented by our so called government won’t exist. Elections have serious consequences.
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