Nautilus

Before I start– I debated giving this place 5 stars which I hardly ever do. The food is consistently amazing and the quality of the seafood is very high. This is the best restuarant in Malahide in my opinion. There is a focus on fish and anything I’ve ever had has been top quality and almost michellin star standard. Try to get a window seat so you can have a look at the beautiful view overlooking the sea. As a Malahide resident I always return here on a special occasion. Note: the restaurant went on fire in May 2015 and is closed until further notice.

Very surprised not to see a review of this restaurant on Unilocal already. So here it is. With our passports and visas in order, we ventured across the river to the oasis of south sidedness that is Malahide. The restaurant overlooks the marina and, on a Saturday night in late February, it was very busy. Unfortunately, they don’t do cocktails (‘Does a gin and tonic count?’ enquired our very friendly and attentive waitress. No it doesn’t) so we opted for a bottle or two of a very pleasant Chablis they were pushing on the night. No complaints. Food was presented in a fussy and decorative yet minimalist fashion — if that makes sense. All black slate plates and decorative flourishes couldn’t hide the fact that the plates were remarkably sparsely populated with actual food. That said, we shared a pork starter with white pudding that was excellent although the portion of pork was pretty minuscule it must be said. For three of the party, mains was a seafood selection which, again, was not exactly on the generous side in terms of portion but was excellent and the selection of different shell and white fish worked to perfection. Dessert for the ladies and coffees all round, we emerged into a pleasant winter night for the trek back across the city. Well worth a visit if you’re in the neighbourhood. Did I mention that the portions were small, though?