The Winding Stair

4.7 (2519)

€31 to €50

Irish

40 Ormond Quay Lower, Dublin, Co. Dublin D01 R9Y5

Make a reservation

2 people

May 7, 2025

7:00 PM

Booked 34 times today

About this restaurant

Charming
Good for special occasions
Great for fine wines

The Winding Stair Bookshop & Café became a famous Dublin landmark in the 1970s and 1980s. Named after the Yeats poem and in honour of its winding staircase, it is overlooking the river Liffey, with an iconic view of the Ha'penny bridge. As a popular meeting place for writers, musicians and artists, it was a well known hub for debate and creativity with many poems written, novels penned and movies shot within its walls. In 2006, Elaine Murphy brought this much-loved spot back to life as a restaurant, championing seasonal, Irish produce. The bookshop, located on the ground floor, was retained, as were many of the old bookshelves, photos and memories. The room retains its timeless charm with stripped wood tables and floors, and Bentwood café chairs.The view remains as quintessentially Dublin as ever.
The food is good, old-fashioned home cooking, with produce sourced from artisans within the island. Drink sare local and international craft beers & wines from stellar producers.

Additional information

Dining style
Casual Dining
Price
€31 to €50
Cuisines
Irish, Seafood, Vegetarian
Hours of operation
Lunch Wed–Sun 12:00 pm–3:00 pm Dinner Mon, Tue, Sun 5:30 pm–9:00 pm Wed–Sat 5:30 pm–10:00 pm
Phone number
(01) 872 7320
Website
http://winding-stair.com/
Payment options
Mastercard, Visa
Dress code
Casual Dress

Location
40 Ormond Quay Lower, Dublin, Co. Dublin D01 R9Y5
Neighborhood
North City Centre
Parking details
Public Lot
Additional
Beer, View, Wine

Pigs on the green pork belly
mashed potato, apple & celeriac slaw, grilled spring onion, apple ketchup & cider jus
Doyle’s Irish white sole
burnt butter, capers, parsley, lemon, almonds & baby potato
Youngs 9oz Black Angus striploin
homemade chips, steamed greens & garlic herb butter
- €7 supplement€7.00
Irish potato boxty
Kearney Blue stuffed Portobello mushroom, wilted spinach, hazelnut & parsley pesto

Desserts

Almond chocolate tart
with honeycomb & raspberry sorbet
Panna cotta
with poached rhubarb & oat biscuits
The Winding Stair Bread & Butter pudding
with whiskey sauce

What 2,519 people are saying

The Winding Stair reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.7

4.7 based on recent ratings

4.7Food
4.7Service
4.6Ambience
4.4Value

Noise • Moderate

Loved For

Dublin
Great for scenic views
Dublin
Irish
Dublin 1
Best Overall
Dublin 1
Best Food
Dublin 1
Best Service
Dublin 1
Best Ambiance
Dublin 1
Best Value
Dublin 1
Good for business meals
Dublin 1
Healthy
Dublin 1
Neighborhood gem
Dublin 1
Great for fine wines
Dublin 1
Romantic
Dublin 1
Good for special occasions
Dublin 1
Vegetarian-friendly
Dublin 1
Most Booked

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews

The Winding Stair offers a delightful dining experience with "amazing food" and "friendly, attentive service." Located above a bookshop with views of the River Liffey, it's praised for its "charming atmosphere" and "varied menu." The smoked haddock and pork belly are standout dishes, making it a must-visit in Dublin.

2,519 Reviews

A
Anne
London27 reviews
5.0
Dined 5 days ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Buzzy, great food, 1st class service. Highly recommend!
Is this helpful?
B
Brandon VIP
Las Vegas5 reviews
5.0
Dined 6 days ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Fantastic little spot in central Dublin. Upscale Irish classics with a solid bev menu, delicious food, and friendly service!
Is this helpful?
T
Tj
Dublin2 reviews
5.0
Dined 7 days ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Delicious food. Great ambience. Nice service. Had US guests visiting and was lovely for them to experience quality Irish food.
Is this helpful?
S
Siamack VIP
New York City7 reviews
5.0
Dined on April 27, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
An excellent experience, with perfectly cooked food. The pork belly and scotch egg were magnificent! Be advised that the portions are not small, though. I would have loved to have dessert, but had to waddle off into the sunset instead. A great value!
Is this helpful?
D
David VIP
Chicago34 reviews
5.0
Dined on April 27, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
The restaurant is intimate and airy. The service was outstanding and the food was fabulous. I had the pork belly - crispy and flavourful. My wife had the Dover sole - perfectly prepared.
Is this helpful?
J
Jack
Raleigh3 reviews
5.0
Dined on April 26, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Hard to beat this place. Not cheap but well worth the price.
Is this helpful?
P
Paul
London5 reviews
5.0
Dined on April 26, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 4
We 3 loved the food! Scotch eggs and charcuterie board to start was demolished. Pork belly, fish platter and duck mains were excellent. Service attentive and unobtrusive. Top marks all around
Is this helpful?
T
Tracy
Kansas City3 reviews
4.0
Dined on April 24, 2025
1. Overall 4
2. Food 5
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 3
This was a place suggested to us by our travel agent. It was three flights of stairs up to our table where the room was quite loud and noise topping out at 109.1 decibels, Average around 101 decibels. We were going to leave after an appetizer and drink because we couldn’t even hear each other speak, but were told we had to order mains or be charged a cancellation fee, which was not on the open table page where the reservation was made. However, I will say that the food was absolutely delicious. I had the Haddock and my Partner had the boxti. We were there during the peak of dinner time (7:30 reservation), so had we chosen a different time, it may have been a much more pleasant ambiance. The prices seemed pretty reasonable for the quality of food as well.
Is this helpful?
c
chris
San Diego6 reviews
5.0
Dined on April 23, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
We enjoyed the charcuterie appetizer and the sole and pork entrees. Everything was delightful and delicious. Would highly recommend. It was the best dining experience we had in Dublin!
Is this helpful?
M
Mirjam
Dublin1 review
5.0
Dined on April 22, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Sehr gutes, typisch irisches Restaurant am Fluss. Absolut empfehlenswert, weil auch das Essen excellent war!
Is this helpful?

FAQs

The Winding Stair is rated 4.7 stars by 2519 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Home
Ireland, Republic of
Dublin
Dublin 1
North City Centre

Make a reservation

2 people

May 7, 2025

7:00 PM

Booked 34 times today

40 Ormond Quay Lower, Dublin, Co. Dublin D01 R9Y5

Additional information

Neighborhood
North City Centre
Hours of operation
Lunch Wed–Sun 12:00 pm–3:00 pm Dinner Mon, Tue, Sun 5:30 pm–9:00 pm Wed–Sat 5:30 pm–10:00 pm
Price
€31 to €50
Cuisines
Irish, Seafood, Vegetarian
Dining style
Casual Dining
Dress code
Casual Dress
Parking details
Public Lot
Payment options
Mastercard, Visa
Additional
Beer, View, Wine

Website
http://winding-stair.com/
Phone number
(01) 872 7320

The Winding Stair

Make a reservation

About this restaurant

Additional information

Menu

Starters

Soup of the day

Braised beef cheek bruschetta

Potted Dingle Bay crab

Macroom Dairies' buffalo burrata

Mains

Pigs on the green pork belly

Doyle’s Irish white sole

Youngs 9oz Black Angus striploin

Irish potato boxty

Desserts

Almond chocolate tart

Panna cotta

The Winding Stair Bread & Butter pudding

What 2,519 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Loved For

Review summary

FAQs

How is The Winding Stair restaurant rated?

Is The Winding Stair currently accepting reservations?

Make a reservation

Additional information