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This restaurant is a wonderful gem found inside the Westbury hotel. We have had both dinner and breakfast at this place and both meals were absolutely amazing. What is also wonderful about this place is that the hospitality and service is spectacular. We came in with a young child of three. They were extremely inviting and made sure that the child of three had space in which to play, gave her a coloring book and were very responsive. This was unlike other restaurants that were disengaged from children and were actually upset that you brought children into the restaurant. The wine list was short but good. The food was excellent. I had the salmon for dinner which was spectacular. Some of the best salmon I've had in the United Kingdom. Delicately with nice flavor. Breakfast was also very good. The porch and the muesli were excellent. The coffee was a little strong but good.
I absolutely love the Westbury, the warm and cosy atmosphere always appeals for a nice glass of wine after some shopping on Grafton Street. More recently I've starting dropping into Balfe's, the Bistro style restaurant on the ground floor... I've been quite a few times now and can vouch for their cocktails too... they do a mean Margarita! This time we decided to have a quick bite to eat and see if the food was as good as the drinks! We started of with a glass of wine at the bar....before moving into the restaurant area at the back. The decor is pretty cool, cream walls, black chairs and sofas and marble tables. We got a nice table looking right out onto Clarendon Street ... perfect for a bit of people watching :-) We were pretty early so it wasnt too busy but having been numerous times now I can promise you this place is very popular and booking of tables is advised! We ordered from the All Day Dining menu which has quite a lot of options, from light bites and salads to more substantial steaks and burgers. Feeling pretty healthy, I went for the Pilaf with greens, bulgar wheat, toasted cashews & herbs, €16. Portion size was decent and it was super tasty and surprisingly filling. My lovely Mother is a creature of habit, and she gets the chicken dish every time! So unsurprisingly she chose the Grilled lemon & rosemary chicken with braised baby fennel, €20 and a side of chunky fries at €4.50. I did of course help her out with the chips which were delicious and she was more than pleased with her flavoursome chicken. We decided to skip desserts as the mains had filled us up! So instead we sat over another glass of wine and just enjoyed the atmosphere as the place filled up. Balfe's is the perfect spot for either a few drinks or a full meal if you are looking for somewhere central in the city. They offer top quality food and drinks with friendly service and a buzzing atmosphere - spot on!
I have to say I was a little disappointed with this place. I had expected great things but they just never really transpired. So, let's start with the good: - The decor - it's really really gorgeous in here. Monochrome, chrome, and fabulous accessories abound. (I was particularly taken with the teapot in the picture) And then the rest: - There was a less than warm welcome by the host at the beginning, which was unfortunate as set the meal off to the wrong tone - The main waitress that served us seemed like maybe she was new? One of my guests ordered food without meat, it came with (she's vegetarian), another asked about one of the dishes - the scallops - and was told the dish came with 5 or 6, in fact it came with only three. She didn't know the specials, it was all a little bit haphazard. - We had a different person bring us over our bill, so all in all, we had about four different staff members, but nothing consistent, and there was no goodbye or thank you at the end which again was a real shame. - The food was good, but not great. To go back to the scallops, they were perfectly cooked, but for €14, you would surely expect more than three!! The rest of the food again was good but not exceptional. All in all, although the setting was lovely, the service let it down considerably. There was no rudeness per se, so perhaps it was just an off day - the staff seemed nice, just maybe not fully trained properly yet or not having a good one. I think there's room here for improvement as the staff get used to the place, so I'd like to say I'd go back and give it another shot at another time.
I had high hopes about this place, perfectly packaged, it resembles a swanky New York dining establishment, based on appearances alone, it seemed like the perfect venue for a fancy Saturday afternoon brunch. I loved the interior, very cool, with lots of monochrome and gleaming chrome and steel surfaces and fixtures. The attention to detail of the branding and presentation was really impressive. And so onto the food - while we waited on our food to arrive I had a hot chocolate, it was served in a lovely glass, but tasted like bog standard supermarket powder mix. Meh. Not a great start. I ordered the Eggs Benedict and specified that I was a vegetarian - I was assured that this would be fine. When my dish came out I was presented with eggs laid neatly on top of two slices of bacon. I was informed that I should have ordered the Eggs Florentine, which is reasonable but why didn't the waitress point this out when I ordered? I would have expected of such an upmarket venue that the waiting staff would have a knowledge of the food they were serving, and I was more than a little embarrassed to have to make a fuss in front of my dining partners. The buttermilk onion rings were very greasy and sickly tasting, over sweetened and over salted, I gulped down a few glasses of water after eating them, that's for sure! My dining companions found their food satisfactory but weren't overwhelmed, we found the portions were on the small side. I should say that I thought the condiments presented in the mini heinz jars a little naff. I'm not entirely convinced I'd return, its a slick package, but its the contents that matter. The staff seem to require more training, and the food hasn't got the wow factor that the marketing promises.
There is nice location. I went to there at lunch time. There is always a lot of customers. Bartenders was very gentle man and kindly, but some women stuffs seemed not good,because she(they) didn't give good service. Maybe they're tired because of crazy busy. haha Food is good taste. I ate grilled fish as lunch special. I think you should make a reservation if you want to eat lunch/dinner at there, and don't expect too much there is good place though.
Came here with my mom for lunch in Saturday and boy was it jam packed!! Recently opened to replace the old Cafe Novo in Westbury hotel, this new cafe Balfes has a better menu with good variety. I loved the omelette on their brunch menu, and the soups taste nice too. But when I got my soup it was lukewarm and not hot which I wasn't too happy about, but I'll guess it was because it was so busy. They also have sandwiches, salads, pancakes, burgers, fries, a few fish dishes and roast chicken. The service is really good, and the atmosphere is really lively, so it seems like a great place for an event or special occasion. However, it's a bit on the pricy side since it's quite classy, but unaffordable. Most things on the menu were between €14-20. Over a nice place for a classy lunch/ dinner!
We celebrated a friend's birthday here in a Saturday night. The place was hopping. The service though despite the craziness was excellent. They have a Josper grill so we all went for mains cooked in this. My t bone was fantastic - never had this cut before. My salad to start was light and tasty. All my friends loved the food. We drank Ramon Bilbao red and a delicious NZ sauvignon blanc - both excellent. I think the new look is great. The concept of that you can pop in anytime during the day and have a light bite, a coffee or a drink or a full meal. The general consensus was that it works. The GM called David came down and chatted to us. He's a great front of house manager and very personable. We will be back.
We stayed at the Westbury, for our honeymoon, so this was our breakfast of convenience a couple of the days. It turned out to be much more. For starters, my new bride was elated at the premise of smoking AT your dining table, in the lovely, outdoor, patio seating. (I'm no longer a smoker, and when I was, you could smoke in a doctor's office.) Anyway, the food is tremendous. We are compulsive food-sharers, so I got to try a good half dozen menu items before our exodus. The pastries, especially the brown soda bread, the Royale and the tomato/avocado tartine were my faves, and service was always pleasant and helpful, if only a little errant, as was the case in the waiting-for-the-bill portion of both of our meals. Nonetheless, we were tremendously pleased, and look forward to someday sitting on the patio, watching each morning as the bloated beer-barrel trucks squeeze through the narrow streets, as a peckish pigeon peeks at our plates, and my wife enjoys another inhale.
Wow!!! They do it all!! And w grace and fun!!! Wonderful Veal and the Gamba was to die for!! In addition, Audrey, the manager was attentive and delightful! The watermelon salad was perfect,..with a little kick from the red pepper.. The energy and ambiance was electric ... The whole evening made me smile !!...I think Dublin meets Paris here...and the result is so much fun!!
My fish & chips was disappointing. The batter was too thick and though crispy on the outside it was soggy underneath. Batter was overwhelming for the amount of fish. The fries weren't great either, dry and lacking flavor. This was served with a decent tartar sauce, ketchup in a personal-size glass jar (fancy but wasteful) and a side of mushy peas. This was my first encounter with this strange-sounding food: literally mashed up green peas. These were livened up with mint and were a pleasing green color (though Wikipedia says this is usually from food coloring). The jury is still out on these but it was a change from the coleslaw I am used to. The wife's Eggs Benedict however was very good. Eggs cooked exactly as she requested, baby spinach, honey roast ham, herb salad, sourdough, and an excellent hollandaise sauce. As for service, no issues. The room was clean and comfortable but perhaps more formal than I prefer (this was a hotel restaurant). At the time we were there only the weekend brunch menu was available but I did look at the dinner menu. Plenty to choose from. And I expect most of the offerings are good, the fish & chips excepted. Though honestly, as a tourist, I found the place a bit too generic, so for our next meals we sought out spots with a more authentic local feel. read more
Terrible Irish coffee. Hugely overpriced. Abysmal service. Im do disappointed as I used to love coming here. Go to the Shelbourne or some of the great places close by for a drink. This was a waste of money. The food was disappointing also read more
1 year ago
9 months ago
2 years ago
This restaurant is a wonderful gem found inside the Westbury hotel. We have had both dinner and breakfast at this place and both meals were absolutely amazing. What is also wonderful about this place is that the hospitality and service is spectacular. We came in with a young child of three. They were extremely inviting and made sure that the child of three had space in which to play, gave her a coloring book and were very responsive. This was unlike other restaurants that were disengaged from children and were actually upset that you brought children into the restaurant. The wine list was short but good. The food was excellent. I had the salmon for dinner which was spectacular. Some of the best salmon I've had in the United Kingdom. Delicately with nice flavor. Breakfast was also very good. The porch and the muesli were excellent. The coffee was a little strong but good. read more
4 years ago
4 years ago
Don't let the location put you off, this is a great restaurant. Decor lies somewhere between NYC and Paris, in other words, awesome. Food was perfectly cooked and presented and service was pleasant and polite. Make sure to try their Irish coffee, best I've had. read more
3 years ago
I absolutely love the Westbury, the warm and cosy atmosphere always appeals for a nice glass of wine after some shopping on Grafton Street. More recently I've starting dropping into Balfe's, the Bistro style restaurant on the ground floor... I've been quite a few times now and can vouch for their cocktails too... they do a mean Margarita! This time we decided to have a quick bite to eat and see if the food was as good as the drinks! We started of with a glass of wine at the bar....before moving into the restaurant area at the back. The decor is pretty cool, cream walls, black chairs and sofas and marble tables. We got a nice table looking right out onto Clarendon Street ... perfect for a bit of people watching :-) We were pretty early so it wasnt too busy but having been numerous times now I can promise you this place is very popular and booking of tables is advised! We ordered from the All Day Dining menu which has quite a lot of options, from light bites and salads to more substantial steaks and burgers. Feeling pretty healthy, I went for the Pilaf with greens, bulgar wheat, toasted cashews & herbs, €16. Portion size was decent and it was super tasty and surprisingly filling. My lovely Mother is a creature of habit, and she gets the chicken dish every time! So unsurprisingly she chose the Grilled lemon & rosemary chicken with braised baby fennel, €20 and a side of chunky fries at €4.50. I did of course help her out with the chips which were delicious and she was more than pleased with her flavoursome chicken. We decided to skip desserts as the mains had filled us up! So instead we sat over another glass of wine and just enjoyed the atmosphere as the place filled up. Balfe's is the perfect spot for either a few drinks or a full meal if you are looking for somewhere central in the city. They offer top quality food and drinks with friendly service and a buzzing atmosphere - spot on! read more
I have to say I was a little disappointed with this place. I had expected great things but they just never really transpired. So, let's start with the good: - The decor - it's really really gorgeous in here. Monochrome, chrome, and fabulous accessories abound. (I was particularly taken with the teapot in the picture) And then the rest: - There was a less than warm welcome by the host at the beginning, which was unfortunate as set the meal off to the wrong tone - The main waitress that served us seemed like maybe she was new? One of my guests ordered food without meat, it came with (she's vegetarian), another asked about one of the dishes - the scallops - and was told the dish came with 5 or 6, in fact it came with only three. She didn't know the specials, it was all a little bit haphazard. - We had a different person bring us over our bill, so all in all, we had about four different staff members, but nothing consistent, and there was no goodbye or thank you at the end which again was a real shame. - The food was good, but not great. To go back to the scallops, they were perfectly cooked, but for €14, you would surely expect more than three!! The rest of the food again was good but not exceptional. All in all, although the setting was lovely, the service let it down considerably. There was no rudeness per se, so perhaps it was just an off day - the staff seemed nice, just maybe not fully trained properly yet or not having a good one. I think there's room here for improvement as the staff get used to the place, so I'd like to say I'd go back and give it another shot at another time. read more
I had high hopes about this place, perfectly packaged, it resembles a swanky New York dining establishment, based on appearances alone, it seemed like the perfect venue for a fancy Saturday afternoon brunch. I loved the interior, very cool, with lots of monochrome and gleaming chrome and steel surfaces and fixtures. The attention to detail of the branding and presentation was really impressive. And so onto the food - while we waited on our food to arrive I had a hot chocolate, it was served in a lovely glass, but tasted like bog standard supermarket powder mix. Meh. Not a great start. I ordered the Eggs Benedict and specified that I was a vegetarian - I was assured that this would be fine. When my dish came out I was presented with eggs laid neatly on top of two slices of bacon. I was informed that I should have ordered the Eggs Florentine, which is reasonable but why didn't the waitress point this out when I ordered? I would have expected of such an upmarket venue that the waiting staff would have a knowledge of the food they were serving, and I was more than a little embarrassed to have to make a fuss in front of my dining partners. The buttermilk onion rings were very greasy and sickly tasting, over sweetened and over salted, I gulped down a few glasses of water after eating them, that's for sure! My dining companions found their food satisfactory but weren't overwhelmed, we found the portions were on the small side. I should say that I thought the condiments presented in the mini heinz jars a little naff. I'm not entirely convinced I'd return, its a slick package, but its the contents that matter. The staff seem to require more training, and the food hasn't got the wow factor that the marketing promises. read more
10 years ago
Love it here ! Great spot for brunch ! The decor and atmosphere is cool - very New York . The food is really good too and sure the location is one of the best in Dublin. Staff very friendly and the desserts are the best! Book ahead on the weekend as its popular! #dublinfoodporn read more
There is nice location. I went to there at lunch time. There is always a lot of customers. Bartenders was very gentle man and kindly, but some women stuffs seemed not good,because she(they) didn't give good service. Maybe they're tired because of crazy busy. haha Food is good taste. I ate grilled fish as lunch special. I think you should make a reservation if you want to eat lunch/dinner at there, and don't expect too much there is good place though. read more
Came here with my mom for lunch in Saturday and boy was it jam packed!! Recently opened to replace the old Cafe Novo in Westbury hotel, this new cafe Balfes has a better menu with good variety. I loved the omelette on their brunch menu, and the soups taste nice too. But when I got my soup it was lukewarm and not hot which I wasn't too happy about, but I'll guess it was because it was so busy. They also have sandwiches, salads, pancakes, burgers, fries, a few fish dishes and roast chicken. The service is really good, and the atmosphere is really lively, so it seems like a great place for an event or special occasion. However, it's a bit on the pricy side since it's quite classy, but unaffordable. Most things on the menu were between €14-20. Over a nice place for a classy lunch/ dinner! read more
11 years ago
We celebrated a friend's birthday here in a Saturday night. The place was hopping. The service though despite the craziness was excellent. They have a Josper grill so we all went for mains cooked in this. My t bone was fantastic - never had this cut before. My salad to start was light and tasty. All my friends loved the food. We drank Ramon Bilbao red and a delicious NZ sauvignon blanc - both excellent. I think the new look is great. The concept of that you can pop in anytime during the day and have a light bite, a coffee or a drink or a full meal. The general consensus was that it works. The GM called David came down and chatted to us. He's a great front of house manager and very personable. We will be back. read more
We stayed at the Westbury, for our honeymoon, so this was our breakfast of convenience a couple of the days. It turned out to be much more. For starters, my new bride was elated at the premise of smoking AT your dining table, in the lovely, outdoor, patio seating. (I'm no longer a smoker, and when I was, you could smoke in a doctor's office.) Anyway, the food is tremendous. We are compulsive food-sharers, so I got to try a good half dozen menu items before our exodus. The pastries, especially the brown soda bread, the Royale and the tomato/avocado tartine were my faves, and service was always pleasant and helpful, if only a little errant, as was the case in the waiting-for-the-bill portion of both of our meals. Nonetheless, we were tremendously pleased, and look forward to someday sitting on the patio, watching each morning as the bloated beer-barrel trucks squeeze through the narrow streets, as a peckish pigeon peeks at our plates, and my wife enjoys another inhale. read more
4 years ago
11 years ago
Wow!!! They do it all!! And w grace and fun!!! Wonderful Veal and the Gamba was to die for!! In addition, Audrey, the manager was attentive and delightful! The watermelon salad was perfect,..with a little kick from the red pepper.. The energy and ambiance was electric ... The whole evening made me smile !!...I think Dublin meets Paris here...and the result is so much fun!! read more
9 years ago
First time in Dublin. This place is upbeat and upscale Great Salmon. And cold beer. Add to that fun people and you have a great place right in the heart of Dublin. Bring a friend or friends and have a great time read more
A Yelp elite bruncheon organised by ever so lovely Emily brought me to Balfe's. Fashionably late (apologies again), I was the last one to arrive and therefore missed the introductions and first impression of the service. Our main waitress didn't strike me as 'suitable' for what Balfe's is trying to achieve. Maybe she was new. She didn't know the specials or soup of the day, on enquiring about the portion size of the scallop dish, she first described the size of the plate then, on me re-phrasing the question to how many scallops will be served, she replied 5, whereas infact I got only 3. 14Euro for 3 (although perfectly cleaned and cooked) scallops in Dublin (not on some mountain in Switzerland) is pretty steep. The brunch menu has a good selection to suit everyone's taste and appetite, the interior is nice, clean-cut whites and chrome if you are into that sort of thing. Overall, the food was very tasty but the service wasn't great therefore I probably wouldn't return unless it would be in equally good company as this time around and everyone would insist on brunching at Balfe's. read more
7 years ago
8 years ago
9 years ago
This was the best breakfast we found downtown. Top notch atmosphere and affordably priced. Highly recommend. Oat pancakes read more
7 years ago
10 years ago
11 years ago
A little bit more expensive than other places but great if you're looking for a quiet place to have a drink on a Saturday night. Town was busy after the rugby but we got a table around 8pm. Lovely outdoor area that I will try when it gets a bit warmer. Music was low that you could talk (a rarity these days) and Curtis Mayfield was in tune with the atmosphere. The bill was €19 for a pint, glass of prosecco and Sprite, but we got a decent portion of nuts with it. read more
9 years ago
8 years ago
9 years ago
11 years ago
11 years ago
10 years ago
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Review Highlights - Balfes
Balfes - modern_european - Updated May 2026
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