Fitzer's has several establishments around Dublin. Each is unique, but the best ambience is in the renowned National Gallery on Merrion Square. The serene, white seating area strewn with greenery is right next door to some of the world's best artwork, some of which is visible from the restaurant. The coffee is fresh, and the dessert selection offers the ideal accompaniment with pastries, pies and puddings to please every palate.

One of the few upscale restaurants serving traditional Irish dishes, Gallagher's is a popular restaurant on the main Temple Bar thoroughfare. The restaurant has family-style tables and specializes in boxty, a traditional Irish potato pancake cooked on a griddle, filled with ingredients and rolled like a crepe. Authentic appetizers include black and white puddings and smoked Irish salmon. Vegetarian boxty and several stews are also available. Business casual attire.

Styled like a coffee house. Serves excellent coffee, but the food makes it stand out from the pack. Full Irish breakfast, including eggs and sausage, pancakes, French toast topped with fruit, and a selection of scones, pastries and fresh breads. Lunch is also great with gourmet sandwiches, interesting salads and American-style favorites such as tuna melts rounding out the menu. The environment is chic and minimal with skylights and brick floors, and the people-watching near Grafton is always entertaining.

As the name suggests, this bakery and coffee shop turns out a fragrant array of pies and tarts. A regular clientele stops in to buy an entire dessert to go, or people wander into the inviting, cozy dining area for a cup of coffee and a slice of whatever just came out of the oven. The fruit-filled pies and tarts are most popular, but elaborate cakes, cookies and scones ensure that you'll find your weakness on display.

With two floors of literary treasures, this quaint, independent bookseller is a great place to browse. New fiction, bestsellers and magazines, as well as harder-to-find and rare books, old paperbacks, and plenty of bargain bins, are available. The upstairs café has fantastic coffee and pastries and an even better view of the Liffey. Stacks of books make the café yet another place to browse.