A Slow (& Sophisticated) Saturday in Dublin
Who doesn’t love a slow, lazy Saturday to themselves every now and then? I live for them…well, not all the time (that would get lonely!) but a slow Saturday all to myself with no pressure is just what the doctor orders every now and then. I recently had myself a solo Saturday and I took full advantage of it by brunching and getting a bit cultured.
Meet Me in the Morning is a brunch/lunch establishment in Dublin 8 that I have had on my list to try for ages and for some reason just kept pushing it to the bottom to try other places before it. I couldn’t find a menu online, so I was left with blog reviews to help me get a sense of what was on the menu. Does anyone else need to see the menu before going out to a restaurant? Even if I have eaten somewhere before I just love to look at the menu beforehand!
When I arrived around 10:30am they were busy but there were still tables available. They also have a takeaway coffee shop next door so make sure you go into the restaurant section! I was swiftly sat at a table downstairs and given a menu. Once I saw the Eggs + Greens I knew that was what I would have to have. I had previously seen this on French Foodie in Dublin’s review of MMITM in my menu search and had been hoping it would still be available on my trip. The dish consists of McNally kale, garlic yogurt, paprika oil, chive, two poached eggs, and rustic loaf. For an extra €2.50 I added the Gubeen Chorizo. I was skeptical the amount of chorizo I would get for this price but Meet Me in the Morning did not disappoint. This meal was nothing short of spectacular and for €12.50 my palate was satisfied, and I was full until dinner.
Seeing as MMITM had a takeaway coffee shop that had a queue out the door when I arrived I thought the coffee would be worth trying. I went for a safe Americano, a bit pricey at €2.70 for the size of the cup. The coffee arrived about halfway through my meal, but the waiter did explain the situation and apologized. Honestly, I wasn’t upset over it and I always appreciate when staff take the time to acknowledge a problem from their end and deal with it accordingly.
Besides the amazing food, I really enjoyed the overall atmosphere of Meet Me in the Morning. I thought MMITM was going to be another hipster brunch spot in Dublin. How wrong I was – this is such a melting pot. A woman in her 40s sat alone behind me reading her paper, 2 super glamourous girls came in together, 2 couples were sitting across from me on a brunch double date. There were 2 groups of rude customers and the waiter who dealt with my coffee handled them with such ease and class that I know I would not have been able to display. In fact, I didn’t display because one of the rude customers mentioned heard me sigh and saw me roll my eyes when he asked if the pastrami and eggs could be made vegan. REALLY, PAL? Anyway, I truly cannot wait to come back! Highly, highly recommended!
The weather was nice (read: 11 C/51 F) and the sun was shining so I took a stroll from MMITM to St. Stephen’s Green. It became so warm at one point that I even had to take my coat off! I soaked in the sun, people watched, and read some of my book before finally making my way down to the National Gallery of Ireland.
The National Gallery of Ireland is free entry but a suggested donation of €5 is appreciated. The gallery has a collection of over 16,000 artworks including sculpture, paintings, drawings, and so much more. I particularly enjoyed the National Portrait Collection. Enjoy some photos I took inside of artwork that caught my eye!
Fun fact - I actually saw Dónal Lunny (right above) in my local grocery store one day. Weird to go from seeing someone in the grocery store to seeing their portrait in the National Gallery because that doesn't happen every day, ha!
I was particularly intrigued to see the Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid by Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer. I was interested in this painting because Martin “The General” Cahill was the head of the heist in 1986 at the Russborough House where this exact painting was stolen. 17 other paintings were stolen, totaling a value of upwards of $45 million. Where did he hide all these paintings? Why in a ditch of course! They were all in good condition still, as can be seen in the photo I took.
Overall, I don’t think I could have asked for a better alone day; an unreal brunch, some culture (for free!), and most importantly, sunshine. No matter where you are I am sure you have a cute and yummy brunch place and a museum so why not take a day to yourself and have a similar lazy Saturday experience? If you do, tell me what you get up to in your city!
*all images original to Alexandra Furbee
Author’s Note: This post was originally published on my old blog in April 2018.