What is it all about?
Eating, drinking, and watching chefs do what they do, basically, with a sprinkle of glitter and tinsel. The four-day event kicks off on Thursday evening and runs until Sunday. Much like the summer event which takes over Iveagh Gardens for four days in June, there will be restaurants selling sample-sized dishes from their menus, a Chef’s Theatre where cooking demonstrations will be staged, masterclasses by food producers and musical entertainment.
Where is it on?
The RDS Main Hall, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 .
How do I get tickets?
There are tickets available for all six sessions, priced from €15, plus booking fee. You can buy them in advance here, or at the door.
Thursday, November 28th: 5.30pm-10.30pm
Friday, November 29th: noon-4pm/5.30pm-10.30pm
Saturday, November 30th: noon-4pm/5.30pm-10.30pm
Sunday, December 1st: noon-6pm.
What new about it?
It is the first time the "Festive Edition" of Taste of Dublin has been staged in Ireland. The venue layout will include a marketplace, where food and drink producers, as well as a somewhat random selection of other exhibitors – Irish Heart Foundation, Amnesty International and Emirates Holidays among them – will ply their wares.
What restaurants are taking part?
Space restraints mean there is less space for participating restaurants and food vendors, the organisers say. Just six will be open for all six sessions. These are Hang Dai (Chinese); Klaw by Niall Sabongi (seafood); Jackrabbit (Ian Marconi’s food truck); The Porthouse (Spanish tapas); Veginity (vegan) and Vietnom (Vietnamese).
In addition, there will be a series of pop-up restaurants including Lil Portie and Olea on Thursday; Loose Cannon and Lil Portie on Friday; Jaru and Grálinn on Saturday, and Grálinn and Shaka Poké on Sunday.
A festive dessert bar will rotate between Mince Pie Bar by The Cupcake Bloke, and Milish by Finn Ní Fhaolain.
What should I eat and how much will it cost?
The vast majority of dishes will be priced at €5, with a few more substantial Icon dishes costing €10. Payment at food and drink vendors can only be made by contactless debit or credit cards, however marketplace sellers will be accepting cash.
Dishes that sound like they will be worth queuing for include pomegranate fried chicken with pickled carrot, sesame salt, miso herb yoghurt and crispy chickpea at Jackrabbit; Young Buck croquettes with gooseberry ketchup and beetroot pickles from Loose Cannon, and mincemeat oat crumble with brandy Anglaise and roast almond from Mince Pie Bar by The Cupcake Bloke.
What shouldn’t I miss?
The DID Electrical Chef’s Theatre will host a full programme of cookery demonstrations throughout the four days. Chefs taking part include Rachel Allen, Mark Moriarty, Paul Kelly, Rory O’Connell, JR Ryall and Aoife Noonan.
There will also be a programme of festive masterclasses on topics from chocolate making to butchery and festive tablescaping to card-making. You can see the full schedule here.
There is a dedicated Drinks Theatre programme on Saturday and Sunday, with talks, tastings and meet-the-maker sessions with wine, beer and spirits producers.
Can I bring the kids?
Yes, and entrance is free for children under 10 years of age. Sunday is “family friendly day”.
