The Spice Route is an indian restaurant in Maccurtain Street (Victorian Quarter), Cork.
Cork's long-running halal Indian on MacCurtain Street, open evenings from 17:00 with a late kitchen running to 01:00 or 03:15 at weekends. Since 1999.
Must order: Lamb biryani; the kitchen's anchor dish for over two decades.
Tip: Closes early on Mondays and Tuesdays compared to weekend hours; call ahead for late-night visit.
Address: 35 MacCurtain Street, Cork, T23 PP80
MacCurtain Street's foremost cocktail and small plates bar, where a changing menu of local-forage cocktails sits alongside Irish seasonal plates.
Order: Seasonal small plates with one of the sixteen cocktails made with local foragers and farmers.
Tip: The cocktail list changes quarterly; the Friday early-evening period before 19:00 is the quietest.
A Victorian corn market converted into Cork's most reliable steakhouse and seafood room on Cornmarket Street. The Sunday roast consistently fills the venue.
Order: Baked crab mornay; a Cork comfort dish done at a higher level than anywhere else in the city.
Tip: Sunday roast is Cork's most booked weekend lunch; reserve at least a week ahead.
A Cork seafood counter backed by the Quinlan family's own fishing fleet and smokehouse in Kerry. The fish and chips, smoked salmon platter and fresh oysters.
Order: Fish and chips with house-made tartare; the Quinlan family own the fishing boats and the quality shows.
Tip: Go at lunchtime on a weekday; evening queues are longer and the catch is the same.
A long-running Cork grill on Washington Street covering breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner in a relaxed all-day format. Irish beef and market fish are core.
Order: Weekend brunch with Irish eggs, soda bread and local sausages; a Cork weekend ritual for the Washington Street crowd.
An Oliver Plunkett Street Italian running house-made pasta alongside a rotating seasonal board of Italian-inspired mains, with a sommelier available to guide.
Order: Feather blade beef stroganoff; the dish that has built the restaurant's returning-customer rate.
Tip: The feather blade stroganoff is made in limited quantity; ask about availability when booking.
MacCurtain Street's foremost cocktail and small plates bar, where a changing menu of local-forage cocktails sits alongside Irish seasonal plates.
Order: Seasonal small plates with one of the sixteen cocktails made with local foragers and farmers.
Tip: The cocktail list changes quarterly; the Friday early-evening period before 19:00 is the quietest.
Takashi Miyazaki's relaxed second act: handmade buckwheat noodles, rice bowls and small sharing plates with a focused natural wine list, Wednesday through.
Order: Handmade teuchi soba with ume plum and wakame; the dish that best explains what Miyazaki is doing in this format.
Tip: Bookings open on a short lead; Wednesday evenings are the least contested.
