If you’re a fan of Sophie’s rooftop restaurant in Dublin’s Dean Hotel, you’re going to love restaurateur Paddy McKillen Jr’s Union Café in Mount Merrion, as you’ll find this South County Dublin spot harbours much the same buzzy atmosphere and design-led interior touches.
Located on the site of the former Kiely’s pub in Mount Merrion, the Union Café venue is a sprawling one, encompassing a deli, wine shop, restaurant and bar. The restaurant is extremely spacious with an impressive square bar in the middle of the room (much like the one in Sophie’s) where you can sit at high stools to dine and drink.
The lighting, as in all McKillen ventures, is spot on: ambient, warm and inviting. There’s a choice of seating styles from low tables with comfy couches, to square two- and four-tops and generous round tables for larger groups. The colour scheme is contemporary neutral with splashes of bold orange. With Irish painter Richard Gorman’s (another McKillen venue favourite) prints on the wall adding an artistic cachet.
The restaurant menu, like the décor, is a sure people-pleaser, with plenty of popular options. From crab cakes and chicken wings to salads, burgers and wood-fired pizzas you’ll also find fancier choices, like seafood linguini, pan-fried hake, rotisserie chicken (from the deli next door) and confit pork belly.
The wine list is interesting, as you’ll find plenty of Chateau La Coste bottles on the menu, from the vineyard McKillen owns in Provence (next door to his swanky hotel, Villa La Coste.) The Chateau La Coste Bellugue Rosé is a particularly refreshing drop (€40).
But where Union Café really comes into its own is during the busy weekend brunch hours, when it is extremely popular with young families.The brunch menu is extensive, offering everyone’s favourites plus plenty more.
It’s a great choice for folks with kids as the space is generous and the children’s menu is genuinely imaginative (Home made fish tempura, mozzarella fritters, and shredded chicken are some of the options). The staff are friendly and patient and there’s a gorgeous wooden children’s play park across the road.
A winning combination, if ever there was one.
