Itsa Bagel in Dun Laoghaire is Dublin's best bagel joint. Irish Times food critic and long-time restauranteur Domini Kemp is the brains behind the Itsa operation, which has expanded from humble beginnings in this bagel bar in the Pavilion, to more extravagant variations on the fresh quality theme such as itsa4 restaurant in Sandymount, and itsa@imma in the Museum of Modern Art in Kilmainham. They also run the restaurants in Brown Thomas in Dublin and Cork, and offer a catering service Feast.
According to their promotional blurb, the bagels are handmade in the traditional manner by rolling, boiling and baking rather than filling with vegetable oil and steaming like most other places do. What I love about them is the range of healthy choices they offer - you can choose whole-wheat or pumpernickel bagels which have a low GI and also taste great.
All the ingredients are top quality, and most appear to be handmade - apparently they make their hummous from scratch. There's a fridge beside the main counter with tubs of the stuff, alongside jars of their divine red onion marmalade.
The decor is modern and tasteful - comfy leather chairs and simple, clean lines. There are a few tables outside on the promenade too, but generally if it's a nice day I'd recommend ordering to go (which is about 50 cent cheaper) and taking a picnic down to the pier.
My favourite is Gourmet Veggie with a big hunky chunk of goats cheese, red onion marmalade, hummous and black olive tapenade. Delish. read more