Trying to pick a place for nine people to meet at lunchtime on a weekday in the centre of Dublin (not an easy task) I eventually decided on the National Gallery Café. It turned out to be a great choice, since we had lots of space and all nine people were happy with their food and drinks. It's bright spacious café in the atrium of the National Gallery, highlighted by four indoor trees, flowers on every table, and colourful chairs. It also has a cool name: The Wintergarden Café. I had a roasted red pepper and brie quiche, which came with two salads (€9.50), a flat white (€3.10), and a humongous strudel (€3.50). The quiche was quite good (I never get that excited about quiches to be honest), the mixed green salad was fine but strangely was not dressed at all, and the roasted pumpkin salad was really good. The coffee was very good and the best thing about the strudel was that it was large enough for two hungry people (other than that, I won't be writing home about the strudel... um... come to think of it, I am writing about it!) So, the food was all quite good but I'd recommend the café mostly for the coffee and the space itself - especially if you have a large group. Also, pick up a jug of their cool water with lemon and what looks like raspberry leaves - very refreshing! Then go look at some paintings after lunch - the gallery is free!
I'm giving them 4/5 "green stars" for social and environmental impact. It could be higher (or lower) but there's really not a huge amount of information available to judge them by. It's run by Itsa, who own a ridiculous number of places around the city (Itsa Bagels, Hatch & Sons, Alchemy Juice Co., and various cafes in places from MOMA to Arnotts). Considering that Itsa are now so large, and that one of the founders (Domini Kemp) has been a food writer for the Irish Times for years, it would be nice if they provided more info about their food sourcing and sustainability. They do state that their coffee is ethically sourced, but don't provide information on the coffee beyond this. Their hot chocolate is made with Fair Trade cocoa. They list sources for a few ingredients (G's chutney, Dubliner cheddar, Wicklow brie) but don't provide any information on the majority of them (Is it organic? Where was it grown? Is it free range? Who is the supplier? etc.). It's a woman-owned business (the Kemp sisters), and they are involved in community activities. Judging by the menu in Itsa in Sandymount (organic burger, free range chicken, organic mash...) they do use some sustainable/ethical ingredients but just aren't that great about communicating this. More transparency please!
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