Yup, John has it right on the nose here, there are so many Artisan and gourmet food stores around…read morethe city it's really easy to assume that everything with the words Artisan and gourmet over the door are something special... in the case of Foxes it is a great grocers and veg store, there is no where like it for fresh produce but really gourmet? Fresh grapes are no longer a gourmet delicacy, we have moved on from that, Chinese pears are mildly unusual but alas, again, no longer exactly gourmet, Foxes is great, go, just don't expect anything special!

Roy Fox's used to be just a very well stocked greengrocers well known and frequented by the…read moreresidents of Donnybrook. Lately though its morphed into a Gourment green grocers with the fruit and veg in one section and the fancy stuff next door in a new annex they've added. The shop used to be run by the Donnelly family and they were always great to deal with, friendly and a very old school business, looking after customers and providing great produce.

Restore is a lovely health food store packed with goodies that are good for you and your body…read more The staff are wonderfully helpful and seem to know a lot about the products in store, of which there are very very many! They're really good at explaining what each remedy does and really seem to care about their clients. They even have taste testers in store - something you don't find in most health food stores! The other day it was a tartlet with mushroom in it - ewww sounds weird, but it looked nice enough. I declined to try...

I just love me a good health food store. When I stumbled upon Restore I was pretty delighted. I try…read morereally hard to take care with what I put in or on my body. Restore not only carries food but also vitamins, supplements, and personal care items. Sweet! There is an obvious focus on natural and/or organic products and while these can sometime cost a pretty penny, Restore has a lot of options to pick and choose from. Their selection of healthy food items rivals the best. If you ever wondered where people by hemp oil and wheat grass, this is the place. When I went in the woman working was a little in my face - meaning she asked several times if I needed help or if I was looking for anything in particular even though I said I was just looking around. I know she was just doing her job but come on. I bought a load of stuff anyway, and managed to do it all by myself!

Over the summer I gave up (tried to give up) processed foods stuffed with preservatives and…read morechemical substitutes. On the hunt for natural foods I was delighted to find (read: finally notice) how close Nourish was to my usual shopping route. Here a jar of all-natural, salt, oil and sugar free skins-on smooth peanut butter is just €2.50! Here, cold-milled organic flax meal sells for less than €8 per bag. Then there's the soy, tofu, vitamins and wholesome beauty products -including hair dyes -all lining Nourish's shelves right to the ceiling. While on shopping trips I've noticed the staff leave shoppers to themselves, it took a few minutes for the lady stocking the shelf next to me to say hello. I realise it sounds a bit snobby, but I do expect to be greeted as the only customer in the shop mid-afternoon. I can't fault the selection or prices, but I do wish I felt a little more welcome when visiting.

Nourish on Liffey Street remains one of my favourite places to shop when I need to detox…read more Everything that it sells is good for you so you don't need to feel guilty about spending money here. If you're sick and you can't be bothered to go to the doctor and pay a hefty fee, then Nourish will help you get back on your feet with their vitamins, organic food and herbal remedies. I once got these magic tablets for hay fever and allergies. Nourish also stocks great cosmetic and beauty supplies from popular brands like Burt's Bees to lesser known ones like Dr. Hauschka. The shop assistants are never too busy so they're always on-hand for questions and advise. I went in today and a kind worker took the time to show me five different cleansers. She even gave me free samples with my purchase.

Have being looking around for sheep's milk for awhile as difficult to find then I found the hopsack…read morewho generously offered to order some for me and even got extra. I also ordered couple more items the week after and found the staff extremely helpful in finding products I needed and sent out a new batch of milk for me as previous one was near use by date haven't had such good experience before and so thankful for their assistance. Thanks so much. Would definitely recommend

So the swan center may be looking a little rough around the edges and slightly like a ghost town…read morethese days. However, the hop sack,which has been on the go for years is still one of its best and busiest shops. Back in the 80's. When it was nay impossible to get soy milk anywhere in Dublin the HS was there. So great for those of us with milk allergies. Despite being a modest sized shop the Hop Sack has all you health food needs, from gluten free foods to essential oils. Staff are attentive, helpful and highly knowledgeable. They ordered in stuff for me when I asked. Also check it out around easter, as they assued me they were one of the cheapest places to get Green & Blacks easter eggs this year.

Found a hair in my wrap as they were making it. Didnt bother to apologize or give me a discount as…read moreI lost my appetite. Their wraps are weirdly stick-to-your-teeth...like not cooked enough or all the way

This new branch if Sprout just opened the day I went on Rogerson's Quay in a cool looking brick…read morebuilding overlooking the Liffey, right near the Samuel Beckett bridge on the south side. For anyone who has been to their branches on Dawson or Mount street, the food is pretty much the exact same; delicious healthy salads, customisable salad bowels with a variety of ingredients from falafel, quinoa and hummus to butternut squash, salad vegetables, meat and grains. For the custom bowel, you can choose a leafy base (spinach, kale etc), 2 vegetables, 1 grain (e.g. brown rice, quinoa), 1 protein (chicken, falafel, salmon etc) and a dressing for €8.95, which is what I usually do and find the price pretty good. They also have their own signature salads and wraps as well, plus a daily soup and 3Fe coffee! On their first day, they gave a free veggie juice of your choice, and I went for the supergreen one which was pretty good. Sprout just screams super healthy with all the green everywhere, but it's also good quality and very tasty. The inside of the cafe is very clean and organised, the seating is not a lot but I heard that they plan on expanding it soon. They also do take away. The staff are very nice and efficient with the queues, and the prices are fairly reasonable; most things being less that €10. There is a loyalty card where every 10th salad is free! Overall: A salad lover's dream! Food: 5/5 Seating: 3.5/5 Variety: 5/5 Service: 5/5 Price: Reasonable

There's no shortage of health food and natural supplement shops in this city, and I'll be looking…read moreto those before revisiting Health Matters. On a hunt for L-Glucosamine (or something like it) I dropped in here on a weekday morning looking for a small bottle of the stuff. Puzzling over the shelves for a minute, I asked a saleswoman for help... and have regretted it ever since. Brusque and condescending, she rolled out a long list of why my choice was wrong, asking me sharply what *was* I thinking and clearly whoever suggested it to me was uneducated in supplements (I wasn't winning any points, either). I was shocked to be spoken to this way in a shop, and numbly accepted whatever bottle of stuff she gave me instead (it's been put in the hall closet should I ever need... what IS that stuff, anyway?). €12 lighter and feeling quite harangued I walked out of the shop, vowing never to return. Worked out well so far.

Very good selection of natural products. No dyes, perfumes or sulfates. Or animal testing…read more Have a lot of nutritional supplements. Cary protein bars and some food products. Gluten-free, wheat free... Staff is very knowledgeable and helpful. Not the cheapest place in town but good quality.

There are three categories of customers in Holland and Barrett in my book: The hypochondriac…read morestuffing omega 3, vitamin c and calcium tablets into their trolley, the crazy health nut with fists full of dried fruit and the enormous dude who has been pumping himself full of protein shakes leading to some poorly concealed moobs in his tank top. But crazies and voluptuous male bosoms aside, Holland and Barrett is fairly decent if you're looking for healthy goods. Their stuff is cheap and they have great offers on. I got a box of nettle tea for a quid recently. Tastes a bit like wee.

Healthy food dream! Such a huge range of healthy supplements and vitamins!…read moreI usually pop in there for some Omega Fish Oil and Spirulina food supplements, they often have specials on these products. They also have loyalty cards in place, I always use mine, sure why not to save a few bob!

After an exasperating journey getting to Dublin, Listons welcomed me with its warm Irish charms and…read moremade me forget the day's earlier trials. In the same vein as my other beloved Dublin food hall, Fallon & Byrne, Listons has a wide selection of charcuterie, cheese, nuts, pastas, tea, chocolates and wine. I chose a tomato basil soup and a tuna, cheddar and sundried tomato panini for lunch and ate it picnic style back in my hotel room. The sandwich was absolutely glorious. The soup, while not incredible, was proficient. The staff at Listons also deserves a mention - they're super sweet!

I had the blues the other day. I'm not ashamed to admit it, everyone gets the blues every once and…read moreawhile. You know it will pass as quickly as it comes. I was at the blues stage were seeing an old woman being over taken by power walking younger folks whilst they listened to their i-pods lost in themselves and their outward image made me really sad. It actually brought a frog to my throat & made me slightly teary - yes it did. I started thinking about how impersonal people these days can be; yup I was in a rut. Because I have no friends I could not dial for a hug, and because hugging yourself is a rather futile action I decided to lift my melancholy with some tea. I got some mint infused tea, to give me more of a spring in my step. And to really treat myself I got the orange and coconut combination which is as delicious as it sounds. The layout of Listons makes me happy, it's warm and the staff are helpful & when you are feeling under the weather you can never ever underestimate the power of a stranger's smile.

A newcomer to Fairview Strand, I worried that it wasn't going to survive the night - after all, how…read moremany bottles of vitamins can the residents of Dublin 3 buy? However, it has cleverly concentrated on food, offering options for the coeliacs, the allergics, and the just plain fussy. I was particularly taken with the egg-free garlic mayonnaise and the organic coconut milk. It also stocks a range of baby products, environmentally kind detergents and healthy sweets for when your children are being particularly tiresome. "Right, I warned you, now I'm going to get out the liquorice!"

I like to try the whole healthy living once and a while. When the urge hit me again I checked out…read morethis store. I was really impressed by the selection of products in here. They really cover the whole range, from environmentally friendly detergent to healthy sweets for children. A wide variety of soya milk and seeds. Mmm soya milk and seeds, fun-times indeed. I know you want to eat at my place now, and more importantly I know you are jealous of how exciting I must be, soya milk and seeds... Rockstar living baby. It was pricey to me, but as I have learnt health food stores are never on the cheap side. Excellent resource for people with dietary or perhaps skin conditions.