mae

Mae, Dublin: Pearl Verdict

Mae is a Michelin Plate-recognised tasting menu restaurant in Ballsbridge that operates on daytime hours only, closing at 5 pm every day. If you are looking for an evening tasting menu in Dublin, this is not the booking — but if you are free for a long, considered lunch or a late-morning session, it is one of the more focused and satisfying ways to spend €€€ in the city. Book it. Just know the window is narrower than you might expect.

The Case For Booking Mae

The scarcity here is real. Mae holds the Michelin Plate (2025) and an Opinionated About Dining ranking (Gourmet Casual Dining, Recommended 2023; Casual Dining #769, 2024), yet it operates out of a small first-floor room above the French Paradox wine shop on Shelbourne Road. The seat count is not published, but the room is described in the awards record as small and clubbable. That means availability moves quickly, especially on weekends when the room opens at 7 am and the kitchen is running a deliberate, structured menu. Book as far ahead as you can; this is not a walk-in spot.

The physical set-up matters to your decision. The fact that mae sits directly above a wine shop is not incidental. The awards record specifically flags that opting for a wine pairing here is a smart call, given the direct access to the French Paradox list below. For food and wine travellers who want context and specificity in what they are drinking alongside a tasting menu, this arrangement is more considered than most Dublin restaurants at this price point. The setting has a quiet, tucked-away quality that suits a long, unhurried meal rather than a quick stop.

Lunch Is The Only Option — And That Changes The Calculus

Mae's daytime-only hours (Monday to Friday 6:30 am–5 pm, Saturday and Sunday 7 am–5 pm) make this a lunch or brunch proposition, full stop. That is not a drawback if your schedule allows it; tasting menus at lunch tend to cost less in most cities, and the experience at mae is structured as a proper tasting format with snacks, daily-made sourdough, a choice of main, and dessert. Compared to the evening tasting menu format you would encounter at Bastible or Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen, mae delivers a tighter, more compact version of the same ambition. Whether that trades favourably depends on your appetite and your afternoon schedule.

For food-focused travellers planning a Dublin itinerary around meals, mae works exceptionally well as the main event of a day in Ballsbridge, building in time for the wine selection from the French Paradox downstairs before or after. Pair it with an evening at Glovers Alley or D'Olier Street for a fuller day of eating. If you only have one meal slot and want dinner, look elsewhere in this guide.

What The Awards Record Tells You

The Michelin Plate is a meaningful signal: it indicates cooking that is good enough to watch closely, even if it has not yet landed a star. The Opinionated About Dining listing reinforces that assessment from a different, diner-driven angle. Chef-Owner Gráinne O'Keeffe's approach, as described in the awards record, centres on ingredient pairings that reward the palate directly: whiskey and chocolate, scallops and brown butter, Wicklow venison with boudin noir. These are not experimental combinations for their own sake; they are flavour-led decisions that the kitchen executes with consistency.

In game season specifically, the awards record singles out the sika deer as the dish not to skip, and the tarte Tatin as the signature dessert that the kitchen has built its reputation around. If you are visiting in autumn or winter, time your booking to catch the venison. That is the kind of timing detail that separates a good meal from the meal you remember.

For comparison with other Irish chefs operating at a similar level of recognition, Liath in Blackrock, Aniar in Galway, and Terre in Castlemartyr are all worth benchmarking against. Further afield, Bastion in Kinsale and Campagne in Kilkenny operate in a similar register. Mae is the only one in this group running exclusively on daytime hours, which makes it genuinely different in format even if the cooking ambition is comparable.

Practical Details

Address: 53 Shelbourne Rd, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4. Hours: Monday–Friday 6:30 am–5 pm; Saturday–Sunday 7 am–5 pm. Booking difficulty: Easy in principle, but the small room means availability goes fast at peak weekend slots , book ahead. Price range: €€€. Dress: No dress code is published; the room is described as cosy and clubbable, so smart-casual is a reasonable call. Wine: Pairings are available and worth taking, given the French Paradox wine shop directly below. Google rating: 4.8 from 163 reviews. Awards: Michelin Plate (2024, 2025); Opinionated About Dining Recommended (2023, 2024).

If you are building a broader Dublin trip around food and drink, our full Dublin restaurants guide covers the full range of options, from quick lunch spots to multi-course evening menus. For where to stay, see our Dublin hotels guide. Our Dublin bars guide, Dublin wineries guide, and Dublin experiences guide are also available for planning purposes.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Can mae accommodate groups? The room is described as small, so large groups are likely impractical. The intimate, first-floor space suits parties of two to four better than larger tables. If you are organising a group dinner in Dublin, venues with more published capacity , such as Patrick Guilbaud or Chapter One , are more reliable options. Contact mae directly to confirm what they can accommodate before committing a large party.
• What should I order at mae? The tasting menu is the format here, so ordering is structured rather than a la carte. Based on the awards record, the sika deer in game season is the dish to prioritise, and the tarte Tatin is the dessert the kitchen is known for. On the drinks side, take the wine pairing , the French Paradox shop below is the direct supplier, which makes the wine list more interesting than average at this price point.
• Is mae worth the price? At €€€, mae delivers Michelin Plate-level cooking in a setting that feels personal rather than formal. If you compare it to Dublin's €€€€ tasting menu options , Bastible or Patrick Guilbaud , you are spending less for a meal that the same critical bodies recognise. The daytime-only format limits when you can go, but it does not limit what the kitchen delivers. Worth it, especially if game season timing is on your side.
• What should I wear to mae? No dress code is listed. The room is cosy and described as clubbable rather than formal, so smart-casual works. You are not walking into a white-tablecloth dining room; this is a relaxed first-floor space with serious cooking. Treat it like a good neighbourhood restaurant rather than a special-occasion formal dinner.
• What are alternatives to mae in Dublin? For evening tasting menus at a similar or slightly higher price, Glovers Alley and D'Olier Street are the closest comparisons. For a step up in formality and price, Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen is the city's most technically ambitious kitchen. If budget is a consideration, Host at €€ offers a more accessible entry point into Dublin's modern dining scene. Mae's daytime-only format is genuinely distinct among these options, so if your schedule allows a long lunch, it is not directly substitutable by any of them.