Restaurant in Howth, Ireland
Howth's most consistent kitchen. Book ahead.
Mamó is the most serious kitchen in Howth: a Michelin Plate holder for two consecutive years, built around local seafood, Wicklow pork, and Boyne Valley cheeses. At €€€, with a punky-chic bistro room and a team that treats dessert as seriously as the first course, it earns its place as the default dinner booking for any visit to the peninsula.
Mamó is the right call for anyone planning a dinner that actually means something: a birthday, an anniversary, or a long-overdue catch-up where the food should be as good as the conversation. At €€€, it sits at a price point that rewards the occasion without requiring a special financial justification. First-timers to Howth who want a meal that reflects where they are, rather than a generic bistro menu, will find this is the most coherent expression of the peninsula's seafood and Irish produce available. If you are visiting Howth for the day and debating whether to push dinner to somewhere back in Dublin, the answer is to stay — and book here.
What Mamó does technically well is restraint. The kitchen works with a tight roster of Irish ingredients — Boyne Valley cheeses, Winetavern Farm pork from Wicklow, and seafood landed at the harbour across the road , and the cooking approach is to clarify rather than obscure. Michelin recognised this with a Plate in both 2024 and 2025, an award that signals consistent, careful cooking rather than a one-season flash. For a first-timer, the through-line to understand is this: the kitchen is not trying to reinterpret Irish food into something international. It is doing the harder thing, which is making Irish ingredients taste precisely like themselves, cooked with enough technique that nothing is wasted.
The cod chip is the detail that tells you everything about this kitchen's priorities. Described in public coverage as a candidate for the most precisely formed amuse-bouche on the west coast, it represents a kitchen that thinks seriously about proportion, texture, and what a single bite should communicate. Desserts are flagged as a consistent highlight, so do not treat them as optional , this is a kitchen where the final course carries as much intention as the first.
The cooking style here lines up with what you will find at serious Irish producers-focused restaurants like Aniar in Galway, Liath in Blackrock, or dede in Baltimore, but Mamó's location in Howth gives it a specificity those kitchens cannot replicate: the seafood is genuinely local, sourced from the working harbour metres away.
Format is bistro, not tasting menu. You start with a drink in the ground-floor bar before moving up to the dining room, which sets the tone well: this is a considered experience, not a rushed one. The room has been described as punky-chic, with starched linen and good glassware alongside a more relaxed energy than the formal dining rooms at, say, Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen or Terre in Castlemartyr. The team's background at the Mermaid Café in Dublin comes through in how the floor operates: attentive without being stiff. For a first-timer, expect a meal that runs at a comfortable pace with staff who know the menu's sourcing story.
Google rating of 4.8 across 386 reviews is a useful data point here. At that volume and average, Mamó is consistently delivering for a wide range of diners, not just a self-selecting audience of fine dining regulars. That breadth of appeal across both occasion diners and casual visitors is not common at this price tier.
Reservations: Book in advance; given the Michelin recognition and limited Howth dining options at this quality level, tables fill on weekends. Booking is rated Easy, so you should not face the multi-week waits common at comparable Michelin-recognised restaurants in Dublin. Still, do not leave it to the day of. Budget: €€€, which in an Irish context puts this in the range of a considered dinner spend without reaching the €€€€ tier of venues like Aniar or Bastion in Kinsale. Dress: Smart-casual is the appropriate read for a room with starched linen and good glassware; the atmosphere is relaxed but the setting is not informal. Getting there: Mamó is on Harbour Road in Howth, directly on the seafront. Howth is accessible by DART from Dublin city centre, making this a realistic dinner destination without needing a car. Address: Harbour House, Harbour Rd, Howth, Dublin, D13 E9H9.
Howth is not overloaded with serious restaurants, which makes Mamó's presence more significant than it would be in a denser dining scene. If you are building a full day or weekend around Howth, the full Howth restaurants guide covers the broader options, and the Howth hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide are worth consulting alongside this. For reference, other serious Irish contemporary kitchens worth knowing in the national context include Campagne in Kilkenny, Chestnut in Ballydehob, Homestead Cottage in Doolin, House in Ardmore, and Lady Helen in Thomastown. Internationally, the combination of produce-led cooking with clean technical execution at a bistro format has parallels at César in New York City and Jungsik in Seoul, though neither shares Mamó's specific coastal Irish sourcing context.
Book Mamó for any meal that needs to be good and feel genuinely local to Howth. The Michelin Plate across two consecutive years confirms consistent kitchen standards. The produce sourcing is as tight as it gets for this location. The price is fair for the quality on the plate. Go for the cod chip, do not skip dessert, and arrive early enough to have a drink downstairs first.
Start with a drink in the ground-floor bar before heading up to the bistro dining room , that transition is part of how the evening is meant to unfold. The menu is built around Irish ingredients with a strong emphasis on local seafood from Howth Harbour, Wicklow pork, and Boyne Valley cheeses. The cod chip amuse-bouche has been publicly cited as a highlight, and desserts are consistently strong, so treat the full meal as the package rather than editing courses out. The atmosphere is smart-casual: linen tablecloths and good glassware, but not stiff. A 4.8 Google rating across 386 reviews tells you this kitchen delivers reliably, not just on occasion.
At €€€, yes. You are getting Michelin Plate-recognised cooking with genuinely local sourcing, in a room that is more enjoyable than most Dublin restaurants at a comparable spend. For the same money in Dublin you would be at a solid but less distinctive mid-range restaurant. Here the setting, sourcing specificity, and two-year Michelin track record make the price defensible. If your benchmark is €€€€ venues like Aniar or Bastion, Mamó is noticeably better value while operating at a comparable seriousness of intent.
Yes, specifically because the format works well for occasions: a pre-dinner drink downstairs, a proper dining room upstairs, attentive floor staff, and a kitchen that takes dessert seriously. The room has energy without being loud. At €€€ it is a considered spend without the formality of a four-star hotel dining room. Anniversary dinners, significant birthdays, and important work dinners are all well-served here.
Booking is rated Easy relative to Michelin-recognised peers, so you are not dealing with the two-to-three week minimum that venues like Chapter One require. That said, weekend evenings in a location with limited high-quality alternatives will fill, so booking at least a week out for Friday or Saturday is sensible. Midweek is more forgiving. Do not assume walk-ins will work for dinner.
Mamó operates as a bistro rather than a structured tasting menu venue, so the question is less about a set progression and more about how much of the menu you commit to. Based on the kitchen's profile, ordering broadly , including the cod chip if offered, and staying for dessert , will give you the fullest read on what the kitchen does well. Skipping courses to save money at a kitchen where desserts are flagged as a consistent highlight is a false economy.
Within Howth specifically, Mamó is the strongest option at this quality level for contemporary Irish cooking. If you want to compare options across the broader Dublin and Irish dining scene, Liath in Blackrock is the closest peer in terms of produce-led Irish cooking with Michelin recognition, and is worth considering if you are based south of the city. For the full picture of what is available locally, the Howth restaurants guide covers the range.
Smart-casual. The room has starched linen and proper glassware, but the vibe is relaxed rather than formal. You will not feel out of place in a jacket without a tie, or in a smart dress without being overdressed. Showing up in hiking gear from the cliff walk would be jarring; showing up in a suit is not necessary.
The menu is built around a seasonal roster of Irish produce, which gives the kitchen flexibility. Contact the restaurant directly to flag specific dietary requirements when booking, as is standard practice at bistro-format restaurants at this level. No specific dietary accommodation information is available in the public record, so do not assume anything is handled without confirming in advance.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mamó | Contemporary | An experienced couple run this friendly bistro located in a pleasant spot on Howth seafront; start with a drink in the ground-floor bar before heading up to the bistro-style dining room. Irish ingredients are the bedrock of the menu, including Boyne Valley cheeses, Winetavern Farm pork from Wicklow and plenty of seafood from the harbour just over the road. This produce is fashioned into fresh, flavoursome dishes that are carefully cooked and neatly presented. Stick around for dessert, as it’s likely to be a highlight.; Michelin Plate (2025); Jess D’Arcy and Killian Durkin met each other on their first day of working at Dublin’s iconic Mermaid Café. While Mamo has starched linen and good glassware, they have kept that punky Mermaid vibe, making it one of the nicest rooms to eat on the east coast, a punky-chic temple to good eating. The team work in lockstep, delivering a beautiful experience of Irish food and hospitality. Durkin’s culinary style seeks out the relish in superbly sourced ingredients while delivering clean cooking. First-time visitors have to try the legendary cod chip, described as “possibly the most perfectly formed amuse-bouche snack in the western hemisphere”.; Michelin Plate (2024) | Easy | — |
| Patrick Guilbaud | Irish - French, Modern French | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Aniar | Modern Irish, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Bastion | Progressive American, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| LIGИUM | Creative | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Host | Nordic , Modern Cuisine | Unknown | — |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
The room has starched linen and good glassware, but the vibe is described as 'punky-chic' rather than formal. Dress neatly — smart casual fits well — but you won't need a jacket. Think dinner-out rather than black tie.
Howth has few restaurants operating at Mamó's quality level, so direct local alternatives are limited. If you're willing to travel into Dublin, Aniar in Galway-style or Host in the city offer comparable Irish-produce-driven cooking. For the harbour setting specifically, Mamó is the clear first choice.
The venue database doesn't specify a dietary policy. Given the bistro format and a menu built around a tight roster of Irish ingredients, it's worth contacting them directly before booking — especially if you have seafood allergies, given how central harbour produce is to the kitchen.
Book at least two to three weeks ahead for weekend dinners. Mamó holds a Michelin Plate in both 2024 and 2025, and Howth has limited competition at this quality level, which means tables fill faster than the location might suggest. Weeknight availability is likely easier.
Yes — the format suits it well. You start with drinks in the ground-floor bar before moving upstairs to the dining room, which gives the meal a clear arc. The combination of Michelin Plate recognition, Irish provenance on the plate, and a room described as one of the nicest on the east coast makes it a credible choice for a birthday or anniversary.
At €€€, Mamó sits in the higher tier for Howth, but the value case is solid: two consecutive Michelin Plates signal consistent kitchen quality, and the ingredients — Boyne Valley cheeses, Wicklow pork, harbour seafood — are sourced at a level that justifies the pricing. If you're comparing it to a Dublin city restaurant at the same price point, the setting tips the balance further in Mamó's favour.
Mamó operates as a bistro, not a tasting menu restaurant. The format is à la carte with courses, not a set progression — which suits diners who want control over pacing and spend. If you specifically want a tasting menu experience, you'd be better served elsewhere; if bistro-style with serious sourcing is your preference, this is the right room.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
