A 40th birthday is significant, particularly when it marks only one part of a family’s legacy. The Buckleys opened their first steakhouse on Pembroke Street in Dublin in 1986, but the name goes back over two centuries – to a butcher’s shop that was established on Bull Alley beside St Patrick’s Cathedral in 1793. Francis Xavier Buckley opened on Moore Street in 1930.
The door handle is a (thankfully, dull) meat cleaver, clearly signalling the carnivorous focus here, and as I walk in there’s evidence of past good times in the empty bottles of serious provenance – Château Pétrus, Château d’Yquem, Vega Sicilia Único, Tignanello – lining a glass cabinet that runs along the entrance. When we turn left into the smaller dining room, it serves as a wall.
A group of men have settled in at a wooden table opposite us, deep in chat about meat. White butcher’s tiles line the wall behind them, and framed black-and-white photographs of butchers and markets nod to the family’s history. To the right, the larger dining room is moody and low-lit, a pressed tin ceiling dispersing the light from a row of amber hanging lamps. It feels like it hasn’t changed since the day it opened – though I imagine it has – with the patina on the dark wooden floor lending it authenticity.
Everything at FX Buckley comes in a tome – the menu, with its clear explanation of cuts and cooking guide, and the wine list, which has held the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence since 2022 and was named Star Wine List of the Year 2026 for Best Medium-Sized List. It’s a serious, old-school steakhouse list, with plenty from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Italy and California, and prices ranging from €35 for a Sicilian Grillo to €17,000 for Pétrus 2000.
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The meat hangs on the bone for 28 days in an ageing cabinet lined with Himalayan salt in the Buckleys’ Rathcoole butchery, with Irish ex-dairy côte de bœuf aged for a minimum of 60 days. It’s for two, and tempting at €15 per 100g – I’ve only had the Spanish version – but I want to try the fish. So it’s striploin on the bone (€40.50) and Cornish sole meunière (€36), also known as megrim.
It’s a classic menu – devilled kidneys, scallops, beef tartare – but we start more classic still with Achill Island oysters (€12 for three) and chicken liver and foie gras parfait (€16). The bracingly fresh oysters, served over ice, come with a choice of mignonette (finely chopped shallots and red wine vinegar) and a more assertive house horseradish sauce (ketchup, horseradish and Tabasco).
A Madeira jelly with soused raisins brings an indulgent edge to the parfait which is light and creamy, spreading easily over thick slices of toasted brioche. It pairs well with a Beaujolais Villages Domaine “Grants Bleus” De Bel Air 2023 (€46), a juicy red that also works with the fish and the steak.
The megrim is handled well. It’s a delicate fish with a fine flake, and here it arrives pale gold, topped with parsley and browned butter, with a wedge of lemon for balance. I’d have preferred the spinach sautéed rather than creamed, but it’s well made, the light béchamel and Parmesan adding richness.
A Josper grill, imported from Spain, brings a glorious crust to the large striploin steak, the high-temperature cooking over charcoal adding a distinct smokiness. It arrives medium rare as ordered, charred around the bone, juicy inside and the dry-aged yellow fat dripping with buttery flavour. Shoestring onions are crisp and tasty, and the beef dripping chips and Béarnaise sauce are divine.
I always like to do the wobble test on panna cotta, but not this time as the espresso panna cotta (€11) comes in a jar, with added height gained by an effusion of Chantilly cream. It is firmer than I would expect and perhaps a bit too light on the coffee.
Also on the dessert menu is Buckley’s Irish coffee (€10), made with Tullamore Dew whiskey. This is the dessert to order, the cream poured carefully so it floats on top, dusted with freshly grated nutmeg. It is a benchmark example.
I’m not sure if FX Buckley is Dublin’s first steakhouse, but it feels like the original. It has seen Shanahan’s come and go, and held its own against newer arrivals such as Hawksmoor on Dame Street. It’s at the premium end for a night out, but it delivers on what it promises. The steaks are excellent, and the quality of the produce is impeccable.
Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was €180.50.
The verdict: Top notch dry-aged steaks cooked on a Josper grill
Food provenance: Kelly oysters, bacon from Crowe’s Farm, and Gold River Farm salad
Vegetarian options: Caesar salad, roast parsnip with miso purée, and sides
Wheelchair access: Fully accessible with an accessible toilet.
Music: Background
