Outdoor dining: 18 great places to eat outside in Co Cork

Caitlin Ruth's Food Truck
Various locations, Co Cork, instagram.com
After a successful pop-up last summer at Levis' in Ballydehob, chef Caitlin Ruth has decided to take her show on the road and will be popping up all around Co Cork this summer, announcing her locations on Instagram. Expect delicious ingredient-driven dishes showcasing local food and beachside settings. Not to be missed. AD

Craft (Celtic Ross Artisanal Food Truck) 
The Celtic Ross Hotel, Rosscarbery, Co Cork, celticrosshotel.com 
The Celtic Ross Hotel has always been a worthy stop-off thanks to its picturesque setting on the shore of Rosscarbery Bay. The addition of CRAFT, its new food truck serving coffee, cakes, sandwiches and salads, gives even more reason to visit. On weekends they turn it up a notch with dinners and a busy brunch service. Think family-friendly food, featuring lots of local suppliers. AD

Dede at the Customs House 
The Customs House, Baltimore, Co Cork, customshousebaltimore.com 
Landing a Michelin star in a pandemic is a bit spectacular, which pretty much sums up Ahmet Dede and all he has been doing at this Baltimore restaurant since it opened last year. Open daily, there's takeaway picnic food and rotisserie chicken from the deli, Turkish breakfast is cooked in the wood-fired oven, and lunch and dinner, which may include a selection of fish, kebabs and koftas in the outside dining area. Runs from Monday to Wednesday. For a Michelin experience, the €85 fine-dining menu is served from Thursday to Saturday. CH

Good Day Deli 
Garden Cafe, Nano Nagle Place, Douglas Street, Cork, gooddaydeli.ie 
A meal at Good Day Deli, in the elevated gardens of Cork's Nano Nagle Place, should be prescribed as an antidote to the past year. Sheltered outdoor tables line the patio along the glass box containing the restaurant. Garden gazebos are covered and heated, and have some of the best views across the city. Everything on the menu is designed to spark (predominantly meat-free) joy, from the Bushy Berry Pancakes to the Big Kiwi Burger, the apple caramel choux to the raspberry and rose vegan opera cake. LC

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Iyers 
38 Pope's Quay, Cork, facebook.com
The perfect chaats and dosas from Iyers are worth a diversion whatever direction you're going in. Chef/owner Gautham Iyer's pancake-like dosas are light, crisp and incredibly good value, and the accompanying chutneys are the icing on the cake. Almost all of the home-made, wholesome Southern Indian dishes are vegan, and get there early if you want to try his samosa chaat (you do). Takeaway only for now. LC

L'Atitude 51 
1 Union Quay, Cork, latitude51.ie 
It's great to see this much-loved Cork spot back open (pre-pandemic, a fire had closed them down for a considerable time). It is serving an enticing selection of wines by the glass, craft beers and cocktails, along with a simple menu of small plates full of locally sourced food. Ideally you'd nab a seat on its new riverside terrace on a warm sunny day. It also offers weekly wine and food boxes, perfect to be enjoyed at home or as a picnic. AD

Levis' Corner House 
Main Street, Ballydehob, Co Cork, leviscornerhouse.com 
Levis' is a small local pub with a mighty reputation thanks to its traditional vibe, enviable live music programme and more recently its food offering. Last summer Levis' opened its backyard to food trucks and will do the same this year, including having the brilliant Belfast-based Bia Rebel Ramen join them from mid-July to the end of August. It also runs a lovely fruit and vegetable stall from the pub on Wednesdays. AD

Marina Market 
Marina Market, Centre Park Road, Ballintemple, Co Cork, instagram.com
Burnt Pizza, Vegan KO, Lekker, Young Plant, Wild Hogs, Taylors, Hansum Rotisserie, and Guji Coffee are just some of the vendors at the new Marina Market, where the emphasis is on community. Open daily, it features a farmers' market every weekend in June with CRAFT and more added food stalls in a relaxed open-space area with plenty of room for social distancing. CH

Orbit 
Ballycotton Cliffs, Co Cork, instagram.com
Perched on the cliffs in Ballycotton, Sinéad Doran's Orbit food truck will be operating from Friday to Sunday, with plans to trade in Cork city during the week. Grilled cheese toasties, Turkish flatbreads and Sunday brunch will all feature on the menu. Bread is from Arbutus, meats and cheese are from Gubbeen, and coffee is from The Golden Bean Coffee Roasters. CH

Restaurant Chestnut  
The Chestnut Tree, Ballydehob, Co Cork, restaurantchestnutwestcork.ie 
Following on from their picnic baskets last summer, Rob Krawczyk and his partner Elaine Fleming will be offering their Crann Box for guests to collect and picnic with while they enjoy the magnificent surrounds of west Cork. The restaurant won't be opening until indoor dining is permitted, so it is continuing with its three-course Sticks & Twigs meal kit for two, €72, and plan to keep this going for Sunday collection when indoor dining resumes. CH

Saint Francis Provisions 
Market Quay, Kinsale, Co Cork, instagram.com 
A small setup boasting big flavours and outdoor seating makes this a must-visit if you're in Kinsale this summer. It is open in the mornings with Red Strand coffee and freshly baked goods. Lunches are fine sandwiches and market plates featuring their own breads, Irish farmhouse cheese and charcuterie, local vegetables and house-made pickles. Dinner is served on the weekends along with a very covetable five-course meal kit and excellent picnics and platters can be pre-ordered Thursday to Sunday. AD

Sonny's Deli 
3a Marina Villas, Albert Road, Co Cork, sonnysdelicork.clickandcollection.com 
People come from all over to queue for Sonny's stuffed salt-beef Reuben – its signature sandwich, and a nod to the Jewish history residential redbrick area where you'll find this outstanding sandwich bar and deli. The salt beef sandwich is served (and sells out) daily alongside an eclectic takeaway menu featuring kimchi pancakes, colourful salad boxes and curries. This is grab-and-go food at its finest. AD

The Fish Basket 
The Long Strand, Castlefreke, Clonakilty, Co Cork, thefishbasket.ie 
Make sure you're hungry if ordering The Fish Basket's famous sharing box with breaded and battered hake, lemon sole scampi, squid, mushy peas, home-made tartar sauce and hand-cut chips. The fish is local (don't miss the monkfish scampi from Union Hall), the staff are warm and the beachside setting is what Irish summer dreams are made of. LC

The Lodge Bar and Kitchen 
Ballinluska, Myrtleville, Co Cork, thelodgebar.ie 
You could be fooled into thinking that takeaway from The Lodge consists of just burgers and pizza (albeit home-made and locally sourced), but go straight to chef Adam Kavanagh's specials and you could be eating prawn and bacon okonomiyaki, Sarawak laksa or crispy tapioca fried cheese fritters, from its multicultural kitchen. Outdoor dining is available, as well as at its sister restaurant, Bunnyconnelan, around the corner, with spectacular views across the Atlantic. LC

Toons Bridge Dairy 
Toonsbridge, Inchigeela, Co Cork, toonsbridgedairy.com 
No trip to west Cork (or Cork city or Killarney) is complete without a trip to the cheese, charcuterie and cannoli-filled heaven that is Toons Bridge Dairy. The majority of its cheeses are made in the dairy next door (including the ricotta for the cannoli) and no matter how much money you spend here, you won't regret a cent of it. The dream for picnic provisions or sit on the benches in its flower-filled garden or polytunnel. LC

Where Irish Times readers recommend in Co Cork

Dockland Deli & Restaurant
City Quarter, Lapps Quay, Cork, dockland.ie
Tricia O'Callaghan went to Dockland for dinner and says she was impressed by the "great service, really good food, lovely atmosphere, and really well set up for outdoor dining".

Arís
Asna Square, Clonakilty, Co Cork, ariscafe.com
"On sunny days it's like being on Italy or Spain," says Louise Kingston of this cafe in the centre of town. "It's a great spot to watch the world go by. The yellow furniture is beautiful and the outside area is dog-friendly. She rates the "great coffee, cakes, artisan pizza and sandwiches, along with a brilliant wine list".

Cafe Townhouse
Doneraile, Co Cork, townhousedoneraile.ie
"This place makes me feel like some level of normality is returning to our lives," says Elaine H. She also mentions the "amazing outdoor setting in a walled courtyard just outside Doneraile Park, and says: "It is great for breakfast or lunch followed by a walk. Also now open until 6pm on Friday and Saturday serving a new wine and cocktail menu. Which I am looking forward to trying."

Restaurant critic Corinna Hardgrave's top pick

Dede at the Customs House 
The Customs House, Baltimore, Co Cork, customshousebaltimore.com 
The outdoor space at this one-Michelin-star restaurant is cosy and atmospheric, with a wood burning stove, Athena pyramid flame heaters, sheepskin rugs and blankets. A large Perspex roof covers half of the area. With no time restrictions for dining, Ahmet Dede now offers an eight-course menu for €89, much of it cooked over flame and in the outdoor wood burning oven.