If you don’t bring your mammy out somewhere nice for Mother’s Day, she’ll hold a silent Irish grudge against you forever more.
There’s no shortage of restaurants with special Mother’s Day offers. At Koh, which we reviewed last week, and at Wagamama, mums eat for free. Green Nineteen in Camden Street, where all mains cost €10, is a reliable and affordable option if you’re feeling the pinch. Meanwhile, The Tea Rooms at the Clarence Hotel have a special Mother’s Day menu: four courses for €34.
Eden restaurant at Bellinter House in Navan, Co. Meath comes highly recommended by my sister and her friends. You’ll get a two course Sunday lunch for €25; three courses cost €30. One night’s bed and breakfast, dinner cooked by Myrtle Allen, and a treatment at Ballymaloe House will cost €170 (not cheap but possibly worth it).
My two sisters and I might take mum down to the Gastropub in Dun Laoghaire, where four of us will get a really good quality Sunday lunch for €30. Another option is The Roundwood Inn in Co. Wicklow; if it’s sunny this would be a nice place for lunch, followed by a nice walk.
A few weeks ago, The Irish Times had some more good suggestions, recommending some great spots in Wicklow, the G Hotel in Galway, Clontarf Castle and the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin, or a shopping trip to Newry.
Cynically, I suspect that Mother’s Day in a restaurant or cafe will be somewhat like Valentine’s night: lower standards and sloppier service.
Have you noticed any good special lunch or dinner offers for Mother’s Day?