Dublin and Cork: Visit Ireland's high-spirited cities for the perfect short break

For most people, the thought of spending a long weekend in Dublin and Cork conjures an image of sitting in cosy pubs drinking a few pints of Guinness and enjoying the “craic”.

Few will probably think of Ireland’s two biggest cities as destinations for foodie breaks, but a sudden growth in artisan food producers embracing popular trends in Britain and on the continent is changing this.

A great introduction is provided by Fab Food Trails in Dublin.

It employs restaurateurs, food critics and food writers to take small groups on tours around the city, sampling produce such as Irish blue cheese, local charcuterie, seafood caught in Dublin Bay, fine chocolate and pizzas cooked in Italian wood-fired ovens.

A highlight of our tour was the Powerscourt shopping centre, a large Georgian building converted into more than 40 shops and restaurants. 

After browsing through its bespoke jewellery, antiques and clothes stores, The Pepper Pot is the perfect place to rest your feet while sampling its homemade bagels, sandwiches and cakes.

A short walk took us back to our hotel, The Westbury, which combines timeless elegance with modern luxury and great service in its 1930s-themed bar and restaurant.

Afternoon tea is served in the spacious Gallery, with comfy armchairs to recline in while watching the hustle and bustle of the streets outside.

White-jacketed bartenders fixed us stylish cocktails in The Sidecar, the hotel’s Gatsby-esque bar, before we headed down to its newly refurbished Wilde restaurant, which has floor-to-ceiling windows to create the feel of alfresco dining.

I enjoyed a delicious three-course dinner, including sublime Cooleeney mac and cheese, cauliflower with pomegranate, lobster mash and thick-cut truffle and pecorino chips. 

To walk off some of the calories, it’s worth visiting the Little Museum of Dublin to join one of the hourly guided tours around its exhibition of life in the city throughout the 20th century, from the visit of Queen Victoria in 1900, through to more recent phenomena, like the global success of the band U2.

A three-hour drive south brought us to Cork, Ireland’s second biggest city, situated on the River Lee, and founded by Viking invaders in 915AD.

We stayed at The River Lee Hotel on the bank of one of the river channels, with its bedrooms offering stunning views across the city.

Cork’s English Market is a good starting point to sample the organic, locally produced food on offer in the city.

The Queen made a well-publicised visit to this covered market in 2011, bursting into laughter at a joke by fishmonger Pat O’Connell, who quipped that an ugly monkfish was nicknamed “the mother-in-law fish”. 

His stall is one of many family run businesses that do a roaring trade at the market, which has also welcomed newer additions like health food and raw-food sellers.

A five-minute walk brought us to the Franciscan Well Brewery, on the site of a former monastery, which has been at the forefront of a surge in popularity of craft beer in Ireland.

In a tie-up with Jameson Irish Whiskey, the brewery also produces a pale ale and an aged stout stored in whiskey casks for a unique flavour, while Jameson makes a whiskey aged in Franciscan Wells beer barrels.

Sampling these worked up an appetite for our final dinner in The Weir Rooms at my hotel, where we sampled cuts of meat and cheese seen at the market earlier in the day.

All that was left was to retire to the hotel’s terrace overlooking the river and ponder a weekend to remember with a pint of a Shandon Stout from the nearby micro-brewery.

Rooms at The Westbury start at 260 euros (£228) per night for b&b. Rates at The River Lee start at 150 euros (£132) per night for b&b.

For more information on Ireland, visit ireland.com.