- Overall Winner: Noble, Holywood, A bustling neighbourhood restaurant in Holywood offering exceptional contemporary dining with a focus on local ingredients and bold flavours, it secured the top honour through its outstanding blend of refined cooking, impeccable service, and elegant surroundings that created truly memorable dining experiences for every guest.
- Café: Cultura Belfast: this vibrant café captured attention with its carefully sourced coffees, fresh baked goods, and relaxed yet stylish setting that made it a favourite destination for locals and visitors seeking quality and comfort.
- Casual Dining: Buck’s Head Inn Dundrum: this welcoming spot excelled in delivering hearty, flavourful dishes in a relaxed atmosphere, with a strong emphasis on seasonal ingredients and warm, efficient service that enhanced every visit.
- Chef: Sean Tinman, Frae, Holywood: this skilled chef was recognised for his creative vision, technical precision, and ability to craft beautifully balanced plates that showcased both innovation and respect for fine ingredients.
- Contemporary Irish Cuisine: Origin 101 Moira: this restaurant impressed with its modern take on Irish classics, using premium local produce to deliver elegant, thoughtful dishes that celebrated regional flavours with contemporary flair.
- Customer Service: Frae Holywood: this establishment stood out for its consistently attentive and knowledgeable team, whose genuine warmth and professionalism ensured every diner felt welcomed and well looked after.
- Employee Excellence Award Mine Bennet, Noble Holywood: this outstanding team member was celebrated for her dedication, positive energy, and consistently high standards that greatly contributed to the smooth and enjoyable running of the restaurant.
- Gastro Pub The Dirty Duck Alehouse Holywood: this gastro pub delivered a perfect balance of traditional pub charm and elevated food offerings, with a carefully chosen menu and friendly service that appealed to a wide range of guests.
- Hotel and Guesthouse: Newforge House, Magheralin: this beautiful property combined luxurious accommodation with excellent dining, set within peaceful grounds that provided a tranquil and memorable stay for visitors.
- Innovator: Underground Dining Bangor: this creative concept brought fresh and exciting ideas to the local scene, offering unique dining experiences that challenged conventions while maintaining strong appeal and quality.
- Local Food Hero: Melissa McCabe, Feast Rostrevor: this dedicated individual was honoured for her passionate promotion of local producers and ingredients, significantly supporting the regional food community through her work.
- Newcomer: Capparelli at The Mill Dundonald: this promising new venue quickly established itself with its appealing menu, inviting atmosphere, and enthusiastic service that showed excellent potential for the future.
- Restaurant manager: Davina McGowan, Wine and Brine, Moira: this manager was recognised for her effective leadership, attention to detail, and ability to foster a positive environment that benefited both staff and customers alike.
- Pub: Dundrum Inn Dundrum: this classic pub offered a genuine and inviting experience, with well-prepared comfort food, a friendly atmosphere, and traditional hospitality that captured the heart of local pub culture.
- Sustainable Practices: Clandeboye Lodge Hotel Bangor: this hotel demonstrated strong commitment to sustainability through responsible sourcing, eco-friendly practices, and thoughtful operations that minimised environmental impact while maintaining high standards.
- Use of Social Media: The Dirty Duck Alehouse Holywood: this gastro pub excelled in its engaging and effective social media presence, creatively showcasing its offerings and building a lively community around its brand and events.
- Wine Experience Maggies Wine Bar Crossgar: this charming wine bar impressed with its thoughtfully curated selection, expert guidance from staff, and excellent pairings that enhanced the overall enjoyment of food and wine together.
- World Cuisine: Lasa Belfast: this restaurant brought authentic and vibrant international flavours to the table, delivering skilfully prepared dishes in a welcoming setting that celebrated global culinary traditions with passion and expertise.
Georgina Campbell Awards
- Neighbourhood Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year: Wine and Brine, Moira, A stylish and welcoming restaurant in the heart of Moira village, celebrated for its modern seasonal cooking, pickling, fermenting, and a decade of community success.
Good Food Ireland Awards
- Finalist, Restaurant of the Year: Underground Dining, Bangor, An acclaimed venue in Bangor noted for exceptional culinary experiences using high-quality Irish ingredients (joint overall winners were elsewhere, but this was a strong finalist from County Down).
- Food Lovers’ Choice Award: Underground Dining, Bangor, Voted by the public as a favourite food and drink experience in the region for its outstanding offerings.
Michelin Guide
- Bib Gourmand: Noble, Holywood, A neighbourhood favourite offering excellent value with high-quality, flavourful dishes in a lively setting.
- Bib Gourmand: Wine and Brine, Moira, Known for bold, seasonal cooking with creative techniques like pickling and fermenting in a charming village location.
- Recommended: Bucks Head, Dundrum, A revamped historic pub serving proudly Irish cuisine with generous dishes, highlighted for its signature seafood chowder using local produce like Mourne lamb and Kilkeel crab.
Restaurant award winners
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow – Overall – County winners – Good Food Ireland – Michelin Star
Dining
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
2026 Irish Restaurant awards by county:
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
2025 Irish Restaurant awards by county:
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
2024 Irish Restaurant awards by county:
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
Down
Down offers a mix of historic sites and scenic landscapes, with Downpatrick’s Saint Patrick Centre and cathedral providing insights into Ireland’s patron saint. The Mourne Mountains offer hiking trails with sweeping views, while Strangford Lough provides kayaking and wildlife spotting. Other attractions include the historic Tollymore Forest Park. Down is Ireland’s 12th largest county by size (2,447 square km) and fourth largest by population (553,261). Population peaked at 361,446 in 1841 and reached its lowest point, 204,303, in 1911. In terms of hospitality, Down is Ireland’s 18th most visited tourist county with around 127,000 international visitors per year.
Introduction – Adventure – Anthem – Archaeology – Attractions – Awards – Birdwatching – Camping – Castles – Churches – Contact list – Cycling – Dining – Equestrian – Festivals – Fishing – Folklore – Gardens – Golf – Graveyards – Happening – Haunted – Highest – Hiking – History – Holy Wells – Hotels – Hotels8 – Instagrammable – Itineraries – Largest town – Luxury – MICE – Movies – Musicians – New – Name – Novelists – Off the beaten track – Poets – Pubs – Quotes – Random Facts – Restaurant Awards – Sacred Places – Saints – Spas – Sports – Sunsets– Sustainable – Things to do – Towns – Video – Villages – Walking – Wanderlist – Weddings – Wild swimming – Writers – 1837 – 1846 – 1852 – 1909 – 1955 – 1980 –
