♥ Coffee in Dublin//Three: Bibi’s Cafe

The culinary deities have been kind to the denizens of Dublin 8, as there is a delightful café called Bibi’s in the neighbourhood, which serves breakfast and lunch on weekdays and brunch at the weekend.

Bibi’s, which opened in early 2010, is housed in a red brick period building, at the junction of Emorville Avenue and Ovoca Road, (Emorville Avenue is off the South Circular Road).  The tiny interior is an excellent template for small space design.  There are just four tables, a scattering of stools at the bar and some tables outside in the forecourt for sunny-day dining.  The decor is tasteful: a parquet floor, Hans Wenger wishbone chairs, occasional blocks of solid wood, and grey painted walls and woodwork.

It is not juts the decor that strikes the right note, the food is good.  I have had lunch there on previous occasions, but on this visit I just had coffee and a scone.  The scone was the best I have had in a long time. I love that everything is served in/on proper pottery from the ‘Made in Cley’ cooperative (fans of the Rose Bakery will recognize the pottery).

The owner of Bibi’s is Maisha Lenehan; she is a talented Ballymaloe trained cook.  If you recognize the name you are probably a long time reader of Domini Kemp’s excellent Taste column in the Irish Times, Maisha used to do the cooking and food styling for the photographs that accompanied the column.

An added bonus of visiting Bibis is that you can wander about the clothes shop Dolls, which is owned by Maisha’s sister Petria and is in the same building.  Dolls sells an eclectic selection from thoughtfully chosen labels and some of Petria’s own designs.

Bibi’s and Dolls are definitely worth a detour if you are not lucky enough to live close by.

Note; Bibi’s  opening hours: Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm. ; Sat 10am-5pm; ; Sun 12- 5pm.  Bibi’s contact details:eat@bibis.ie , +353 1 4547421,  14b Emorville Avenue, Dublin 8, Ireland.