The Pepper Pot

Ariosa single origin and a house cold brew

The coffee is taken as seriously as the baking. The Pepper Pot buys single origin beans from Ariosa, a small Irish owned roastery in County Meath that sources speciality coffees directly from growers and roasts them itself, and the cafe changes the bean it features from month to month, so asking the barista what is on is a real question rather than a courtesy. It also developed its own cold brew for the daily list. That sits inside a broader daytime identity, a first floor cafe and bakery describing itself as a quirky tea room, built on cakes, all-day breakfast, salads and sandwiches.

A balcony above Powerscourt

The room does a lot of the work. The cafe occupies the first floor of the Georgian Powerscourt Townhouse Centre in Dublin and spills onto a balcony looking down over the courtyard, which is why people treat it as a destination rather than a convenience. Inside it is rustic and unforced: the bar and kitchen sit against the old brick walls of the Georgian building, the light is natural, and the plates, bowls and jugs are mismatched, with different chairs at different tables. The bakery is the backbone. Breads and cakes are baked daily using traditional methods and a degree of experimenting, and seasonal, local produce runs through the food, including handmade jams and chutneys made for the breakfasts, bakes and sandwiches. Blackboard specials set the daily rhythm, and the staff steer matters as much as the board, since a good part of what is worth eating on any given day is whatever came out of the oven that morning.

Order the pear, bacon and Fifteen Fields cheddar

The roast pear, bacon and Fifteen Fields cheddar sandwich is the dish to order first, and the one that shows what the kitchen does with Irish produce on its own bread. Around it, the range covers all-day breakfast, lunch through the week, a separate weekend brunch, salads, sandwiches, bagels, soups, cakes, scones, freshly squeezed juices, freshly baked loaves and take-home goods such as house dressings. A scone with a cup of the month's Ariosa bean is the shorter version of the same visit. Iced drinks including coffee, tea and matcha are on the list too, but the strongest thread remains the single origin programme and the daily bake behind the counter.