The Happiest Café in Ireland: The Happy Pear, Greystones

So last Sunday Mr. FFID and I decided to walk from Bray to Greystones, with the plan of rewarding ourselves with food afterwards. To be honest the little glutton inside me would have gone for pizza from Gaillot and Gray but it wasn't opened yet so we decided to go to The Happy Pear for our first visit ever.

Now to tell you the truth, except from breakfast I don't eat very healthy and I tend to cringe when people try to convert others to a super healthy lifestyle. That's said I've always admired what David and Stephen Flynn, the twins behind The Happy Pear have built, a real healthy food empire and community. I mean come on, two good looking guys who constantly smile, make Irish people eat healthy, do videos on Jamie Oliver's Food Tube, wrote a cookbook and never seem tired or in a bad mood, that's pretty inspiring stuff.

I've passed by The Happy Pear on a many a Sunday and it's always packed. We had to queue to order food and even though it was a little chaotic with people all over the place the staff seemed very much in control. There was a choice of healthy breakfast options, pitta, salads, soups and two mains, there was also a display of homemade healthy treats.

After getting our food we went upstairs where the room was packed. We both had a main course with a salad for €9.95 each. The main was a 'Normandy bake', a substantial vegetable gratin with leeks, potatoes, butter beans and a creamy sauce, very comforting and heart-warming after a long November walk.

My salad had carrots, spinach leaves, mung beans and a delicious dressing that I think had sesame oil in it. Mr. FFID's salad had lots of crunchy veg and everything was vibrant and fresh. It really did the job and without noticing it we ate a full plate of healthy vegetables and felt nice and full.

After our feed we did a bit of food shopping in their great little grocery shop downstairs.

They have breads from The Firehouse bakery, a colourful range of organic fruit and vegetables, as well as plenty of other great products to fill your pantry.

Right now every single cookbook being released is about healthy food and healthy cafes seem to pop out everywhere in Dublin city centre. What is different about the Happy Pear is that they've been here before every one else and genuinely pioneered their healthy lifestyle, not because it is fashionable or in order to make money, but because they obviously believe in it and I admire them for that.

The Happy Pear
Church Town
Greystones
co. Wicklow
Website


This is an independent review, I paid for my meal.