Number 31

The mews door opens, you take several steps across the walled courtyard, then step in the door of No 31, and a glimpse of the Picasso print on the wall signals that you are in that rarest of Dublin destinations: a modernist masterpiece. If you have always wanted to have your own villain’s lair, straight from a James Bond movie starring Sean Connery, then here it is, and literally a step away from Dublin’s Leeson Street. Actually, No 31 is two houses: a 60’s-era modernist mews, and a fine Georgian house that opens onto Fitzwilliam Street. A seamless transition has been effected by the new team who took over in 2017, and a confident and helpful crew unite the two architectural elements with their generous hospitality, whilst great breakfast cooking from the super-talented Delia makes for the perfect start to the day. There is nowhere else – nowhere – quite like No 31: you owe it to your inner Bond villian to stay in this Dublin classic.