Dublin’s top toasties

This guide kicks off in the heart of Dublin, just across from St Stephens Green. Meltdown started out in 2018 as a pop-up toastie van on Stephen Street Lower. The toastie van and its founder Maeve O’Malley, toured around various cultural and artisan venues, as well as food festival Eat Yard. In 2019, Meltdown’s signature ‘Hot Stuff’ hot sauce hit supermarket shelves and the toastie pop-up found a permanent home on Leeson Street.
Enough about Meltdown’s brilliant story however, let’s get down to business. The Meltdown menu gives a little warning that lots of cheese is piled onto its toasties, but the staff are happy to reduce the load on request. All of the toasties sit below the €10 mark, which provides an ideal space for nearby Trinity College students and office workers to grab a delicious lunch. We’d recommend trying the “Ballymaloe Melt” featuring some stellar relish and white cheddar cheese. If you’re up for trying something different, try the ‘Smoked Fungi’ toastie, featuring mushrooms, applewood smoked cheddar, and the signature sauce. Both toasties are around the €8.50 mark.
All of Meltdown’s suppliers and farm sources can be found on the menu, which shows a real support of the sources. Meltdown also offer an extensive breakfast burrito menu, and have an excellent wine list for the evenings, with ‘Winedown’ coming in to affect after 6pm. Meltdown has established itself as one of Dublin’s finest toastie spots for sure.

Away from student haven toastie stations, The Bank Bar offers Dubliners the closest you can find to a luxury toastie. The Bank Bar was bought in the 1800s by Belfast Bank, hence the name still standing to this day. The Bank Bar sits on College Green and is one of the few remaining examples of Franco-Scottish sandstone exteriors. Upon entering, you’re greeted with one of the most inspiring interiors you can find in Dublin City. The Bank Bar features a stain-glass ceiling, mosaic tiled floors, and hand carved plasterwork throughout.
When you’re seated in the former main banking hall, The Bank Bar will offer you a stunning menu, which is seasonal and aims to bring farm-to-plate service with all the locally sourced dishes. However, we’re here to talk about the toasties.
The Bank Bar’s freshly prepared gourmet sandwiches start at €10.50, which is incredibly reasonable considering the standard of food you’re getting. What The Bank Bar lack in options, it makes up for in excellence. Try the honey glazed ham and cheese toastie, featuring melted Irish red cheddar, pickled onion and honey mustard, served on a grilled sourdough. Or The Bank Bar supplies an open caprese toastie, with Toonsbridge buffalo mozzarella, plum tomatoes, pesto and balsamic vinegar on sourdough bread. You can also add some crunchy chips or the soup of the day for an extra €2.50. Visit The Bank Bar and dine in high toastie style.

From Dublin’s city centre, we travel southbound on the DART to the beautiful, artisan village of Greystones. When disembarking the rail platform, overlooking a stunning sand beach, you’ll be greeted by the ultimate seaside snack. The name ‘Tall Boy Toasties’ comes from the owner and chief griller, Desmond ‘Tall Boy’, who will provide you with a butter-flooded beauty of a sandwich.
He creates new ‘monthly special’ toasties, which revolve around seasonal foods that are locally sourced. Tall Boy also offer up one of the most supreme cheese stacks around, which features a melted cheese mix, served on firehouse batch bread and pink Irish sea salt, for €5.50. If you’re feeling adventurous, we’d recommend the “The Bacon Jam Ham-Slam”, featuring the signature bacon jam, five-star Limerick ham, and the cheese mix for €7.
Tall Boy Toasties also feature a kid-size versions, served alongside fresh fruit. Whether you’re about to embark on the Greystones to Bray Cliff trail or plan on relaxing around the lovely seaside town, Tall Boy Toasties is the ultimate start to a great day out.

This guide concludes with arguably the most famous toasties in Dublin, accompanied with arguably the best pub for Guinness in Dublin. Grogans is an institution within Dublin. Located on South William Street, surrounded by the hustle and bustle of city offices, clubs, vibrant restaurants, and shops, Grogans is a sanctuary for those who want to duck away from the chaos of Dublin City.
Grogans prides itself as a quiet pub, with no big screens or system speakers. It offers solace for a catch up with friends or some quiet time to yourself. Not only will guests be treated to a stellar pint of Guinness, the toastie game is incredibly simple, yet delicious. You can avail of a tasty ham, cheese, or combo toastie for just €5. The ingredients are all based on Irish deli style toasties, creating the ultimate comfort food dish.
What’s more, there’s Grogans’ secret toastie. When ordering, ask the chef for a “special” toastie, for an extra bit of spice or something savoury on the side. We can’t share exactly what this special toastie consists of, as the chef is at liberty every time. What we can tell you though is that Grogans’ toasties are unmissable!