The best family friendly restaurants in Belfast

Located on the Falls Road close to the city centre, The Felons Restaurant is the perfect place for great craic, great food and drinks, and a great time spent with the family. Known for their great value menu and top-class Belfast hospitality, you can expect nothing short of a magical experience here.

Catering to all tastes, they offer a delightful array of traditional dishes, such as a delicious Beer Battered Haddock with home cut chips, mushy peas, and tartare sauce and a succulent Southern Fried Chicken Stack served with spring onion mash, peppered sauce, and tobacco onions. They even offer a great range of vegan dishes, including a tasty Vegan Salt and Chilli Chicken with basmati rice and chips and a delightful Veggie Stir Fry. The wee ones will also be looked after here, with a wholesome kids’ menu offering classic dishes like fish fingers with mash and beans; sausage, chips, and beans; and pizza served with two toppings of their choice.

Located in the leafy suburb of Ballyhackamore on the Upper Newtownards Road, Bistro Este is one of the most beloved restaurants in East Belfast. Offering a friendly neighbourhood feel and a creative menu that showcases the finest locally-sourced ingredients, this spot caters to all ages, tastes, and dietary requirements.

Their main menu is creative and courageous with dishes such as a 16 hour slow braised featherblade of beef bourguignon, with horseradish mash, anise carrot, and broccoli and a wagyu burger served in a brioche bun with mature cheddar, lettuce, tomato, bacon, caramelised shallot relish, and truffle mayo, complete with parmesan triple-cooked chips. They also offer a great range of vegetable and seafood dishes for anyone that chooses not to eat meat. For the kids, they have an equally delicious menu featuring tasty dishes such as pasta bolognese, panko crusted cod fingers, chicken goujons, and homemade soup.

Boasting a relaxed environment and great local food, Oliver’s at Knock is one place you need to check out next time you’re dining with the family. Food is served all day from Wednesday to Sunday with delicious daily specials available every day. They also serve an indulgent Sunday Roast from 12 pm on Sundays, making this the perfect place to enjoy a weekend meal with the family before everyone heads back to work and school on Monday.

You can expect everything from freshly battered fish and chips with mushy peas, lemon, and tartare sauce to a 12-hour braised beef, served with burnt butter mash, shallots, parsley, and root vegetable crisps. The wee ones also won’t go hungry with some epic kids’ dishes priced at £7, including a creamy cheesy pasta, a mini portion of battered fish and fries, a tasty beef burger with fries, and a kid’s roast served on Sundays only.

A unique and captivating eatery located in the infamous Crumlin Road Gaol just north of the city, Cuffs Bar and Grill is the perfect place to dine out with the family after a tour of this iconic and historic prison. Offering delicious food to suit all tastes and dietary requirements combined with warm and welcoming hospitality, you’re sure to enjoy the perfect laidback evening dining out here. Priding themselves on keeping things local, all ingredients here are fresh and locally-sourced from reputable suppliers such as Ewings, Belfast’s oldest fishmongers and Carnbrooke Meats, a meat supplier based in Dromore.

Their menu is creative and diverse with something to suit all tastes, including various beef, chicken, pork, and veggie burgers, a creamy chicken and bacon carbonara, and a traditional beer battered fish and chips to name a few. The kids’ menu comes on a colouring sheet to keep the little ones entertained, and it features favourites such as chicken goujons with skinny fries and beans, a mini roast of the day portion, and a margherita pizza. 

Located in the southern outskirts of the city, around halfway between Belfast and Lisburn, Robert Stewart’s is a historic and friendly local bar and restaurant that makes for the perfect place to dine out with the whole gang. This intimate pub is over 400 years old, thus making it as much a part of the city’s fabric as Belfast’s most iconic landmarks. Serving traditional food and drink daily in cosy surroundings, you can expect nothing short of the perfect dining experience here.

With an extensive beer garden and intimate indoor dining area, this is the perfect place to dine whatever the weather. They also host frequent live music performances from the very best local artists, so if you’re lucky you might even catch a top-class show. When it comes to the food, you can expect a great range of classic pub grub favourites with everything from seafood chowder to a succulent 8 oz steak sandwich, beef, chicken, and vegan burgers to a delicious catch of the day. The kids’ menu is just as fabulous with everything from tomato pasta to sausages with fries and roast chicken with mash, vegetables, and gravy to chicken goujons.