Mi Casa — Restaurant in Dublin

I recently had a disappointing experience at Mi Casa that I feel compelled to share.

Upon arrival, we were greeted and informed that their available long top bar table was reserved for 7:30 PM. We assured the staff that we could complete our meal within 40 minutes, which seemed reasonable for a few glasses of wine and at least four dishes. After settling in and getting our toddler comfortable, we were surprised when the waitress suddenly changed her approach. She informed us that she could only accommodate two of us (forcing my 2.9 month old to sit on my lap) at the bar table, despite there being four vacant seats available.

While I tried to make the best of the situation my husband and I agreed to the arrangement, when the inconvenience didn’t have us make the choice to dine else where the waitress then meekly re-directed us to a sister restaurant, suggesting it would be more suitable for "our dining experience." This felt not only rude but also somewhat dismissive.

As parents of a well-behaved toddler who dines out regularly at restaurants that are not your run of the mill family chain, and us clearly not just have rolled off the street.. we were taken aback by the lack of understanding and hospitality. It's disappointing when a restaurant doesn't seem to value families or make them feel welcome.

In conclusion, it was a shame that our evening was cut short and our daughter left hungry at supper time… due to this experience. I hope Mi Casa can improve its approach to accommodating families in the future. Especially on a Sunday at 6 pm when there were only 3 patrons to begin with. I understand our stroller may have been an inconvenience but it was an umbrella stroller that we folded and agreed to put in the back out of sight. Regardless it is discrimination and the establishment easily lost 150 euros that evening. We ended up having a lovely evening at La...

I've been wanting to dine here for quite some time, as it was nice to see a new place pop up in the Smithfield area - particularly a tapas-style restaurant; one of my favourites. Being a fan of tapas bars and restaurants in southern Spain, I was hoping this place would live up to expectations i.e. fast service of tapas, efficient staff, and tasty grub. So many copycat tapas restaurants in Ireland are very slow; they don't capture the authentic theme of what it should be about.

I was glad to see that Mi Casa strikes the right balance. The waitresses were super friendly and efficient throughout the night. There is a nice atmosphere to the restaurant, too, and it thankfully carries an informal style. The tables are small, but if the plates are delivered one-by-one, it doesn't become a problem at all. We tried the pork crackling, mushroom croquettes, patatas bravas, the cod, and the prawns - all of which were delicious; my favourites being the cod and prawns - really delicious (though I sort of wish the pork crackling came with some kind of dip!).

I hadn't intended to try dessert but given how tasty the food was, I decided to try the Basque cheesecake. I initially thought at €9.50, it was quite expensive for a dessert but having tried it, I can see why. It was one of the tastiest desserts I have tried in a long time. I almost wanted to order a second, but greed didn't win out.

In total, our collective bill came to around €100, which I found to be very good value. We added a €15 tip to the staff who were really great throughout the night. Kudos to the effort they put in.

Living only a stone's throw from Mi Casa, I'm looking forward to heading back to try more of their menu. What a delightful new addition to the area. I can...

There aren’t a lot of really outstanding Spanish tapas spots in Smithfield, Dublin that exceeds the quality of some really good ones in the Iberian peninsula but Mi Casa is one of the best ones, in my personal view. Prices are leaning towards the premium side of things but what comes out of Mi Casa’s kitchen is also premium in quality, just like the remarkable level of service.

At dinnertime, we ordered the pork belly crackling (raspado de cerdo), patatas bravas, vegetarian mushroom croquettes, gambas (prawns) al pil pil and the cod. All of which, exceeded expectations. The pork crackling was lovely and crispy and the potatoes were crispy on the outside and velvety on the inside. The vegetarian mushroom croquettes were very flavourful and umami-filled. Our prawn dish was our favourite and we could have easily ordered two more plates of those. Finally, the cod was cooked perfectly in our view.

We also had the Basque burnt cheesecake for dessert which was simply phenomenal.

Throughout our entire time at Mi Casa, the service was consistently excellent too. One thing I would say is if “eau de kitchen on clothing” bothers you, it would be best to ask for a table furthest away from the kitchen.

We’re very happy with the food and service at Mi Casa and would gladly eat here again if we’re ever in this...