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outdoor seating vegetarian kid-friendly full bar
wi-fi booking recommended red luas line green luas line Shaka Poké Dave McParland – Company Director You’ve been trading in Dublin since 2017, where you introduced Ireland to its first Pokè Bowl. When and where were you introduced to Pokè and what made you fall in love with it? Myself and my best friend Jimmy (former co-owner) of Shaka Poké came across poké bowls while we were on a road trip down the west coast of the US. We had worked in kitchens and hospitality all our lives and especially so while spending 2 years snowboarding in Canada, and when our visas ran out we just drove south. A great friend of Jimmy’s let us crash on his couch in Manhattan Beach and knowing our love of food, insisted we tried this new Poké spot. We were blown away by the taste, the simplicity, the vibe and how fresh everything was. To top it off, everything was healthy. You were nominated for an Irish Street Food Award after just one Summer in business. That must have been a thrill and a great morale boost? To be fair, we had just started off doing markets and festivals around Dublin and Ireland that summer, and we didn’t know how far or long it would go – we were just enjoying ourselves. But we got some good press and the markets were a great way to find our bearings. And yeah, being nominated was fun. The awards were at Beatyard in Dún Laoghaire, we didn’t win, but we got to dance to Toots and the Maytals in their last-ever Irish performance! We are an island, are you surprised at the lack of fish restaurants in Dublin and why do you think this is? Absolutely, we have so many great fish restaurants but for an island, it’s not enough. I feel quite sorry for the Irish fishermen. Due to some of the sea laws, a lot of Spanish and Portuguese trawlers come in and take a lot of the fish from what should really be Irish waters. What are the quintessential ingredients of a good Pokè bowl? The beauty of the poke bowl is the variance, the quality of the ingredients and the freshness. We pride ourselves on everything being prepped fresh every day, so to us, everything being fresh is the most important thing. My personal favourite would be tuna, wakame, pineapple, cucumber, jalapenos, crispy onion, pickled ginger, and Shaka Sauce. Maybe a little avocado for some good fats Is it tough going to be a restaurateur in Dublin at the moment? It’s so hard, everything seems to be stacked against the hospitality industry ( particularly small businesses) at the moment. It’s sad to see so many amazing places closing, and citing the trading conditions as their reasoning. There’s definitely a lot of uncertainty, but Dublin is an amazing place. There’s a great community here, and if we stay adaptable, focus on quality, and try our best to keep the people happy, I think we will be ok!