Ely Wine Bar

A Georgian Address and Twenty-Five Years of Serious Wine

Ely Place sits just off St Stephen's Green in Dublin 2, a short Georgian terrace that has largely escaped the commercial pressure reshaping much of the city centre. Number 22 announces itself quietly: no large signage, no pavement queue management. The building's proportions do the work instead, its original Georgian facade signalling that what's inside operates at a remove from the high-turnover bar formats that dominate the surrounding blocks. Entering, you move through the kind of low-lit, stone-and-wood interior that rewards the pace of a two-hour sitting rather than a quick round. This is the physical grammar of a serious wine bar, and Ely has been reading from that script since 1999.

That founding date matters more than it might appear. In 1999, the concept of a dedicated wine bar in Ireland was genuinely unusual. Dublin's drinking culture was rooted in the pub, and the idea of a space organised primarily around a deep wine list, rather than pints or spirits, represented a real departure. Twenty-five years on, a small number of operators have followed, but Ely's position as the original gives it a generational depth of list-building and supplier relationships that later entrants are still accumulating.

The Wine Program in Context

Star Wine List, the Swedish-founded global wine media platform, has ranked Ely Wine Bar's list at number one in Ireland in both 2023 and 2024, with a number-two ranking also awarded in 2023 across a different category tier. That consistency across consecutive years, and across multiple ranking bands, is a more reliable signal than a single award cycle. It places wine director Ian Brosnan's list in a peer set that competes internationally, not just within the Dublin hospitality market.

Ireland's wine scene has developed significantly in the past decade, with a growing number of natural-wine-focused list operators, neighbourhood wine bars, and restaurant wine programs receiving serious attention. Within that expansion, Ely's distinction rests on range: the list draws from producers across the globe, building depth in multiple regions rather than clustering around a single style or origin. For a drinker arriving with a specific producer or appellation in mind, that breadth is the practical advantage. For a drinker looking for guidance, it places a premium on the floor team's knowledge, which is where Brosnan's program leadership becomes tangible at the table level.

Among Dublin's bar circuit, which includes the technically-focused programs at Bar 1661, the cocktail-led format of Blind Pig Speakeasy Lounge, the aperitivo approach at A Fianco, and the natural-wine focus of Bar Pez, Ely sits in a distinct position: the city's only venue where the wine list itself is the primary competitive asset and the format has been sustained long enough to carry institutional credibility. Internationally, the model parallels what 64 Wine in Glasthule does at neighbourhood scale, or what operators like Baba'de in Baltimore and Bar Leather Apron in Honolulu achieve in their respective markets: list depth combined with a room that makes the drinking feel considered rather than incidental.

The Room and How to Use It

The atmosphere at Ely is shaped as much by what the space does not do as by what it does. There is no background music pitched at a level that competes with conversation, no theatrical lighting concept, no design gesture that foregrounds itself over the wine. The Georgian interior, with its high ceilings and original proportions, provides enough character that the space can remain relatively unadorned. This is not minimalism for its own sake; it is the practical architecture of a room where tasting and talking are the point.

That restraint has a functional consequence: the room attracts a cross-section of drinkers who share a preference for conversation over spectacle. Post-work groups from the surrounding office and legal district mix with couples treating the visit as a destination in itself. Both uses work because the pacing is unhurried and the list provides enough decision-making material to sustain a long sitting.

Ely Place is walkable from Merrion Square, the National Gallery, and the main St Stephen's Green access points, placing it naturally on the route between Dublin's cultural institutions and the broader Baggot Street hospitality corridor. For visitors building an evening across multiple stops, Ely functions well as either an opening move, where the list rewards slow exploration, or a final stop, where a single deliberate glass can close a night at the right register.

Planning Your Visit

Ely Wine Bar is located at 22 Ely Place, Dublin 2, a short walk from St Stephen's Green LUAS stop and the surrounding Georgian quarter. Given its position as the number-one ranked wine list in Ireland and its standing over twenty-five years, the room draws steady custom from both regulars and visitors. For evening visits, particularly Thursday through Saturday, arriving with a reservation or contacting the venue in advance is the prudent approach. The wine list's breadth means a first visit rarely resolves in a single bottle; building in time for a second pour is part of how the room is leading used. For broader context on where Ely sits within Dublin's hospitality options, see our full Dublin bars guide, our full Dublin restaurants guide, our full Dublin hotels guide, our full Dublin wineries guide, and our full Dublin experiences guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What drink is Ely Wine Bar famous for?

Ely is organised around wine rather than cocktails or spirits, and the list has earned the Star Wine List number-one ranking in Ireland in both 2023 and 2024. The range spans producers globally, so the answer to what to order shifts depending on the drinker's reference points, but the breadth of the list is the consistent draw across both casual and specialist visitors.

Why do people go to Ely Wine Bar?

The combination of Dublin's longest-standing wine bar credentials, established in 1999, and a consecutively ranked number-one wine list gives Ely a position in the city that no later entrant has replicated. For visitors and locals who want a room built around serious wine drinking rather than a general bar program, the address on Ely Place functions as the default reference point in Dublin 2.

How far ahead should I plan for Ely Wine Bar?

Ely does not publish booking windows publicly in our current data, but its standing as Ireland's original wine bar and the holder of multiple consecutive Star Wine List leading rankings means evening demand, particularly at weekends, is consistent. Contacting the venue directly ahead of a Thursday-to-Saturday visit is advisable; midweek evenings are generally more accessible for walk-in visits.

Is Ely Wine Bar suitable for someone who wants guidance on what to order, rather than already knowing what they want?

A wine list ranked number one in Ireland by Star Wine List across multiple cycles implies a floor team capable of navigating the full range, not just executing direct orders. The global scope of Ian Brosnan's program, covering producers across multiple regions and styles, makes it well-suited to drinkers who arrive with an interest in being pointed toward something they haven't tried before, which is a different proposition from a list built around a single style or origin. Dublin's wine bar expansion in recent years has produced more options in this category, but twenty-five years of list-building gives Ely a depth of older vintages and longer supplier relationships that newer operators are still developing.