Avoided, underrated or just plain forgotten, Belfast is a city that’s been fighting a bad reputation for half a century. A visit today, however, is an eye-opening experience in the best possible way.
Belfast has been coming into its own in the past few years, developing a vibrant restaurant scene, award-winning architecture – the Royal Institute of British Architects gave the MAC, a sleek arts venue, a National Award in 2013 – and a new cosmopolitanism, although fried breakfasts and a heightened awareness of sectarian conflict remain an integral part of most residents’ days. The friendliness of the people is what’s most appealing in this small, walkable city, from smiling servers to talkative bartenders to helpful strangers on the street. Visit Belfast to soak up good vibes, to eat well and to drink unstintingly. It’s at its best when enjoyed from behind a pint glass.
FRIDAY
1.30pm
Lunch with a view Kick off the weekend with lunch at Robinson & Cleaver, a new restaurant housed in what was a 19th-century linen warehouse and department store. The "Taste of Ulster" sharing boards, with selections of smoked salmon, grilled mackerel, Oakwood cheese and wheaten bread, are perfect for sampling locally produced fare. Find a spot on the terrace, which looks directly out on to the ornate Edwardian City Hall. To its right is the imposing Scottish Provident Building, a late-Victorian sandstone edifice that's currently metamorphosing into a high-end business centre. Lunch for two, about £30 (about €41).
3pm
Botanics and background After lunch, stroll through Belfast's Botanic Gardens, 11 hectares of green lawns and trees near Queens University. Stop at the Palm House, an elegant Victorian greenhouse with a curved iron and glass structure that's just as gorgeous as the abundance of exotic plants growing inside.
Emerge from the gardens at the Ulster Museum (free admission), a well-designed space offering a comprehensive background on the country’s heritage.
5.30pm
Crown jewel The Crown Liquor Saloon is a treasure: a Victorian gin palace that's been beautifully restored by its owner, the National Trust. Everything from the snugs to the red granite bar to the antique bell system for summoning staff looks like it's straight out of a period movie. A pint of Guinness (£3.90) comes with a shamrock traced in the head. Look up the street to see the Europa Hotel, known for a time as "the most bombed hotel in Europe". The Europa was hit dozens of times during the Troubles; it kept its doors open throughout.
7.30pm From the sea
The Mourne Seafood Bar has built a reputation over the past eight years on serving top-quality, locally caught fish and seafood that doesn't cost the earth. Book ahead for dinner in this city centre restaurant and feast on oysters from nearby Carlingford Lough, along with fresh langoustines, salmon, lobster and more elaborate tidbits like poponcini peppers stuffed with crab mayonnaise and watercress salad. Dinner for two, about £70.
SATURDAY
10am Breakfast of champions
The debate over where to get the best “Ulster fry” in Belfast is neverending, but Bright’s is a top contender. This no-frills restaurant serves the basics (fish and chips, eggs and beans) to locals who crowd in, three generations to a table. Push past the herd of strollers in the entry and order the “Bright’s fry” (£3.50), a plate packed with eggs, sausages, potato bread, soda bread, bacon and black pudding, along with grilled mushrooms and tomatoes as a (meaningless) gesture toward health consciousness. Pair this with plenty of tea from the workaday steel pots and you’ll be set up for the day, as they say.
11am Taxis and troubles
While the Troubles may seem like a part of Belfast's past, Troubles tourism is alive and well. Visiting the areas most affected is essential for understanding the city's fraught history. Ninety-minute "black taxi tours" (about £30 for up to three people, additional fee for more) take passengers through the Falls and Shankill Roads, Catholic and Protestant, respectively, and still strongly sectarian. Drivers also deliver a running commentary on the Troubles and explain the significance of the numerous political murals that so clearly divide the neighbourhoods. The Irish nationalist Bobby Sands is a staple of the Catholic murals while terrifying images of paramilitaries in balaclavas holding machine guns are popular in loyalist areas. Many companies run black taxi tours; stop by the Visit Belfast Welcome Centre on Donegall Square for brochures. The companies are much of a muchness – they all cover the same areas and advertise themselves as impartial, although individual taxi drivers, most of whom were born and bred in one of these neighbourhoods, will make their politics quite clear.
1pm Cathedrals and craft beer
Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter is the trendiest neighbourhood in town, its cobbled streets now home to bustling restaurants, pubs and arts venues. Begin with a visit to St Anne’s Cathedral (adm £5), a turn-of-the century Romanesque building with two quirky features: the 1,000 colourful hassocks hand-embroidered by churchgoing women since 1950; and the Spire of Hope, a 76 metre stainless steel spike that punctures the roof and was added in 2007.
Nearby, tucked away on tiny Commercial Court, is Hadskis, which opened in late 2013 with a focus on local ingredients. Sit at the long bar overlooking the open kitchen for a lunch of pheasant, pearl barley and horseradish with a side of champ, washed down with a Headless Dog or Titanic Quarter – both craft beers from the Northern Irish Hilden Brewing Company. Lunch for two, about £50.
4pm
Architecture and the arts One of the shining examples of the new, more sophisticated Belfast is the MAC (Metropolitan Arts Centre), a stunning asymmetrical tower of brick and volcanic stone housing seven stories of high-ceilinged galleries and cleverly designed reading nooks. It has an ever-changing roster of exhibitions and live performances. Pop in to see the latest visual art exhibitions or check out the frequent experimental live performances (theatre, music and dance). The MAC is well situated in the Cathedral Quarter overlooking St Anne’s Square, which has emerged as a restaurant hot spot.
5.30pm DRINKS AT THE DUKE
At the other end of Commercial Court from Hadskis is the Duke of York pub, where a young Gerry Adams, the Sinn Féin leader, tended bar in the 1960s. Outdoor drinking is a growing trend in Belfast, and the Duke claims a charming stretch of alleyway with brick walls, window boxes and benches. It's a local haunt, and it's worth walking across the alley to the parking lot to check out the mural of local celebrities. If the weather's not conducive to sitting outdoors, take your Guinness (£3.70) inside, where the walls and ceiling are plastered with old-fashioned advertisements for stout and whiskey.
7.30pm Seasonal menu
OX opened in March 2013 to great fanfare. The former tile shop has huge plate-glass windows that overlook the River Lagan and a menu that matches the décor in simplicity and modernity. Friday and Saturday nights are tasting menu only: five courses of seasonal dishes with a vegetable focus, like broad bean and radish leaf soup, and Mourne lamb with spelt, girolles and beetroot. With just 40 seats, it’s best to book in advance. Tasting menu for two, about £110.
SUNDAY
11.30am Tour the Titanic
Allow several hours for Titanic Belfast (adm £15.50), which is a 20-minute walk or short taxi ride from the city centre in the recently designated Titanic Quarter.
The museum’s four wings are designed to look like hightech ships’ hulls, covered in silver anodised aluminium shards. It opened in 2012 to commemorate the centenary of the sinking of the Belfast-built ship (although the locals say, “It was all right when it left here.”).
The exhibits are impressively detailed, from the recreated staterooms to the personal histories of builders, waitresses and guests. Don’t miss the compelling beginning exhibits, which describe life in Belfast’s linen mills at the turn of the century. Also essential are the interactive projection of the ship’s plans and the Shipyard Ride, a narrated, amusement park-style ride that’s entertaining and not just for kids.
© 2015 The New York Times/Distributed by The New York Times Syndicate
