Ballsbridge
Ballsbridge is a wonderful Southside village where embassies and offices sit alongside boutiques and bistros. With tree-lined avenues and beautiful Victorian red-brick estates, it is a quiet and friendly place to live, close to the city centre.
There are many cafés, restaurants, schools and shops, the neighbourhood offers a host of wonderful amenities, from Herbert Park and Sandymount Strand to several rugby clubs, tennis clubs and other sporting facilities.
Baggot Street forms part of Ballsbridge and is bustling with pubs which are filled with sports fans when there’s rugby or soccer at the nearby Aviva Stadium.
This residential neighbourhood is very well connected to the city with excellent public transport options with several bus routes and the DART on the doorstep.
History & Culture
Named after the Ball family of the merchants who traded in the 16th and 17th century, Ballsbridge emerged from the marsh and mudflats of the Dodder valley and by the 1700s had a cotton printer, paper mill and gun powder factory.
With a continued influx new infrastructure was needed and, in 1870, Lansdowne Road and Ballsbridge railway station was then opened.
The Johnston, Mooney & O’Brien bakery was founded in 1889 along the Dodder River and it was the first bakery to wrap bread in 1925, and the first to introduce the sliced pan thirteen years later.
The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) was founded in 1731 to promote and develop Irish agriculture, arts, industry and science. Originally located in the city centre, the RDS moved to Ballsbridge in 1879 and since has been offering an extensive programme of events.
The U.S. embassy is an iconic cylindrical-shaped building, and another major landmark in Ballsbridge today.
Education
There are several primary and secondary schools in the area.
John Scottus Primary School and St. Christopher’s Primary School.
St. Conleth’s College is a private junior and senior School. St.Michael’s College is a renowned private school junior and senior schools for boys.
Ballsbridge College of Further Education is a long-established state-owned college.
Dine & Drink
The village has an array of restaurants, cafes and bars that cater to all tastes, including some high-end hotels. Roly's Bistro remains one of the most popular and busiest restaurants in the city with its classic starters, elegant mains and desserts with the highest standards of quality and service.
Girl and the Goose offers a warm relaxed
dining experience with a choice of great Irish and French dishes. Al Boschetto offers beautiful rustic dishes with fresh, carefully sourced and seasonal ingredients.
Paddy Cullens and Mary Macs are traditional landmark pubs in the centre of Ballsbridge with Horse Show House offering an outdoor bar, BBQ and live music.
Enjoy a drink and some food at some of Dublin’s best hotels including the Intercontinental and Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge.
Shop
Home to upmarket supermarket Donnybrook Fair on Baggot street and retailers including Tesco, a bakery, a wine shop and a pharmacy.
Other neighbourhood offerings
You will find several iconic venues such as the RDS and the Aviva Stadium, the city’s main rugby arena and its many associated pubs that people from all over Europe travel, to watch their beloved sport.
