Belfast’s oldest Michelin-starred restaurant is closing

It’s a fact of life – restaurants come and restaurants go. And now one fine dining spot in Belfast is the latest to pull the plug. 

Michelin-starred venue Deanes Eipic is due to shut its doors after 26 years in business. It was opened by Northern Irish chef Michael Deane in 1997 and was awarded the coveted Michelin star within just one year of opening. 

Sadly, the cost of running the restaurant had just become too expensive. Head chef Alex Greene, who appeared on ‘Great British Menu’, told CNN Travel: ‘Eipic as a whole wasn’t a restaurant that was dying but people have an expectation when walking through the doors. The cost of delivering that expectation has doubled since lockdown, the cost has spiralled out of control. And we can’t double the price.’

There’s also the fact that most punters in the city can’t afford to eat at the restaurant. A tasting menu at Eipic will leave you £100 out of pocket. Obviously for most of us, it’s an extortionate cost, but for regular Michelin-star diners it may actually seem quite a bargain. Yet, Belfast just doesn’t get the same footfall of fine diners as the likes of London and Paris. 

Greene also added that the struggle to stay open might have something to do with the restaurant’s more traditional approach. He pointed out that the new generation of Michelin-starred spots are more ‘stripped back’ and said that ‘the more luxurious end of dining, white linen tablecloths and service and stuff, it seems to be becoming a bygone era.’ 

The departure of Deanes Eipic leaves just two remaining Michelin-starred restaurants in Belfast, The Muddlers Club and OX.

While the days of Eipic might be over, Greene is far from finished. He plans to move to the Mourne countryside to open a new, cheaper establishment, so watch this space. And if you’re after some more culinary excellence in Belfast, look no further than our list of the city’s best restaurants to check out right now.