Jay Rayner Names Waterman House Among Northern Ireland's Best Restaurants

Jay Rayner, one of the UK's most respected food critics and a familiar face on MasterChef and Radio 4's The Kitchen Cabinet, has praised Niall McKenna's restaurants as exactly what dining out should be.

Ahead of his Nights Out in the Kitchen Tour at Belfast's Waterfront Studio on 30th September 2026, Rayner shared his thoughts on Northern Ireland's food scene.

"Peter Hannan's Meats in Moira is wonderful. As for Niall McKenna's restaurants, such as Waterman and James Street, they struck me as exactly what you'd expect a restaurant to be."

Coming from one of the most well-travelled and well-regarded food writers in the country, that is a comment we are proud to stand behind.

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