What should we know about Chiya?
Opening in November, Chiya would look set to threaten the Dame Street dominance of Reyna in the kebab stakes, if not for the fact it’s the same family team behind both. This newer venture sits across from city hall in the old Beshoff Bros location - where we were briefly and tantalisingly promised popup 'Meyhane' before being landed with nondescript chicken joint Bird Box for a few months - and goes all in on “Berlin-style” döner sandwiches.
What should we have?
While bowls are also available, it’s all about the bread. Though the “Berlin-style” pitch speaks to this thicker-crusted kind’s popularity in the German capital, it’s a Turkish diaspora dish - why it’s only migrated here now to join its more common flatbread fellows we wish we knew.
We're not gonna mince words - this bread is a sensation, light and airy inside, gloriously crusty on the outside. The diamond-shaped dough from a family recipe is grilled fresh to order before the puffed-up final product is pinched open and crammed full of filling, and its just-cooked crispness is a real weak at the knees moment - we’d happily eat this without anything inside.
It's a bonus then that Chiya’s fillings are every bit as good as the bread, with 24-hour marinated mixed chicken and beef the star. Threaded on the rotisserie between layers of fat to allow it to crisp up without drying out, the thin-sliced, brown-edged meat is a marvel, and one they don’t shy away from piling high.
Blissfully, veggie tagalongs have three choices, giving them more options than the carnivores. We tried the müjver, falafel-esque fritters of grated courgette (other options have halloumi and mixed veg), and the well-seasoned sweetness and golden coating make this a must-try. Played off the crisp comfort of the bread and you-can-feel-it freshness of the mixed veg, these fillings have all the makings to be our new go-to fave about town.
The most important factor for many these days will be price, and here’s where Chiya really excels, with all four sandwiches giving change from a tenner (€8.90 - €9.90). This is incredible value for 2025 Dublin, not least when it’s among the best to boot. Bowls will leave a bigger dent in your pocket, but portions are substantial, with rice, barley, veg or fries forming the base in their curated or build-your-own options, but we can’t fathom a reason outside of strict dietary requirements why anyone would forego this bread.
Curly fries have kicked up some early attention from social media punters, but after trying them we're no wiser as to why - they’re not much more than fine, with paprika-flecked crisp edges making for solid grazing alongside the glory of everything else. Save the stomach space for the main event, and pile high those house pickles sitting pretty on every table.
Why should I go?
Chiya is not the first sight of this kind of döner to Dublin - Richmond Street’s Berliner beat it to the mark by a few months - but its almighty lead on quality and price versus the local competition, mark an arrival in style. Late-night louts have never had it so good, but this is food worth making a trip for any time of the day.
Chiya
71 Dame Street, Dublin 1
