Café Sol

What Café Sol does

Café Sol is an Ireland-based café and restaurant business operating as Cafe Sol Unlimited Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dunnes Stores Group. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Dublin, the company provides food and beverage services with a stated focus on fresh, organic ingredients, serving individual consumers through in-store dining, collection (pickup), delivery, and vending machine channels. The company employs between 501 and 1,000 people and operates exclusively within Ireland.

The core technology stack is built around the Flipdish online ordering platform, which powers both delivery and collection orders through the cafésol.ie website. Payment processing is handled by third-party providers Stripe and PayPal, which store card details securely and enable transactions without Café Sol retaining sensitive payment data. The website also integrates Google Universal Analytics, Amplitude for product analytics, Cloudflare for traffic identification and security, and Facebook's _fbp cookie for retargeting advertising. The company operates a mobile application and uses Flipdish authentication, basket, and delivery-location cookies to manage the ordering experience.

Café Sol generates revenue through direct transactional food and beverage sales to individual consumers via multiple distribution channels. The go-to-market motion is direct-to-consumer, primarily driven through the proprietary online ordering storefront and physical café locations. Customer acquisition is supported by a free sample platter promotion offered on Mondays or Fridays to new customers. As a subsidiary of Dunnes Stores Group, the company shares information internally on a need-to-know basis and benefits from parent-company operational infrastructure, though it maintains an independent brand identity and direct customer relationships.

Name

Café Sol

Legal name

Cafe Sol Unlimited Company

Website

https://cafesol.ie

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Café Sol is an Ireland-based café and restaurant subsidiary of Dunnes Stores Group, serving individual consumers through in-store dining, delivery, collection, and vending channels via a Flipdish-powered online ordering platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Dining Restaurants

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (722515), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251), Food Services and Drinking Places (722)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Cafe-Bakeries (Coffee + Pastry Focus) (THAFADAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ), Health-Focused Cafes (Organic/Vegan/Wellness) (THAFADAL)

Keywords

• Café and restaurant services
• Online food ordering
• Food delivery and collection
• Vending machine retail
• Irish casual dining

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Food Delivery and Collection: Café Sol generates revenue through direct food sales to consumers, offering both delivery and collection (pickup) options. Customers place orders through the Flipdish-powered online ordering system and pay via integrated payment processors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Café Sol operates a café and restaurant business offering food and beverages for dine-in, collection (pickup), and home delivery, supplemented by vending machines. Customers can order online through the Flipdish-powered platform on the company website, with payments processed via Stripe and PayPal. The company also offers free sample platters on Mondays and Fridays as an introduction for new customers.

Product overview

Café Sol is a café and restaurant business operating as Café Sol Unlimited Company, part of the Dunnes Stores Group. The company offers a unified food and beverage service with multiple channels: in-store dining, collection, delivery, and vending machines. Online ordering is provided through a Flipdish-powered platform integrated into their website, enabling customers to order for pickup or delivery. Sample platters are offered free to new customers as an introduction to their menu.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food and Beverage Service Café and restaurant offering food and beverages for dine-in, collection, and home delivery, with sample platters available free of charge on Mondays or Fridays for new customers. The offering is targeted at individual consumers seeking convenient access to freshly prepared café-style food.
• Online Ordering System Flipdish-powered online ordering platform integrated into the Café Sol website, allowing individual consumers to place orders for collection or home delivery, log in to view recent orders, and pay via Stripe or PayPal.
• Vending Machines Self-service vending machines operated alongside Café Sol's physical locations, enabling individual consumers to purchase food and beverages via automated, unattended transactions.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• FlipdishcoreTechnology or IntegrationFlipdish is the online ordering platform partner for Café Sol, providing the technology infrastructure for the website's online ordering system. Flipdish also acts as a joint controller of personal data for food orders placed through the platform. Additionally, Flipdish assists with managing user consent for marketing communications and analytics as a processor.
• Dunnes Stores GroupcoreOthersDunnes Stores Group is the parent company of Café Sol (trading as Café Sol Unlimited Company). Café Sol shares information internally with Dunnes Stores Group on a need-to-know basis for business operations.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationStripe is used to process card payments on the Café Sol website. Stripe stores payment information securely without Café Sol having access to full card details, remembering customers and enabling secure payments.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Eddie Rocket's: Irish casual dining restaurant chain offering dine-in, collection, and delivery; comparable as a domestic full-service restaurant competitor to Café Sol.
• Avoca: Irish food hall and café operator with in-store dining, takeaway, and online ordering, comparable to Café Sol on multi-channel foodservice in Ireland.
• Costa Coffee Ireland: Major branded café chain operating across Ireland with dine-in and takeaway offerings, overlapping directly with Café Sol's coffee and light-meals proposition.
• KC Peaches: Irish café and restaurant concept offering dine-in, takeaway, and catering with a focus on fresh, market-driven menus, highly comparable to Café Sol's positioning.
• Butters Chocolate Café: Irish café franchise chain with multiple locations serving desserts, light meals, and coffee, sharing Café Sol's casual café-restaurant positioning.
• Insomnia Coffee: One of Ireland's largest domestic coffee and café chains, directly comparable as a multi-location Irish café competing for the same dine-in, collection, and delivery customer base.

Broad incumbents

• McDonald's Ireland: Large incumbent QSR brand in Ireland with dine-in, drive-thru, delivery, and app ordering, broadly competing for the same everyday food occasions.
• Starbucks Ireland: Global incumbent coffee chain with broad Irish store footprint; competes for the same breakfast, snack, and beverage occasions as Café Sol.

Emerging players

• 3fe Coffee: Specialty Irish coffee roaster and café with growing retail presence, relevant as a more niche/emerging comparator in the Irish café category.

Others

• Dunnes Stores Simply Food: Sister retail food brand under the same Dunnes Stores Group parent; not a direct competitor but an adjacent channel that influences cross-promotion and real-estate strategy for Café Sol.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cafesolirl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Café Sol