The Winding Stair

Name

The Winding Stair

Legal name

The Winding Stair

Website

https://winding-stair.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Full-Service Irish Restaurant

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)

Keywords

• Irish restaurant dining
• Independent bookshop
• Seasonal Irish cuisine
• Wine and beer program
• Event venue hosting

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Restaurant food and beverage sales: Full-service restaurant generating revenue from à la carte dining, set menus, lunch, and dinner service. Beverage revenue includes extensive wine list, craft beers, and specialty drinks. Desserts and after-dinner items contribute additional per-transaction revenue.
2. Bookshop retail sales: Independent bookshop on ground floor selling books, literary magazines, zines, cards, notebooks, tote bags, and unusual titles not found in larger chains. Revenue from single-item retail transactions.
3. Event venue hire: Bookshop and restaurant spaces available for book launches, readings, musical performances, art exhibitions, plays, and cultural events. Generates supplementary revenue from venue use.
4. Gift vouchers: Restaurant and group vouchers sold through VoucherMe platform for gifting purposes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Winding Stair operates a dual-concept Dublin establishment combining a full-service restaurant and an independent bookshop in a historic building overlooking the River Liffey. The restaurant serves seasonal Irish home cooking sourced from local artisan producers through à la carte lunch and dinner menus, complemented by an extensive wine list and local craft beer selection. The ground-floor bookshop stocks fiction, Irish authors, poetry, literary magazines, and specialty retail items.

Product overview

The Winding Stair operates as a dual-concept establishment combining a restaurant and an independent bookshop. The restaurant, open for lunch (Wednesday-Sunday) and dinner (daily), serves Irish home cooking with seasonal produce sourced from local artisans. The ground-floor bookshop offers diverse reading material including Irish fiction, poetry, and specialty items. The company also sells gift vouchers, both for individual location use and across their sister restaurant group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Winding Stair Restaurant A Dublin full-service restaurant offering Irish home cooking with seasonal, locally-sourced produce from artisan suppliers. Features à la carte dinner (Monday-Sunday from 5pm), Value Lunch Feast (Wednesday-Sunday 12-3pm), set menus, and Easter Sunday lunch. Open to walk-ins and reservations, with service charge applied to parties of 5+.
• The Winding Stair Bookshop An independent bookshop located on the ground floor of the premises. Offers fiction including Irish authors, poetry, drama, current affairs, gardening, cookery, art, design, humour, non-fiction, children's books, literary magazines, zines, cards, notebooks, and tote bags. Operates as physical storefront Mon-Sat 10:30am-6pm and Sun 12pm-6pm, with a Shopify online store for merchandise sales.
• Restaurant Gift Vouchers Gift vouchers sold through the VoucherMe platform, valid for dining at The Winding Stair restaurant. Available for purchase online for gifting purposes.
• Winding Stair Group Vouchers Group gift vouchers redeemable across the Winding Stair Group sister restaurants including The Woollen Mills, The Washerwoman, The Legal Eagle, and Little Washer. Sold through the VoucherMe platform.
• Event Venue Hire The bookshop and restaurant spaces are available for hire for book launches, literary readings, musical performances, art exhibitions, plays, and cultural events, serving as a distinctive Dublin cultural venue.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Self Help AfricacoreOthersThe Winding Stair Group actively supports Self Help Africa, an organisation working with farming communities in Kenya and Uganda on long-term climate action initiatives. The partnership focuses on practical actions including vegetable gardens, water points, and school meal programmes.
• Open HiveminorOthersLocal bee conservation project committed to maintaining biodiversity and reducing environmental impact. Specifically aims to help the native Irish honeybee re-establish itself in the Irish ecosystem.
• Euro-ToquescoreOthersCommunity of chefs, producers, and artisans dedicated to preserving Irish culinary heritage. The Winding Stair is a proud member, supporting small, organic, and artisan producers.
• Bean InspiredcoreOthersCoffee supplier that sources coffee from women-owned or managed farms and cooperatives selling non-commodified beans. Supports ethical and sustainable coffee supply chain.
• WinelabcoreOthersWine supplier providing wine in fully recyclable kegs, reducing carbon emissions by half and using 94% less packaging as part of a closed-loop system. Supports sustainability initiatives.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Etto: Dublin city-centre full-service restaurant focused on seasonal, ingredient-led cooking with a strong wine list. Comparable in casual-but-quality positioning, pricing tier (€25-€40 mains), and target of Dublin diners seeking unpretentious but high-quality food.
• The Washerwoman: Another sister venue in The Winding Stair Group serving full-service Irish cuisine in Dublin. Shares supplier relationships, group voucher program, and operational management with The Winding Stair, providing a direct like-for-like comparable.
• The Legal Eagle: Sister Dublin restaurant in The Winding Stair Group offering full-service Irish dining. Operates from a heritage Dublin location with comparable menu pricing and target customer base, providing direct operational and brand benchmarking.
• L'Ecrivain: Long-established Dublin fine-dining restaurant with strong literary heritage (named after the writer). Shares with The Winding Stair a literary/cultural branding angle and Dublin heritage dining positioning, though operating at a higher price tier.
• Locks Restaurant: Long-established Dublin 8 full-service restaurant in a historic location (Portobello area). Comparable in iconic Dublin setting, casual full-service model, and traditional Irish menu approach, sharing similar heritage-driven positioning.
• The Greenhouse: Dublin Michelin-starred full-service restaurant offering modern Irish fine dining in a heritage setting. Comparable to The Winding Stair in Irish-produce-led philosophy and Dublin cultural-dining positioning, though operating at a higher price tier.
• The Woollen Mills: Sister restaurant within The Winding Stair Group, also located on the quays in Dublin. Operates a comparable Irish-produce-led casual dining format and shares voucher cross-redemption and group marketing, making it the most directly comparable peer.
• Chapter One Restaurant: Dublin Michelin-starred full-service restaurant in a heritage townhouse near the Liffey. Comparable cultural-dining positioning, à la carte dinner service, and bookable private event offering for Dublin's discerning dining market.
• Pichet: Dublin city-centre full-service bistro offering modern European cuisine in a heritage setting. Comparable in casual full-service format, dinner pricing, and Dublin cultural-dining customer overlap with The Winding Stair.

Emerging players

• Fallon & Byrne: Dublin food hall and wine cellar with a casual restaurant offering. Comparable in dual retail/dining model (similar to bookshop + restaurant), Dublin cultural-dining positioning, and emphasis on quality artisan Irish and international produce.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-winding-stair

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 The Winding Stair