Sourdough bakery & caféCarlow + Tullow

Bread, given time.

Organic sourdough, butter-rich pastry and speciality coffee, baked from scratch every morning. Find us on Tullow Street in Carlow town and on Market Square in Tullow, seven days a week.

See what we bake Opening hours

Carlow: open dailyTullow Street, Carlow town
Tullow: open dailyMarket Square, Tullow

Irish time 08:30 Doors open 08:30

Our day in 24 hours. Gold marks today's opening hours.

Sourdough loafWholewheatBaguetteStout sodaSeeded sodaAll butter croissantPain au chocolatTwice baked almond croissantCinnamon morning bunCruffinsBasque cheesecakeFlat whiteMatchaOrganic teaBiodynamic wine

01The bread

Four ingredients. Then we wait.

Real sourdough needs nothing more than flour, water, salt and a wild leaven. What it needs most is patience: a slow, cool fermentation that builds flavour, a crust that shatters and a crumb that keeps for days.

01FlourOrganic Irish spelt from Oak Forest Mills, and stone-milled grain from Kilkenny
02WaterPlenty of it. A wetter dough gives a lighter, more open crumb
03SaltFor flavour, and for a stronger dough
04LeavenA wild sourdough starter, fed and kept alive every day. No commercial yeast
05TimeAs much as the dough asks for

"The most important ingredient in bread, without being too cliché, is time."

Cian Waters, co-founder

Waterlilies sourdough sliced on a board with cheese and a glass of wine

02The counter

Baked here, every morning.

Everything on the counter is made by our own bakers: loaves, laminated pastry, cakes and cookies. The best of it goes early, so come in the morning or order ahead.

A dark cacao and white chocolate sourdough held in front of a Waterlilies apron

Weekly special

Sourdough specials

A different loaf most weeks. This one: rich cacao swirled with white chocolate. Watch Instagram for the next one.

Two slices of Waterlilies sourdough showing a glossy, open crumb

Every day

House sourdough

Our everyday loaf. Deep crust, open crumb, naturally leavened. Wholewheat sits right beside it.

Rotating

Cruffins

Croissant dough, baked tall and filled. Lemon meringue, apple crumble, honey and blueberry.

Two halves of a twice baked almond croissant, pulled apart in the sun

Every morning

Croissants

All butter, pain au chocolat, twice baked almond, and chocolate almond.

A tray of fresh baguettes on a table outside Waterlilies, Tullow Street

Most days

Baguettes and soda

Crackling baguettes, plus two Irish soda breads: seeded, and a dark stout soda.

Cakes and bakes

Something sweet

Cakes, tarts and cookies from our bakers, with several made gluten free.

Full menu

Basque cheesecake GF
Caoimhe's carrot cake
Lemon meringue tart
Belgian chocolate brownie GF
Berry and almond friand GF
White chocolate cookie

03Two shops

One bakery, two front doors.

The original bakery café on Tullow Street in Carlow town, and its younger sister on Market Square in Tullow. Same bread, same pastry, same welcome, seven days a week.

The live-edge timber shopfront of Waterlilies on Tullow Street, Carlow, with tables outside

Carlow: open daily52.8364° N, 6.9302° W

Tullow Street, Carlow town

The original, where it all began. A live-edge timber front under a teal awning, with tables out on Tullow Street when the sun shows up.

Opening hours, Tullow Street, Carlow town
Monday	08:30 to 17:00
Tuesday	08:30 to 17:00
Wednesday	08:30 to 17:00
Thursday	08:30 to 17:00
Friday	08:30 to 17:00
Saturday	09:00 to 17:00
Sunday	09:00 to 16:00

Directions 085 859 7252 Order ahead

A swan latte and a seasonal grain bowl on a timber table at Waterlilies Tullow

Tullow: open daily52.8006° N, 6.7372° W

Market Square, Tullow

Our neighbourhood café in Tullow, opened in 2023. The same bread, pastry and coffee, right on the square.

Opening hours, Market Square, Tullow
Monday	08:30 to 17:00
Tuesday	08:30 to 17:00
Wednesday	08:30 to 17:00
Thursday	08:30 to 17:00
Friday	08:30 to 17:00
Saturday	09:00 to 17:00
Sunday	09:00 to 16:00

Directions 089 429 8124 Order ahead

04The kitchen

Breakfast, lunch and slow weekends.

Our kitchen cooks with organic, seasonal ingredients, and our own bread turns up all over the menu. Most of it is vegetarian, there are vegan options too, and it changes with the seasons.

Weekdays

Breakfast

Eggs on our sourdough, French toast with seasonal fruit, and a croissant breakfast sandwich for the road.

A bowl of porridge topped with poached berries, seeds, pistachios and bee pollen

All year

Porridge, done properly

Poached seasonal berries, toasted seeds, pistachios and bee pollen, finished with a drizzle of apple syrup.

A croissant filled with egg and greens on a white plate

Lunch daily, brunch at weekends

Lunch and brunch

Soup with sourdough, toasted sandwiches and seasonal plates through the week. Brunch on Saturdays and Sundays.

To drink

Speciality espresso and filter coffee, plant milks, matcha, chai, organic teas sourced direct from the growers, kombucha, and biodynamic wine and beer. Babyccinos for small people. Pupaccinos for dogs.

Read the menu

05After hours

Wine, vinyl and the odd gig.

Some evenings the café stays open late. Biodynamic wine, records on the turntable, live music, art workshops and wine and cheese nights. Dates go on Instagram first, and they fill up.

Wine & VinylNatural and biodynamic wine, records all night
Live musicJazz trios, Pan Celtic specials and local singers
WorkshopsIntuitive art, paint and sip, and more
Wine & cheeseOur sourdough with Irish farmhouse cheese

See upcoming dates

A double bass player mid-set at a Waterlilies music night

The Waterlilies team in Halloween costumes outside the Tullow Street shop

A barista holding a pumpkin and a latte with a jack-o-lantern drawn in the foam

06The name

Waters plus Lily equals Waterlilies

Waters is Cian's surname. Lily is Dave's nickname. Turn it around and you get Lily Waters, Cian's grandmother, whose cooking he still remembers fondly.

Read our story