A leading lifestyle and travel website recently highlighted Belfast’s Belmont Road as one of the top places to live in the UK.
It isn’t often that Northern Ireland gets a shout-out on the popular online publication Muddy Stilettos, so when they rank an East Belfast neighbourhood as one of the best for 2027, you know it must be good. Muddy Stilettos remarked that Belmont gives “village vibes” in a city postcode -modern city living with “considerably more breathing space”.
They said: “Leafy, lovely and just the right side of lively, this is one of East Belfast’s most must-live neighbourhoods for very good reason. This smart corner of BT4 feels pleasingly villagey, with cafés, boutiques and indies clustered along Belmont Road, yet Belfast city centre is only a few miles away and City Airport a mere hop.”
Belfast Live headed down to the area this week to chat to those who live and work there and hear first-hand why they think the Belmont Road is the place to be for 2027 and beyond.
Andrew Orr is the owner of popular neighbourhood haunt Cafe Smart, a fixture on the road for over 16 years. After moving to the Belmont Road seven years ago and managing the cafe for a handful of years, the 28-year-old bought it over from the previous owners, Simon and Victoria, in 2025.
He said: “It’s a busy road – really vibrant, nice, and there are different selections of cafes, charity shops and also we’re starting to get a bit more of the nighttime stuff as well with Pica opening up as well. It’s a nice variety of different places on the road.”
With the unique experience of both living and working in the area, Andrew thinks it is that variety that makes Belmont a stand-out among other suburbs in the city.
Asked about the community aspect of the area, Andrew replied: “It’s really, really nice. I’m from Newtownards originally, so I moved up here about seven years ago.
“At least once a day, twice a day or three times a day, you’ll get regulars come in and you learn their names, you learn their life story and even to the point with some of them, you know like their birthdays and their family stories.
“It’s such a nice community as well – they come in and you make them feel welcome, and they come back for that reason. That’s such a big part of it as a cafe community.”
Cafe Smart made its name in 2010 when it became one of the first spots in the area on the speciality coffee scene and has stood the test of time for 16 years. With its own in-house bakery upstairs and a passionate team behind the counter, Andrew said its menu of “good simple food” has been key to its success across all members of the community since it opened.
Living off the Belmont Road, Andrew loves that life comes at a quieter pace in the area compared to the hustle and bustle of the city centre but there are still plenty of brilliant local businesses around to pop into when out and about.
“You’ll see people meandering – they’ll just sort of pop into a cafe, they’ll have some coffee, they have lunch, they’ll pop into a charity shop. It is residential but it is also very relaxed.
“I think that’s a nice change of pace compared to city centre where people are busy running everywhere.”
Karen Breene, co-owner of top pet boutique Murphy and Bailey, is in no way surprised that Belmont has been named as one of the best places to live in the UK.
Catering for dogs, cats and the humans that love them, the business made the Belmont Road their home over six years ago, and Karen has been passionate about promoting the area ever since.
Chair of the Belmont Road Traders Association, she has been delighted to see a host of new shops, cafes and restaurants pop up along the street since she opened her doors – offering residents and visitors alike a wide offering to suit all tastes.
“It’s definitely a bustling hub, we have really great footfall here,” Karen explained. “I think we’ve quite an eclectic mix. We have lots of independent gift shops, cafes, bakeries – places like Murphy and Bailey that are unique to this area.
“There’s a real variety here and also it’s very walkable, all the shops around here, but also walkable to get into town or to go across to Ballyhackamore.”
Karen also highlighted the great schools in the area and the collective sense of community felt between traders and residents, remarking her Murphy and Bailey customers who stop in with her weekly – if not daily.
As for why people should live or visit the Belmont Road, variety tops her list.
“You can get a coffee at 8 in the morning, you can get one at 8 at night. It’s a very safe community, there’s good parking in the side streets.
“It’s somewhere you can go to different shops, you can grab a lunch, you can go up to Belmont Park and have a nice walk. We’re not too far from Stormont and we’re not too far from the beach either – you get the best of both worlds. You’ve got kind of that perfect mix of environments in quite a small area.”
Belmont Larder are not only championing local produce in their store, they are also championing the local area and what it has to offer the city.
Opened back in 2023 by husband-and-wife duo Gary and Sarah, it is a popular spot for those in the area looking for a freshly baked pastry, homemade soup, local jams and more.
Sarah said: “I’ve seen people come specifically to the Belmont Road because we have such a wide base of different independent shops – it’s fantastic.
“It doesn’t matter if you want to come to pick up your cat or dog food from Murphy and Bailey, come for a catch-up with friends, go to the coffee shops or go do some candle making over at Olivia’s Haven or beautiful Scorched Earth, which is again another independent where you can get lovely little bespoke wooden carveries done. The locals are just amazing.”
The couple have loved getting to know their regulars over the past three and a half years who have welcomed them into the Belmont Road community and made the larder part of their daily life.
“You get to know everybody, whether it’s once a month, once a day,” Sarah added. “It’s fantastic – they become essentially a little bit part of their family and they’re part of your daily routine as well, which I absolutely love.”
Gary continued: “It’s become a bit of a running joke in here that we should have called it Sarah’s Larder because all the locals now are like ‘Oh is Sarah in today, is Sarah off today’.
“She just loves it and just to echo that, she and the shop have become a part of the family around here – they’ve all been so welcoming for us because we’re we’re not from here, we’re based out in the country, so everyone has just welcomed us with open arms and it’s been fantastic.”
One of the main reasons they specifically picked the Belmont Road for opening their business was that, while it is in good proximity to Belfast City Centre, it has a neighbourhood feel where visitors don’t have to worry about the likes of parking and life is at a more relaxed pace.
“The whole geography of it was one of the main reasons why we picked the Belmont Road,” Gary added. “We wanted a good through road into the city centre and this one here is perfect.”
You can read more about why Muddy Silettos picked the Belmont Road here
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