Maintenance review insights for Ireland

My friend and I came for lunch on Saturday and since both of us have years of experience working in food service, we couldn't ignore the amount of things that seemed to go wrong. Even though there were free tables there's a line to be seated because of the lack of service staff and/or their training. While we waited we saw how a waitress calmly polished the cutlery even though there was more than enough already clean and dry. When we were finally sat down we watched as they cleaned up a table although there were enough clean ones to seat everyone who was standing in the line. It took them a while to take our order and to serve our food. We must have waited about 40 minutes for our food which to me was surprising since a salad should be quick to make as well as the pancakes if the kitchen has a good system. The food was wonderful, the salad has a good size and my friend loved her pancakes. Although the staff was nice, you can tell they need to either hire more people, train the staff better or to enable a pager system to improve the work flow. The reason for my rating is that even though the food was good, I go to a restaurant for a good atmosphere (it was very loud inside) and expect good hosting skills, which I was sadly disappointed by. On top of that when I ordered my salad the topping option did not make clear that I would have to pay an extra fee for them, so I only found out when it was time to pay. I would not recommend PÓG to my friends.

My husband and I went to Bite of Life for coffee and a cake. The coffee was great, the cake was lovely, and it’s nice that they have gluten-free options for coeliacs. The staff were friendly and pleasant too. However, there are some real downsides. The bathroom is extremely small and definitely not suitable for disabled people or anyone who needs more space. What really put me off was seeing how the food was prepared — while waiting to pay, I saw staff cooking eggs in the microwave and heating up bacon the same way. It’s a pity because the coffee and cakes were good, but after seeing that, I wouldn’t go back for anything cooked.

Unfortunately the worst café I’ve visited in Dublin. The toilets were in a very poor condition and not properly maintained. The food looked appealing, but the taste was disappointing. Service was quite slow, and the place was extremely noisy. We could barely have a conversation at our table.

Unfortunately the worst café I’ve visited in Dublin. The toilets were in a very poor condition and not properly maintained. The food looked appealing, but the taste was disappointing. Service was quite slow, and the place was extremely noisy. We could barely have a conversation at our table.

Review rating: 1.0

My friend and I came for lunch on Saturday and since both of us have years of experience working in food service, we couldn't ignore the amount of things that seemed to go wrong. Even though there were free tables there's a line to be seated because of the lack of service staff and/or their training. While we waited we saw how a waitress calmly polished the cutlery even though there was more than enough already clean and dry. When we were finally sat down we watched as they cleaned up a table although there were enough clean ones to seat everyone who was standing in the line. It took them a while to take our order and to serve our food. We must have waited about 40 minutes for our food which to me was surprising since a salad should be quick to make as well as the pancakes if the kitchen has a good system. The food was wonderful, the salad has a good size and my friend loved her pancakes. Although the staff was nice, you can tell they need to either hire more people, train the staff better or to enable a pager system to improve the work flow. The reason for my rating is that even though the food was good, I go to a restaurant for a good atmosphere (it was very loud inside) and expect good hosting skills, which I was sadly disappointed by. On top of that when I ordered my salad the topping option did not make clear that I would have to pay an extra fee for them, so I only found out when it was time to pay. I would not recommend PÓG to my friends.

Signal: 0.3%

My husband and I went to Bite of Life for coffee and a cake. The coffee was great, the cake was lovely, and it’s nice that they have gluten-free options for coeliacs. The staff were friendly and pleasant too. However, there are some real downsides. The bathroom is extremely small and definitely not suitable for disabled people or anyone who needs more space. What really put me off was seeing how the food was prepared — while waiting to pay, I saw staff cooking eggs in the microwave and heating up bacon the same way. It’s a pity because the coffee and cakes were good, but after seeing that, I wouldn’t go back for anything cooked.

Signal: 0.3%

Unfortunately the worst café I’ve visited in Dublin. The toilets were in a very poor condition and not properly maintained. The food looked appealing, but the taste was disappointing. Service was quite slow, and the place was extremely noisy. We could barely have a conversation at our table.

Signal: 0.3%