First time here in ireland and its a great irish pub. The food was awesome and the staff were…read morewonderful. Its a geeat spot if youre traveling alone or in a group. We will be back

Came for a hearty meal and some Guinness and did not leave disappointed. Now note that we're…read moretourists. So temper your expectations of this review unless you are also a tourist. Food was good. Beer excellent. Prices reasonable. We ate on the second floor where it was quieter and easier to get the barkeeps attention. The live music was on the first floor so if you want to listen to that, stay there. Five stars is we'd go back again even if it were out of our way. No, but it's a solid four stars we'd eat there again with no complaints whatsoever.

best place to go to if you are traveling and want to really get that irish food and atmosphere then…read morethis is the place and let me say walter my waiter/ also the manger of the place is the best waiter/ manager 10/10 would recommend going if first time in ireland would come back (for walter of course)

Hard to find as we passed it & realized it's upstairs! Small single room w/ a standard collection…read moreof wall art / signs. Asked to be re-sat & they were happy to let us choose. We asked about the soup flavor & they offered a taste and brought out a huge sample boat. Super cool. I got the cottage pie lunch portion, which is more than I could barely eat. It came with a boat of the sauce /and gravy and meat. Wife got the fish and chips... The fillet was longer than the plate and it came with a mountain of fries, both delicious. Daughter got the creamy vegetable soup and chips. She loved it but couldn't even finish half. All the portions were very generous, nobody finished their meal, too bad we couldn't have taken it back to our hotel. Server was great & funny. Love this place.

Great ambiance…read more Mussels were in a large pot and seasoned very well. I ordered a French martini and it was made to perfection. Not too strong and not too soft. My fiancé ordered lamb cutlets and was impressed with both quality and taste. Of course Guinness was very tasty for him as well. Finished off with apple strudel with ice cream - a must!!! Would recommend if you are in Dublin City Centre.

This place is fantastic! I'm shocked that no one has taken the time to write a review. The food &…read moreservice is great. First time I came in, I got their pancakes with compote. Perfect amount of sweet & fresh. The music in the background is chill & subtle. You can get a traditional irish breakfast for under 10 euro. The price point is good & if you ever are trying to meet someone in Dublin, you can just tell them to meet you at Sōma, by the Spire! Today, I'm having their eggs & hash. Eggs, potato, siracha, avocado, & spinach. Perfect balance & it came nice & hot! Tourists or locals, I feel will love this place. Enjoy! You won't be sorry! Xx

On vacation in Ireland and it can be hard to find a good place to eat. So lucky to have walked by…read moreSoMa and it looked really nice from the outside. We went in and very happy we did. We had breakfast and it was delicious. Great atmosphere and loved the style of the place. The server at the counter was super pleasant as was the man who served or meal to our table. Whether on holiday or someone living in the area I would make SoMa my go to restaurant. It also does lunch. I did try to go back for dinner but they don't do dinner. So sad.

Amazing seafood chowder! One bowl was enough to share between two people as an appetizer. The fish…read moreand chips were really good too. Service was friendly and the seating areas indoor and out were nice.

We found this place on Airbnb. What a lucky happenstance. I gotta say when we first got there and…read morefound out that we were on what I think is the top floor of a lot of somewhat narrow staircases. I was a bit intimidated due to some physical limitations with my knees and hips. The staff was friendly and they do offer to help you carry up your bags however we did not take them up on it. It ended up being OK, I get it that it's almost impossible to retrofit an elevator into these old buildings. It was quiet, I didn't hear any of the neighbors in the building. I felt very safe in both the apartment and in the area. Everything you need is within a couple blocks of walking distance. The bus that takes you back back-and-forth to the airport is about two blocks away and easy walk. The sidewalks are smooth enough that it's no problem to roll your suitcase. There's a lot of food choices and a big grocery store right on the same block. That brings me to the food. We did not cook in the apartment, but I suspect we could have if we wanted to put together something basic. There's a microwave and a kettle and a very handy refrigerator which we utilized. The attached restaurant feels like family. They treat you like family. The food was great, although that fish and chips put me down for the count. It's just so much food oh my goodness. I love the fact that they had delicious draft beer on tap, they had fantastic desserts, you could see right into the kitchen and see them preparing some food. Everybody on the whole staff was so friendly. I think maybe they are family I'm not sure about that but they certainly treat you like you are family. We got there early to check in and so we went in the restaurant and they put our bags in the corner where it was safe and by the time we were done eating, our room was ready. I saved this one in my book because I will definitely be back.

from Sept 2025...........Our first meal in Ireland did not disappoint. Excellent staff. My Irish…read morestew as very good as was my wife's fish and chips. Good cold beer and very relaxing atmosphere. We were so tired having just arrived and stayed up all day.....this is a great place to eat.

We came during the Cork vs Dublin game so it was packed but we were able to get a table on the…read morefirst floor. They had a large menu and all the food was so good. I had the Irish roast beef and it was delicious. My friends had the Irish stew which was also really good.

I want to point out that if you have any mobility issues the first floor would only be available to…read moreyou as there is no way to get to the other floors without using the stairs. We did use that stairs but it was a challenge to do so. The Oval Bar was recommended to us by someone who had been there oftern. The place as been in existence since 1822 so we thought we would take in the feel of the place. We found the bar area to be quite crowded and not a space that would be very comfortable. We headed up to the next level (there are a number of steps to get there) and found a mixture of tables and wall seating. We were greeted pretty quickly by our server but found that she didn't speak or understand English very well but we were able to place our drink orders. They have an extensive drink menu with pretty much anything you want. The food menu is a two page 'booklet' containing starters and mains that would give someone enough choices to find something they would like. There is also a child's menu on the back and desserts although you need to check with the server to see what desserts they have. We ordered the 1/2 chicken with vegetables (carrots in this case) and the Irish stew. The chicken was well cooked, nice crispy skin and a huge portion, could have ordered just that and split it between us. The carrots were large slices served on the side. The Irish stew came in a large bowl with plenty of chunks of tender lamb shoulder, potatoes, carrots and onions in a nice gravy. A slice of brown bread and butter was served on the side. Like most restaurants we have been to while in Ireland the wait staff seem to disappear after you food has been delivered. It took several tries with different wait staff (2 to be exact) before we could get another round of drinks. Ordered the check at the same time to avoid waiting any longer. All of the wait staff we dealt with had problems speaking and understanding English which made it a little bit of a challenge. Another couple sitting next to use expressed the same issue. But the food was good, most important part of the visit. And we appreciated all of the people that were in the pub that helped us get up and down the stairs, proved that people are friendly everywhere in Ireland.

Please do yourself a favor and order the beef pot pie entree thing they have on this menu. I cannot…read moreremember the name of it but think of a chicken pot pie but with beef. I was floored by how good it was! My husband ordered a burger and had a bite of mine and talked the whole night about how much he wished he had ordered that instead of his own food. He was like a vultire. When i said i was full and left the rest of my food he immediately dropped his burger and reached over for my plate to finish what i had left. Thats how damn good that was! I honestly thought about it well into the next day and regret not going back before we left. I will always dream of you oval bar

Sometimes it's the food. Sometimes the setting. Today, it was Mike, our server, who made this a…read morefive star experience. He's worked there more than 20 years and had us thoroughly entranced with his personality and charms. Oh yes, there was food: a vegetarian boxtie and a corned beef boxtie. These were more like stews than a classic boxtie. We polished the plates off and finished with dessert. The toffee pudding was perfect; surprisingly the housemade ice cream sandwich had almost no flavor and was disappointing. The order of three Irish breads was a good appetizer and helped us understand the different styles in the country. The ambiance here is not classic Irish pub, which was good for dinner. !:)

Very cute restaurant that stopped by during our food tour to have a lunch…read more Beer was delicious and I definitely recommend this place for lunch if you are nearby to try the different stews. My favorite of the stew samples was coddle. The bread and butter were also delicious although every place had amazing bread. we didn't really get to interact with the server, but the bartender did give us a good intro to the beers that are available that day

We drifted in here about 5 pm and the place was hopping. Live music and a short wait for a table…read more Great, loud pub ambiance. We ate an early dinner, including lamb shank and beef stew. Both were good and exactly what you think of for Irish comfort food. Friendly, efficient staff. It's a tourist spot, but a fun one. Btw: the name is not racial. The original owner was Dorcas Kelley, nickname Darkie.

I'll start with the good: loved the vibes and look and feel and the fact that they do different…read morestyles of live music every night means I just might be back. The staff are also very nice and despite how busy it is, service was quick. Neutral: this place was smaller than I was expecting and could be cramped if you're trying to eat as well as drink Bad: the food left something to be desired. I tested bangers and mash and barely made it through one sausage as they seemed mushy and the texture through me off. Would return but not to eat

This lovely spot might be missed if walking fast because it looks like a house in a residential…read moreneighborhood. We sat in the lounge and had a glass of rose which was lovely. They didn't rush us to our table which was nice for a change. We started with the bread and butter which in Ireland is so yummy! We enjoyed the caesar salad a lot. We loved the heirloom tomato and burrata. I had the duck which was perfect! For dessert we had the tiramisu and cherry chocolate cheesecake. I am not a fan of tiramisu but loved this one. However the crust on the cheesecake was amazing. This restaurant is in the Michelin guide and it deserves it!

From the food to the service to the atmosphere, this was the best restaurant that I have ever been…read moreto.