My niece did her due diligence when selecting this place. It gets busy so we made sure that we…read moremade reservations. It's a beautiful restaurant and everything we tried was amazing. It began to fill up rather quickly for dinner. In the States we are used to being rushed out the door. Here starters and entrees are spaced out to allow you to sit and socialize.

There is a particular kind of disappointment reserved for a restaurant you expected to enjoy…read more The SpitJack was one of those. On paper, the proposition is difficult to quarrel with: Irish ingredients, rotisserie cooking, an attractive room, and a menu written with sufficient enthusiasm to make a hungry man begin making irresponsible decisions before the waiter has even arrived. Unfortunately, menus are promises. Dinner is where the promises are collected. And ours came due rather poorly. The food was disappointing, not catastrophically bad, which would at least have made for a more interesting story, but simply nowhere near what we expected from a restaurant built so confidently around its cooking. There is a great difference between a meal being technically edible and a meal making you pleased that you ordered it. Ours spent considerably more time in the first category. The greater disappointment, however, was the service. A restaurant can survive an imperfect plate remarkably well when the people looking after you are attentive, engaged, and interested in making the evening work. Human beings are wonderfully forgiving creatures when somebody appears to care. The reverse is also true. When the food disappoints and the service seems equally uninterested in rescuing the occasion, dinner begins to acquire the atmosphere of a contractual obligation. You eat because you have ordered. You wait because apparently that is now your occupation. And eventually you pay because international law still frowns upon simply wandering away. That was roughly the trajectory of our evening. What makes it particularly unfortunate is that The SpitJack has all the ingredients of a restaurant I should have liked. The concept is appealing. The setting works. The menu creates expectations. There is clearly an idea behind the place. But an idea does not cook dinner, and a concept cannot look after a table. Execution must eventually enter the proceedings. Ours apparently had the evening off. This was not an angry experience so much as a disappointing one. I have eaten terrible meals that became wonderful stories. This was not terrible enough to become folklore. It was merely expensive in the currency that matters most when travelling: an evening. Perhaps we caught them on the wrong night. Every restaurant is entitled to one, and the overwhelmingly positive reputation of the place suggests plenty of diners have had a very different experience. We can only review the evening we were actually served. And ours was two stars. One for the promising concept. The other for reminding me that expectations, like soufflés and political careers, are surprisingly easy things to collapse. Would I return? Possibly, but only because Mark Twain understood an important principle of life: "sometimes a man deserves a second chance." Dinner, however, should not require a third.

Went here the other day and had a great experience. Everyone was really friendly and accommodating…read more The environment is super homey, it reminds me of a U.S. diner setting kind of! I had a really great Caesar salad. Plenty of dressing, croutons, and really crispy bacon bits. It was divine. I'll be back again for that.

We never eat at chains while traveling, and came to Scoozi based on a recommendation for a local…read more I had read some reviews, some were good and some from a lady on the east coast of the USA gave me pause. However, as people from the east coast of the USA, we found the food to be very good, the service just as nice and the ambiance was a cool little place. My son (15) had lasagna, the bride had a tart with feta cheese, pesto and sub dried tomatoes. I had the chicken breast stuffed with garlic & cream cheese. All the dishes were very good, I think the garlic might sneak up on me tonight! Overall, a very good meal and a nice evening. Would go again

If you're in Cork and consulting Yelp for a place for dinner - don't hesitate, but make a…read morereservation. Great food with locally sourced ingredients and excellent friendly service.

Good family lunch stop…read more We arrived at 2pm and were seated w/ a party of 6 immediately. They accommodated my son's request for 2 beef patties on plate. 4.0 - Fries (crispy) 4.0 - Sweet potato fries 2.5 - Beef Burgers (ok - kind of bland plus a funky meatloaf taste) 4.0 - Iced Cafe Latte Clean bathroom (with strangely small sinks ). Service was attentive and accommodating.

I did enjoy Max's very much, but a few things irked me enough to lose the 5th star. But I can be a…read morehard grader, and my expectations were set high by several enthusiastic mentions by locals and excellent reviews online. Not perfect but I still recommend it wholeheartedly and would love to return. We made a reservation for 6:00 and for a little while we were the only ones there. Did we even need a reservation? Yes. It was full by the time we left. And I'm sure summer is harder. There's a small selection of wines by the glass, all of which I've never heard of, mostly of European origin. We both liked our López De Heredia tempranillo and I chose the same when I had a second glass. The menu is prix-fix, sort of. Starter plus main for €49 - though there's a small surcharge for some items, like my scallops appetizer. Dessert is extra but inexpensive in comparison (€7-8) If you're a picky eater be sure to check the menu before coming and make sure something appeals. There's nothing crazy weird here but the selection is small. We had no trouble with the menu choices. My Sauté Scallops starter was prepared with venison broth, lovage, celeriac, Coppa ham, Irish Winter Chanterelles, wild leeks, peas, and cream and was truly excellent and very pretty. I particularly liked the slight caramelization of the tops of the scallops, the subtle flavors and textures of the vegetables, and how the broth flavor changed as the cream (which was apparently whipped) slowly melted in. The wife's Baked Goat's Cheese, with wilted leeks, roast butternut squash, pumpkin seed, confit of shallots in red wine, and hazelnut oil was also excellent, and beautiful. My main was Slow Cooked Irish Pork Belly: hint of 5 spice, rhubarb puree, carrot with lovage, braised local cabbage. I did like it, especially how all these different flavors somehow worked together (5-spice, rhubarb, and lovage - who knew!) And I finally figured out that the crusty part on top wasn't overly dried fat to be removed but a layer of sugar, caramelized, dark brown and which shattered like glass when cut into. Very intriguing. What I didn't like about it was the haphazard presentation - the various ingredients arrayed around the plate in random fashion with a single chive thrown on top seemingly as an afterthought - and that the portion was a bit small for an entree (as was the wife's, while both the starters were generously sized). The wife's main was Pan Fried Irish Lamb Cutlets, with chestnut mushrooms, Meli-Melo of vegetables, Sacred Basil Jus. What is meli-melo? French for mess or jumble, but it sounds better, right? As for the sacred basil, it's Indian and has a spicy, peppery, clove-like flavor not like the kind we're accustomed to. Perfectly cooked lamb cutlets and intriguing flavors but like my entree I thought it was too small (but she was fine with it and even gave me some!) All entrees are served with a side of steamed local potatoes, adorned with just a slight salt crust and chopped chives. I know Ireland is famous for potatoes but this seems rather gimmicky to me. Dessert selection is very limited. Just 3 that day: Sticky Toffee Pudding, Bourbon Vanilla Crème Brulèe, and a cheese/fruit/nut plate. I've been on a Sticky Toffee Pudding kick lately so I tried that. It was good but nothing special despite their attempts to make it differently. The pear and date compote was too subtle and as for the toffee & green cardamon sauce: I think I liked but there wasn't nearly enough of it. The pudding part was also small for that matter. As for ambience, it was a nice relaxing setting, even as the room filled up, our small table was by the window and had an assortment of fresh flowers in a vase and a real candle. Our waiter was ok but would only say that the green in the salad we asked about was "some kind of lettuce I think", though on pressing him he did ask the chef who said it was winter purslane. I suspect he's new and will eventually learn how to better handle challenging diners such as ourselves.

Absolutely LOVED our dinner here! Our Airbnb was just across the street so extremely convenient…read more They said the didn't have an opening but to check back later and they could probably fit us in, so we went down to The Tap Room, had a pint and came back. My sister has been craving lobster but it's not on any menus. We were seated at a great window table, and they said there was an added starter which was a grilled half lobster. SOLD x 3. It's a fixed price with many choices. One had the sea bass, one the pork belly and one the lamb. All were unbelievably great with beautiful sides, and because it's Ireland, a bowl of salted roasted potatoes. We split a bottle of great wine and made the trip back to our B&B in about 30 seconds! Max's is near the harbor and city parking on Main Street. Best meal of our trip so far, and we've eaten out for 2 1/2 weeks.

Great place for drinks!!! We popped in here not realizing it was cinco de mayo and they told us…read morethey had tacos as a special for the night. I knew better being American and loving actual tacos but I ordered them anyway. They were not bad but clearly not what I'd get back home in the states. All of the food was decent but not mind blowing. Others at my table had a burger, pizza and pasta. The staff was wonderful and the beer selection was great. They had beers I've never heard of so it was nice to try some different options. The atmosphere was pretty cool. They had bar stools on bicycle wheels with pedals and the lights were corsets. The water came in a bottle that said, "unfiltered unicorn tears." So overall it was a very cool place. I definitely recommend it if you want a drink and maybe a bite to eat if you aren't terribly picky about your food.

Ugh. Update your website!…read more I found Brick Lane on Yelp and when I looked up the menu on their website saw they had an unlimited wings deal on Wednesday and pub quiz at 8:30. Awesome! When we showed up and asked for the wing deal they said it's no longer offered. The 8:30 pub quiz didn't actually start until 9:52. Other than that it was a fun time. We got a few pints of Guinness and a pizza and had fun playing the quiz. The bartenders were friendly and prompt. Just get your website right so there aren't unmet expectations.

This is one of two restaurants, one in Limerick and this one in Cork. They are both fabulous, this…read moreone won this year's best restaurant, based on a local magazine, I'm not sure if it's the best, but it's pretty good. I come here for the steak and fries, comfort food. If you don't know, Irish beef is phenomenal, no growth hormones nor antibiotics. Very natural. It's actually against the law here, how civilized.

Really great place for a filet mignon. Most places don't have Bernaise in Cork as well but from…read morewhat I remember they were able to make it for me.

Beautiful interior with lovely staff. Super appreciate the thoughtful vegan options. Can also make…read morereservations.

I plan and schedule monthly private dinners with my group of friends in Cork. Most of us loved our…read morefood and service was absolutely great, we loved our waiter. One of my friends however had an issue with her pasta, where it tasted overly salty to the point where she couldn't finish it, we all tried it. Pretty sure something accidentally happened there but she relied on her side dish as her main meal. Otherwise would be back again!

Wanting a healthier lunch we got just one order of fish & chips this time and one of beet salad and…read moresplit them between the two of us. Both were excellent. The fish was hake. This was easily the best of the four fish&chips we've tried so far in Ireland. Outstanding actually. The batter had the most perfect crunchy texture, wasn't too thick, and it adhered well. The fish was just-off-the-boat fresh, flaky and cooked just right. The portion was enormous - two fillets, one large and one medium, with a relatively small portion of good fries. The tartar sauce was tangy with tiny chopped pickles. Vinegar was available at the table. This was served with a small salad of lettuces, spinach, scallions, and onions. Price was surprisingly low given the portion, right around average for fish&chips in our experience so far. We ordered the entree salad with the locally made goat cheese add-on for a small extra charge. More excellent leafy greens, beets in small cubes, pomegranate seeds, picked onions, candied nuts and plenty of chèvre in large pieces. It was pre-dressed with vinaigrette and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. Very good, a far better choice for us than two orders of fried fish. Also on the menu were 3 other kinds of fish (monkfish, black sole, and plaice), each prepared differently. Shrimp scampi, seafood au gratin, and steamed mussels rounded out the seafood section. Oysters are on the menu but they weren't available that day. Other than seafood there were also burgers (beef and veggie), chicken wings, soup of the day, chowder, a steak, lasagna, pan roasted duck breast, cannelloni, liver paté, spring roll, and more. So a very extensive menu here, and not just the same things found everywhere. Sadly we didn't have room to try their desserts, which included sticky toffee pudding, banoffi pie, flourless chocolate cake, and meringue pie with raspberries and ice cream. They were hard to pass up.

food: 4.5/10 ambiance: 7/10…read moreservice:6/10 overall 6/10 honestly the most bland fish and chips I have had- it wasnt flavorful and just mid. I think you can find better elsewhere In this little town. the oysters was good yet we had better in Galway which felt fresher. basic service- had to wait some time to order and to get served