Cafe Spresso — Restaurant in Cork

From the picture, you can see that my plate is empty while my friend across from me has her meal. There were four of us, and unfortunately, the waiter got all our orders wrong.

First, the tables were dirty when we arrived. I had to ask him three times to clean them, and I was even willing to do it myself. Eventually, he came and cleaned the tables.

As I’m new to the place and unfamiliar with the menu, I explained my order clearly. I told him I wanted a lot of protein and even pointed to the meal of a customer who was already eating. I also mentioned that I didn’t want my sausages overcooked.

When it was time to serve, every meal had something missing:

The first two people in our group specifically requested no pudding and extra eggs. They received pudding and no extra eggs. The lady opposite me ordered iced coffee but was served tea. ( She didn’t even want to complain cause I already spoke about my own meal)

My meal was the biggest issue. It was completely different from what I ordered. I didn’t get the meal I pointed to, and there were no sausages at all. My plate only had eggs and bacon, honestly, it was so disappointing.

I brought this to the attention of the staff( the meal). One of them took my meal back to the kitchen but returned, saying her boss (the person who took my meal) had closed the kitchen and I had two options: eat the meal as it was or let her take it back. I chose the latter and said I wouldn’t have it.

Three minutes later, the waiter came back with the same meal, placed it rudely on my table, and told me I had to pay for it.

I returned the meal to him, explaining that I wasn’t going to eat it. I reminded him that his staff had given me the option not to take the meal, and I chose that option. Yet now he was insisting I eat it—as though I were a child.

I told him I was happy to pay for the meal if necessary, but I didn’t want it. When I said this, he suddenly changed his tone, told me not to pay, and said, “Bye, Happy New Year” in a dismissive and disrespectful way.

It was disheartening. I sat there without food while others ate, and instead of being apologetic, he was defensive.

The kitchen closed at 2 PM, which may have caused his defensiveness, but it doesn’t excuse the dirty tables, incorrect orders, or poor attitude.

I had hoped for a good time with my friends, but this experience was far from it.

Oh and yeah. He didn’t want to work on my meal bc the kitchen was closed right? But 49 minutes later he service someone else and full Irish breakfast.

I won’t be coming here again....

Someone told me ages ago to go here. I apologise to that someone for not going sooner. Where do I start? Tables outside so great to watch the world go by. Inside is quieter, sit under the mirror for the best street view. Irish/Polish cuisine. I went in hungry and walked out a happy man. Inside is a mix of old school European and modern. The owner could not have been nicer or more accommodating. No fuss, great food. First of all I got scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and coffee. Now there was loads but I was being an uber-glutton. Then more coffee and a croissant. As I'm heading back for croissant number two the owner suggests a change and from a fridge produces a wondrous sponge cake. He adds cream and now I'm embarrassed cos I'm like Billy Bunter now!! As with everything else the cake was superb. Saw a menu on the wall for dumpling dishes and goulash. Looked to be good value and very enticing. The coffee was excellent. Steady stream of customers. Noted one lady ordered peppermint tea and scone. I stayed ages. This is no frills, fabulous, good value dining. If you're looking for wheelchair access there is space outside and a very low step inside, good space inside for wheelchair users. If you have sight issues same goes, space inside and out. The only drawback would be access to the toilet at the back for wheelchair users, the space is too narrow. If you are using the toilet there is no light switch. Light comes on automatically when you close the door. Oh and one major thing the owner was incredibly kind to a lost soul who wandered in Hats off to him and his establishment....

Our first breakfast in Ireland had to be a full Irish breakfast, of course. I found Cafe Spresso, which was a short walk from our hotel, and it had pretty good reviews. It was a Monday at around 11 AM, and there was probably only one other table dining. The menu looked like it was a mix of Irish and Hungarian cuisine. We ordered the large Full Irish Breakfast (2 bacon, 2 sausages, 2 eggs, black and white pudding, mushrooms, beans, tomato, toast, tea or coffee) and one of the Hungarian specials, a meat croquette, which comes with a cup of beetroot soup. The Irish Breakfast was good - oily, like you’d expect. It did the trick. It’s enough to share between two people, just because it’s so greasy. I would skip the croquette. It was definitely left over from the night (or maybe more) before. It was soggy and salty. I did enjoy the beetroot soup, but I didn’t want to mix too much of it with the coffee I was already drinking.

Cafe Spresso is a good option for a full Irish brekkie, which is only €12! But I would just...