Lemon Leaf Cafe Bar & Townhouse — Restaurant in The Municipal District of Bandon-Kinsale

Thinking of booking the lemon leaf inn after checking out their website? Don't be duped like we were. Let me elaborate:

"Luxury boutique hotel" = We go home at 5:00 so you are on your own dragging suitcases up 1-2 flights of narrow, steep stairs. Did we neglect to mention on our website we have no lift? We did indeed, "but you could have placed an (international) call to ask." Standard rates apply.

"Bespoke toiletries" = We know posh words and we intend to use them.

"Delicious meals" = Hopefully you don't want an early start because we don't serve breakfast before 8:30. Oh, and the kitchen closes at 4:00 - so good luck enjoying our featured courtyard or any of our amenities such as the bar if you have other plans for the day.

"Chic industrial design" = Our rooms are so compact we don't have room for a closet, but we do provide pegs to hang a coat or two on. (Sometimes they fall out of the wall, so nothing heavy, please.) And we provide a mirror.

"Dining area" = Besides a bed that barely fits in the tiny room, we have an ikea type bookshelf (well, half of one anyway) on which we place a mini coffee maker and a couple mugs. We also provide a small three- legged stool in case someone wants to sit on something other then the bed.

"Convenient luggage rack" - Oh wait, we don't actually provide anywhere to put your suitcase (once you drag it up the stairs). Can't you just climb over it to get to the bed?

In retrospect, we were particularly amused by the website's Cialis-inspired video featuring a winsome woman throwing her hat and then herself on the bed in room 3. If you try this yourself, be careful not to bang your head on the wall.

To be fair, the attractive paint job appeared to be fairly recent. And the owners clearly spent some effort figuring out how to put an entire hotel room into a match box.

Also, the...

During my recent visit to Kinsale, I experienced disappointment at the cafe, a departure from my usual positive encounters. Despite previous satisfactory visits, this Sunday morning was marked by a less-than-pleasant experience. Upon requesting seating for seven, we were informed of a split arrangement due to a fully occupied larger table. Unfortunately, this led to four members of our group leaving, dismayed by the host's response.

The service further declined as three of us waited excessively to place an order, and our requests for attention were overlooked until the food was served. My Ploughman's sandwich lacked the promised apple relish and contained a meager amount of meat for its €13.60 price tag. Despite inquiring about the missing relish, the interaction was unsatisfactory. The chicken wings were dry, tasteless, and accompanied by a limited sauce selection, an unexpected letdown for a supposedly busy kitchen.

Even when expressing our dissatisfaction politely after payment, the response from our server was dismissive. There was a lack of acknowledgment or effort to address our concerns. Upon returning for the receipt, the host's distraction with a phone call exemplified subpar customer service, requiring another staff member to apologise on her behalf.

Regrettably, the absence of any managerial intervention or apology means we won't be returning to this establishment as we made staff aware twice we were unhappy with our food and not to mention the service. We'll opt for other well-regarded cafes, such as the Cosy Cafe, where our past experiences have been...

My boyfriend and I love to enjoy the little cafes and restaurants of Kinsale and thought we would visit The Lemon Leaf again today for brunch. There was a long wait for a table at 11 am, but we were seated in time to order brunch still so we weren't fussed. Coffees were lovely but food was far below our expectations and the standards Lemon Leaf tries to make the impression of in their vigorous ad campaigns and self promoting. I ordered a Benedict with bacon well done and he ordered a sausage roll and porridge. My Benny arrived with one burnt toast, one fine, two hard poached eggs, next to no hollandaise and some really pale flaccid bacon. His sausage roll was fine but his porridge was thin and very watery. The wait staff were kind and took our food back and brought us replacements which were on par with what we had expected, so we did have a good brunch in the end. When we asked for the bill I saw our server approach the manager who glared over at us, but never once made any gesture of ensuring our satisfaction. We paid our bill of €30 (the cost of brunch for 2 that took nearly an hour and 15 minutes from when we arrived at the door till when we left) but will not be...