The Pig’s Ear Dublin

It's a place must to eat if you go to Dublin. The food was fantastic the service was fantastic, the wine was fantastic. Probably a little bit more air circulation will help, but not a big deal. Thank you Matt for taking our order and the recommendations. From Ohio with love to our Irish friends. Call to make a reservation directly at their website.

Had a wonderful lunch here overlooking Trinity College. The food was delicious, Irish comfort dishes. The "tongue and cheek" kidney pudding was luscious. The White Pork Chop was juicy. Famine soup w bone marrow toast was yummy. The people were warm and friendly. It was having an amazing lunch in a cozy Irish townhouse on a rainy afternoon.

Wonderful meal on second floor overlooking Trinity College grounds. Modern twist on classic Irish literature references and dishes. Great service.

Absolutely delicious and very creative! We were walking by on vacation in Dublin and the menu looked interesting so we gave it a try. From the moment we walked in, we were greeted and welcomed. The staff gave great recommendations, explained what we were eating and the best way to do so since the food is served deconstructed, and answered any questions we had about ingredients. This will definitely be a place we come back to on our next visit!

Amazing food. Light but filling. Broth had such a depth of flavor and a delicious bone marrow toast to go with it. Great service as well.

Excellent flavours delightful dishes served with a delicious mix of condiments. Professional and amiable service crew. A truly outstanding meal for a reasonable Price. The best Oysters in Leinster. Taster menu is an excellent option

The most interesting and delicious restaurant in Dublin. So Irish the menu needs translation, but even if you don't know what the dish is, it is guaranteed to be delicious. The picture is thier Malagatawny pie. Tender chick, mango chutney deliciousness. Ask the chef for the Guinness bread recipe.

Excellent food and service. Myself and a friend went for our birthdays and it didn’t disappoint. Not nuts money but definitely for a special occasion. The staff were excellent and of the standard I’d expect from a restaurant in that price range. The food was so fresh, local and extremely inventive. I would definitely go there again for another special occasion.

Do not let the facade of this restaurant fool you. When we walked around the corner to find the restaurant, I thought we were about to walk into a gentleman's club. Up the stairs and around the corner, though, we found a small, cozy dining room and smiling servers welcome us. I chose the ham and chicken terrine and the venison for my main. My hot date chose the cauliflower soup and the pork for his main. The terrine was delicious when paired with the sweet chutney. The venison was tender and succulent - some of the best I've ever eaten. The soup smelled amazing as did the pork. But the brown walnut bread we chose at the beginning of the meal was unforgettable. I would return just for that basket of bread. At meal's end, the Pig's Ear cheesecake served in a jam jar was delectable, light, and not too sweet. McDreamy ordered his own dessert for once and was all smiles as he ate the bread and butter pudding with ice cream. The Pig's Ear was a fantastic little find in the center of Dublin.

The food was so good, my husband ordered seconds of what he ate! We loved every part of our meal, from appetizers through dessert. And the service was attentive and the view, pretty - looking out to Trinity College. We highly recommend!

A Michelin-nominated restaurant hidden behind an unremarkable glass door near the premier shopping district of Grafton Street. Made a reservation a day in advance for an early dinner starting 5:30 pm. Had to climb up some stairs to get to the dinning rooms at second and third floor. Environment: wooden stairs, floors and railings, ambient and slightly dim lighting, simplicity style chairs and floors, a relaxing vibe. Service: friendly and attentive. Good recommendation of dishes. Drink: Galway Hooker Irish Pale Ale. Pleasant aroma of yeast and hop on the nose, crispy , slightly bitter hit on the tongue followed by bitter-sweet kickback of orange peels. Nice. Starter: cured trout. Trout was cured to slightly salty skin with tender, juicy flesh, texture is quite smiliar to pan-seared Ahi Tuna served in other restaurants, but with a more refreshing briney taste and less fattiness. The sauce is a bit too sweet for my taste, although it did help reduce the saltiness of the skin. Garnish include soybeans, crispy peanuts, melons, sliced apple, and fish eggs. All tasted good individually, but together they seem to lhave rather conflicting tastes and lack a common theme. I wish the garnish could serve a coherent purpose. Entree: cod with house sauce. The moment I cut into the cod fillet, I know it is going to be good. Crispy outside, flakes of flesh still intact and could be easily peeled off, tender, buttery, savory taste. The sauce was a slightly sweet and sour sauce, working much better than the sauce in the cured trout, adding a bit more fun and complexity to the taste. Garnish, however, again seems to be overly complicated. An assortment of mushrooms, sweet plums and shallots (or maybe green onions), the taste is again pointing towards all directions. In particular, mushrooms do have their own savory and wild flavor, but it was watered down by the sauce that worked so well with the fish. For me, a simple, coherent garnish that elevates the taste of the fish would do. Dessert: chocolate pot with crushed hazelnut and passion fruit puree. Chocolate was melted nicely, tasted thick and rich, working magig with the crushed hazelnut. Passion fruit adds a stimulat vinegar flavor to the pot. Nice. Overall: 4 stars. Using a higher bar since this is a Michelin-mentioned restaurant. All the main stars of the dish are solid, but could use a bit more thoughts on consistency, and a little less work on the sauce and garnish.

I arrived early so I was able to grab a great seat by the window. The restaurant was decorated for Christmas and had Christmas music going in November. I ordered the shepherds pie, mushroom starter, and the bread pudding. The mushroom starter was phenomenal and the shepherds pie had great flavor. The service was friendly. The only downside is that the men's restroom was located at the top floor, so a lot of stairs.

The pigs ear was a good, but not great restaurant. Th service was solid and the food all tasted pretty good and was cooked with precision. The wine was a bit of a rip off. Not a bad meal, by probably the most mediocre in all. Very expensive for what was delivered.

Lovely little restaurant and food, emphasizing local ingredients and Irish traditional dishes prepared expertly and with panache. The smoked trout appetizer with green apple was a remarkable piece of fish: rich and orange, from a surprisingly large specimen. One companion's fish (hake, I think) with mushrooms and onion broth was fresh and delicate, if undistinguished. Meanwhile, my shepherd's pie was a tasty take on the classic...though less imaginative than I would expect from a place like this. The chicken dish for the evening was a bit peculiar in appearance if not flavor, striped with a dark sauce that looked like chocolate syrup. Dessert was largely back on track. My rice pudding infused with lemon was memorable, even if its rhubarb gelato complement was not worth the trouble. The cheesecake was reportedly excellent, so much so that I didn't get a taste! Over all, the Pig's Ear is worthy, but feels either a little expensive or too unrefined for what it is: the Michelin Bib Gourmand designation (NOT a star, as other reviewers have stated) has perhaps made the kitchen a bit too complacent. Time to pull up the slack, folks!

Perfect for a treat meal. Excellent food and service. It was our 3rd time here and it's excellent every time..my favourite restaurant in Dublin

Great food, friendly staff and a beautiful restaurant overlooking Trinity College. Perfect for a date night.

The service was subpar and the steak had little to flavor. Very disappointing. There also are no men's toilets reasonably accessible.

Excellent cuisine, service and and an elegant, but whimsical decor. Located near many historical sites.

The service was incredible and so was the food. This was the best restaurant we ate at in Dublin by far. The mushroom and artichoke was delicious and so was the shepherd's pie. The dessert was also fantastic. The ambiance is perfect for a nice evening out - fancy but not too fancy.

Food poisoning - avoid - had Hams knuckle and pork and got food poisoning for the next 48 hours. Waitress and service was also awful - offered zero to the overall dining experience.

Pigs ear in Dublin was absolutely fantastic. The servers were extremely attentive and friendly. The ambiance and atheistic was really comfortable, cozy and cute. Most importantly though the food was insanely AMAZING. Honestly, I think the desert was the best dessert I've ever eaten anywhere in my life. It was so creative and good. I can't recall the name of it but it was a delicious layered dessert with cake, meringue, custard, sorbet and fresh strawberries. The layer with the meringue was especially delicious and just made the dessert feel very interesting and special. The lamb Shephard's pie was by far the best Shephard's pie I've ever eaten. It had so much flavor and the whipped mash potatoes on top were perfectly golden brown and so beautiful looking. Also honorable mention is the bread basket with the logo because it was so cute and I love small well thought through details like these, they really add to the overall experience for me. Make sure to make a reservation in advance as I'm sure this will book up quickly! We booked about 3 weeks in advance so be sure to plan ahead.

My husband and I wanted one splurge dinner during our stay in Dublin, and The Pig's Ear was the perfect choice! This tiny little place is very intimate and cozy. Our server wasn't the friendliest, but he was very attentive. We got a bottle of sauvignon blanc to split which was delightful. The food was all outstanding! We got a crab, heirloom tomato & caviar dish for our appetizer and I wish I would have gotten another one for myself! My husband got a cod dish and it was definitely the best thing we ate that night. I was feeling adventurous so I went with a beef cheek, ox tongue & bone marrow dish. Super savory and yummy, but I think I preferred the cod. Highly recommend this place for a splurge meal in Dublin! I would say go for the seafood options, but honestly everything we ate was up to their Michelin star quality.

The Pig's Ear earned a Michelin Star in 2009, a cozy candle lit dinning room offers remarkable views. Very warm and inviting. To start, the in house baked brown and white breads were absolutley wonderful, warm, soft and moist with fresh creamy Irish butter, just heavenly. I tried the lamb pie, potatoes leak soup, Cod and cheese cake in a jar. A very good wine selection I must add. Overall my experience was great; the staff was attentive and very personable over all an A+

This was one of the best restaurants we have ate here in Dublin , fancy atmosphere upscale but not too pricey at all . secret gem - outstanding service

Made a reservation for the Pig's Ear before our trip after reading glowing reviews about it and after perusing the menu and drooling over every item listed. I am so glad I did! It was a little tricky to actually get to the dining floor as I think there was a wedding rehearsal dinner on the upper floor and people thought we were with them. After sorting it out we were taken to a lovely dining room with big windows overlooking Trinity College. Dining was 'cozy' but no so much that we felt like our table neighbors were eavesdropping on our conversation. ;) The first thing we tried that blew both myself and my friend away was the Irish Soda Bread. Holy smokes, hands-down the BEST I've ever had! We were so impressed that we had to ask if they happen to share the recipe which to our surprise, it's so popular that they actually sell a mix! We, of course, bought two to take home. There were so many things on the menu that we wanted but narrowed it down to the pea soup, the roast carrots appetizer and then I ordered the lamb while my friend ordered the Jerusalem artichoke salad. Surprisingly, our favorite dish was the carrots! I never knew carrots could be prepared in such a delicious way with a decadent creamy cheese, some crispy fried sourdough and garnished with some lovely dried marigolds. This is a MUST order here folks! My lamb was also divine and prepared perfectly with nary a hint of gaminess. The only item we found a tad bit disappointing was the soup, which while not terrible just didn't seem up to par with the rest of the food. It was definitely lacking in seasoning or some additional flavor. Service was great although there was a slight error with the soup timing but they corrected it immediately. All in all, I have to say The Pigs Ear was one of my favorite places we ate at in Dublin and I would HIGHLY recommend to anyone visiting the City. .

The Pig's Ear was absolutely lovely. Luckily with no reservations we snagged the last table they had available. The restaurant is intimate and quaint. Staff was warm but and friendly but not overbearing. We tried the pork belly, fish, and shared an appetizer/dessert and all were scrumptious. I definitely would come back again when in town.

Dinner 9/3/22. First the good because the bad is very bad. Small restaurant on the second floor was very cozy and we were welcomed at the door. Small but adequate menu with a nice wine list including decent by the glass selections. Our meal consisted of olives, soup, scallops, cod, lamb shepherds pie, chocolate mousse and a cheese plate. Everything tasted good. Service was good. Things changed at midnight. I awoke from a sound sleep and became violently sick. I've had food poisoning before but it has never been this bad or lasted this long. It took over 24hrs to clear my system. Thankfully my wife and I didn't share much of our selections. Either the scallops or the lamb shepherds pie was bad. As nothing was consumed before or after our meal there can be no mistake from where the infected food came. This is a good restaurant and I'm sure this is a "one off" but I'd like the chef to be aware along with future patrons to pay attention to anything that seems wrong. As it was our last night in Ireland it left a bad taste in my mouth to say the least! Fortunately I was able to depart for home but not before leaving one last surprise for the cleaners in the bathroom at DUB (sorry).

The Pig's Ear earned a Michelin Star in 2009 and have retained it since, and there is no question why. Reservations are not required, but strongly suggested. Located in Dublin's city center, the elegant candlelit dining rooms are cozy and quaint, offering a beautiful view of Trinity College. Upon entering we were warmly greeted-all of the staff were very personable and down to earth. Our waitress was knowledgeable of the menu and had a great personality. Good wine selection, offered by glass or bottle. I went with a reasonably priced Syrah which paired perfectly with the food. To start, the complimentary brown bread is ridiculously good. Dense yet delicate, packed with earthy whole grain flavor. My boyfriend and I were so amazed that we had to ask where they source it from. It turns out that they bake it in house from an original recipe, and fortunately for us, they sell the mix by the bag! We took two bags home. My appetizer was the Beetroot Salad, which was delicious and uniquely prepared. Roasted, puréed, and pickled beets were all artfully combined to create an interesting balance of textures and flavors. The star of the meal was my entree, the King Oyster Mushroom. The richly marinated mushrooms are smoked and then lightly seared, plated with delicate vegetable purée to further enhance the flavors. My non-vegetarian boyfriend was blown away by this dish and agreed that it was the best thing we ordered. He got the salmon and signature Shepherd's Pie, but neither stood up to the Oyster Mushroom. Do not skip this dish. Dinner for two (with wine) came to a reasonable €110, especially considering the incredible quality of food. I highly recommend The Pig's Ear, and look forward to returning the next time I am in Dublin.

Before my trip to Dublin, I spent good 3 hours looking for a restaurant for our just one night here. I read up on Irish food in general, looked up Irish recipes, watched videos and I came to the conclusion that I will not enjoy traditional Irish dishes. So I went on a quest to find modern Irish restaurant. Reading reviews and comparing them across multiple platforms (Yelp, Foursquare and Google) I decided that we have to dine at the Pig's Ear. And oh boy, we were not disappointed! First of all they have happy dinner before 6:30pm 2 course is under €25, and 3-course dinner is under €29 We were late and I usually don't like the happy hour menu anyway so we ordered a la carte. Pro tip: make a reservation. They are popular. We had: Earl grey tea cured salmon Pork terrine with wild mushrooms Ox's Cheek with escargot Texel Lamb shepherds pie All dishes were delicious! We were blown away by the presentation and the flavors.

Excellent service and attentive from beginning to end. Food was delicious. Loved the butternut squash soup! Ingredients are fresh and flavorful! Chocolate tart dessert was very yummy!!

Spent a week in Ireland, and ended with a day in Dublin culminating at this lovely dinner spot. Excellent service, I recommend making an email reservation ahead of time. Earl Grey Cured Irish Salmon: super flavorful and loved the earl grey infusion. Small portion size but they pack in the flavor. Shepherd's Pie: hearty portion and robust lamb and potato flavor, my boyfriend enjoyed it thoroughly Tongue and Cheek: Texturally I couldn't get through the tongue because I started overthinking it - my issue, it was prepared well and objectively high quality. Interesting though because the only tongue I've had before was lengua tacos and this was a full-on tongue on a plate. Not for the faint of heart, but I knew it was a ballsy choice going in. Comes with a bone marrow bite which is super rich and tasty, and the cheek is perfect. Mashed potatoes and broccolini accompanying the meat were both devoured. Duck Fat Roasted Potatoes: crispy and delicious, the duck fat creates a nice rich flavor that differentiates the dish from typical roast potatoes. Get dessert because they bring them out in little bags and they're cute and surprisingly hefty. I went with the Pig's Ear Vanilla Cheese Cake which came out layered in a jar and was marvelous.

Dublin should be Proud to have such a fine restaurant WOW!! Small but for a Excellent meal clean and attentive service the pigs here cannot be beat highly recommend

Made reservation for dinner based on Yelpers. Happy I did. Yelpers are always right on point. Dinner was excellent. My Shepard pie was delicious. My wife's salmon was equally delicious. Our apps were awesome. Service excellent. My only complaint was that the room was hot. However, the quality and taste of the food overshadowed this minor set back. This did not deter me from giving 5 stars.

Great dinner experience--highly recommend! You do need a reservation for The Pig's Ear, but it's well worth it. Intimate atmosphere, great service, delicious food. I went on my last night of a week-long Dublin trip and it was a perfect way to cap off my visit! The bread is delicious. The menu is seasonal and elevated. The best thing I are was my appetizer: potato soup. I don't know how you can make potato soup that smooth, with such complex and rich flavor, but it was amazing. High scores for the lamb shepherds pie and the pork belly entree as well.

My husband and I came to Ireland over Christmas and our favorite meal hands down was at the pigs ear. Service and food were perfect- could not recommend enough. Salmon appetizer was amazing and beef cheek and venison mains were lovely.

Very good. They took me in out of the rain without a reservation. The service was good, yet a bit slow and not unexpected. I had the potato leek soup as a starter. It was delicious, yet not what I expected. There were some mushrooms or something in it that I couldn't quite recognize. All in all, nice flavor, nice and hot (which I love) and beautifully presented. For the main, I got the pork belly and it was perfectly cooked with a subtle sauce that complemented it well. There was this chicharrone on the plate as well that was to die for!! I think here it is called a cracklin. My side dish were these baby carrots, perfectly al dente. The only problem was I couldn't eat it all and left no room for dessert. Lastly- don't go there for the Guinness because I think mine came from a can (boo!). Have wine instead. I admit, it's my mistake. Would definitely try again when I am in town. Prices were reasonable considering the high quality that is served. Four stars!

We dined here for our last evening in Ireland. The early dinner specials in Ireland is quite the special indeed. It's eur 22 for 2 courses from 5.30-6.30pm. Call or email ahead for reservation. The restaurant main dining room is on the second floor. Third floor is for special events. I do think they could have arrange a better system for checking guest in. Maybe set up a reception area on the ground floor. He whole process interrupts the dining experience a bit I think. Not a big deal but something they can consider. Food is not just beautifully presented but also quite refined and well flavored. That's saying a lot for Ireland. :). Look at these pictures. I had the cod and it was perfectly cooked. Service is decent though one of the waitresses kept looking disappointed when I told her no for the extra sides and dessert. Go a little bit off the beaten path and enjoy your meal as well as the view of Trinity College courtyard.

Fascinating Cod, with delicate tomato coulis top, endive, pinioli "sauce". Tartare tuna to start was fresh, perfect. For 50 Euros for two course this Michelin mentioned restaurant is worth a trip if not hungry, but looking for something special.

Nice place, memorable food and great service. My husband had the salmon appetizer and Lamb Shepherds pie and Snickers dessert.. he licked the salmon plate clean so I know it was good.. I had the bean and goat cheese salad, it was good but was missing something, i would have liked some beets or pistachios... for a meal i had the roasted cauliflower, it was really special and good. I got mine without the mushrooms. I too got the Snickers dessert - everyone raved about it but for me it was just okay, a little too much crunchy crumbs in the bowl, wasn't a fan of the texture.. overall great experience and the coffee was delicious..

I always went there and it was always good food, I always get three courses, the Shepard's pie is very good. The fried fish as well, and the duck legs but they only serve one leg which makes it a small portion, and lamb chops were good too. Their desserts have almost always had a twist and it's always good. I love this place BUT ONE MAJOR FLAW that I noticed is, if you walk in a little early (I.e 5-7 pm) they will literally ask you to leave by 8 pm even if the place is semi empty, and even if you order "a la carte" and yes, even if you booked it. They would notify you before hand that they want you out and when it's time, they will remind you to leave although the delay would depend on how fast they could cook the food and serve you. So I would only go if I'm going with someone I'm comfortable with and doesn't mind that attitude, cause they embarrassed me when I took people that were important to me there.

Small, intimate venue. When crowded, it can be quite noisy and boisterous. Quality meal and a bit of whimsy in their dessert presentation. UK friends enchanted by the Walnut Whip. Service was competent and pleasant. No bar where one may hang out. I would recommend and return.

I had a fabulous evening here, and I haven't been wowed like that by food in quite a long time! Some people might say that this restaurant is a bit expensive, but I thought it was very well priced. They even do an early bird for just 22 euro for 2 dishes. Trust me, with the quality of food served here, that's a bargain. We went all out though and ordered a la carte. The menu is full of irish produce, and very original. Not your typical steak and chips, or salmon and mash. Every dish we ordered was like a little artwork on a plate. They put a basket of delicious fresh bread on the table to keep us happy until food arrived. I started of with pulled pork croquettes accompanied by mustard and crisp apple slices. Then for a main organic salmon with broccoli, samphire, some nuts. AMAZEBALLS. And the dessert was a buttermilk custard with ginger and rhubarb. mmmm! Portions are not overly huge, and I needed those 3 courses to have me full up. (Usually I skip dessert) Service was very good as well, and the two different waiters often checked up on us and re-filled our wine. For 3 courses and wine bill came to more or less 50 euro. Well worth it!

So happy I found this place upon doing some research on restaurants in Dublin. I made a reservation through email a week or so ahead of time, and for a Saturday night, I think this was a good call. The restaurant was pretty crowded when we arrived, but we were seated promptly. (As a side note, the check-in process is a little weird; there is no host desk, but we were able to get the attention of a staff member who quickly checked the reservation list and then seated us). The two-course option was over by the time we got there, so we ordered off the a la carte menu. I enjoyed the Summer Squash Soup as a starter (seriously SO good) and then the Slow Cooked Lough Erne Sheperd's Pie pie as my main course, which was equally delicious, while my fiancé had the Pig Belly and really liked that as well. I had been planning to try out one of their desserts, but I couldn't even finish my shepherd's pie--I was so full! Other than the food, the ambiance was comfortable yet still a bit elegant, and the service was prompt and kind. I will certainly be back when I am in Dublin again!

We really enjoyed the 2 course supper menu . I took the Earl grey cured salmon to start (which was delicious !) And the Jerusalem artichoke main dish. It was such an excellent meal and the restaurant has a cozy rlatmosohere overlooking the grounds of Trinity college. The service was a bit slow (which can happen that's ok) but the waitresses were not particularly friendly. Overall though, an excellent meal!

It was certainly no Pigs Ear from a service or culinary point of view. I don't often give 5 stars on a first visit but I really couldn't find any defect to warrant anything less. Located up a narrow and somewhat uneven staircase is the Pig Ear first floor restaurant. Its a pretty small bright room with some nice views of Trinity College. They service an early bird menu which is good value but we arrived at 7 so had the A la carte which was contained a wide selection of starters and mains to cover most tastes. There is also an allergy statement added at the bottom which is useful. The wine list is excellent and very well priced. We had a bottle of the Salice Salentino which at 31euro a bottle was good value. The highlight was the Shepards Pie - anyone that can transform a dish from something so simple to something so rich and tasty is doing something right. For desert the cheesecake served in a jar deconstructed and it was rich, creamy and whipped.

The Pig's Ear serves sophisticated irish dishes using great local ingredients. I took the opportunity to have their early bird 3 course dinner for €26.95 - a true bargain! The dishes are creative and beautifully presented. The hero of my dinner was probably the super-tender lamb belly or the marriage between the flavours in the dessert. The restaurant is very small and cozy, with no more than 15 tables, and the staff are helpful and well-trained. Great place for a dinner!

Yes yes yesssss!!! Had an absolutely faultless experience here last week. The food is unreal, modern and very interesting. I started off with baked onions, ehhhhh Delish. They were little balls of caramel heaven, with some creamy cheese and sprinkled with quinoa, nuts and lots of other little joys. Main I went for the pork belly. Can't explain to you how good it was. Perfection on a plate. For me I must say their deserts were what stole the show. We all got different ones so I got to try them all. Quite often deserts can b a bit of a let down in restaurants. Not in the pigs ear. Their pastry chef has got some skills, I tell ya that much. The staff were so friendly, helpful and well trained. Our waiter knew the menu inside out and was even a great help in choosing wines. The decor was simple but classy. A serious amount of steps between the door, the toilets and the 2 dining areas. So it's defo a leave the grandparents at home sorta job :) I will be back fo shizzzz!!!

Came here for my birthday with my fiancé. The restaurant is spread over three floors and we were on the first. I sat with a view of Trinity College. Pretty impressive. The room does look small when you walk in but it certainly doesn't feel so. I love how everything was presented - even the bread :) I ordered the Crab Mayonnaise which came with fennel, carrot, trout caviar and orange. Check the photos to see how gorgeous it is! I had to spread some of it on the brown bread and it was utterly divine! For main course I ordered the Roast Cod, Lardo, Cod Brandade, Sweetcorn, Hay Smoked Butter, Clams and Samphire. The cod was perfectly cooked and I loved the sweetcorn. Then the best bit - dessert!!! I ordered The Pigs Ear Vanilla Cheese Cake, Berry Jam & Hobnob Biscuits. This comes out in a paper bag and you open it up to discover a jam jar inside which has a deconstructed cheesecake. It was so light and refreshing. A great way to end a beautiful meal. I know I tend to give out a fair few fives but when I find a place that serves food I like and the staff are lovely I find it very difficult to mark them down. This, however, is probably one of the best restaurants I've been to in Dublin and I can't think of a better way to have celebrated my birthday this year.

Fantastic!! The Pig Ear was the first meal we had upon arriving in Dublin and it couldn't have been any better. The restaurant is upstairs and is small and quant. My husband and I both ordered a starter. He ordered the potato soup and I ordered the lamb shortbread. Both were delicious. For our main dishes we ordered the shepherds pie and the cod dish. Once again. Both were outstanding. We are so happy we are here at the Pigs Ear. It was one of the best meals we had here in Dublin!

As a birthday treat I took my friend here. It's upstairs and has a small sign so be careful not to pass it by. They have an early bird special of main courses for 9.95 or a two course for 15 euro. Go go go! Amazing value, great menu. We went for the signature dish, pork belly sandwich with potatoes. It was gluttony at it's best, the thing was huge. If that's too much indulgence for you they also had lighter dishes, like fish. It is Irish themed food. The menu is quirky, the presentation is great, the desserts are divine, the service was excellent and the restaurant itself is intimate and you have a great view of Nassau street. Definitely worth it at those prices.

Creative menu but with Irish roots. The Pig's Ear is a great destination for all foodies. Great service, wonderful food, enjoyable ambiance. My roast chicken was absolutely tender and moist. Everything was thoughtfully prepared, this was a marvelous meal.

OMG, I love love love this place. We went there for lunch and let me tell you, this is an awesome restaurant. It took me a while to try to decide what I wanted because everything on the menu sound so delicious. And this is after studying the menu from their website few days before! I end up with "Old Fashioned Pork & Bacon Brawn with Pea Puree & Cider Jelly" for starter. Since I never had Brawn before, I did a bit of research. It is basically head cheese, I was a bit dubious but I figure what the heck, you only live once! Besides, I felt it's my duty to order something pig bits in a restaurant with 'Pig' in its name! Anyway, it is pretty tasty. It's kind of like a pate with big chunks of meat in it. It's sweet and savory all at the same time. One of my sister in law had the salmon, and it was delicious. For the main course, I had Jane Russell's Original Pork Sausage with Spelt Pearls, Granny Smith Apple & Cider Onion. This is when I fell in love with this place. The pork belly is like heaven in your mouth. And the mash is just like totally awesome good. I really like the addition of Spelt Pearls. And of course, we have to get the dessert! They ran out of chocolate, so I picked the Camelised Lemon Rice Pudding with Raspberries and orange. It was very tasty but it was way too heavy for me. I felt like I just ate a big lunch of mushy rice. I tried some of the cheese cake, and it was so good! I probably would pick that next time. Over all, we all agreed that this is going to be our meeting spot for lunch from now on. It's close to dart, the prices are good, has awesome food, and has 'Pig' in it's name, in my books that's the best combo for a restaurant!

Slightly disappointed in Pig's Ear. This was a rare case where I felt Yelp let me down. I came here because it was the top Yelp result in Dublin for shepherd's pie and because of the rave reviews about the brown bread ice cream. My appetizer (smoked salmon with soda bread) was pretty good. The salmon had good flavor, but the bread was very meh. Naturally I order the shepherd's pie for my main. Again, pretty decent, but it needed salt. I then ordered the brown bread ice cream and, quite frankly, it was disgusting. The consistency was way off and the flavor was just not pleasant. It had a nice presentation (see pic) but just ultimately tasted like crap. I didn't even finish it. So Pig's Ear isn't a bad place to eat, but just a little disappointing considering what I'd read on Yelp (and considering how pricey it is).

We had been saving this place for a special dinner and I'm glad we did so, everything went brilliantly! I must say that after reading some reviews my main worry was the service, however that too was excellent and in a few lines I'll go into more detail about that. First impressions: we rang them on the same day (a Saturday) about a booking for 20pm. They told us they could only book us for 21pm but we needn't worry or rush, as there would still be plenty of people around and we could stay til after 22pm. You can't miss the bright pink door that leads to a well-lit stairwell. You don't need to climb that much to reach the first level of the restaurant. We arrived about 15min previous to our reservation but, instead of rushing us out into the cold street again, they offered to call us from the pub next door as soon as our table was ready. And so they did. We went up to the second floor, to a much more intimate and dim-lit dinning room than downstairs. Both the host and the waiter we got were very friendly and easy-going, our waiter in particular was quite energetic and made simple things like uncorking a bottle a bit more entertaining and delightful. As soon as our host found out we were portuguese he even attempted a few words every time he went by. Before the bread and butter couvert (even this was yummi and well presented) we ordered a bottle of wine, which was very easy because their list is quite good and reasonably priced. The whole food menu looked delicious as well and we started with a Venison Tartare and Jerusalem Artichokes. These were very tasty dishes, rich in both visual and palate-pleasing textures. However the mains were the true highlight of the meal. The wild Irish game Venison was beautifully cooked, the the meat still rosy inside matched the berries in the dish. The Beef cheek with bone marrow was another delicious dish, a bit more rich and saturated in flavours, but made you want to lick the plate clean in the end. After all this we couldn't possibly skip dessert! This was probably my least favourite thing, but that only means that it was good instead of absolutely great. I got the Cuinneog Farm buttermilk sorbet and while it tasted good, it felt too watery, as if the dish wasn't holding very well together. The Cheesecake though is not to be messed with, serious food black magic going in there! We took our time, had a nice espresso, and got out a bit after 23pm. Just as they had promised! This was a perfect dinner experience and I'm just waiting for an excuse to go back and sample the lunch menu ^^

The absolute best meal of my entire Euro trip, which included Nottingham, Dublin, Amsterdam and London. And I have my fellow international Yelpers to thank for that. This restaurant seems like a hidden gem. It is located in what looks more like a resident house than a restaurant, with 2 floors for service and 1 for washrooms, or as they say in Europe, toilets. The layout of the small restaurant creates a cozy and intimate feel. The servers were very polite and helpful. We had bottles of red wine, and I courageously ordered the ox tongue and cheek and almost changed my order, but when it came out I had no regrets at all. The ox cheek was the most moist, tender and succulent meat that I've ever tasted. I've tried ox tongue twice in my life and both times I didn't like it, however The Pig's Ear made ox tongue actually taste good. The portion size was a bit larger than I had expected for an upscale restaurant in Europe. This resulted in me sharing a dessert, and that was absolutely delicious as well. I have no complaints, and I think that anyone visiting Dublin should try The Pig's Ear.

I visited Dublin back in November and after a recommendation from Briony, decided to book a table at The Pigs Ear for lunch. Because this was just at the end of November though, when we walked in expecting their cheap lunch menu, we were instead greeted with their expensive, three course Christmas menu. Considering how expensive we knew Dublin to be, and our budget for the weekend, we were a little taken aback at the prices an decided to order off the A La Carte menu instead to lessen the cost. I chose a Pheasant dish which was really stunning - the meat had lots of flavour and every garnish on the plate worked really well and included parsnips and root vegetable crisps. My only problem - something out of control of the chef - was that the bird had clearly been shot through the breast and the area around it was very bloody and dark. The whole dish was beautiful though and Sam polished off the areas I didn't finish! We decided to treat ourselves and share the 'Pigs Ear Cheesecake' for dessert and the presentation was the most charming I've seen. It came to the table in a pink & white striped paper bag, which, when opened up, revealed a jam jar filled with the upside down cheesecake, consisting of chocolate biscuit crumb, cream cheese mix and caramel sauce. It tasted as good as it looks and I could have eaten it twice over. It was an expensive meal and very much a one-off for us - we loved the food but it's definitely somewhere for special occasions! It feels slightly unfair giving The Pig's Ear three stars considering the food was really tasty, but my bloody pheasant and the shock of the change in menu and the prices have just knocked it down for me. I wouldn't write it off, it's the kind of place that is really special and the food is beautifully presented, I think I'd just need to save up quite a bit before going back!

The best meal I've had in Dublin, without a doubt! I made a booking a few days in advance and didn't have trouble getting a table for two on a Saturday. A three course meal is €26.95 and without knowing much about here apart from the reviews, I was excited to try the delicious sounding Irish menu. There's only three options for starters/mains so Graeme and I ordered the same dishes (something we normally try to avoid!). We started with a crispy pig's head croquette with ardo, tarragon mayonnaise, apple, spiced prunes followed by slow cooked duck leg with pear and oatmeal crumb (the menu description online doesn't seem to match what we had!). I love a croquette, in fact I want to start some kind of croquette appreciation club (who's with me?!). The pig's head croquette was up there with some of the most epic croquettes I've ever had the pleasure of eating - immensely meaty with a delicious crisp crump and lovely accompaniments. The duck leg was just as tasty, soft and tender with a really rich flavour. The square of black pudding was just what I needed to convert me to black pudding as it was really mildly spiced and added a lovely kick to the dish. We'd also ordered a side salad of peas, broad bean and Parmesan which was a lot more delicious than it might sound - between us we scoffed the lot. I was really impressed with the generous covering of Parmesan and the peas were super fresh and perfectly cooked. For dessert I opted for the Cashel blue cheese. I really wasn't going to get dessert but after how the other dishes were, I knew I had to try it. It was served with a really strange, large wooden knife which maybe makes me a complete imbecile but I couldn't really work it with the cheese and crisp bread. Thankfully it just meant that it took me ages to eat and I got to enjoy it for even longer. Service was good, helpful and always on hand but never overbearing. Sure, the bill ended up being kind of pricey but it was worth it. The Pig's Ear is up there with some of the best meals I've had, anywhere and definitely takes the crown for the best meal in Dublin (so far, I'm here for another 4 days! I'll do an update if somewhere takes over!)