The Porterhouse

You are having a great day outdoors, doing one of these cliff walks of you are just hungry from sitting at the beach and enjoying beautiful Bray?
Then go to the Porterhouse for a relaxed pint and meal! Great views are for free!
From time to time I like the olé pub food, a burger, hand cut chips or a Caesar salad — the porterhouse gives you all that for good quality and reasonably good value too! Portions are massive, so come in hungry!!!

I give it 3 stars because I just didn’t think it deserves 4. It is a fairly generic place, with several locations around town. The food is good and there is a wide variety. They also have a ton of beers, so in that respect, it is a good place to drink and maybe have a snack if hungry. Popped in there after hiking around Greystones to Bray and definitely enjoyed a cold beer after.

Nice place for a pint and some food whilst in Bray. The atmosphere is really nice and the service is prompt and friendly. My favorite is the suicide wings and onion rings and a pint of Weiss beer… mmmm
Will come back here next time we visit Bray :-)

I can’t believe that Saturday was the first time I have been to Porterhouse Bray. It’s a place of history. This is the original porterhouse, the one that started it all. When this pub opened in 1989 they were a speciality pub dealing in special imports like Belgian beer. It might not be the site of the original brewery (temple bar) but it was the beginning of the company.
When you walk up to it, there is little to make it different from any of the other pubs and restaurants along the Bray promenade. The building is typical of the other Victorian style buildings. A large courtyard with seating and covered beer garden also dominate.
It’s only when you walk inside that you see the difference. If you have ever been to one of the Dublin porterhouses, you will immediately be at home. The interior styling is very similar to its siblings, right down to the choice of beer. Humans are creatures of habit and don’t like change which is why the US is dominated with the same chains and identical strip mall layouts. While it’s something I hate, I must admit there is a comfort in walking in to a porterhouse and having a fair idea of what to expect.
The Bray porterhouse, just like Porterhouse North is one that accommodates everyone so you will actually find Guinness and other macro beers on tap. I don’t think it necessary but that’s just me. When you have three stouts of your own, each one infinitely better than the macro equivalent then there should not be a need to bow to pressure.
The beer of course is excellent as I would expect as it all comes from the same brewery in Blanchardstown. I was very happy with the food though, the Chicken Old Smokey burger was beautiful, sizeable and satisfying. The service took a hit because the waitress who said she would be back with cutlery/​napkin never did. I was eating a burger and chips so the only thing I missed was the napkin. Good thing the burger was finger lickin good.

Went after a club hiking trip, so there was a lot of people but I don’t think that excuses this…
A few of us got the sample trays. I wanted the ale one, but they were out of two of the beers on it, so I got the lager one. They were brought on one tray and we were told that all were there and «I think this is a lager and I think this is an ale…»
For the 27 of us it took over 30 minutes for everyone to get their drinks. All the coffees and hot chocolates came out luke warm, or worse, and with whipped cream all over the place (could not touch the glasses).
I can’t blame our server, it seemed very hectic. We had multiple people come out (we were sitting outside) and ask us if the food order that they had in their hands was ours.

Stopped in to the Porterhouse after a long hike, and it was the perfect spot. The burger was fantastic, and the beer delicious.
I suppose the service was questionable, I had asked for jalapenos in my Mexican burger and they didn’t come (but she did take the € 1.20 off the bill). And when you’re charging € 11 for a burger, do you need to charge an extra € 1.20 for jalapenos?
Even though we ate outside, with a view of the sea, I had a walk around inside and enjoyed the different nooks.

Ate there last night. Food, when it finally arrived, wasn’t great and the place looked generally scruffy — even dirty. Not a place to bring visitors. I won’t be back.

The beer is quite good and they have a large variety to choose from, but you need to be creative to get one, because the service outside is near to «non-​existend». Normally there is only one service girl running around confused, carrying each glass by himself without using a tray and totally overworked. If you want to have a beer without waiting you need to order directly at the bar. The boss should employ more well trained people instead of saving money in service. The burgers are… ehm… average, with big chunks of tomato and onions and the fries are fatty. Well, the Porterhouse is acceptable when you are in Bray, hungry and thirsty, but not a reason to go to Bray.

If you care for some continental beers, some excellent burgers and for some real beer garden feeling you need to go to Bray.
As a bonus you get the sea as well. And if you are lucky they will also have a band playing there. It’s great in summer!

Great place for a beer and lunch. Inside has four different areas, so whether you want to sit at the bar, or in a lounge, or at a fireside table, or in a bright lunch area, you’re in luck. Outside has a beer garden feel, with a view across the street of the promenade and seafront.
I’ve only come here for lunch, and every time the portions were very, very large. The «boards» (vegetarian and meat/​cheese) are easily enough for two people. Burgers are 10 oz. Sandwiches are giant. The children’s «mini pizza» is 10 inch diameter. It’s an alarming amount of food, which would suit those who are doing the walk from Greystones or up Bray Head.
Service can be dicey; we waited half an hour to place an order on a busy Saturday, but were served immediately on a weekday. All of our servers were friendly and made an effort to welcome our toddler.
You can find a wide array of beers here, but I recommend the Porterhouse’s own brews, especially the porter and the stout – fresh and well-​crafted.

Best in its league! If you care for some continental beers, some excellent burgers and for some real Bier-​Garten-​Gefühl (beer garden feeling) you need to go to Bray.
Since I am in Ireland I spent much time to find a real beer garden that makes me feel at home and that has a variety of imported beers. As a bonus you get the sea as well, something that I would miss in Berlin or München. And if you are lucky they will also have a band playing there. This is the summer!

I went out last night… really, all on my own… no wife, no child, just me and 2 mates and a few pints and a very very good cuban cigar… It was almost like I had a life again, if only briefly.
Now, this is not something to be taken lightly, not a night to be squandered in just any bar or pub; it requires a good heated outdoor smoking area (which the porter house has) and a reasonable bar food menu (which the place has).
It also needs to serve a good pint… and this is where the porter house comes into its own, they make their own and it is goooooooooooooood.
The food is grand… no other word for it really, not a gastronomic treat but not awful either. I had the fresh Hake and chips served with a pea purée and rocket leaves — it all went down terribly well with the drinkies — Porterhouse Red is my pint of choice — somewhere between a pint of kilkenny and a smithwicks… ok, that only makes sense if you are Irish, if not then go and have a try, well worth it.

I stopped off here with a friend after we did the Greystones to Bray walk and it was just the ticket. This is a great place for a pint and some good food.
As Aoife said they brew their own beer as well as having quite the selection of unusual imported beers you’re really spoiled for choice and there’s just no excuse not to be adventurous.
The food here is pretty great too. I just love their beef and stout stew… it reminds me of the food my mother should have made when I was a child but didn’t!

What many Dubliners may not know is that the Porterhouse franchise began its life as a single pub on Bray’s seafront. Although much expanded and pimped up now, Bray’s Porterhouse remains the original and the best!
By now Porterhouse Bray has become an empire in itself with Eclectic Garden, a two-​floor night club (two-​floors shouldn’t seem impressive but in Bray, it is!), a late bar, a hotel and a large beer garden overlooking Bray’s promenade. On a summer night, there is nothing like sitting out in the beer garden supping on a pint and listening to some live music from the bandstand (there tends to be a lot of outdoor guitar strumming during Bray’s Summerfest).
To me, Eclectic Garden is just another night club, albeit one with a glass bridge (don’t wear skirts girls), but the craic, the banter and the character are in the main bar.
Porterhouse brews its own beer so you may not find your favourite lager on tap there. It also stocks an array of international bottled beers. You can you can also order cocktails but the barman might give you a dirty look!