Bracken’s Bakery

Brackens have a great business in the North Side of Cork City!
They serve great sandwiches freshly made right in front of you and the staff are always nice!
Their freshly baked bread is georgous and they also bake fantastic cakes!

The Staff:
The staff are always friendly and attentive and they can cater to a large crowd really quickly so don’t be worried if you see a queue!

The Food:
First and foremost Bracken’s is a fantastic bakery! There is always an array of freshly baked breads, cakes and sweets on display and they can bake custome orders as well.
One time I ordered a birthday cake to serve upwards of 70 people and they came through no problem!
But for the everyday wants and needs of their customers the sandwiches from here are the real star!
They make them right in front of you and you can choose from a variety of fillings!
I recommend the fresh chicken, coldslaw and stuffing and then add whatever else you want!
When I used to work nearby, I would regularly get lunch here as the freshly baked bread and the fresh ingredients were just too good to stay away!

Few Downsides:
I feel that I am somewhere between a 3 and a 4 star rating lately when previously I was a 5 star rating no problem!
A few things have made me rethink my review as of late and they are the following:

1: More often than not they are out of white bread (I am only speaking on this for the weekends as I no longer work nearby and it is at the weekend that I have a chance to stop by). There is nothing wrong with being out of white bread in my view as I can always just get there earlier on a Saturday however, I come earlier and earlier to beat the lunch rush and yet they still seem to be always out!
If your preference is white bread then I would advise that you get here as early as you can.
I never remember this being an issue during the week when I would arrive in the height of the lunch rush.
I can only imagine that their are some business economics at play and not wanting to be left over with old bread and I can’t blame a business for that!

2: This is what maily erks me the most and it is why I would rate it as low a 3 to 3.5 stars!
On a number of occasions I have arrived around 1:30pm of Saturday and I have been told by staff that the salad/sandwich bar closed at 1:30pm so I was too late to order a sandwich yet the official opening hours on a Saturday are 8:00am to 2:00pm according to Google.
If a business has a winding down time that is totally reasonable and especially on a Saturday I get it however, I would apprecite it if this was posted on the opening times on Google and that it is clearly noted to let potential customers know that they need to be there before 1:30pm on a Saturday if they want to order a sandwich!
Keeping this in mind, a couple of times that I made the trip to Brackens to be there before 1:30pm, thinking that this will be fine and at the very least I would be able to order a brown bread sandwich, yet they still would turn me away stating that they have already begun winding down well before 1:30pm. On one occasion I noted the time being 1:22pm…

Update 09-Aug-2023:
3: There is lack of wheelchair accessibility to the premises which is a something that I have only recently become aware of as I required the use of crutches for a few weeks and I started to notice how many places that don’t have easy access for people with limited mobility.
A ramp would be required to rectify this but I am sure there is space along the front of the premises.
If it were in place a much wider community of customers could access the premises.

Overall Opinion:
I would still say that Brackens is a great place to grab a bite to eat be it for breakfast or lunch, definitely 3.5 stars!
Nothing beats a freshly made to order sandwich from here!
Plus they have a fantastic bakery that can cater to your needs!
However, I would advise that you get there as early as you can especially on weekends!

Love the place, but today I got the tiniest wrap ever for the same price of a normal one – it is half filled, with barely 2 spoons of tuna, 1 of coleslaw, 1 egg, and a small handful of cucumber. My husband’s regular wrap for comparison. I’ve been taking the same wrap for 2 years – it is not the standard quantity.
A bit disappointed, as I was looking forward to this treat.
Edit: I unwrapped one half of my wrap as it felt very empty. It is pretty much empty.

Nice cosy spot, cakes and food were beautiful – couldn’t afford to be doing it everyday but worth the treat, nice cosy sitting area too. Definitely would recommend.

I wish every county in Ireland had a place even half as decent as this shop, sandwiches are top drawer for an excellent price

My first time eating here and i am impressed.. Huge sandwich lovely cake great coffee