Having read a couple of earlier reviews I must admit to feelings of trepidation of what to expect of the "rude" staff etc? - I and my 5 friends who travelled with me where all of the same mind.
STAFF: We all found Jackie & Charlie very hospitable, helpful & welcoming - the chamber maid charming, in her east european way

ROOMS: Basic; but very comfortable & clean. The views to the rear are awfull but, hey! you can't always choose your neighbours.

LOCATION: Very central but just far enough from the hustle & bustle not to have any noise problems. Located a little way up a fairly steep hill this is fine if you are mobile but probably not if you have mobility issues. The address is St Patricks HILL so remember HILL!

BREAKFAST: Cereal, juice, toast, full irish...more toast, lovely rye bread, lashings of tea and coffee it really sets you up for the day.

COST: We all thought that at €45 pppn offered good value for money

SUMMARY: My friends and I have been all over the UK & Ireland following horse racing and have stayed in B&B, Guest Houses, and Hotels's of a varying standard and cost.
We agreed that in the past we have paid a lot more.... and recieved a lot less than what is on offer at the Acorn.
I would finish by saying although I'm sure the Acorn is run as a business people should appreciate that they are being invited into someones home. A B&B is not a 4/5 star hotel it is a cheaper alternative and should be seen as such. The Acorn is a very short walk to Cork city centre; it is clean and it is worth the money.
COMMENT - by the the way we all lost at the races - so this review wasn't clouded by the euphoria of a sudden increase of wealth!!!

This property was warmly recommended by Lonely Planet, however a tremendous disappointment. Shabby, small, cramped room. Rude staff. Definitely not recommended. Try The Garnish House instead which is lovely.

Having read the negative reviews when I had already booked in for 2 nights I was expecting the worst but I was pleasantly surprised. It is in an excellent spot literally 2 minutes on foot to the city centre and I would give it 5 stars for it's location. It was spotlessly clean and the room I was in which is the room in the photo as far as I can see is bigger than one would think as is the little parlour and has a good sized bathroom with bath/shower. The dining room is much bigger than is the photo and I found it charming. True, breakfast was average but tasty (the orange juice wasn't freshly squeezed). In other b & b's I've sometimes had this and home made bread, scones, mushrooms etc but one does get an Irish breakfast consisting of one fried egg, 2 sausages,2 rashers, one piece of white pudding and half a grilled tomatoe with cereals available for those who would like this and toast, tea and coffee, quite adequate. It didn't have any frills (eX. no goblet to rinse your mouth with in bathroom and no shampoo) but it is a b & B and not a 5 star hotel. I found the owners ok. Not overly chatty but pleasant enough especially after what was said about them in the last review. I managed to have hot showers without any problems (once I did have to leave the hot tap run for quite a while before I got hot water but it did come.) The only negative thing I would say not being used to the sound of traffic was that it was a bit noisy in the room where I was in the front so it may be a bit quieter in the back but the view out the back isn't as nice (then again, you don't stay there to spend your time looking out the window and maybe the window wasn't shut properly..).

I would give it 3 stars in general.

(originally from Cork)

So much for the warm welcome... NOT! Having not only stayed in all types of accommodation worldwide but worked in hotels, travel and tourism for years... the level of professionalism left a lot to be desired. Conflict resolution/customer satisfaction is not something this establishment are familiar with… more like just all out CONFLICT!

Stayed there this w/end and we received the most appalling, rude and arrogant treatment, after we complained about NO water for showers on our first morning. One person had a two minute shower, another was left with suds all over as it ran out and the third had none.

We were made out to be liars having said that they had checked the room and it was fine, when it turned out they hadn't as one of the occupants was in the toilet at the time they had gone into the room to check it. There was no apology for the inconvenience whatsoever. Just that “it’s works now’ and ‘that doesn’t happen here’. The matter was handled very badly by both owners. I assume they both own it as it was never explained to us as to their exact positions in the B&B. Complaints are an inconvenience and not tolerated well. It seems, as they eventually explained, that if all the guests take a shower together this CAN happen. But basically tough luck… you can have one now! As we were on our way to an all-day conference this wasn’t possible.

We had booked a triple and were never told the third bed, until arrival, was a camp bed which was totally unsuitable. Even moving the mattress to the floor was no good as it was such a poor, thin mattress. As three grown women, two of us, had to share a double bed between two, which was very small to say the least and one was very pregnant. Again this complaint fell on deaf ears. We were told they have people share the bed all the time… I can only imagine it is either couples who want to share, obviously, or young men/women who have been out on the town for a few drinks and would sleep on a brick unaware what they slept on with alcohol.

On checking out one of my companions, who had already departed, had previously spoken to the owner and asked how much she owed. She made out a cheque for us to pass on and it turns out they do not accept cheques. This was in no way indicated to her before it was given to us. They said the rest of us could not leave until one of us forked over her share. Needless to say, it was their responsibility to point out they do not accept cheques when speaking about payment to her, nor is it prominently displayed anywhere in the B&B or on their website. We were informed it is not up to them to point out the rules to all their customers. OK... so, if not, who is responsible? After a long and heated discussion they relented and accepted the cheque.

Basically, not one of the owners accepted responsibility for the complaints or how their behaviors affected us. Particularly as one of us was heavily pregnant. We are lodging a complaint with Failte Ireland, who they are registered with, as we would not like ANYONE to have to endure the treatment we received.

They said they have been in the business 7 years… I think they have customer burnout. That is the only reasonable explanation we could come up with that would make two supposed professionals behave like this. A change to a non-client facing business might be worth considering.

When we advised them that we would be reporting the matter we were told they were going to say that we were awful to deal with. As professionals, not one person understood that their treatment and tones set the whole tone of the situation. Behaviour breeds behaviour is what I was taught in customer satisfaction classes. All we wanted was a simple apology/explanation, which we said to them, and instead we were treated badly because we had the audacity to genuinely complain about things that should NOT have happened and were not acceptable for the price we were charged at €40 per person.

We went Tourist Board approved because we believed it set some genuine standards that we could expect in terms of the accommodation and the staff conduct. I’m sorry we didn’t take the unapproved one we first thought of. As we left the hatred and anger in the woman’s eyes was dreadful to see. It is not something I have ever seen in anyone nor do I care to see it again.

It has left a very bad impression in our minds about our trip to Cork and unfortunately, also about using other B&B type accommodation.

DO NOT STAY HERE!