Cork's most stubborn old-pub dish: brined pig's trotters simmered long, then either eaten straight from the cooking liquor or split, breadcrumbed, and crisped under the grill.
Crubeens (from the Irish crubin, meaning hoof) were sold by street vendors outside Cork pubs from the late 19th century until the 1960s as a working-class pub snack: the trotter slow-boiled in a stock pot of allspice and bay, served in the hand with a glass of stout. The Coal Quay markets ran the trade until the 1950s, when refrigeration changed butcher-shop economics. Today only a handful of Cork city kitchens still preserve the dish, notably Cornstore on Cornmarket Street and the Mutton Lane Inn during traditional autumn months; the Coal Quay revival markets occasionally bring back a vendor running the original boil. Pat O'Connell at the English Market still supplies the raw trotters.
3 editor picks for Crubeens (Cork Pig's Trotters) in Cork, ranked by editorial score. All Cork signature dishes · Crubeens (Cork Pig's Trotters) across every city.
The Mutton Lane Inn ★ 4.4
City Centre · 3 Mutton Lane, Cork, T12 RV07
Accessed down a narrow laneway off Patrick Street that leads into the English Market complex, Mutton Lane Inn is Cork's most photogenic traditional pub.
Jacobs on the Mall ★ 4.1
South Mall and Lancaster Quay · 30A South Mall, Cork
Cork's most evocative dining room occupies the former Turkish baths on South Mall with a soaring Victorian interior and seasonal Irish menu.
Cornstore ★ 3.9
City Centre · Cornmarket Street, Cork
A striking four-bay Victorian corn exchange on Cornmarket Street now housing Cork's standard steakhouse and seafood room, with a bold cocktail bar and late.