Bird and Bear in Dundee City

A cosy pub/restaurant with a welcoming atmosphere, offering a great selection of craft beers, classic ales, and spirits. The food is hearty and delicious, with generous portions. Friendly staff and a perfect spot for a relaxing evening.

We attended on a Saturday evening without a booking and the staff were able to accommodate us. The food itself was ok. My steak was cooked just how I liked it but there was a fair size difference in my steak compared to my husband’s. I was disappointed in the gateaux as it was clearly a mass produced frozen one and for £8 per portion I would’ve expected better quality. Where this place is lacking in quality and quantity of food v’s cost, it makes up for in the drinks and atmosphere. It’s a very cool place and the cocktails and wine were excellent. I would definitely visit again, but would maybe eat elsewhere.

Cracking local bar with a big selection of cocktails and in house brewed lager, Bar tenders are chatty and friendly. I had the Panko encrusted chicken burger with house slaw and skin on Fries 10/10 💥 freshly cooked and really tasty.

Ok place to hang out but Burger was horribly overdone!

Delicious food! A great spot in Dundee with easy nearby parking. I loved the upper level seating overlooking the bar; super neat.

We were travelling down to Glasgow from Aberdeen, and especially were looking for a place that wouldn't have overly long serving time, so that we can make the train before it's the last one. Ended up waiting for over an hour to get our fish and chips and burgers. Had to gobble everything up once it was finally there. Barely made it to our last train because of it. Not a great experience.

We came here on Saturday night. The staff were very welcoming and professional. The barman was excellent in terms of his knowledge of beers/lagers and also how to make a cocktail. The atmosphere was great because we could have a conversation in our group but still enjoy some background music. We will definitely come back again.

Went with Family had steak pie only had about 6 chucks of stew each, nothing wrong with the meat it was just a very small portion, the puff pastry was flat as a potato scone and weirdly tasted like almonds. The vegetables were over cooked and didn’t taste fresh to me. The waiter was polite and efficient but the food was not up to standard and I would not be rushing back!

Some of the food was ok. Others not so good. Dry chicken burger overcooked, sad salad (leaves only - still a salad?) past it’s best. Waited a far too long for it to arrive even though the place was very quiet. Some good reviews on here so I’d say it’s a gamble.

Lazy Sunday afternoon. Popped in about noon. The place was very quiet. Service is very quick and friendly. Ordered the steak pie. The food was good, but the broccoli was just too much for me. I'm not a fan at the best of times Loved the decor and the music

Rude staff, don’t bother. Empty bar and couldn’t be bothered serving. Went along to malmaison and had great service staff couldn’t be more accommodating.

Meet up for a drink and food… the wine was nice, very small list to choose from but as this bar is set up the focus is on cocktails… the food… a disaster, complete disappointment… only went there because of reviews about food… turns out, new Chef… or someone who pretends to be one… my steak was more medium rare than medium, half of the ingredients missing, refried chips. whiskey sauce was more like heavy cream sauce, not even close to call it whisky sauce… not to mention the portion of salmon my friend had… zero seasoning, none. The truth is we should refuse paying for food, but didn’t want to be “these” people… however, after having a think about it, people should know what they are about to experience… Just a word of advice, change the chef ASAP or send him for training cos soon the reputation will be ruined…

A very nice place to go and have a beer. Not the best cocktails I have tried but still decent. The house beer though is very nice. The music was on the right level so you could also discuss without shouting. Very polite personnel. Definitely worth a visit!

Chief took his time making the best honey glazed chicken i’ve ever tasted so far. the place is so chill and lovely Banana Mocktail was fantastic they offer* non alcoholic ones* for those who don’t drink I definitely enjoyed my last meal in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 I highly recommend 🤙🏻

Great brunch options and lovely cocktail menu.

Walked in from the rain to have a drink. Asked the Bartender what they had for red wine by the glass, he was making cocktails, but a good bartender should be able to answer a simple one like this, right? Drinks are in the menu he said. Menu was on the bar, so I opened it and asked my wife if she would like breakfast, lunch or dinner to drink. The bar tender moved down the bar and dropped a drinks menu in front of us and said, you can look, but I am not going to serve you. I did not cry, as this place was not special and told him to put the drinks where the sun does not shine. Don't waste time on this place, it's not special like they think it is. We are staying Malmaison, next door for 1 week. Customer lost and reputation? Good luck. Pompus pr**k!

The bartenders and wait staff were kind but overworked. We both really enjoyed our drinks and they are reasonably priced compared to cocktails in the U.S. We did order food but they warned us it would take about an hour because they were short staffed. We didn't mind since we were there to enjoy drinks and weren't in a rush. The food was only okay. I know some of these reviews say the space was dirty and/or worn but that wasn't the impression we got. We both liked it here. I am sure there are better places to go for drinks in Dundee but we were tired of pubs at this point so were looking for a place that had decent cocktails and we found it. If that's all you are looking for, then this is the place for you.

Food was not great but probably about averaged for a pub.

Disappointed- no puddings available. The cocktails were pure ice . The place needed a good clean too Won’t be returning

Visited on a quiet midweek lunchtime. Only a few other punters in. Prompt & friendly service, and we didn't have long to wait for our food. We had rib-eye steak and battered haddock & chips, both good. However, there were no "crushed peas" available as the advertised accompaniment to the haddock. Also no red wines were available. The house beer - Bear Necessities 3.7% - was light & refreshing, and reasonable at £4.70/pint. An enjoyable meal, apart from the surprising unavailabilities, which I hope were temporary.

Went here for lunch based on the positive reviews. What a disappointment... Service was terribly slow, and my avocado toast was covered in bacon, which wasn't listed on the menu. The tomato that was listed was missing (as was the humus, as the waitress had already informed me 20 minutes after we ordered). The toast itself was burnt and impossible to cut.

We attempted to visit this place for a light supper. After sitting us at a “clean” but very sticky table the server proceeded to tell us essentially half or more of the menu was unavailable. It isn’t a giant menu to begin with, which is fine, but they were out of fish, all salads, and nearly everything else. Many things seem to be going wrong with this place.

I love a wee visit to Dundee and this is my favourite place for beer, and now also cocktails. We had chicken kebabs with pita bread and they were delicious! It was a hot sunny day and it felt great to be able to eat and have a few drinks outside. However I hope by my next trip, the owners have found a few bob to upgrade the outside seating. Old, wobbly, and too precarious to sit on with any comfort

Lovely wee pub! Went in with my dog yesterday and the staff were so sweet to her. One of the guys gave her a box of bacon to take home which was very kind. Definitely will be pubbing it with my dog here more often 😅

On a Saturday evening the chicken was gone, the salmon was gone, a certain brand of beer was gone and even more dishes could not be served. One of the dishes was so salty that we sent it back. Then it turned out that there was no more pizza. Tip: ask first what they do have.

This was an aweful experience. We had a reservation for a saturday evening. However when we came here the waitress told us that at least half of the menu wasnt available anymore. All of the beer on the menu was already out, so they couldnt give us that either. When we ordered food, half hour later she told us that the saus of the salmon was out as well. Eventually when we got the food the stew was so salty that we couldnt eat it. When asked if we wanted something else to eat, we could only order the burgers, because EVERYTHING ELSE WAS OUT. When we brought this whole weird experience up to the manager he just told us that we could write a review, but he doesnt really care.

Brilliant food and staff so friendly and welcoming highly recommend

Best cocktails, so fun and creative! The hanging birdcages, tropical vibe, and fun atmosphere makes a great stop to have a bite to eat and a drink close to the water!

Wonderful staff, very welcoming

We originally went for food next door at Abandon ship, unfortunately they no longer do food so we were down in here (owned by the same people). We were greeted by an eye roll from the waiter who obviously had better things to do than serve us food. He explained a number of items they don't have, so we set too deciding what we were going to have. I decided to have a spicy breaded chicken burger. My partner decided on fish and chips. When we ordered I was told the chicken burger wasn't in breadcrumbs. I thought, that's OK, should still be good. We ordered our cocktails and waited. Our drinks arrived. Not a great start, My partners tasted like off orange juice. My drink was missing a key ingredient, which I later found out was because they didn't have any. The food arrived. I had a grilled chicken breast on a bun with rocket. Very little seasoning if any. No sauce. Nothing. I thought, maybe there is spice on the chicken, I'll just have it as is. Wrong. Most basic boring chicken burger I've ever had. The redeeming factor was that the chips were decent thick cut bad boys. The barmaid was friendly too. I found out afterwards that it's 2 new Chefs in the kitchen so I will cut them some slack. Won't be rushing back though

Friendly staff good clientele plush sofas would have been a home from home

Great food and service. Would recommend highly

One of the nearest bars to my apex hotel just had drinks on 3 occasions friendly staff and excellent service.

Came here unplanned as a party of 7 and Dog!!. Warm welcome and a table was sorted for us immediately. Great service and food was really good. Would certainly recommend..

Amazing place to have good time. Next to Abandon the Ship, which is having even better Vibe! I took the chicken Burger, it was really juicy and flavoursome! I recommend visiting both!

Ok place to visit food ok staff very friendly and helpful

A real treat for a first visit, hopefully many more 😁

This could be, and I'm sure it was, a real 'go to' place. I've been here several times and although I love the physical environment, it now needs a thorough deep clean. It's such a shame, because when we went in last night, if you're Scottish, you'll know what I mean, when I say it smelled 'foostie'. Wouldn't take much to smarten up, what is a real gem.

Great bar try and stay late think its gonna get better however bar staff great very attentive and very professional great service first class keep it up guys

Called in for a couple of cocktails hubby was in his element!! Good choice!! Staff very friendly x would go back

The place is nice, although the music was a bit too loud, couldn't hear my friends over it. The mojito wasn't that good.

Great little pub. Really nice menu and food. The staff were really friendly helpful and knowledgeable about the cocktails. Visit no.2 still a cool place for a drink, superb cocktails and a decent lice dj set too

Great food, good service, good atmosphere. We went along hoping for a good night with reasonable food and good cocktails, Bird and Bear beat our expectations. The menu wasn't extensive but the food was awesome, the cocktails were as good as we hoped and we were really well looked after. Will be going back

Great pub and our brunch was fantastic. Service was a little slow but the staff were very friendly and I suspect it was just a bit short staffed and perhaps they didn’t expect quite so many people that day as Dundee was very quiet, even for half term. That might just be normal as I am from Surrey everywhere is packed over half term. Anyway well worth eating here and dog friendly too so 5* from us!

Monday night, a bit quiet but that also gave us room to have a selection of cocktails. Lovely drinks

Our waiter, Stefan, gave us the best service we have received since moving to the area. Thank you so much for giving us such a great late Valentine's Day dinner, couldn't have turned out better.

Fantastic place, great food and even better service - thank you Matilda for making my day! I can’t wait to come back!!!

Great little spot - came here for dinner & a couple of drinks. The place was quiet but the staff were welcoming and chatty. Service was good, no issues and the food was fantastic - reasonably priced for the quality. Definitely a place to keep in mind, would go again!

Food was tasty but ,quite a lot of the menu was not available,maybe it was because we were there at 8.30 .There was also live music was quite loud and me and my wife could barely have a conversation.

We'd been recommended this bar for cocktails and it didn't disappoint. We took a friend for her birthday as part of a day trip to Dundee. We had a lovely brunch and a selection of cocktails to start the day. The staff were excellent and super attentive and nothing was too much bother. Dave and Louis we will be back for a few more Negronis :) Thank you for starting off our Dundee visit we had fun

Pros: Great location, comfy seats, music at an appropriate volume. Decent cocktails Cons: service was poor, had to ask for table water, cutlery, condiments and ask the server clearing plates to help another table who'd been trying to order for a while. Think they had messed up an order or something as they didn't have: mushrooms, carrots, ANY white wine or mayonnaise Probably would go back but only for the atmosphere, food they did have available from their menu was middle of the road

Souless establishment. Service is super slow and limited choice. There are so many better places a stones throw from this one.

We were there for our final cocktail before heading home. Great atmosphere, good service, and excellent cocktail menu. We were provided portable heaters as it was a freezing night. It was a lovely experience, to be honest. Will surely go back.

It was very quiet when we were in. We had a couple of nice drinks and a couple of very hearty meals. The staff were very polite and helpful.

Great food. Excellent staff. Get the cocktails. Highly recommend. Come get comfy and have the brunch menu too.

I booked via telephone with a person who introduced themselves as the owner to host 80 friends and family after our graduation in the mezzanine. On the day of the event, we arrived at the venue and were told by the bartender that there was a ‘miscommunication’. I was told the mezzanine was for sit down meals only and we were not welcome to use it. I queried this, explaining my phone call conversation and was told that we could stand in the main bar area only. I glanced at the bookings sheet and could see my name with ‘X80’ written down suggesting that we were expected. There was no apology given and I felt that it was suggested that I had made the mistake myself. I told the server that I had spoken to someone who told me he was the owner, and the server said there was nothing further that could be done. We were squeezed into the bar and made the best of it. Throughout the evening, I could only see one table of 2 people upstairs eating. I have emailed and asked for an explanation, and have been ignored. I would avoid this place at all costs, especially for events.

Perfect location, smooth vibes. Start your night off here.

Fantastic place our trips to Dundee are always short and sweet and bird and bear can always fit us in for a table for some fine food! Drinks are brilliant and they have a great selection of beers and spirits on Fridays and Saturdays they have r live music played by musicians from across the uk

Great and slightly eclectic food, staff are fantastically friendly.

Really friendly and polite staff, great decor and a relaxed and relaxing atmosphere. We will return!

Amazing venue with fantastic staff, lovely cocktails and great food (including vegaterian options)

Offered cocktails off menu which I love, liquor 43 on shelf which I also love, brilliant knowledge behind bar and some unique options on drinks such as my maple white russian, very stand out from the crowd. Will happily return

I paid £8.50 for a cocktail of ice. Thanks, but no thanks. Definitely could do better and provide a better service.

. . . the bar person was so cool and professional. I have never been served a glass of wine, and a glass of water the way this person did; stylish. We enjoyed our drinks outside in the sun, and our son was delighted to show us one of his favourite pubs.

Very odd experience. We had booked a table of 6 for 6.30pm for food, 5 days in advance and were happily booked in. We walked into the establishment 2 minutes before our scheduled booking time and were greeted with nothing. No acknowledgement from staff (3 of whom were behind the bar facing our general direction). A simple hello would of sufficed. After walking up to the bar and waiting for anyone to be bothered to stop gossiping, I was greeted with a less than friendly "yes?!" The music was oddly loud for somewhere that had a total of 9 customers (including the 6 of us). Some of the group were older and had hearing problems, and I asked politely if they wouldnt mind turning down the music due to the aforementioned hearing issues. The first staff member (who I presume was quite new due to their friendlier disposition) said very nicely "yes no problem" and attempted to turn it down, but couldn't find the controls. They then asked who I'm assuming was the manager for help, who bluntly snapped at me "No, were not turning it down, this is a bar so it's loud, and it's only going to get louder." I am very aware a bar is not a library but it is a place people drink and socialise which involves conversation, something that is quite strenuous if you're constantly roaring at each other over radio 1's top 40. After an awkward debacle, we were sent to our table which was a miniscule table for 4 (again we had booked for a table of 6, days ago) and it wasn't set up, which would be more understandable if it were busy and we were a walk in, but again, there were only 3 other people in the building and we had booked days ago. The waiter then moved us to a bigger table which we were grateful for. After enduring it for around 10 minutes I again asked if the music could be turned down, as now that we were sat upstairs, impaired or not, we couldn't hear. The supposed manager then made a final stand, pointing out that this was "NOT a restaurant," and the music should be loud, and the food was "a secondary thing" that just happened to be in the bar. Weird when it's openly advertised as a bar restaurant and they actively promote the restaurant/food aspect. Furthermore watching the staff rolling their eyes and mocking what anyone who went to the bar said, was pathetic. You would think they would be smart enough to know people can see you from the mezzanine. We chose to leave so I can't comment on the food or drinks unfortunately. Just some of the staff need some lessons in basic manners and decorum, especially the manager (shorter woman with blonde highlights and multiple face piercings) We went to Milas instead which was fantastic.

Lovely trendy bar with friendly bar staff. We called in for a drink before going for dinner. It was quiet due to being midweek but still a nice atmosphere

Rip off Frozen Scampi, tiny portion of Scampi & Chips with no side salad or vegetables for 13.50 from lunch menu Don't bother it wasn't good value and there was no attention to detail. They did offer to take back and add the side salad they forgot but my companion was already nearly finished his lunch and overall it wouldn't have made a difference to the cheap Scampi ( not real Scampi) and tiny portion of chips.

Had been hit hard the night before by a local event, so we're out of many things, but nonetheless did a champion job of making the best of it with what they had and turned out cocktails that were very close to what we wanted with what they did have.

Wasn't going to write a review, but after reading some of the others below and no response from management, I might as well. We had lunch here yesterday, we waited longer than normal for the food to come out, then when it did, they were really small portions. I mean, really small!! £7 for a kids pizza looked like a small £1 frozen pizza I paid £17 for a 3 bean chilli and the portion was smaller than what I would feed my 4 year old. When I told the waitress, she said she would pass it onto the chef. No further food came out to top my sad little bowl up and it wasn't taken off the bill. Really poor service from a place that looks great, great decor, just s shame the service and food isn't matched.

Such a great pub with plenty of choice for drinks. We didn't eat but the menu looked good

Nice place. We only had drinks there but the guy behind the bar was very friendly & helpful. I would definitely call in again

Early light lunch, good selection on the menu. Not busy.

Awesome awesome wonderful food and wonderful waiters

The only good thing about this pub is the lovely Caribbean food. Absolutely delicious. Staff in bar unfortunately we're not friendly at all. Would go back for food though. Give the chef 5 stars!!!

Superb food from the chef all staff were very good, fantastic food the best ive had for carribean food the chef was exceptional after speaking with the chef its a massive shame and loss to the establishment that he will be leaving soon. Fantastic food hopefully you will get a chance yo eamole ot before the chef goes onto better things.

Great music and drinks! Jim was lovely

Lovely bar and enjoyed the dj on Saturday night

Total carnage! No organisation. In for food & couldn’t get a drink with our food (although still waiting on that 50mins later)🙈 poor staff, run off their feet. Seen so many people leave & without paying for their food etc! Big concerts on at slessor gardens & they couldn’t cope, but the staff who were on, were amazing! Management should be ashamed of themselves & hope they appreciate the staff they have!

A cool wee cocktail bar in the heart of Dundee! The staff were v friendly, and were happy to chat to my girlfriend and I, giving us recommendations for what to do and see when in Dundee. Drinks were fantastic and the interior of the place is super cool!

Fairly underwhelming. We changed our dinner plans when we saw they had Carribbean food. So colour me surprised when we were served unseasoned frozen vegetables (carrots and green beans) and under seasoned rice (which seemed a lot like Uncle Ben's, not gonna lie). The brown chicken was actually not bad. My soup was £7 and I'll add a picture of it and my spoon for size reference. The dumplings I added to make it more of a meal were as expected and did the trick bulking out the soup. It was absolutely delicious though. The staff were very friendly and I have zero complaints there. Very overpriced for what you get overall and we won't be rushing back. Really disappointing trip in today but if you're just going for a pint they're okay.

Really good cocktail bar, I love the aesthetics inside and it has a nice view too. Sometimes they have live music.

Lovely vibes from the second you walk in, cool and funky decor all accompanied by an old school bangers only playlist. Stephan served me and he couldn't have been nicer. Would recommend and I'll be back.

Good food, really friendly and helpful staff. If you are lucky enough to look under 25 make sure you take your ID to avoid disappointment.

Visited on a luvly sunny day, sat outside in their sitting area, benches with tables and umbrellas. Ordered a bottle of wine, friendly welcoming staff. Enjoyed sitting outside having our drinks, will be back. :)

Great little pub in Dundee with a fantastic atmosphere and lovely decor. Serves food although I haven’t tried it. Bar staff are very friendly, they’ll generally let you try beers before you buy. The house lager, Bear Necessities, is excellent.

Visited on a luvly sunny day, sat outside in their sitting area, benches with tables and umbrellas. Ordered a bottle of wine, friendly welcoming staff. Enjoyed sitting outside having our drinks, would return. :)

Very good service. We were quite specific in our requests and received a friendly response.

Ordered a beer and a cocktail from the menu but was told they couldn’t make the cocktail and the menu was out of date so the beer wasn’t available. Changed our order, but also added food with mussels as a starter. Most of the mussels were cracked or closed and only 6 were edible out of the portion, which was disappointing for £8.50. The manager refused to take this off our bill and instead only refunded a Diet Coke that we had ordered. Not sure what the logic for this is, but it rounded off a wholly disappointing experience.

Good selection of mixed drinks but the food is not good. Jerk chicken was super salty and the side of steamed veggies seems like a cop-out side dish not worth 14 quid. My mother had their chicken wrap, the lettuce was rotten and the chicken tasted off. Disappointed tbh because the interior decor gave off a great vibe but we shoulda noticed that everyone was there drinking and not eating.

Delicious Goat Curry and yummy Cocktails. Excellent service too. We'll be back.

Very nice place to go for a drink .the atmosphere was very good . Kind and friendly staff . There was live music also my main reason for going down .would definitely recommend and prices were reasonable. Couldn’t rate the food as I never had any but I will be sure to try next time

Great food, great service, great music and great drinks. What else can I say?!

Light lunch and a drink for 2 at £34.00 Bacon roll and chips what's not to love but Scampi and chips wouldn't impress anyone. 5 prices of tiny scampi bites ( tasted ok) not real scampi, the chopped and shaped version. Fries were OK. All on a small plate, no vegetables, no salad . Probably a child size portion but around 12 quid so not cheap but not filling either. Lacking finesse and value for money. Won't be back, many other city centre pubs doing a much better job.

From the minute we walked in the door to the time we left the whole experience was abysmal. It took 50 minutes to be served lukewarm, dry meat with some frozen fries and what looked to be salad leaves that were days old and browning....

Lovely stylish bar in a prime location, a short walk from the V&A, centre of town and railway station and as we were in Dundee for a day trip we popped in for lunch and drinks. There were only two staff on but the male...

Really nice place, very friendly and the person serving was a lovely guy :) Few vegan options, I opted for the Gnocchi, it was very tasty and so good to have something other than a burger on the menu!

We had a really good family evening celebrating my sisters birthday and enjoy the cocktails in here, it was the first Sunday in June so not particularly busy either. Unfortunately after 5 cocktails the not so lovely female behind the bar decided to take a...

My Wife and two of our children went for lunch today 04/06/23 I had the Roast Beef from the set menu . My wife and daughter shared two starters and my son had a Burger and Chips . From ordering our meal to receiving it...

I had a mai tai but it wasn't the right ratios for my taste and had a whole fruit salad for garnish. Staff were friendly though

Great bar - stopped in for lunch, stayed for a coffee and a read of my book. Very dog friendly.