Tanya Sweeney: Why pay for bad service at Karen’s Diner when so many restaurants are giving it away for free?

Karen's Diner on O'Connell Street, Dublin

Tanya Sweeney

If you haven’t heard of Karen’s Diner, you’ve either been (a) living in a particularly quiet offshore submarine or (b) you’ve been lucky. Originally an Australian concept leaning rather heavily into the idea that a “Karen” is a middle-aged woman demanding constantly to see the manager, Karen’s Diner has recently landed on Dublin’s O’Connell Street.

As detailed in Katy McGuinness’s gloriously eviscerating review in this magazine a few weeks ago, patrons go to Karen’s Diner to get shouted at, to be insulted about their age/appearance/circumstances (although certain insults are off-menu). The customers also reportedly receive below-par fast food for their trouble. You can, per their official blurb, “complain until the cows come home because we literally don’t care”.