Making their mark in life and love
Mark Golden and husband Mark Johnston have transformed a dilapidated building into a stunning hotel, writes Andrea Smith
THERE was no big proposal when Mark Golden and Mark Johnston decided to get married, because they always knew they were heading in that direction. They were married in Castletownbere in November 2016, and naturally held the reception at their own hotel, The Beara Coast Hotel, surrounded by 180 guests. When they arrived back after the ceremony, they were really touched that their staff had lined up outside to greet them, dressed all in black with white bow-ties, which was a complete surprise.
The guys first met online in June 2010, and liked each other when they met in person. Happily Mark Golden passed the test he was unaware he was taking — of eating with his mouth closed; open-mouth eaters are his husband’s pet hate. At the time, Mark Golden (Mark G) was living and working in Youghal and Mark Johnston (Mark J) was head chef of Francis and John Brennan’s Park Hotel in Kenmare, so they were living two hours’ apart.
Mark G fell for Mark J’s “puppy-dog eyes”, and Mark J was attracted to his new companion’s tattoos and “great personality”. “We just gelled,” says Mark G. “I wasn’t one for committing at the time, but Mark broke that rule. He’s probably the kindest and most caring person you could ever come across, and he’s very honourable about everything. He’s too nice for his own good sometimes.”
Lest we think they’re getting too soppy, the guys assure us that they also have their fair share of arguments, although Mark J thinks that his ability to hold on longer to a tiff might be due to “the chef in me”. “Mark is kind and caring, and he’s a really hard worker who is even more precise than I am,” he says. “He motivates me to do better and he spots every little detail, which is great for me because it means I have a second set of eyes on things. We’ve only had one row in eight years outside of work, and that was about changing a lightbulb.”
“Or to be precise, he forgot to turn off the power and I got shocked across the bathroom,” Mark G interjects with a laugh.
Mark Golden (41) grew up in north Cork as the eldest of Patrick and Mary’s two sons. He studied business information systems at UCC for two years, but his heart lay in the area of hospitality. After two years, he sat his parents down to tell them that he was leaving college. “That was the summer I told them I was gay as well, so they got the whole nine yards,” he laughs, adding that his parents were very supportive. “Being gay wasn’t easy as Ireland was a different place then, but I had a lot of good friends at school.”
Mark was attracted to the area of hospitality because he loved the buzz and being around people, and enjoyed working front-of-house. He worked his way up through various hotel groups and positions.
‘We’ve only had one row in eight years outside of work’
Mark Johnston, (42) grew up in Donegal town and is the second-eldest of Jimmy and Joan’s five children. He grew up on a farm, and used to help his mum cater for the farmers, which is where his love of cooking began. He went to Killybegs Catering College for two years, worked in Germany and Colorado, had a partnership in a restaurant in Houston, and worked at the Park Hotel in Kenmare for two stints of five years and four years, the latter as head chef.
One of the reasons Mark J went to the States was that being gay was not as acceptable in Ireland back then, and he felt that kitchens at that time were very masculine environments. He told his sisters while he was away and his parents when he returned, and they were also very supportive.
The Marks were dating for a year and a half, when they were invited to take over the running of the old Imperial Hotel in Youghal. They leased the hotel from 2012 to 2015, and then felt it was the right time to buy their own hotel. They fell in love with the old Cametringane Hotel in Castletownbere, which had a stunning location but was run-down and had been closed for six years.
“The place was falling to pieces but it was the perfect setting,” says Mark Golden, adding that they own the hotel in conjunction with their business partners. Work started in July 2015 and after a hectic and stressful few months, the hotel opened as The Beara Coast Hotel in December 2015. “It was a tough time and we went way over budget because previously hidden problems presented themselves when we peeled back the layers, but we were left with a beautiful building in a stunning part of the world.”
The gorgeous hotel has 16 bedrooms with a function room for 350 people and is situated at the water’s edge on the Ring of Beara. It won an AA Rosette and Mark Johnston came second in the world in a chowder-making competition in Rhode Island. The two Marks are thrilled to be part of the The Original Irish Hotels group, a group of 60 independent hotels that collaborate to market their properties.
They have been very much welcomed by the local community and are very happy living and working in Castletownbere. They’re still mad about one another and love being at home with their cat Felicity, and welcoming guests at the hotel. “We do hospitality the old-fashioned way and love our guests to feel looked after,” says Mark Golden. “We like it to be a real home-away-from-home for them.”