Gourmet retreat
KNOCKRANNY HOUSE
Westport’s Knockranny House Hotel makes an imposing impression as you drive up the inclined driveway to its doors. Set a little bit out of town, up on a hill, the hotel commands impressive views of Westport town below and the sweep of Clew Bay and Croagh Patrick beyond. THE DIGS Often you hear people dramatically exclaim that their hotel room was “bigger than our apartment”. Usually they are exaggerating – but not at Knockranny, where the grand deluxe double rooms measuring a whopping 65m2 are substantially more spacious than most 45m2 Dublin one-bed apartments. BE SURE TO Book for dinner in Knockranny’s elegant La Fougère Restaurant. Head chef Seamus Commons has won more Best Chef and Best Restaurant Connacht awards than tines on a fork. He is renowned for his contemporary Irish cooking, where the freshest ingredients (much of which he grows himself in the hotel’s kitchen garden) are treated with the lightest touch. On the late
July evening we visited, we feasted on home-cured salmon with heirloom tomatoes, ham hock terrine with celeriac remoulade, butter-soft lamb rump and a surprise standout dish of ricotta tortellini served with garden peas, pea shoots, baby broccoli and broad beans, the dish made all the more memorable by the fact that there was no cloying sauce to mask the garden-fresh flavours. Restaurant manager Matthew’s intuitive service also added greatly to the enjoyment of the evening. DON’T MISS The 90-minute Neroli Blossom Experience at Spa Salveo with therapist Carrie if you can nab her. It was honestly one of the most soothing and memorable spa treatments I have ever had. Both invigorating (thanks to the eucalyptus-infused foot cleansing and lymphatic dry brushing) and intensely relaxing, thanks to the neroli-infused meditative massage – sublime. TAKE HOME The smell of the Wild Atlantic Way on your skin after a bracing walk along Bertra Strand followed by a steaming pot of mussels and a silky pint of Guinness in Cronin’s Sheebeen. THE DETAILS Doubles from €170 per night B&B for two people sharing, knockrannyhousehotel.ie. Lizzie Gore-Grimes Relaxing, luxurious, indulgent – Catherine and
Kevin Dundon’s Georgian manor is sublime. Work up an appetite exploring the dramatic Hook Peninsula before a fine dining extravaganza in the Harvest Room or casual dining at The Local, Dunbrody’s cool gastro pub, dunbrodyhouse.com.
DUNBRODY HOUSE
NEWFORGE HOUSE
With just six bedrooms, Newforge House in Armagh is delightfully exclusive, with guests travelling from the four provinces to enjoy John Mathers’ exceptional cooking. The sixth generation of his family to live here, John and his pastry chef wife Lou are known for their warm welcome, newforgehouse.com.
MOUNT JULIET ESTATE
A glamorous five-star with roaring log fires,
sweeping country estate, luxurious spa and sumptuous bedrooms, Mount Juliet offers the perfect autumn refresh. And that’s before dinner in the Michelin-starred Lady Helen restaurant headed up by chef Ken Harker, mountjuliet.ie.