Calm, comfortable and courteous place. Carrig House Stay

Calm, Comfortable and Courteous Place

Carrig House Stay

It is breakfast time. Outside, there are blue skies and the lake water is blue as well. Caragh Lake is a big and beautiful body of water and I’m staying in Carrig House on the shore. Carrig, by the way, serves one of the best breakfasts in Ireland, so all in all it is rather a perfect morning. And would still be a very good one even if, as sometimes happens, the sun doesn't shine!

With breakfast behind us, we are well placed to take in the local sights of this part of south west Kerry, known as the Iveragh Peninsula. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. The Macgillycuddy's Reeks, with Carrauntuohill the highest point, lies in the centre of the peninsula. And not too far away is Killorglin, Cahersiveen, Valentia Island, the Skelligs, the Skellig Ring, Ballinskelligs, Waterville and many other places worth a visit.

Good morning. What would you like for breakfast?

We were here for three nights. Carrig, with its 17 guest rooms, doesn't come cheap but a gift of a Blue Book Voucher eases the hit on the wallet as does everything else here: the comfort, the welcome, the gardens, the courtesy, the chat, the private pier onto the lake, and the food.

Fish of course is a regular on the menu and we concentrated on it for one of our dinners. Roasted West Coast Cod Fillet topped with fresh Dingle Bay crab and prawns, fresh tagliatelle, morel mushroom velouté was my choice and it was delicious all the way. Our other mains was the Steamed Atlantic Stone-bass with asparagus three ways (seared, marinated, and crumb-coated), vinaigrette on a Cooleeny crème swish, balsamic pearls.

After a lovely amuse bouche by the fire in one of the drawing rooms, we had each started with Warm Spice Infused Quail, Beluga lentil Mung Bean jus and pickled onions. Not the easiest meat to pick off the small bones but it came with a big flavour, enhanced no end by the lentils and the onions. 

My dessert was another Carrig House gem, Rich Vanilla Crème Brûlée, cherry and hazelnut financier, and fruit tuile while CL indulged in the Passionfruit Marshmallow with roasted pineapple chiboust, pineapple parcels, and liquorice caramel.

Not always blue here.

The rooms are superb here, spacious and ultra comfortable. Ours had a view of the gardens but you can also get some with lake views. Wi-Fi is pretty good but the network service for mobiles is not. 

And don’t be put off if you see a brown tint in the water - the reservoir is in bogland - and the water is perfectly safe for washing yourself. And they do provide bottled water in the rooms. The bathroom, at least in our case, was spacious and well equipped with toiletries and towels (best bring your own face cloths, a general rule) and you do have a full sized bath as well as the shower.

The decor is beautiful all through the house. Newspapers are in good supply too if you want to sit by the fire and take it easy until that shower passes. Then again, if the sun is out, you’ll find it hard to resist taking a stroll around the colourful gardens, maybe an amble down to the lake.

Amuse Bouche in the cosy drawing room

Then, when you (don’t mind those fishermen who headed off early) are good and ready, you can head out for the day. The coast? The mountains? The choice is yours. And remember you'll have a stunning dinner to come back to!

Carrig House was built originally about 1850 as a hunting lodge. Frank and Mary Slattery, the current owners, purchased Carrig in 1996. They are the first Irish owners since it was originally built and have renovated  and meticulously restored the Victorian residence to its former glory. The atmosphere, they say, is friendly, warm and one of total relaxation. It certainly is!

Cod

See also: Visiting Valentia Island

Lovely Dinner at The Lakeside 

Superb Lakeside Dinner at Carrig House

Superb Lakeside Restaurant at Carrig House

Amuse Bouche

 If, as is said, location is everything, the Lakeside Restaurant at Carrig House near Killorglin, has it made. But, in a restaurant, food is all important and here too Lakeside is in a good place. Add location and that good food (not forgetting the impeccable service) and what more does a diner need. Good wine? You can count on that too. All organised by Frank and Mary who have been owners of this 1850’s house since 1996.

So book early (the restaurant is open to residents and non residents) and get one of those window tables, though you will be able to see the lovely Caragh Lake (it has its bad moods too) from most tables. 

Other nearby rooms are in play too as you begin your trip to the table. If it is cold or even cold-ish, an open fire is blazing as you sip an aperitif and study the menu in one of the ante-rooms. Here too, you’ll enjoy an amuse bouche and soon you are relaxed, ready to take the few steps to the dining room.

The long list of starters will almost certainly include their famous chowder and their Glenbeigh Shellfish Tasting. On our first visit (May 2017), I picked that Shell Fish combo: Steamed Cromane mussels, sage, cider, clotted cream, cockles tempura, Napa cabbage kimchi; shucked oyster, Prosecco granita. Well that fresh and chilly oyster was the star of the plate, no doubt, but the other, more humble shellfish, went down very well too. 

Meanwhile, CL was being royally entertained by her duo of Prawns: Poached prawn, watermelon, avocado purée, lime sorbet; crispy potato wrapped tiger prawn, physalis, and chilli relish. That lime sorbet was a terrific accompaniment and the crispy potato wrap another highlight.

She loves her rabbit and so once the Rabbit Loin with smoked bacon popped up, it was a cert for her. And a winner too, served with wilted spinach, Puck Fair Ale infused pear pearls (try saying that in a hurry after a few bottles of the local brew!),  Jerusalem artichoke, and bee pollen.

Rabbit

And I rarely skip a chance to indulge myself in Skeaghanore duck and this was another beauty. The full description: Skeaghanore Duck Breast, juniper spiced, blood orange, baby carrot, carrot and orange purée, meringue, lovage jus. 

And the wine? They have  quite a choice. And that’s before dipping into the Reserved Selection. Frank was host, a superb one I will add, and he helped us pick the Esk Valley Pinot Noir from New Zealand, one of quite a few wines from both old and new world vineyards, and a good one too.

The piano player wasn't on that particular evening but no need for music to put us in the mood for dessert. I spotted warm roast figs in one description and surrendered to the Warm Creamy Rice Pudding, a delicious and rich delight topped by those figs and served with a Port reduction and kataifi crisps.

The other dessert at the table was the Rhubarb Crumble Tartlet, spiced rhubarb jam, and frozen yoghurt, quite a combination and one that kept CL happy.

And the evening ended with another bonus, there being no need to go out at all. Just a stroll to one of the nearby lounges and a seat in the heat. Very Highly Recommended overall, not just the lazy luxurious finalé.

See also: Visiting Valentia Island
Coasts, Cliffs and Chocolate. Killorglin to Ballinskelligs
Calm and comfortable at Carrig House

2016: Best Places to Stay

Best Places to Stay 2016

Stayed in quite a few places this year. From Kerry to Meath, from Donegal to Dublin, from Limerick to Waterford,  from West Cork to Wexford. These were the best. Suggestions for 2017 welcome! 

 Screebe House, Connemara

Killiane Castle, Co. Wexford

Anyone for croquet at Killiane?

Cahernane House Hotel, Killarney.

Cahernane

Cork Recommendations
East Cork
Garryvoe Hotel, East Cork

Samphire Restaurant, Garryvoe Hotel

West Cork
 Celtic Ross Hotel, West Cork

Warren Beach, Rosscarbery

2016 Reviews - see also
Cafes by the side of the road.
Best Hotel Dining Rooms
Meals with a difference

Best Steaks & 3 Best non-Cork Restaurants 2016

Best Wine Events

Le Rustique. Tralee’s French Corner on Prince’s Street

Le Rustique. Tralee’s French Corner on Prince’s Street

Monkfish

The names Guenter and Dagmar Schwark may not sound Gallic but Le Rustique, the restaurant that the couple run on Tralee’s Prince’s Street, is most definitely French. All the wines are French, some very good ones on the list, and most of the menu headlines for the various dishes are in French.

So you’ll be sipping your Burgundy Pinot Noir with Canard de confit, your Pouilly Fumé with Ange de Mer. You’ll also see some classic French dishes eg Camembert frit de Normandie and Soupe À L’Oignon. By the way, the couple are apparently from the French-German border.

And where does the rustic come in? Aside from some “false windows” complete with flower boxes on one wall, there are not that many signs. But there are some dishes that might fit the bill,  Foie D'Agneau " Le Rustique “ (Lambs Liver, to you and me) and perhaps the Paupiette de Poulet (chicken wrapped in air-dried ham) among them. 

Tarte d’Alsace

Oh yes, the chef makes the occasional appearance in the dining room wearing, not the formal whites, but a short-sleeved tee. That sets the tone, casual. Rustic if you like. Don't worry though, sit up and enjoy the food. The sauces are rich but the prices are not.

And the place is comfortable as we found when, after a warm welcome and our candle lit ("for ambience"), we sat back to study the menu. You’ll be glad to know that, aside from the dish headlines, all the details are in plain English. Helpfully too, they suggest wines for some of the main dishes and do watch out for their steak specials, all based on local Hereford beef.

Duck

I must admit though that my starter was no more than a bowl of local mussels, though it sounded rather grand when titled Moules Marinieres a LA Créme, the crustaeceans cooked in a white wine, garlic cream and leek jus, served in a mussel pot and french bread. They did taste well though!

CL had chosen the Tarte d’Alsace: oven baked, topped with sour cream, bacon lardons and red onions, an old traditional French dish with lots of butter and cream. Delicious too. She continued with the Canard a l’Orange, the Barbary duck breast fillet on orange sauce, rich and gorgeous and served with Ratatouille and Gratin.

My pick was the Ange de Mer. The Monkfish filet came on a white wine Tarragon sabayon,

glazed asparagus, wild rice and garnish side. A lovely mix of textures and flavours. Another pretty rich dish!

And they would get richer - we knew as we had a look at the short dessert menu! I felt my French waitress would never speak to me again if I didn't take her tip and try the home-made dark mousse au chocolate on vanilla flan. I did, she was happy and so was I. 

I also got a few spoonfuls of CL’s Crème Brûlée, described as “old traditional French dessert, vanilla cream, topped with a crispy sugar crust and caramel, served with Vanilla ice cream”. It was all that, rich and sweet and delicious.

Chocolat!

The whiskey drinker will find enough to amuse him or her here but the craft beer drinker is out of luck. A terrific wine list, all French as mentioned earlier. If going for a white, my tip would be the superb Bestheim Pinot Blanc, available by the glass. On the red side, there’s the Denuziere Hermitage and a couple of lovely Pinot Noirs, either the Domaine Muret or Picard Bourgogne will pair well with your rustic duck!

Le Rustique

14 Prince’s Street, Tralee, Co. Kerry

066 718 0832 or 085 87 23326

email: g.schwark@lerustique-tralee.com

Web: http://www.lerustique-tralee.com

Hours: Tue-Sat: 12:00PM - 2:30PM, 5:00PM - 10:00PM, closed Sun & Mon

Randles Hotels Celebrate 50 Years

Ross Castle on the lakes, quite close to Randles Court and Dromhall hotels.

Randles Hotels Celebrate 50 Years

First she said she was six. A little later, Kay Randles admitted to maybe being sixteen when she and husband Neil started in the hotel business in 1964.  That was the year they purchased a bungalow across the road from their thriving garage business in Killarney and opened an 18 bedroom hotel on the site.

Sadly Neil died in 1987 and Kay was left to carry on managing the Dromhall and the other family businesses as well as rearing their six children, three of them at that stage involved in the family business. No stopping Kay and in 1992, The Rectory next door was purchased and another hotel built, this the Randles Court, a 4 star hotel.

The family decided to knock down the Dromhall in 1999 and in June of the following year, it was reopened as the brand new 72 bedroom, conference and banqueting hotel, that it is today, along with the well known Kayne’s Bar and Bistro which is attached to the hotel.

View from the terrace of Randles Court

So in 2014, the four star Dromhall celebrates 50 years in business and that means fifty years in her own hotel business for Kay who still continues to play a major role in its management. The young lady from Kilworth has come a long way from her days working up the ranks in the Victoria Hotel in Cork City. Her teenage dream of having her own guesthouse has been spectacularly surpassed. It was great to have a brief chat with her on a recent visit, even if we didn't get anywhere, not that I was pushing, about her true age back in 1964.

Daughter Susan is the Sales and Marketing Director at Randles Hotels and she is expecting a busy season. We met in the stylish and comfortable drawing room of Randles Court and indeed that style is present throughout the hotel, much of it thanks to Kay.

Susan says that not all diners now require a sit down three or four course meal and so the Randles menu has been adjusted, is more flexible. You can of course still get your big meals but, between the bar menu and the restaurant menu (and that Checkers Restaurant is another striking room), you can have small meals and in-between ones (light bites from seven euro) as well.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Kay Randles start
the celebrations earlier in May.

Everything from Marinated Olives for two euro to a steak. The steaks, served with a Knockanore Smoked Cheese, Onion and Mushroom Tart, Garlic and Rosemary infused Tomato and Pommery Mustard Cream, are supplied by Cronin’s and are as popular as ever.

Late in the evening, we enjoyed some banter and a lovely glass of Rioja in Wiggs Bar and The Conservatory. Wiggs Killarney Bar brings you back in time as it is part of the original building dating back to 1906. Even the stained glass feature has been maintained. Indeed, the original facade of the Rectory has also been maintained and fronts the hotel's reception area.

Our room in Randles Court, by the way, had everything we needed, including WI-FI and views of the mountains, but we also enjoyed some very comfortable furniture and there was no shortage of paintings on the walls. Indeed, you’ll see lots of paintings and sculptures and occasional furniture throughout the hotel, in the rooms and along the corridors. Kay has been collecting for a long time!

The facade of the old rectory was maintained.

And the same high standard is seen in the breakfast room. Terrific service and quite a menu here as well, including the ever popular Full Irish! And they do list their suppliers. On the day, I picked the freshly made Crèpes Normande with Apple Purée. A slightly different start to yet another lovely day in Killarney.

The adjacent Dromhall is another four star hotel and you may check out its many facilities here. We didn’t get to visit this time but we did eat there about a year ago and it was a very enjoyable meal indeed as you can see in this post. And you’ll find a previous review of Randles Court here.

Jarveys pick up passengers in hotel car park

Both hotels are within minutes of Killarney town centre and are ideally situated as a base for the nearby National Park and also the spectacular Ring of Kerry. Killarney is one of my favourite towns as there is so much do in the immediate area and even more in the general County Kerry area. Either of the Randles hotels would make a terrific base if you are following the newly established Wild Atlantic Way.

Other posts on this trip:
The new Heather Restaurant. Eat in style at the Gap of Dunloe.
Twenty Four Hours in Killarney. New bus services.



If you do get to Kerry you may not want to leave. I have details of things to do and see available in my Corkman on Tour blog. See the Kerry portfolio here.

Crèpes Normande for breakfast.

West End Winner

West End Winner In Killarney Town

Amuse Bouche

Enjoyed a terrific meal at Killarney’s West End House Restaurant at the weekend. It was superb from start to finish, well cooked and well presented food and top notch service from the moment we walked in to this comfortable place.

Buns in a sack!

A tasty Amuse Bouche, featuring Duck Confit, was followed by two tremendous, somewhat unusual starters. Mine was a delicious delight, packed with flavours and textures: Quail - spiced breast, confit sweet potato, quail eggs, merguez, salted grapes and avocado (12.95). And much the same could be said about CL’s which was Rabbit - Ballotine, black pudding, pickled carrot and broad bean  (11.95).

Rabbit (top) and quail starters

They had quite a list of mains but we each picked from the specials and they were special, each every enjoyable indeed. One was Brill with Asparagus, artichoke, baby peppers  Beetroot purée (28.50) while the other was Seared duck breast, chermoula, pak choi, spiced lentil,  jus (29.50). Yum on the double here.

Brill

And there was still room for desserts. One was a Crème Brulée with a difference: Kahlua (a coffee-flavored rum-based liqueur) and Espresso Crème Brulée served with a Coffee Macaron while CL’s was also quite prefect: Apple - Tart Tatin, Vanilla Bean ice cream, salt butter fudge, whiskey caramel sauce. Each came in at  €7.50.

Duck

The West End re-opened last year after large scale renovations and the team have got their act together pretty quickly. Not alone is the cooking and presentation top class but the portion sizes are really well judged and you can enjoy your three courses without feeling bloated at the end. Must say also that their potatoes and vegetables, that come in the side  dishes, are also cooked to perfection. Besides, it is a lovely place with some five dining rooms in all, and a very friendly front of house team. Didn't meet anyone at the back but they too obviously know their stuff. Very Highly Recommended.

Apple

• West End House Restaurant
  58 New Street,
• Killarney

Phone	(064) 663 2271
Email	info@westendhouse.com
Website	http://westendhouse.com Tue - Sat: 6.00 pm - 9:30 pm

Yum!

Dine by the Water!

Dine by the Water

Superb food and superb views

Ostan Gweedore at Bunbeg, Donegal

I’ve been very lucky this past few months to have dined in some well placed restaurants, restaurants from Cork to Donegal that have a dining room with a view over water. Sometimes over a river, maybe over an estuary, and then sometimes over the ocean. I was lucky too to have brilliant weather in most of the places.

Let me start with river views. One of the best is from the newly opened Fish Bar inElectric. From the first floor of the South Mall building, you have fine views of the southern channel of Lee to the west and to the east. But have you been to Indigo Brasserie on Washington Street? Here too you have a fine view of a bend in the same river. 

Bunnyconnellan's Myrtilville (Cork)

And another excellent river view is to be found at the Market Kitchen restaurant, above the Murphy Brothers bar in Ballina. It wasn't quite warm enough to dine outside on the balcony but the Moy looked very well from the inside.

Time to move on now, nearer to the ocean, to the bays and estuaries and places such as the Rising Tide and Marlogue Inn in East Cork and further east you have the WalterRaleigh Hotel. You have no shortage in Cobh where you’ll find The Quays and The Titanic Bar. The Boathouse at Dromquinna, near Kenmare, is also well situated, right on the northern flank of the bay.

The Boathouse, Kenmare Bay

No shortage of seaside restaurants in Donegal. One of the best is the Seaview Tavern in Malin Head village but the view to the sea is somewhat interrupted by the cars parking across the road. No such problems at the Rosapenna Golf Hotel, whose dining room overlooks Sheephaven Bay and the beach at Downies. Further west along the same bay, the bar at the Cove at Portnablagh, another top restaurant, overlooks a different part of the same bay.

Back to Cork and to Baltimore and Le Jolie Brise where I’ve sometime enjoyed a dish of mussels as the day drew to a close with the island of Sherkin out in front. Locally, perhaps the best ocean view is that enjoyed from your table in Bunnyconnellan’s, a very pleasant view and very enjoyable food here. Hard to top that. One view that comes close, maybe level, maybe even better, is from the restaurant of Ostan Gweedore where there is the most fantastic view over the beaches and the waters of the Atlantic.

Rosapenna Hotel, Downies (Donegal)

Views are pleasing but you need good food too,
like this platter at the Seaview Tavern in Malin.

Have you a personal favourite view over water while dining? If you'd like to share, please use the Comment facility below.