Behind the scenes of each individual resort in our collection is a dedicated crew fully commited to defending and preserving the fantastic legacy of Europe’s best historic resorts. We travelled to the south of Ireland for a closer search at two quite diverse destinations: a lodge overlooking the majestic splendor of Kerry’s Kenmare Bay and a Victorian gem in the coronary heart of Cork City.
Let’s satisfy some of the folks at the heart of these entire world-renowned accommodations to locate out a small bit extra about what will make them truly distinctive — from inspiring meals philosophies to a new marketing campaign intended to get friends included in local record.
Park Lodge Kenmare: Kerry, Ireland
Kenmare in the south of County Kerry is a picturesque heritage town surrounded by the attractiveness of the Ring of Kerry. Overlooking the spectacular bay, the charming Park Lodge Kenmare dates back again to 1897 and prides alone on serving up delectable, regionally manufactured fare to its worldwide readers. We caught up with Executive Head Chef James Coffey for insights into his foodstuff philosophy and explored the day-to-day routine of beloved Bar Manager John Moriarty.
My journey started in County Limerick in 1979 when I was born in the midst of good land and produce. Michelin-starred chef Aidan McGrath was my initial mentor just after a quantity of yrs, with his encouragement, I ventured to London to full my teaching in a amount of inspiring Michelin Star Dining places.
Ireland termed me household and I worked in a variety of 5-star motels, moving by way of the ranks just before taking in excess of as Government Chef in the environment-renowned Park Lodge Kenmare. Right here I experienced identified my tribe. I am an avid hunter and forager and in Kenmare I discovered the best restaurant to type and prepare dinner my design and style of foodstuff — cooking neighborhood, moral foods and functioning with the local farmers, fishermen and growers who surround and offer the lodge. Their fields, boats and farms are stations in our kitchen.
I am surrounded by a great group and am happy of obtaining attained RAI Resort Cafe of the Calendar year 2019 and The Eire Tutorial 2019 Chef of the Year. I have experienced wonderful men and women who inspired me on my foodstuff journey I dwell for meals and make the most of anything mother nature gives in Kerry.
One more important member of the Park Resort Kenmare group is Bar Manager John Moriarty, who presides in excess of an extraordinary in-house whiskey selection. More than the a long time, John, who researched at Middleton’s Whiskey Academy, has encouraged quite a few new crew users with phrases of advice and instruction. He usually takes pride in building friends feel at dwelling in the elegant hotel bar and enjoys sharing tales about the nearby spot, its history and society. John unwinds in his absolutely free time with invigorating hikes on the nearby Kerry Way going for walks route.
Metropole Lodge: Cork, Ireland
Nestled in the coronary heart of Cork City’s vibrant Victorian Quarter, The Metropole Hotel Cork is the city’s most iconic resort, legendary for its superior benchmarks of hospitality and warm support. Loaded in character, this opulent hotel has hosted earth-popular authors, actors and artists and its welcoming ambiance is well-recognized. We spoke with Normal Supervisor Roger Russell to uncover out why 2022 is a pretty distinctive year for this historic landmark.
This year, The Metropole Resort Cork celebrates 125 yrs in Cork City. As a single of Cork’s oldest lodges, we celebrated with our #Met125 Campaign. We required to showcase our abundant and exceptional heritage as nicely as our hotel’s place in heritage in the heart of Cork Metropolis. Our digital workforce took their expertise offline and partnered with the nearby Cork Archives to curate an exhibition with images of our lodge and the city all through our background.
We uncovered intriguing stories throughout the many years — together with the burning of Cork, a take a look at from Walt Disney and Ella Fitzgerald, the historical past at the rear of why Turkish Delight (a Persian delicacy) is now greatly accepted as a ‘Cork’ treat, and significantly extra. We commenced our historic tours of the resort to make it possible for attendees to steep themselves in its record and find out extra about ‘The VQ’ — the historic place of the town in which we are positioned. To become part of the celebration, friends can also avail of our anniversary offer, which contains bespoke treats during their continue to be.
Curious to understand much more about our historic hotels? Check out the complete Selection.