A household name throughout Ireland for his accessible home-cook recipes, celebrity chef Kevin Dundon is back in the kitchen at the elegant Georgian country house hotel that he runs with his wife Catherine, reminding lucky diners of the creative flair and steadfast commitment to fresh local flavours that first put this luxurious rural retreat on the Irish food map several decades ago. Add to the mix twenty tranquil acres of parkland and gardens, an elegant in-house spa, stylish cookery school and lively pub, plus Hook Peninsula on the doorstep and Waterford city across the estuary, and you have one original package that continues to evolve in delightful new ways.
What a gorgeous feeling it is to sweep up the long drive between lush farm fields and arrive into the impressive entrance hall of the ancestral home of the Chichester family. The Dundon family are keeping the manor’s age-old tradition of hospitality alive and well, with daughter Emily proving herself a natural addition to the ever-charming team.
The lower floor of the house is a meandering warren of well-proportioned public rooms, all beautifully furnished and decorated with a grace that is as evident in the handsome antiques and witty modern pieces as it is the elaborate fresh flower arrangements throughout.
Upstairs the spacious bedrooms generally have superb bathrooms and offer all the comforts expected of such a reputable country house, including in-room coffee machines and power showers to arouse you from those heavenly beds or an elegant chaise longue. A newer wing blends discreetly with the original building, and fine views over the gardens remind you of the natural beauty awaiting you outdoors. Alternatively, for guests who want to truly bed down within all that beauty, a cosy three-bed cabin decked out in cheerful New England style and nestled in the wooded fringes of impeccably maintained gardens offers an unusual blend of seclusion and adventure.
Across the cobbled courtyard from the main house, converted outbuildings house an an ever-growing collection of amenities, including a beautiful spa and stylish cookery school that caters for budding enthusiasts as well as experienced gourmets. A former coach house has been transformed into ‘The Local’, a rustic and lively bar with an authentic rural pub ambience. With its sunny outdoor area, live music sessions, Safe-Home shuttle bus to nearby villages and wholesome fare that makes good use of Kevin’s onsite smoker, this late-week bar is indeed popular with locals. For residents, it offers a relaxed informal experience often lacking in country house hotels and makes a clever counterpoint to the smart-casual offer in the Dundon’s Champagne Seafood Bar & Terrace and the formal fine-dining of The Harvest Room (see details for both below).
While Dunbrody’s trio of dining destinations attract many non-resident guests, those lucky enough to stay overnight have an outstanding breakfast to look forward to: Dunbrody House is a former national winner of our Irish Breakfast Awards for good reason. Served until noon and with Bloody Marys and bubbles on the menu to foster that holiday spirit, this is a breakfast worth getting up for, whatever time you choose to partake. A pitch-perfect buffet offers fresh fruit compotes and juices, Killowen yoghurts and excellent home-baked pastries alongside Irish farmhouse cheeses, whole baked ham and locally smoked salmon, while hot dishes options include a full or mini Irish breakfast featuring excellent Crowes Farm bacon and sausages, Rosscarbery Puddings meats and local farm eggs. All of this is served in a cocoon-like dining room where open fires and views onto the lawn and parkland beyond suggest that your day will be wonderful, wherever you spend it – lounging by a fire or in the sun trap terrace, strolling around the kitchen gardens to see how seasonal treats like home-grown asparagus are coming along, or venturing out to local highlights such as Tintern Abbey and its magnificent Colclough walled gardens.
Dunbrody provides a wonderfully relaxing place for a leisure break, but they also cater for business meetings, small conferences, product launches and incentive programmes (full details available on request).
The Harvest Room at Dunbrody:
This handsome dining room overlooks a beautifully maintained pleasure garden and adjoining organic vegetable and fruit garden which supplies much of the menu’s fresh produce. That connection between inside and out is enhanced by magnificent flower arrangements, while an open fire lit throughout winter and long into spring enhances the intimate effect of rich blue walls and cocoon-like booths. A striking blend achieved between the classic period style and delightful flashes of contemporary style punctuates the elegant and well-proportioned space.
That happy marriage of classic and contemporary extends to the various menus, overseen once again by Kevin Dundon as head chef after an extended hiatus to focus on overseas ventures. Tempting menus draw confidently on classical and international influences but always hinge on superb local produce: fresh Hook Head fish from nearby Duncannon harbour, shellfish from Kilmore Quay, and prime meats such as Wexford beef and lamb or game in season, complemented by organic fruit, vegetables and herbs, much of it home-grown and superlative for freshness and flavour.
The Full-On Irish Tasting Menu (€80 for 8 courses; with wine, €125) can accommodate dietary requirements (including vegetarian), while Sunday evenings offer the chance to eat a single-option three-course version of the same complex dishes within a keenly priced Lazy Sundays accommodation package.
Starters showcase Kevin’s flair for producing dishes that are as pretty to look at and light to eat as they are complex in flavour and texture – think slivers of air-dried Connemara hill lamb in a salad layered with interesting textures and dressed in a buttermilk foam, or roasted saddle of rabbit stuffed with a sage and forest mushroom mousse and served on a purée of homegrown parsnip and thyme.
That emphasis on eating locally means of course that this kitchen embraces the seasons: in cooler months, that might mean a main course of wild venison, served perfectly pink with an intense port jus and seasonal garden’s bounty such as charred baby gem and artichoke puree. Likewise Kevin has the confidence to let spanking fresh garden leeks and black trompette mushrooms elevate prime seafood dishes such as pan-fried fillet of turbot in a lemon butter sauce.
Excellence abounds in the small details: homemade breads with salted butter or top-drawer olive oil, and a copper skillet of complimentary garden vegetables presented with impressive simplicity and the knowledge that sometimes perfection can’t be improved.
That confidence extends to dessert, such as a text-book Dunbrody chocolate fondant with homemade vanilla ice cream, or perhaps a riff on seasonal rhubarb, while farmhouse cheese are given the Dunbrody treatment with clever details like frozen grapes alongside the homemade chutney.
Catherine leads a well-trained and efficient dining room staff with the charm, panache and pride that typifies all aspects of the hospitality at this exceptional country house. The care and attention to detail seen in every dish is truly admirable, and presentation is masterly, adding to the enjoyment.
An informative wine list which leans towards the classics – and France in particular – includes decent wines by the glass and half bottles as well as magnums for larger parties and a private reserve collection from their custom-built cellars for special occasions. They also have an extensive selection of vintages and styles from Charles Heidsieck, their house champagne.
A standalone Sunday lunch offers particularly good value and a very attractive option for non-residents to experience the luxury of whiling away an afternoon on the spectacular grounds, while a Lazy Sunday accommodation package includes a choice of jazz brunch in The Local or three-course supper here in The Harvest Room.
Dundon’s Champagne Seafood Bar & Terrace
Dundon’s Champagne Seafood Bar & Terrace is a stylish contemporary dining area with a temperature controlled wine cellar and another drawing room off it, and a lovely outside eating area under a white canopy. A smart all-day menu offers a broad selection that extends from starter-sized portions through shareable mains to desserts and cheese, all served with the usual Dundon flair: Kilmore Quay crab cocktail lifted by a lime mayonnaise; Hook Head haddock smokies with grilled bread for mopping; beer-battered fish and chips with a refreshing pea shot, and chocolate marquise made extra delicious with homemade pistachio ice cream.
This stylish and keenly priced casual food offer has introduced many new guests to the pleasures of this very lovely house. It also makes a wonderful place to enjoy a drink before or after dinner in the Harvest Room – an aperitif of Charles Heidsieck Brut to start the evening perhaps (the impeccable choice of pouring champagne) or something from the well-stocked upper shelves of premium whiskies, brandies and (Catherine’s favourite) rums with which to wind down
