We had been drawn to this part of Ireland by Castles…and a former Convent. After we bravely picked up our rental car at Shannon Airport, we made our way from the miniscule town of Bunratty toward County Tipperary. Traffic on the roads was light and we quickly grew accustomed to driving on the “other” side of the road.
Cahir Castle
Our first stop in Tipperary about an hour later was Castle Cahir. It’s quite impressive to drive into the small town of Cahir and suddenly happen upon the huge 13th century walled castle sitting imposingly over the small River Suir.
Parking in the lot beside the castle was easy and we entered the wall, paid our small entrance fee, and went into the grounds to wander freely.
It was fun to explore the various rooms of the castle ducking in through low stone doorways and holding on for dear life as we navigated steep claustrophobic stairways and climbed castle walls. While it’s a beautiful well-preserved castle, well-worth the stop, we were ready to move on in about an hour.
The Rock of Cashel
The Rock of Cashel, only a short 40 minute drive north of Cahir, was our next Tipperary destination. My only previous knowledge of Cashel was that it produced delicious blue cheese. In briefly researching castles, I was enlightened that the “Rock” was a hill upon which fortress ruins stood which had once been the seat of the Kings of Munster going back to St. Patrick who had purportedly driven out Satan and ordained Munster’s first king.
But what I hadn’t expected is that this hauntingly beautiful ruin would be one of my favorite places in Ireland. We parked in the lot at the bottom of the hill and then made our way to the fortress up a mildly sloping paved walkway.
The walk from the car didn’t seem that high up, so I was surprised upon exiting the ticket office at what an expansive elevated view. I wasn’t prepared for the emotional experience from what remains of the 12th century cathedral.
Standing in the open courtyard, the ruins loom over a sweeping grass valley. Breathtaking. We crossed the courtyard to enter the cathedral. The high walls reached to the sky but the ceiling was gone, making this ruin even more hauntingly beautiful.
The walls remain intact and the details of the architecture are complex and completely captivating. Exiting the other side of the structure, you are smacked with a setting so beautiful it seems almost contrived.
A small graveyard of Celtic crosses look out over the sweeping green valley that goes on for miles. This place felt at once powerful and peaceful.
While it’s a fairly small sight, the architecture and views are so mesmerizing that we took our time, aware that this is a special place.
We could see the light was beginning to fade and that we needed to find our hotel on the small country roads before it got dark. But we were happy that we stopped in the tiny museum on the way out as it holds some amazing Irish relics.
The Old Convent
When planning our driving itinerary, once we decided it would take us to Tipperary to tour old castle ruins, we looked for a lovely country home that had good food opportunities. That led us to The Old Convent in Clogheen.
Driving deeper into the countryside we found ourselves heading down smaller and smaller winding roads enveloped under romantic canopies of amber-colored trees. The density of foliage exacerbated the dimming light of days end – and a storm was brewing. So, we were thrilled when our GPS led us easily to the gates of The Old Convent.
Coming in out of the blasting wind and rain, The Old Convent was immediately warm and welcoming. There is no front desk, just a beautiful, large foyer where Laura greeted us. First she showed us around and explained, yes, this was actually once a convent, but the nuns downsized to a nearby abode.
Now this is Christine and Dermot’s home – she she’s an American ex pat running the front of the house and he’s the Irish chef running the kitchen. Laura then grabbed our bags with resolved experience and lugged them up one flight of the winding staircase to our lovely bedroom suite.
Upon entering we saw that we had a separate cozy sitting room that opened onto a twin bedroom with high ceilings and tall windows that had views of house’s bucolic grounds. The modern Deco bathroom was huge and spa-like. We just wanted to enjoy this room and lounged on the cushy beds before the 8pm dinner seating, while the wind whipped and the rain pelted.
Dinner at The Old Convent
Before dinner, residents gather to look over the seasonal tasting menu and enjoy a glass of wine in the beautiful candlelit drawing-room.
We were shown to our tables one group at a time. We melted into the soothing, dimly lit dining room. And while the lighting wasn’t conducive for showing off the food, it’s still worth displaying.
I was having the pescatarian version of the menu, and my friend was having the meat version. Christine and Dermot are very accommodating and even offered us a vegetarian menu option.
The 7-course meal began with two stunning starters. The first a Truffle Whipped Buffalo Ricotta, Baby Beets, Salted Pistachios & Chive Muffin. The next a Turnip Veloute with Cep Oil & Smoked Sea Salt.
The next was the fish course of Roasted Salmon atop a creamy Orzo.
It was followed by a palate cleanser of Blackberry Sorbet with Apple Gelee.
Instead of a meat course, I had the Cheddar Polenta Chickpea Cake over Mashed Potatoes topped with a Mushroom Vol au Vent surrounded by Organic Carrots.
Not surprising that the Old Convent would end this spectacular meal with two desserts. The Chocolate Fondant with Hazelnuts was delicious.
But the Lemon Curd with Meringue was a dream – of course, for me, Lemon Curd is iconic Ireland.
This prix fixe dinner was one of my favorite experiences of the entire trip. Not only the hospitality and attention to detail, but Dermot’s inventive, but unpretentious food is a delight. We found ourselves anticipating each next course to see how Dermot would present the dish. I don’t feel that my photos from the low lit dining room remotely do the food justice, but still worth giving a sense of that amazing meal that I will dream about till my next visit.
Breakfast at The Old Convent
By contrast to the previous night’s dinner in ambient candle light, the Old Convent dining the next morning was bright and airy.
We were surprised and thrilled the next morning to find that Dermot made a similar production of breakfast with a creative, multi-course meal as Christine delivered items one at a time starting with a local Apple-Raspberry Sparkling Cider.
The lovely cider accompanied a Yoghurt Parfait with Lemon Curd topped with Candied Walnuts.
And the food just kept coming. The Brown Bread with Seeds & Sultanas was so satisfying, as I was quickly becoming addicted to the Irish countryside custom of Brown Bread with every meal.
Arriving at the table next was a deceptively simple piece of bread that turned out to be the most delicious Buttermilk Cheddar Toast.
Christine then arrived to take orders for our main course from a few options, including a full Irish breakfast. But we both immediately pounced on the adorable and scrumptious Mini Pancakes with Bananas (and no Bacon for me), Clotted Cream, and topped with a Salted Caramel Seed Brittle. This breakfast set the bar for all future breakfasts.
It was difficult to leave The Old Convent, but we were on a whirlwind driving tour of the Irish countryside… and as the skies once again opened up with rain, we made our way down the drive way and back out the gate and set the GPS to leave County Tipperary for the town of Adare in County Limerick.
