Hello hello! I'm back with another travel post and I'm very excited about this one. Allow me to introduce you to Barnabrow House, a stunning country house located just outside of Cork city that is so full of charm you'll never want to leave. Myself and Dara were invited down to stay and to experience their Gourmet Evening and it honestly surpassed all of my expectations.
First up, let's talk about this beautiful room shall we?! Barnabrow House was built back in the 17th century and you can just feel all of the history as soon as you walk in. We stayed in room 5, which had the most stunning double height ceiling and antique furniture. The thing I loved the most was the hardwood floor and how it creaked as you walked, the room just had so much character and I was all about it!
There were some lovely sweet treats waiting for us on the bed too made by Barnabrow's chef and I had just completely fallen in love with the place as soon as I walked in the door. Barnabrow House is a very popular wedding location and I can totally see why, can you imagine how stunning your wedding photos would be?! Even if you're not getting married, it's a lovely place to go to chill out for a weekend. There are no tvs in the bedrooms and since it's in the countryside it's so peaceful.
I think my absolute favourite part of Barnabrow House is the pink cottage just across from the main house, I mean how bloody cute is it?! As well as the main house, there are a few outhouses and cottages too, with each room completely different to the next.
As I mentioned earlier, Dara and I were invited down for Barnabrow's Gourmet Evening, which also doubled as a kind of alternative Valentine's Day celebration. The evening was held where all of the wedding receptions are also held and it's such a lovely venue. The meal consisted of seven courses, many with their own specially selected wine pairings. I'll be completely honest and say that I am a rather fussy eater, so when I first saw the menu and the ingredients it featured, like pigeon and goats cheese polenta, I was a little nervous.
I decided to be brave for once and tried everything that was served to me and I'm so glad I did. Barnabrow's chef, Stuart Bowes had come up with dishes that worked so well that I didn't really notice I was eating things I'd never dream of eating before! The best part for me, because I have such a sweet tooth was the dessert. A warm, creamy chocolate mousse served over a gorgeous vanilla ice- cream, I swear I could have eaten 12 of them!
The next morning, we went down for breakfast and I was delighted to see that pancakes (my favourite) were an option on the menu! We ate breakfast in a gorgeous dining room in the main house which even had an open fireplace and a lovely roaring fire. The entire weekend really did feel like we'd taken a step back in time and I thoroughly enjoyed Barnabrow House and all it had to offer.
Barnabrow House is very popular for weddings for obvious reasons, but I'd highly recommend it to anyone who's looking for a lovely, quiet weekend away in the gorgeous Cork countryside. I also vlogged our weekend too so make sure you check that out below!
Thanks so much for reading.