Keeping world at bay
After a spell of being leased out, the restaurant has been back under the management of its owners for the last year.
One kilometre past the village of Durrus, a blue gateway leads you up a driveway that’s often slow, owing to the owners’ battle with persistent potholes. Over a slight brow, glimpses of buildings amid a clump of trees give a taster of what’s to come.
A tennis net, strategically strung across an unmarked lawn, subconsciously begs the question “anyone for tennis?” and sets a promissory tone of fun and relaxation.
Set on a gentle promontory on the southern side of Dunmanus Bay, the views across the bay are sublime and the large expanse of water greets you somewhat unexpectedly, with the fall of land from the buildings and car-parking area sloping gently and invitingly to the sea.
The house itself is an impressive, extended Georgian mansion. The restaurant, and most of the accommodation, are in restored outbuildings set around a courtyard to the rear of the main house.
An ornamental pond is looked over by tall, eye-catching, modernist sculpture-pieces and the notion of mixing the modern with the traditional carries through in the design and facilities of the apartments housed in the former stables and grain stores.
All come with quality kitchens and tasteful art. A bungalow that sleeps eight is also located on the grounds, while a more secluded accommodation option is offered by another house, beside Dunmanus pier 15km away.
All the rooms in the four apartments and bungalow at Blair’s Cove are in excellent condition and are of a standard that you’d expect in a four-star hotel.
Good use is made of light and space, with the modern design fitting snugly into the traditional edifice. One apartment has the calm feeling of a city-centre loft in a rural setting, while another has luxuriant space in a mezzanine bedroom, leading to an open-plan style into a zen-like bathroom, complete with luxury products and quality fittings.
While less exciting, the bungalow rooms have plenty of rustic charm, quality and space. Its garden offers a surprising degree of privacy, complete with its own shoreline.
Durrus is not a large place, by any stretch of the imagination, but buzzes nicely on weekend nights.
Natural beauty is found here in overflowing abundance; surrounding you on all sides and at every possible angle.
Drives to the end of the Mizen, to nearby Schull, Ahakista, Kilrohane or Bantry are all to be recommended, but the immediate environment offers some of the best walking to be found anywhere.
The Sheep’s Head Way walk is a multi-award-winning, simple tourism product that has evolved over the years through community effort. It covers most of the Sheep’s Head peninsula (that piece of land visible across Dunmanus Bay from the grounds of Blair’s Cove) and there are also sections of it that stretch into bits of the Mizen Peninsula (which is, technically, the location of Blair’s Cove).
In terms of atmosphere, the Blair’s Cove dining experience is difficult to match.
Guests are invited to sink into the comfy seating in the cosy corner bar, where they are offered aperitifs while they peruse the menu. Stone walls and slate floor form a cosy, traditional stage to the ergonomically funky bar, which was designed by South African native Robert Harding, whose work can also be found elsewhere in the grounds, as well as in the famous Ice Hotel in Sweden.
The dining room is a cut-stone building that was formerly a two-storey grain store. With the top floor taken out and the ground and first-floor windows joining to make dramatically tall windows looking out to the sea, the initial, overall impression is breathtaking.
The general ambience, while of a decent formal standard, always stays the right side of informal. A cavernous open fireplace at the far end of the room provides some theatre, as well as being where the meats are cooked.
While the service standards are not always of Michelin-star quality, it is hard to argue with the standards of the food itself. The fish menu, in particular, is kept freshly up to speed with the vagaries of the incoming catch and Blair’s Cove’s famous, self-service, sumptuous buffet starter is still a great part of the experience.
One quirk of the restaurant is the fact that the toilets are located on the building’s only first-floor section, above the kitchen.
When you’ve concluded your visit to the facilities, you therefore emerge at the top of a staircase overlooking your fellow diners and with all the discretion of a pontiff coming out to the balcony at St Peter’s Square.
When we ate there, I had perfectly cooked hake, while my wife opted for seared Bantry Bay scallops. A full-course meal is €58; reasonable value, considering the entire experience. You also have the fulfilling option of starter-and-mains or starter-and-dessert for €45.
Bed-and-breakfast rates start at €75 per night (starting on March 16th) for standard accommodation, or €95 for deluxe. Self-catering accommodation is available year-round with weekly rates starting at €595. The restaurant opens this year on Mar 13. See www.blairscove.ie or ring 027-61127.
Illustrious Blair’s Cove guests include Bono and Chris de Burgh, the latter having allegedly given a private performance on the dining room’s grand piano.
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