Lyrath Estate: A luxurious spot along Ireland’s Ancient East

With its spa facilities, fine dining, and proximity to Kilkenny city, Lyrath Estate is a great stopover, writes Joe Leogue

As new parents who struggle to get out the door to work and to the childminder in time on a normal weekday morning, the idea of being organised enough to catch flights and bring junior on a plane triggers what can only be described as a form of pre-traumatic stress disorder.

So it has been the year of the staycation for the three of us, a highlight of which included a night in Lyrath Estate in Kilkenny.

The first impression, as you make your way up the long and well-manicured drive, is that while the 16th century estate is only a five-minute drive from Kilkenny city centre, it feels far removed from any urban centre.

While the original house on the estate forms the centre of the hotel, expansion has seen a spa, convention centre and rooms built onto the existing building, and this growth has been designed tastefully so that the decor is both modern and in keeping with the historic setting.

These works were ongoing during our visit, limiting our access to some of the hotel’s features. Sold in 2016, for a fee reported to be in excess of €20m, the consortium behind Lyrath is putting a further €5m investment into the hotel.

As a result, Yindees Restaurant and the X Bar were closed for renovations during our visit, and have been merged to form a new venue called The Grill.

Thankfully the Yew Restaurant was available — as was a baby-friendly early table booking.

First however, we checked into our luxury suite. With a well-appointed separate dining and living room, the suite is more akin to an upmarket open-plan apartment, with a huge bed and spacious sleeping area affording ample clearance for junior’s cot.

The suite had a second small bathroom, with the main marble bathroom equipped with a walk-in shower and a separate freestanding bath.

Once checked in, it was time for dinner.

For starters I had slow-cooked pork belly with remoulade, apple and covered in crispy shallots followed by a beautifully cooked Hereford striploin steak with lobster mash, shallot, sauce moutarde and port jus for mains.

My wife opted for the butternut squash soup to start, with a mains of duck with dauphinoise potato, swiss chard, pear, and peppercorn jus, all of which received rave reviews.

By the end of mains we were wavering precariously close to bedtime for our youngest dinner companion and, having decided to quit while we were ahead, we retired to our room where dessert – a delicious chocolate brulee and an apple and caramel tart Tatin with vanilla ice cream — was brought to our door by a member of staff whose friendliness was typical of the service across the weekend.

Once the baby was down to sleep, my wife watched TV in the separate living space while I went down to check out the bar.

Tupper’s Bar is contained within the original house, and is maintained with an appropriate finish — panelled walls lead to high ceilings while comfortable leather chairs surround round wooden tables. While there was a wedding on in the hotel on the night, it wasn’t noticeable in the bar as those attending the nuptials were elsewhere in the separate function room.

Despite this, the bar was busy with guests and an unobtrusive musical duo added to the atmosphere. With not a screen to be seen and a roaring fire, this is a bar for relaxed socialising, not sport.

The following morning we returned to the restaurant for breakfast — a buffet offered a good selection of all the usual full Irish and continental breakfast fare, as well as pancakes and ‘health shots’ — luminous concoctions in short glasses promising a revitalising hit to start your day.

From there it was time to split our trio — while a Daddy-Daughter exploration of the grounds was thwarted by some poor weather, nothing was stopping herself from trying out the Spa.

The renovations ruled out a trip to the thermal suite, but she did avail of the back massage and facial, with Elemis products that received the nod of approval from my well-seasoned spa reviewer.

With that it was time to leave Lyrath to make the short trip into Kilkenny and all it had to offer.

Such a visit is undoubtedly a luxury, but if staying in Ireland is on the agenda this year, a night in Lyrath is well worth considering for the service, beautiful hotel, and handy

proximity to a highlight of the Ireland’s Ancient East trail.

One night’s bed, breakfast and dinner for two adults at Lyrath Estate is from €290, with an addition €100 per night upgrade for the suite. For families with older children, the hotel has a couple of luxury suites with two extra single beds or, alternatively, a number of interconnecting family bedrooms. Children under four stay free, with travel cot provided on request. Children over five cost €40 per night, per child.

www.lyrath.com