A kitchen good enough to eat at €1.25m Model Farm Road home

Architect Pat Higgisson served up a tasty dish at No 6, Regency Close, where boundaries blur between indoors and outdoors

Fri, 19 Sep, 2025 - 12:05

Catherine Shanahan

Model Farm Road, Cork city
€1.25m
Size	246 sq m (2649 sq ft)
Bedrooms	5
Bathrooms	3
BER	B3

IF you’ve been sitting on the fence dithering about a kitchen extension, here’s an example that could sway you to dive right in.

Not only did it double the size of the original kitchen at No 6 Regency Close, it created a show-stopping, voluminous, multifunctional space that combines comfort, practicality, and style, while also improving its relationship with nature.

Extra-large, easy-to-operate glazed doors that slide from either side create an instant indoor-outdoor space, a real boon in a home with five kids constantly on the move.

Made by German firm Reynaers and sourced through West Architectural Façades in Carrigaline, the doors are one of many singular features in this great big cedar-clad, zinc-roofed, open-plan, family-friendly extension.

Stylish cedar-clad extension with zinc roof

The architect that dreamt up this delightful living space was Pat Higgisson of McNamara & Partners, and any bad memories of living on a building site/grit in the cornflakes evaporated for the owners once its benefits were felt. It cost €250,000, including paving and outdoor works, but given construction inflation in the intervening seven years, could easily be double that amount now.

“Pat did an incredible job. Even with all the glazing, the house is never too hot in summer or too cold in winter,” the owners say.

King-size sliding doors lead to the patio

They bought into Regency Close, tucked in at the back of Hillsboro on Model Farm Rd, 19 years ago, attracted by the niche-ness of the development and its uber-convenient suburban location, where south link road access is a two-minute spin away.

Each of the 10 or so homes in this upscale cul-de-sac is detached and on a generous plot. Built in the 1980s by Tim Lawton — the developer responsible for many high-end homes in Cork City’s western suburbs — the style is unabashedly colonial. Instead of a porch, you’ll find a stately portico, with tall white columns — not a feature typical of Irish suburbia.

After buying No 6, the owners tipped away at various upgrades, before going the whole hog seven years ago. Mr Higgisson was brought in and his design involved great swathes of glazing, a partially raised roof and lots of steel support.

To showcase the extension and make the most of the outdoors, a wraparound blue limestone patio was laid and it splays at exactly the right point — where it faces south-west.

It’s where you will sit with a coffee from the inbuilt kitchen coffee machine to enjoy the planting by landscaper Seán Russell, all now nicely matured.

As it’s Ireland, ergo rainy, be thankful that the view is good too from the supersized 3.5m kitchen island, with quartz worktop and warm oak base, fitted by kitchen specialist Aubie O’Rourke.

Even with that hefty island and plenty of kitchen units, set against a quartz splashback, the room can easily accommodate a very large dining table, a cosy lounge nook with feature gas fire, and a €27,000 combination AGA, which has earned its keep, as the owners are both passionate about cooking.

Treehouse visible from the kitchen window

While the Higgisson extension, with its herringbone floor and sleek cabinetry and fine array of windows (one over the kitchen sink overlooks a large treehouse) is undoubtedly the star at No 6, there’s a great deal more to admire, not least the additional three ground-floor reception rooms, exemplars of good taste, with some neat inbuilt cabinetry by Celtic Interiors and warm flooring by O’Flynns.

One is a study that doubles as a home office, with built-in bookshelves and solid walnut flooring.

Another is a more formal sitting room with stained oak floor and marble fireplace.

Special mention goes to Cloghroe Joinery for magnificent be-spoke doors into the children’s den, a cosy room just off the kitchen, with double doors to a patio, and more built-in shelving.

“We have a great deal of living space. Even with seven of us, it’s possible for everyone to have a room to themselves,” the woman of the house says.

Upstairs, each of five bedrooms (the main is en suite) is attractively styled.

Those who know their Colefax and Fowler (showrooms in London’s fashionable Belgravia), will appreciate the fabrics and wallpaper. There are striking wallpaper choices in some downstairs rooms too, including the under-the-stairs guest loo.

Norma Healy of Sherry FitzGerald is handling the sale of this 246sq m property at the Ballincollig end of Model Farm Rd home and she emphasises the privacy and generosity of the site, the south-west facing rear garden aspect, the excellent B3 energy efficiency rating and the highly desired neighbourhood it’s in.

The price register features just two Regency Close house sales since 2010, suggesting that resales are extremely rare. The last sale was in 2022, when No 10 — 30 sq m smaller than the house featured here — sold for €930,000.

This one comes to market with a guide of €1.25m and Ms Healy expects it to attract medics (Cork University Hospital and the Bon Secours are quickly reached via the south link road) and tech professionals (Dell Technologies/EMC Oven’s campus is a seven- minute drive away, Apple in Hollyhill is 15 minutes by car, VMware is in nearby Ballincollig).

“I would expect enquiries from people relocating from the UK too,” Ms Healy says. She points out that Cork Airport is less than 10 miles away, while the south link will get you into Cork City in jig time.

The owners say they’ve loved living at Regency Close. “It’s so quiet here, sometimes you wouldn’t realise you are so close to the city,” they say, adding that schools are plentiful while school bus transport is regular. A separate garage, built by the owners a number of years ago, is in redbrick, matching the house style.

VERDICT: Hard-to-beat extension that fosters togetherness and connection. The rest of the house has oodles going for it too, not least the neighbourhood that it’s in. Likely to be the first Regency Close home to make more than €1m this side of the Celtic Tiger.