News Blog - Hotel and Catering Review

Osprey Opens New Restaurant

The Osprey Hotel in Naas launched their new restaurant Herald & Devoy on July 13th with the help of architect and star of RTE’s Home of the Year, Hugh Wallace, Cian O’Neil, Kildare Football Manager, and Kildare County Manager, Peter Carey. The men met the team at The Osprey to enjoy a celebratory slice of cake to mark the opening of the hotel’s new 130-seater all [...]

Carton House For Sale

Nama put Carton House Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort in Maynooth, Co Kildare on sale this month on the international market. Joint selling agents Savills and CBRE are guiding f60m for the 668 acres for sale, which includes the newly restored 18th-century Palladian mansion, Carton House, as well as the separate five-star hotel, which has traded since 2006. The hotel has 165 bedrooms, including 18 suites [...]

McKeever Group Buys Dunadry Hotel

Co Antrim family business, McKeever Hotel Group has added to its portfolio of hotels with the acquisition of the Dunadry Hotel for an undisclosed sum. The addition of this 80 bedroom hotel with health, leisure and spa facilities now brings the company’s hotel collection to five as the McKeever Hotel Group owns and operates Corrs Corner Hotel, Newtownabbey, Dunsilly Hotel, Antrim, Adair Arms Hotel, Ballymena, and [...]

Montenotte Launches The Residence

Following the recent investment of f5m at the luxury four-star Montenotte Hotel in Cork city, the hotel recently announced the launch of The Residence, comprising 19 two-bedroom apartments in the grounds of the hotel for corporate and longer term stays. The Residence dwellers will be able to enjoy all of the Montenotte Hotel’s facilities and services, including screenings at the in-house cinema ‘The Cameo’, and a [...]

Celbridge Manor Celebrates €1.5m Refurb

Celbridge Manor, part of the Podium Hospitality portfolio, recently hosted a summer reception to celebrate phase one of the redevelopment of Celbridge Manor Hotel. The f1.5m refurbishment concentrated on the upgrading of the entire ground floor, the newly landscaped gardens, and the outdoor fountain. The second phase of the redevelopment will begin in the Autumn and will see further investment in the bedrooms, as well as [...]

The last straw for The Tavern

The Tavern Bar & Restaurant Murrisk, a small village near Westport, Co Mayo, has called time on its use of plastic straws. In a move which coincided with Valentine's Day, the restaurant is instead opting for environmentally responsible paper straws instead. Around 500 million straws are used in the US alone each day (175 billion per year) – used once and then binned though they never [...]

2017 Gold Medal Awards

2017 Gold Medal Awards Winners 2017 Gold Medal Awards Photos 2017 Gold Medal Awards Video

Nominate 2018 Gold Medal Awards

Nominate Your Favourite Places to Eat and Stay! After receiving over 350 nominations last year, we are once again launching a nationwide search asking the public to nominate their favourite place to eat and stay. The top three in each province and Dublin will be site inspected by the judging panel. Their scores will be combined with the scores from the Public Vote to decide [...]

Fly numbers set to peak thanks to hot weather

As Ireland faces its hottest June since 1976, pest control provider Rentokil is warning homeowners and restaurants to flyproof their kitchens and picnics. While the country enjoys the fine weather, so too do disease-spreading flies, and restaurants, as well as barbeques and picnics, are prime locations for them to gather. Flies bring with them the increased risk of food contamination, which can lead to an upset [...]

Killarney Hotels Ltd scoops two awards at Gold Medal Awards 2018

Killarney Hotels Ltd, comprised of three of Killarney’s finest hotels - The Europe Hotel & Resort, Ard na Sidhe Country House and The Dunloe Hotel & Gardens - took home two top awards at the Hotel & Catering Review Gold Medal Awards 2018. ESPA at The Europe Hotel & Resort was named Best 5 Star Spa Experience. ESPA at The Europe, a stunning resort spa on the shores [...]

Top Medals for Ireland at Young Chef Olympiad

TU Dublin Culinary Arts student, Ryan Malone was awarded the Gold medal for Young Chef Ambassador along with a Silver medal in the Cook Off category at the recent fifth World Young Chef Olympiad. In total, student chefs from over 55 countries competed in this international competition which was run over a five day period in four of India’s major cities, including New Delhi, Bangalore, Pune and [...]

Healthy ever after

With customers looking for more nutritious, health-conscious dishes, restaurants are adapting their menus to fit the bill. Hotel & Catering Review takes a look at some popular healthy food from around the country Food that benefits us nutritionally and promotes our wellbeing, both physically and mentally, is having its day. Restaurants are responding to customers’ requirements by adding wholesome yet tasty dishes to their menus so much [...]

Last call for plastic straws

A plastic straw, which is only used on average for 20 minutes, can take more than 200 years to break down into smaller pieces. Quite often, it doesn’t even fully disintegrate. Although other countries have already taken action on this issue, with the UK reportedly set to ban plastic straws, drink stirrers and plastic-stemmed cotton buds, Ireland still lags behind. Last year, the Restaurants Association of Ireland [...]

Minister Richard Bruton switches on the green lights at Niagara Falls

Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment Richard Bruton switched the green lights on Niagara Falls last night (9 March), as part of this year’s St Patrick’s Day celebrations in Canada. Minister Bruton is in Canada as part of a "Promote Ireland" programme around St Patrick's Day – helping to promote tourism to Ireland. The famous falls are just one of hundreds of famous landmarks and iconic sites around [...]

Sweet deal for Flynn Family Newpark Hotel for International Women’s Day

The Flynn family name is synonymous within the Irish hotel industry, and 2019 will mark a year of significant developments for the trio of brothers in a number of their landmark properties. Poignantly, the story of the hoteliers began in Dungarvan, West Waterford when the brothers late mother Elizabeth (Dottie) Flynn firmly established the family name within the local hospitality industry in 1965. The Flynn family group [...]

First of its Kind Food-to-Go Summit to Examine Future of Market

A first-of-its-kind international conference and trade show, in association with one of Europe’s leading food innovators, Kepak, is set to examine the future of the rapidly growing and evolving Food-To-Go market. Taking place in the Round Room at Dublin’s Mansion House on 21 May 2019, the immersive, full-day event will gather together a panel of expert speakers, award-winning retailers and industry specialists. The conference will also include [...]

Conrad Dublin reached out across the globe encouraging sister 5 star hotels to “Go Green” on St. Patrick’s Day with tremendous success

2019 marks the 30th anniversary of Conrad Dublin, the first Conrad globally to reach and celebrate this milestone and for the first time ever, turned their lights to green for the St. Patrick’s Weekend festivities. To celebrate, they launched a marketing initiative, reaching out to sister Conrad and Waldorf Astoria luxury properties around the world, inviting them to ‘go green’ on St. Patrick’s Day. The idea was inspired by Tourism [...]

2018 Winners Announced

Adare Manor Named Supreme Winner at 2018 Gold Medal Awards Following a stunning refurbishment, Limerick’s Adare Manor was named Supreme Winner and Ireland’s Five Star Hotel (sponsored by Astoria Partnership) at the 2018 Gold Medal Awards, in association with Hotel & Catering Review. Celebrating a remarkable 30 years, the Gold Medal Awards are the leading independent awards for the Irish hospitality industry and aim to recognise [...]

Ballina welcomes Food Fleadh

Above: Food Fleadh Ballina Mixologists by the Moy. The annual Food Fleadh Ballina returns to the Mayo town for its fifth year this month. A four-day programme is planned, running from September 27th to the 30th, with visitors and locals set to enjoy a variety of family-friendly events ranging from foraging sessions along the Wild Atlantic Way and children's cookery classes to art-inspired workshops and a [...]

Mid-West welcomes Irish Quality Food Awards

Above: Joe O'Connor from Truly Irish and Caroline Rigney from Rigney's Farm in Curraghchase, at the showcase in Limerick. Photo: Liam Burke/Press 22 Judging of the upcoming Irish Quality Food Awards moved from Dublin to its new location at Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT). Three weeks of judging were held at LIT during the month of July, culminating in a networking showcase of the best produce in [...]

Minister Griffin launches Irish Tourism Industry Awards

Above: Minister of State for Tourism & Sport, Brendan Griffin TD; Conor Hennigan, MD, Hennigan Hospitality Services; and Eoghan O’Mara Walsh, CEO, Irish Tourism Industry Confederation at the launch of the Irish Tourism Industry Awards. The biennial Irish Tourism Industry Awards are set to return in February 2019, launched yesterday by Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Brendan Griffin. Organised by the Irish Tourism Industry [...]

Irish whiskey industry calls for advertising restriction rethink

The Irish Whiskey Association – part of the Alcohol Beverage Federation of Ireland – has called for last-minute changes to be made to the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill in a bid to protect Ireland's whiskey tourism sector and the country's small distillers. Under the current Bill, a ban would be enacted on free-standing way-marking or directional signage with the name of a distillery or alcohol brand [...]

The Monasterboice Inn renovation EXEEDs expectations

By Mark Conroy Based in Drogheda, the Monasterboice Inn had a bit of problem. They wanted to extend their premises but also understood the increased energy costs and impact on the climate that can come with expansion. Being aware of this, they sought support from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). With the SEAI’s assistance, The Monasterboice was able to reduce energy costs while extending [...]

Cork Gourmet Trail set for September

Above: Sinead Ryan, Imperial Hotel; Alfonso Giugciano, Cornstore; Jennifer Lipinski, .Oyster Tavern, Bryan McCarthy, Greenes Restaurant & Cask; and Ronan Marshell, CoqBull, at the launch of the Cork Gourmet Trail. Photo: Joleen Cronin The Cork Gourmet Trail, a popular trail for food lovers, returns on Saturday September 22nd with a special black tie dinner in aid of a worthy cause. The day will begin with a [...]

Lyrath Estate gardens undergo revamp

Photo: Ken Walsh The gardens at Kilkenny's Lyrath Estate, which will host the upcoming Hotel & Catering Review Gold Medal Awards, have been redesigned by Caragh Nurseries. The revamp reflect the mix of old and new present at Lyrath Estate, featuring traditional urns, modern fibreglass planters, grape vines and pyramid-shaped trees. Contemporary bonsai formed trees welcome visitors at the new hotel entrance, while at the restaurant overlooking [...]