Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [210]
Farmgate Restaurant ( 021-463 2771; The Coolbawn; coffee & snacks 9am-5.30pm, lunch noon-3.30pm Mon-Sat, dinner 6.30-9.30pm Thu-Sat) The original and sister establishment to Cork’s Farmgate Café Click here, the Midleton restaurant offers the same superb blend of traditional and modern Irish in its approach to cooking. In the front is a shop selling amazing baked goods and local produce, including organic fruit and vegetables, cheeses and preserves. Behind is the farmhouse-style cafe-restaurant, where you’ll eat as well as anywhere in Ireland.
Getting There & Away
Midleton is 20km east of Cork. There are buses every 30 minutes from Monday to Saturday (hourly on Sunday) from Cork bus station (€6, 25 minutes). There are no buses between Cobh and Midleton, and you’ll need a car to explore the surrounding area.
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POSH RETREAT: BALLYMALOE
Drawing up at wisteria-clad Ballymaloe House ( 021-465 2531; www.ballymaloe.ie; Shanagarry; s/d from €175/260; ), you know you’ve arrived somewhere special. The Allen family has been running this superb hotel and restaurant in the old family home for more than 40 years now; Myrtle is a living legend, acclaimed internationally for her near single-handed creation of fine Irish cooking. The rooms have been individually decorated with period furnishings and are a pleasing mass of different shapes and sizes. Guests enjoy beautiful grounds and amenities, which include a tennis court, a swimming pool, a shop, minigolf and public rooms. And don’t forget the celebrated restaurant, whose menu is drawn up daily to reflect the availability of produce from Ballymaloe’s extensive farms and other local sources. The hotel also runs wine and gardening weekends; check the website for details.
A few kilometres down the road on the R628, TV personality Darina Allen runs a famous cookery school ( 021-464 6785; www.cookingisfun.ie). Lessons, from half-day sessions (€55 to €105) to 12-week certificate courses (around €9800), are often booked well in advance. There are pretty cottages amid the 100 acres of grounds for overnight students.
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YOUGHAL
pop 6500
The ancient seaport of Youghal (Eochaill; pronounced yawl), at the mouth of the River Blackwater, has a rich history that may not be instantly apparent, especially if you coast past on the N25. In fact, even if you stop, it may just seem like a humdrum Irish market town. But take a little time and you’ll sniff out some of its once-walled past and enjoy views of the wide River Blackwater estuary.
The town was a hotbed of rebellion against the English in the 16th century, and Oliver Cromwell wintered here in 1649 as he sought to drum up support for his war in England and quell insurgence from the pesky Irish. Youghal was granted to Sir Walter Raleigh during the Elizabethan Plantation of Munster, and he spent brief spells living here in his house, Myrtle Grove.
Orientation & Information
Youghal Visitor Centre ( 024-20170; www.eastcorktourism.com; Market Sq; 9am-5.30pm Mon-Fri, 10am-5pm Sat & Sun), housed in an attractive old market house on the waterfront, contains a small heritage centre. Pick up the free leaflet Youghal Town Map or the excellent booklet Youghal: Historic Walled Port (€5) to learn more.
Guided tours (€6/3 per adult/child) lasting 1½ hours leave the visitor centre at 11am Monday to Friday during July and August.
Sights & Activities
In 1956 the harbour stood in for New Bedford, Massachusetts, in the US for the filming of Moby Dick, starring Gregory Peck in one of his best roles. Today it is very quiet.
Youghal has two Blue Flag beaches, ideal for building sandcastles modelled after the Clock Gate. Claycastle (2km) and Front Strand (1km) are both within walking distance of town, off the N25. Claycastle has summer lifeguards.
Whale of a Time ( 086 328 3256;