Michelin quality, faultless food in one of the best hotels in the world. I would go back in a heartbeat
My mother always said I was born into the wrong family, and as I sink into a gold damask sofa in’s grand salon, I can see she was right. Though, thankfully, not a family related to the Cootes, whose chumminess withBuilt in the 1820s by Sir Charles Henry Coote, Ballyfin’s regency grandeur is impressive, even if the first thing you see in the entrance hall is a mosaic from Pompeii nabbed on a grand tour.
For starters, butter-poached lobster with a courgette flower stuffed with lobster mousse is dressed at the table with a frothy bisque. The mousse is rich, the bisque is delicious and begging to be soaked up by the fluffy brioche served alongside, while a dollop of caviar adds the most wonderful salty note. An arc of St Tola goat’s cheese mousse is a lower-key dish, creamy and tangy with beetroot discs and a sharp cranberry sorbet adding a sparkle of acidity.
Guinea fowl breast has been roasted so that the skin is crisp and savoury, while the leg is transformed into a delicate raviolo stuffed with confit meat and just a hint of offal for depth. It’s paired with a refined jus and earthy turnip – rich, indulgent, but never too heavy. The side of potato is a buttery heart-stopper, topped with puffed-up, crunchy squiggles of potato that make it irresistible.
At €105 for the a la carte, Ballyfin more than delivers. The Jerusalem artichoke cream alone could hold its own in a three-star restaurant. With talk of Michelin stars in the air, it feels like a solid one-star experience – precision, flavour and nothing overworked. The setting is pure luxury, and the whole experience leaves you planning your next visit before you’ve even finished the meal.
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