Wednesday 30 March 2016

St Paddy's Day and D'Parys

Only a few days ago, the world became lighter and brighter as we turned our clocks forward and continue our stroll into Spring.

We've just enjoyed a long weekend, although, cheekily, this was my 2nd long weekend in a row. Ah the blessing of lieu days!

I had decided to take the Friday before Easter off, which transpired to be perfect timing, as the D'Parys hotel were celebrating their 2nd birthday on the Thursday evening, meaning no early morning wake-up/loathing myself the next day!


D'Parys has been transformed from a rambling husk into a successful, beautiful boutique hotel and restaurant. Since it reopened 2 years ago, I've been several times for dinner or drinks and enjoyed every experience. Their menu is often eccentric and playful, offering creative dishes that taste amazing. The goat's cheese and celeriac mille feuille with beetroot meringue and carrot ravioli was a personal favourite. As was the 'Egg & Chips' dessert! I've never managed to stay there, but my best friend chose the venue for her wedding night, and said it was gorgeous.

Their 2nd birthday bash has been a long time in the making. Invites and requests for suggestions of what to include in their night have been circulating for a while, all aided by the opportunity to win a night's stay (I didn't win, unfortunately, but I'll get in there one day!). With the promise of prosecco, hog roast, live music and canape versions of some of their most-loved dishes, we made our way down there.

I might add that the evening the event took place on was St Patrick's Day, so you can appreciate how much I must like the place to sacrifice my yearly ritual of traditional Irish music and Guinness (ok, I lie, I did partake, at The Three Cups, but only after attending the party. What do you expect, I'm an O'Brien!).

We arrived quite early, so found our way to the bar clear. But it was already abuzz in there, and we had to squeeze onto the end of someone's table to grab ourselves a seat. Everyone was in high spirits, and we spent most of the evening making new friends and talking to the team running the Charles Wells mini-bar. They were handing out pints of their newest ale, and filling everyone in on their newest venture. Keep your eyes open for a post dedicated to them very soon.

The hog-roast was taking place outside, next to the bouncy castle (no, I didn't dive head-first onto it), and, thankfully, underneath the outdoor heaters. We bundled up and went to grab some grub. It was delicious, as were the food platters being passed around inside. They really took care of us!

Afterwards, we trotted off, destined for that longed-for pint of the black stuff and a few Irish ditties with the crowd at The Three Cups. A very well spent evening had by all!

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