Katie Mythen heads to Wicklow, where the majestic five star Powerscourt Resort Hotel and Spa provides a luxe escape from a hectic year of wedding planning.
First impressions: “As we stand on our spacious private terrace surveying the beech trees that rise up, Lord of the Rings style, from the hillside surrounding the Powerscourt Hotel, I get that familiar feeling of déjà vu I always get when I’m plunged into immense luxury: I was definitely some kind of royal in a past life. I’m utterly at home in extreme opulence and grand Palladian architecture. This is a facet of my personality that has made planning our upcoming wedding into a fun game of Eddie Hobbs meets Marie Antoinette. Needless to say, Himself is pleased the hotel staff are now tasked with catering to my every whim for 24 hours.
Life is suite: Naturally, our room is more akin to a Fifth Avenue apartment. Both the bedroom and living room boast sweeping views of the Sugar Loaf Mountains and the bathroom is a magnificent marbled hideaway, complete with a television magically set behind the mirror and a bath you could do laps in. Welcome cookies are a cute touch. Cookies are always welcome.
Things to do: If you’re one of those people who like to bookend each meal with a bracing walk in the mountains, you’ll be in your element here. If, like me, you like to bookend your meals with more meals, some wine and further decadence, then I can highly recommend the spa, which has countless pools to loll about in before a massage or an ESPA facial. I have the latter and it leaves me looking more refreshed and ‘awake’ than I have in months, despite the fact that I’m fast asleep by the end of it.
The food: A browse of the menu at the newly refurbished, mountain-facing Sika Restaurant reveals some key information about the chef, Peter Byrne: This is a guy who knows his way around a piece of meat. The food is stylishly rustic (never fussy) and the portions are heftier than we’ve come to expect from five-star establishments, something Himself notes while we ooh and aah over pan fried scallops served with pig’s head croquette, creamed leeks and Lardo di Colonnata and a perfect pan fried quail served with pearl barley, wild garlic and Kanturk butcher Jack McCarthy’s coppa.
The main course, rump of lamb with sea beet, sheeps milk yogurt, miso glazed neck and peas is a thing of true beauty. I briefly (and mistakenly out loud) consider the possibility of putting it on the wedding menu. The idea is shut down before dessert. Meanwhile Himself is growing more and more complementary about the chef with each course, By the time the petit fours arrive I am getting worried the wedding might be in jeopardy.
Insider tips: It’s the little things that make you feel ‘five star’ pampered; the fresh lemonade station at the check-in desk, the morning newspaper outside the door every morning. These are the things I miss when eventually I have to return, kicking and screaming, to civilian life; it’s not the buffet breakfast or the vast swimming pool; it’s the fact that at home, towels do not miraculously vanish from the bathroom floor. Sob. If you eat at Sika, do not leave without tasting the Chocolate Cylinder, which is filled with white chocolate, mint and orange mousse and cocoa sorbet. Oh, and there’s cronuts at breakfast. Cronuts! At breakfast!
The deal: The Powerscourt Hotel Resort & Spa Grown-up Getaway includes a luxurious overnight stay with breakfast and a gourmet dinner in Sika Restaurant. Guests also receive 20% off ESPA treatments as well as complimentary access to Powerscourt House & Gardens. Prices start from €145 per person sharing midweek. For more information click here.
