A focus on The Lodge at Ashford Castle

The Lodge at Ashford Castle is no doubt a special place and standards are impeccably high. We asked the core staf members a few questions about this very special venue and the inspiration behind their food and drink oferings creation of a very luxurious property, without losing any of the authenticity or cosiness that makes The Lodge quite so special.

What renovations were carried out to the Quay Bar and Wilde’s restaurant?

Peter Fergus, hotel manager of The Lodge at Ashford Castle, speaks to Drinks Industry Ireland about the Quay Bar

The history of The Lodge at Ashford Castle dates back to 1865 when it was originally built for the estate manager of Ashford Castle. The Lodge was first opened as a hotel in 2007 with 50 bedrooms and had a very contemporary design at that time. In 2015, the property, along with sister hotel, Ashford Castle, was purchased by The Red Carnation Hotel Collection and underwent a two-year refurbishment programme that transformed the hotel. As a result of the vision and investment by The Tollman family, who own Red Carnation, The Lodge was converted to a 64-bedroom hotel, including 26 new suites. This resulted in the

The Quay Bar didn’t actually need a lot of work but during the renovations, it did receive a soft refurbishment along with new furniture to uplift the outlet. It’s an intimate yet informal setting that our guests really enjoy.

What is the sales performance/ growth of the bar like?

The sales performance in the Quay Bar has been excellent since our refurbishment and o ers a casual dining experience, a wine list featuring 100 green/sustainably produced wines, most of which are organic or biodynamic and some fantastic cocktails. The ethos of working with local suppliers and producers is as important to us in the Quay Bar as it is the hotel’s Wilde’s Restaurant, and this has contributed to sales growth.

What makes the Quay Bar unique? The amazing views and changing landscape of Lough Corrib are unrivalled and make the Quay Bar and patio an incredible place to spend a summer evening.

How do you involve the local community in the food and drink o ering?

In the Quay Bar we o er a super range of products from the local area such as Lough Mask Gin, Mescan beers and Achill Island whiskey. Where possible, we also use fruits and flavours from the Ashford Estate including from our own polytunnels.

In conversation with Maria Olg, head sommelier, The Lodge at Ashford Castle

Where did you work before this role? My work has primarily been in Michelin starred restaurants and before joining Wilde’s, I was head sommelier in

Hisa Franko, a two-Michelin star establishment in Slovenia. I also worked in the one-Michelin star Salt in Budapest, also in the role of head sommelier and before that in Denmark (Faroe Islands) in Koks (another twostar restaurant). I was very interested in the vinification process, so I worked some harvests in New Zealand, Australia, Sonoma and Long Island.

You have a new wine list. Can you explain the process of deciding on the right wines?

The wines have to be biodynamic, lowintervention or organic. But not just for the certification. Instead I make my selections based on the people behind the wine, a project or a philosophy. A certification doesn’t guarantee a good wine. I do a lot of research and through my experience, I know most of the producers I work with.

It’s very important to trust the people (winemakers and also merchants) behind the wine that you sell and stand behind. For me it’s not the name nor the price that are impressive about a wine, it’s the expression, rarity and uniqueness that I search for.

The menu is also important and we rotate our 30 wines by the glass as the seasonal menu changes.

Is sustainability a big consideration in choosing your wines?

It is one of the biggest considerations and is really important to us. Less than 5% of the world’s wine production uses organic or biodynamic principles. At

The Lodge, we understand that one way to protect the environment is to go back to the roots and that means organic, low intervention farming, winemaking and food production. And the great thing is, these more sustainably produced wines are of better quality and can be a lot more fun than technological wines.

What are the signature cocktails that you o er?

In Wilde’s we mainly o er cocktails as aperitivos or digestives. We are currently working on a nonalcoholic beverage project, and we make our own kombucha and water kefir, house lemonades with cordials and fresh herbal infusions from our garden.

Where did you work before this role?

I trained in professional cookery in GMIT where I spent two years mastering the art of cooking in a professional capacity. Thereafter, I worked in a number of award-winning hotels and restaurants across Ireland including Cashel House, Adare Manor, Byrne’s Restaurant in Ennistymon, The Blackberry in Leenane, and O’Grady’s Seafood Restaurant in Barna. I joined The Lodge at Ashford Castle in 2012 and it was the best move I ever made.

Is foraging a big part of the food process and do you think that customers appreciate the e ort and thought that goes into the dishes?

We want the food in The Lodge to showcase the magnificent west of Ireland produce that’s so readily available to us - literally at our fingertips. Growing and foraging our own food on the Ashford Castle estate is central to this. We forage for seaweed, wild plants and mushrooms and have a very special fruit and vegetable garden on the estate - all of which help make my job easier.

Our ethos in the kitchen at The Lodge at Ashford Castle is simple – use the best ingredients, don’t over complicate things and when cooking, cook with passion. The inspiration comes from the producers with whom we partner and the produce itself - we only use sustainable, fresh, seasonal, and locally sourced ingredients.

How often do you need to change a menu to keep it fresh?

We change our menus with the seasons, typically four big changes throughout the year, but many dishes are only available for short periods, such as our mackerel with gooseberries and horseradish. It’s important to be flexible when working with the seasons as ultimately, they decide our menus.

Are there certain ingredients that go in and out of fashion –especially due to seasonality or provenance?

Clearly, by their very nature, food fads and trends come and go, but we prefer to keep it simple and let the fishmongers, butchers and gardeners dictate what we cook with. The menu pretty much writes itself at The Lodge at Ashford Castle because of the special relationships we have built with local food producers and our gardeners.

Can it be di cult to find sta with the right experience to work here? How do you entice sta to this part of the country or are most sta local?

Unfortunately, it is really di cult to find sta with the right experience or indeed, experience in general. A lot of our sta are local and while many have been with us for a long time, we have a lot of students with alternative career paths ahead of them. Recognising this challenge, the focus in my first six months of joining the hotel was to identify the right people from within the business; those who are eager to learn and are considering a career in hospitality. We worked closely with them and trained them methodically to a standard that was in keeping with the reputation of the hotel and Red Carnation more widely.

The next challenge was retaining those trained and accomplished sta . This industry, just like any other, is a path of endless learning as it combines the worlds of food, wine, drinks, sustainability and management. It’s wonderfully diverse and it was important to make the team understand the beauty of this and to make them proud of what they do, while recognising all of the potential this industry has to o er. We have a very solid team working for the same goal and most importantly, enjoying doing so. n