![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyAjsbmcHRwfGH6UXmBWjxOYYA_HqB3XTHPlWc3Q8krt6EZ9CRLhebl0PGq-sEIcCcR3-IQNGQCsvI8C2mDL4KQoFc1NhywWNNIzYXWXbSsogwuF_vIQNEnk_hTNRsfC9b6S-jkayKebaE/s400/ireland+175.jpg)
The Soundtrack: The clickity-clack of a different set of keys, as Hoosband finalizes an essay for application to a place where smart people go, and I divert myself with writing so as not to disturb him.
On The Stove-top: Stuffed so fully with raw oysters, crab cakes, alligator, conch fritters, grilled scallops, salad, and key-lime pie that I can't lift a finger to cook.
The Scenario: Wrapping up the Ireland saga, slowly but surely.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHgTu2kUW6Hh5Liyk_7-40MvpMrcr8d_fmjPLVd0O0v2kYfPQDwfbkSLjvMMK2aKEZtgEbTOM730UJ4QMjjS9H4WVjdwYVFFxjj93j648H78Cu2Jk6EJDyVsCHseqiS3nlQjVjc1Kza_Ny/s400/Copy+of+ireland+150.jpg)
One part Tiger Woods and one part tigers in the woods, the private island features three top-notch golf courses, a free-range zoo, and Ireland's premier cheetah run.
The hotel is fire and ice, light and earth and water. Stacked-stone walls and mammoth windows make you feel at once outside and in, adventurous but comfy.
To further aid your relaxation, the shimmery, trance-inducing spa features more than 60 treatments, from hydrotherapy to seductive chocolate body scrubs to signature caviar facials.
I checked into my room, peered peacefully out my window at the expansive rolling hills, and plopped onto the bed, sinking blissfully into the plush comforter for a brief perusal of the spa menu and a briefer attempt at napping before the alarm went off to dress for dinner.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglRx5xEQ3dILPtPZVk-i0NiSFIfpW6WJ0f0LUIlA4YfH3tiVyOj1ezr0PBvYVTsNpO9jPHRufhLz-0dZGwSCYieFBjEFOHrG8942dmwGZqrh5gW6ecq2NcAIQzOI7dVt4i1sqfRxuBZ7Pj/s400/ireland+154.jpg)
Tuesday, September 14, 2010, it would serve as the setting for one of the best meals of my life.
We were welcomed with bright and whimsical sloe-berry martinis made from sloe berries from the garden and shaken by Justin Green, the hospitable head-proprietor.
Martinis were followed by family-sized platters of homemade gravelox with cucumbers and mustard sauce. Resident chef Teena Mahon uses only locally-sourced fare for her incredible and sensual feasts, most ingredients coming exclusively from County Cork, and many from the Ballyvolane property directly.
The beautifully watermelon-hued salmon, caught by Mr. Green on the River Blackwater on the edge of Ballyvolane, melted in my mouth like velvety, briny butter.
Warm potato-leek soup in adorable miniature mugs was the perfect partner for the tender and crumbly brown soda bread I considered stuffing in my purse before determining instead to increase the amount I stuffed in my face.
When a platter of twice-baked Dubliner cheese souffles--saucy, delicate, creamy puffs of perfection--was placed before me, I had to close my eyes to keep them from rolling back in my head and bite my tongue to keep myself from releasing the inappropriately pornographic sigh of ecstasy I knew was imminent.
Lamb with a mint-and-mustard-seed salsa verde was accompanied by sweet and savory sauteed leeks, cut on the bias in a manner I had never seen and cooked more perfectly than I could ever have imagined a leek could be cooked.
Back at the Fota Island Hotel, I slept very, very well, if very, very briefly.
Desserts were an amazing sort of free-form, panna-cotta-esque, lemon custard-mousse with fresh blueberries, and, perhaps the grandest revelation of the night, brown-bread ice-cream with sugar cookies.
Back at the Fota Island Hotel, I slept very, very well, if very, very briefly.
No comments:
Post a Comment