Hillyard House - Where The Mountains Of Mourne Sweep Down To The Inn

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Where The Mountains Of Mourne Sweep Down To The Inn

In the wake of a summer where staycations became the norm for many (...but not all), we’ve all learnt a bit more about the towns, villages and countryside that surrounds us here in Northern Ireland. But even for those of us who think we’ve been there and done that, there are still little surprises lurking out there.

Take Castlewellan. It’s a place we hadn’t been to in many long years, tending instead to head on down the road to the bright lights and fleshpots of Newcastle.

What we didn’t reckon on were the hidden delights of Hillyard House, a new hotel in the centre of Castlewellan village and right outside the entrance gates to another joy that we’d forgotten about – Castlewellan Forest Park.

In case any of you haven’t been there for a while, or haven’t been at all, the Forest Park is simply stunning, perhaps even better at this time of the year, the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, as John Keats described it.

If you’re there, take a walk around its lake, enjoy the trees, and castle, the hills and all that the park can offer. But, if you decide to stay, make a bee line for Hillyard House.

Opened during the pandemic, it’s never had a chance to operate without some form of restrictions and it’s faced lengthy periods of closure. But this is a place that puts the ‘h’ into hospitality, a place that makes you feel welcome and a place that you won’t want to leave.

Developed by local businessmen on the site of a former town hostel in the centre of the village (there’s plenty of parking outside the door and around the area), it’s not big – it has 20 guest rooms – but it’s very good at what it does.

Let’s start with the rooms. Our’s looked out over the main street towards the splendour of the Mournes. It was spacious, individually styled, meticulously clean and, perhaps more importantly of all, very comfortable.

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Multiple award-winning chef, Will Brown, has worked under Marco Pierre White, Paul Rankin and Gordon Ramsay’s Maze to name just a few.

I know that a room must be ultra comfortable when I struggle to get down for breakfast, such as the allure of an Ulster fry in normal circumstances. But it will come as no surprise to learn that the fry won the argument, and it was well worth it. A mini version it might have been (we’re not at young as we used to be....) but it set us both up nicely for a decent walk into the park after breakfast.

But we’d arrived in Castlewellan the previous afternoon, checking in to our room before taking a walk around the area. In the interests of journalistic research, though, we had to check out the wining and dining facilites.

And, whilst its guest rooms might be relaxing and comfortable, this is where Hillyard House transforms itself from a hotel nto something just a little bit special. First up, there’s the staff. To man, woman, boy and girl – they all seemed young to us – they exude an easy friendliness and a welcome informality.

The hotel’s bar is called Mrs. Coleman’s. It’s a lovely space, complete with a mezzanine floor for those who want to be far from the madding crowd (not that there is any...) adorned with lots of fascinating old photographs depicting local scenes and local characters.

But the bar itself is huge and that’s exactly how it should be. What’s more, it’s well stocked and it’s staffed by the kind of barmen who know what they’re doing and how to do it. As any seasoned drinker will tell you, that’s not desirable. It’s essential.

We ventured out after dinner to sample the bars of downtown Castlewellan but, with no disrespect to them, we found ourselves back in the professional warmth of Mrs. Coleman’s.

And what about that dinner. The Yard Restaurant, built on the site of what used to be the yard at the back of the old house, has become something of a destination in itself for those lucky enough to live in the area.

It’s led by Head Chef Will Brown, a man who has juggled saucepans at Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White restaurants in London as well as presiding over the Old Schoolhouse up the road in Comber.

The Yard is a bright, airy space designed with the same attention to design detail that seems to have been applied throughout Hillyard House. But it doesn’t matter how attractive a restaurant space is. It’s all about the grub. And The Yard doesn’t disappoint.

Local produce, perhaps not surprisingly, features heavily. And it doesn’t come much more local than the tomatoes from the gardens of Castlewellan that feature in one of the starters. Or there are Dundrum Bay Mussels from a few miles down the road on the coast, Comber potatoes and, for a fascinating taste combination, the pairing of black pudding and rhubarb. Great steaks, too, for those of us who tend to err on the traditional side.

A couple of nights here and you’ll come home relaxed and refreshed. You might have a couple of ounces to shed during the working week, but you’ll not mind one bit.