This large modern Dublin hotels located just outside Castleknock Village and, with its own 18-hole golf course, extensive conference facilities and countryside views, it makes a pleasant base for both business and leisure guests.
Smartly decorated and stylishly comfortable public areas include a large lobby that is popular for informal meetings and Afternoon Tea (2-4pm daily), and a laid-back barbecue area that is also available as a venue.
Spacious, comfortably furnished bedrooms are not over-decorated and have cable TV, radio, complimentary Wi-Fi, in-room safe, tea and coffee hospitality tray and trouser press as standard, and all bathrooms have separate bath and walk-in shower.
Non-smoking bedrooms are available on request (subject to availability), and there are also some interconnecting rooms and 20 designed especially for families. Its location beside the Phoenix Park and recent upgrades to the family facilities have made the Castleknock Hotel a destinaton of choice for families visiting Dublin.
Spacious family bedrooms have two double beds and a mini fridge, and many also offer premium sports channels as standard and SMART TVs. Interconnecting bedrooms include a double bed in one room and two single beds in the adjoining room.
There's an outdoor children's playground next to the hotel's permanent barbecue area and, during school holidays, there's also an indoors kids playrooms. Bikes from Bike2U.ie are available through the hotel and, from January 2018, the Tonic Health & Day Spa offers full faciities including a pool, gym and day spa - and, of course, there is an 18 hole golf course on the doorstep.
The hotel offers formal evening dining in the Earth & Vine Restaurant (see below), and an informal option in The Lobby Patisserie.
Earth & Vine Restaurant
A large room with floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides overlooking the outdoor seating area and mature trees, this attractive restaurant is decorated in shades of brown, with mock shutters separating the windows. It’s smartly set up with comfortable chairs and sofas; polished wooden tables have a soft blue-green runner and good cutlery and glasses are set off by a lighted candle.
In the evening, Earth and Vine offers accomplished rustic cooking in the atmosphere of an independent restaurant rather than an hotel dining room and the farm to fork concept means the majority of ingredients are sourced in the surrounding 20km.
With half a dozen dishes on each course – seven on the mains – and with one interesting vegetarian choice, the dinner menu offers adventurous choices.
Enticing starters include crispy house ham hock with Clonakilty black pudding, green apple, cider jelly and baby gem and Mulhuddart beef fillet carpaccio with barbecued smoked bacon, Bluebell Falls honey and thyme cheese, air dried Parmesan and smoked hazelnut.
Mains offer equally strong choices, including slow cooked smoked lamb shank, served with smoked tomato, silver onion, sweet potato, mint, and yoghurt and Sous Vide Skeganore Duck breast with bitter orange and apricot, kirsch, morell mushroom, fig, gooseberry purée, pistachio and bigarade sauce.
While refined, this is hearty fare nevertheless - and you’ll need to leave space for dessert. A meal here wouldn't be complete without something from a range of temptations - roast raspberry parfait served with tomato and basil sorbet, and a meringue slice, or perhaps the dramatically presented dark Callebaut chocolate and orange mousse, Mascarpone curd, roasted hazelnut ice-cream, honeycomb and blood orange - this arrives to the table covered with a glass, which, when removed, releases the smoke and an evocative aroma of peat.
Everything is perfectly cooked, beautifully presented and full of flavour and this, together with excellent service and a good wine list, makes for a top class dining experience in this pleasing restaurant.
