Mustard Seed at Echo Lodge

Mustard Seed at Echo Lodge Review

This is the small country hotel of your dreams: a Victorian yellow-stucco jewel set atop a small hill overlooking Ballingarry, the Irish equivalent of la France profonde—a village that time forgot, deep in rural Ireland, redolent of the days of yore, yet only 13 km (8 mi) southwest of Adare. And if you take the trouble of getting off the beaten tourist trail here, you'll be rewarded by being pampered. Owner Dan Mullane has decorated what was once the parish priest's imposing house with flair and wit, placing Chinese inlaid lacquer cabinets and Georgian satinwood wardrobes in the beautifully furnished bedrooms. But for all its finery, this is a fun, down-to-earth place. Much of the food served in the restaurant is grown in the 7 acres of gardens, so the kids can have fun collecting eggs for tomorrow's breakfast.