Patsey Murphyvisits the Step House Hotel in Co Carlow
ANDREW AND TINA Kavanagh, descendants of the MacMurrough Kavanaghs, ancient kings of Leinster, have flung open the gates of Borris House this weekend as Blackstairs Opera presents Rimsky-Korsakov's Mozart & Salieriand Puccini's Gianni Schicchiin a marquee plonked in the middle of the gardens.
If you haven't been to a country-house opera before, you don't know what you're missing. "It takes a special person to outsing a storm," wrote James Davy of the 2006 production of La Bohème, sung in the teeth of a gale. "Another challenging night weather-wise for the Marriage of Figaro," wrote Imelda Lambe in a letter to Blackstairs Opera in August 2007. Wild weather only heightens the atmosphere at these gala events, which resemble nothing so much as a children's party, where everyone has attacked the dressing-up box. Fine weather? A welcome but completely unexpected bonus.
This corner of Carlow, along the slow-moving River Barrow, is utterly charming and, in high summer, abundantly green. There are waterway walks and forest trails, barges to hire and gardens to visit. After a wander around Altamont Gardens last weekend we came to a halt in Borris, a perfectly unspoilt Georgian town beneath the curve of the Blackstairs Mountains. In addition to the Big House, complete with its own chapel and family lore, the town is graced with a 16-arch viaduct, cut-stone buildings and, not least, Joyce's Pub, where you can hear the clock, rather than the television, ticking. It's a reassuringly solid town; here, the global credit crunch seems very far away.
At the top of the town is the Step House Hotel, owned by Cait and James Coady, who also own Tynan's Bridge House Bar in Kilkenny. The original Georgian house was their family home, which Cait ran as a guest house for 15 years. Now they're developing it into a boutique hotel, with good-sized, handsomely furnished rooms, many along a curved terrace overlooking the mountains. The gardens, restaurant and residents' bar are still under construction but the bright banquet hall was ready for the wedding season and just in time for the parish social.
Cait Coady is an indefatigable woman. She and James have raised eight children between them, including their gifted chef, Alan Coady, who trained at Chapter One in Dublin. Thus even soup and sandwiches are a feast in the 1808 Lounge, and reasonably priced, too, with a full dinner menu available from 6pm. He'll be providing posh picnic fare for opera-goers this weekend. We arrived in time to watch the European Championship final and to console some dispirited but resigned Germans as the Spaniards won the day. The 1808 is a comfortable room divided by a bar within a square, which makes conversation easy. Or you can sit away from the TV crowd beside a 200-year-old fireplace made of Kilkenny marble.
Our room on the first floor had an enormous bed and French doors opening out towards Mount Leinster. A fine cabinet-maker has been at work here; there is great detail in everything from the doors to the radiator covers and cupboards, with a cream and gold colour scheme warmly applied to painted furniture, upholstery and silk drapes. Very inviting and quite a treasure for only €65 per person.
The bathrooms are generous, with a shower separate from the bath and floors and walls clad in marble. Gilbert & Soames toiletries and complimentary bottles of water are supplied. There's soft lighting, too, and heating you can regulate.
I had a peek at the penthouse in the morning, which has a great view of the Blackstairs and its own bar and two fireplaces. A muralist arrived to decorate the walls of the wine bar and restaurant in the basement of the original house. All hands on deck - they hope to be finished by the autumn.
Staff are friendly and eager to please, and breakfast, back in the 1808, was freshly cooked to order with excellent home-baked breads.
• Tonight is the second performance of the opera programme. Guests can bring their own picnics or pay for shelter in the garden picnic marquee or ballroom. Tomorrow families are welcome from 2.30pm to 5pm, and from 7.30pm there will be traditional Irish music
WhereStep House Hotel and Restaurant, Main Street, Borris, Co Carlow, 059-9773209 www.stephousehotel.ie.
WhatBoutique hotel evolving from a former family home and B&B at the top of unspoilt Georgian town.
Rooms19 bedrooms (ask for room overlooking the Blackstairs Mountains), plus one penthouse. Garden-level function room seats about 180.
Best rates€65 per person, including breakfast.
RestaurantAlan Coady is a chef to watch; he has designed the kitchen to cater for both functions and hotel guests. Excellent bar food if you are passing along the garden/walking/golfing/fishing trail.
ChildfriendlinessChildren welcome but it's more of a quiet getaway.
AccessOne bedroom on the first floor, opposite the lift, fitted for special needs.
AmenitiesWalks along the Barrow; Barrowline barges; Borris House desmesne (groups of 10 can visit); Carlow Garden Trail, including Altamont and herb garden at Kilgraney nearby; Kilkenny crafts trail, Graiguenamanagh.