Another stellar experience and grounds. What a special place! We were greeted by one of the family members who gave us tea, coffee, and a pear tart that was delicious. We then took a quick tour of the gardens. We could have spent hours walking the property. Gorgeous!! The highlight was a room with walls covered with shells, each child had an initial. It was an amazing work of art. Then Richard and Liv taught us how to make soda bread, garlic aohli, pea soup, roasted & tomatoes, charred chicken, and new potatoes. It was so much fun, Richard was funny, helpful, and patient. Then we sat down and they served us the food, which was the best! If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend taking a class or at least checking out the gardens. Everything we ate was from the property. Fresh, delicious, and so much fun. read more

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We were unsure what this place was going to be about, but from all the vacations that I have taken, we actually got to participate in the cooking. We were in the class with 12 week students so they were watching a demonstration just like we were. WhileI learned a lot, there was nothing hands-on, and they were a couple of students in the back who were constantly talking, which distracted us. I wish we would've gotten there earlier to tour the gardens and the farm, perhaps this may have made us a little more happy with the experience. Don't get us wrong, the people are very friendly and welcoming, and are very excited to have guest, but just sitting there for almost 5 hours, wasn't our cup of tea. We actually left at the break which was late, but we were OK with that. We snuck out and noticed. read more

Ballymaloe Cookery School Gardens - Students and chefs - Botanical Gardens Near Me

BALLYMALOE COOKERY SCHOOL GARDENS Made a very enjoyable visit this week to the Ballymaloe Cookery School Gardens (and Farm Shop). Arches of traditional varieties of apple, with a few hens and cocks resting and scratching, lead you on the way. Highlights for me were the Herb Garden and the Herbaceous Border. Other gardens are the vegetable garden, the fantastic Maze (planted in 1996) and the Pleasure Garden (with trees, bigger shrubs and a pond with fountain). There are over 70 varieties of herbs in the garden, laid out in a formal parterre edged with box hedges. Plenty of fresh herbs then for Ballymaloe House and Cafe but it was an old-timer Sage that caught my eye. This knurled specimen must have been over twenty years old. The herbaceous Border is almost worth the €6.50 entrance fee on its own. Planted in 1996, it has thrived here, though not without a great deal of care and attention. Here, deep borders of fabulous perennials and grasses make it one of the very best of its type. At the end of the border is the Shell House, with shell decoration by artist Blott Kerr-Wilson. Unfortunately, the door was bolted and I had to peer through the glass. I forgot to ask on the way out about the closure (temporary or permanent). Did call to the shop and picked up a few of Darina Allen's products. Disappointingly, while the gardens belong to the famous cooking school, there is no cafe in this location, that being a mile or two away alongside Ballymaloe House. The entrance to the gardens is via the road opposite the church in Shanagarry. All the details at http://www.cookingisfun.ie read more

Ballymaloe Cookery School Gardens - Botanical Gardens Near Me

This was the highlight of our two-week long holiday in Ireland. The ornamental gardens are so lovely and the staff is super friendly in helping to understand how the working garden is managed to support the cookery and other local businesses. If you love "working gardens" not just ornamental gardens, this is a must see. Also, be sure to sign up for afternoon demonstrations at the Cookery School. This turned out to be 3 hours of intense instruction in the preparation of about 15 different dishes by a world-class chef. read more

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Gooseberry jam, oh my! Charming, authentic, the real deal. Highly recommend. Get the biscuits and jam and walk it off later. It's worth it.

Nice place to visit when in the area.the gardens are nice to see.it also has a lot of animals etc.the house and the cooking school are in two different areas. read more

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